The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has dropped its probe of three complaints against the Woodstock Police Department and the town, and forwarded the remaining two cases to the state Division of Human Rights. As the names were by law redacted, it is unclear which investigations were dropped and which were forwarded to the state.
The complaints alleged part-time officer Phil Sinagra made several threatening and sexual comments about officer Gabriella Lalima, expressing his desire to “hate-fuck” and “skull-fuck” her and wanting to see her naked in the locker room. Sinagra has been on paid administrative leave since May 2023 for a different matter.
The town allegedly retaliated against officer Brian Williams for complaining about Sinagra’s behavior. It was charged with failing to provide Williams backup and forcing him to work alongside Sinagra, according to the complaints.
The complaints alleged the town retaliated against dispatcher Michelle Sullivan by disciplining her for a disagreement she had with officer Lalima. Sullivan eventually resigned from the department.
Sinagra was a common thread in the complaints, and Sullivan reported hearing him refer to an African-American officer as a “niglet.” He allegedly asked another officer to participate in an “Eiffel Tower,” a sexual position involving three people.
Chief Clayton Keefe retaliated against sergeant Adam McGrath by threatening a lawsuit and negative impacts on his career, the complaints alleged.
Town supervisor Bill McKenna’s internal investigation in June 2022 did not find a culture of racism and misogyny as alleged by the complainants. Though a series of questions guided by town labor consultant Michael Richardson, the internal probe found inappropriate comments were made, and the officer, identified only as “Officer A,” was disciplined.
The internal probe also resulted in disciplinary action for a fight between “Officer A” and “Officer C.”
In response to comments that Keefe allegedly made about Tiffany Crozier pumping breast milk, the chief denied they were of a harassing nature.
“The Town of Woodstock fully supports a woman’s right to breast-feed or pump anywhere. We have and will continue to provide a private location should the mother wish one,” McKenna wrote in the internal report.
The internal probe was consistent with town policy, which requires all complaints to be handled by the supervisor’s office. However, the EEOC complaints allege that the in-house investigation was not sufficient. Union attorney Susan Edwards said she asked in May 2022 that the town commission an independent investigation, but instead it was handled by McKenna.
“Unfortunately, the investigation undertaken by town supervisor Bill McKenna was inadequate and failed to address the major issues in the Department,” Edwards wrote in the EEOC complaint in May 2023. “Prior to and during the internal investigation in June of 2022, the town has been put on notice on multiple occasions that officer Phil Sinagra was responsible for many of racist and misogynistic comments impacting other employees.”
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