Another legal settlement involving Lawnside ex-cop

LAWNSIDE – The borough of Lawnside, which recently paid $740,000 to end a tavern owner's lawsuit, also reached a $150,000 settlement with a policewoman named in that suit, records show.

The agreement with Carmen Colon provided cash and other benefits in exchange for her resignation from Lawnside's police department.

Colon sued the borough in October 2011, asserting in part she had been "knowingly and intentionally" underpaid. Separately, she was a defendant with the borough in a December 2011 lawsuit that claimed Colon had harassed patrons of the former White Horse Martini Bar in Lawnside.

In the harassment suit, tavern owner Carl Pearson contended Colon stationed her patrol car outside his bar and ticketed dozens of legally parked vehicles.

According to the suit, Colon declined a bribe during a sting operation in the tavern's parking lot but allegedly lied about the incident to investigators.

The borough agreed to pay almost $1 million through an insurer to end both lawsuits. It admitted no liability in either case.

A federal judge in Camden dismissed Pearson's suit Jan. 13. The Courier-Post obtained the settlement last month through a public-records request.

The agreement with Colon was reached in February 2013, after she "threatened" to name additional parties and assert additional causes of action, the settlement notes. It became known Monday through a public records request by activist John Paff of Somerset.

In exchange for Colon's resignation, the borough dismissed charges alleging she filed a false report and tampered with public records during an incident at the White Horse Pike tavern.

The borough's payment to Colon included legal fees and funds representing "compensatory non-wage damages" and back wages, the settlement said.

The borough also agreed to give Colon "a retirement badge and ID," signifying she left the department on good terms, and to provide a neutral reference to potential employers.

Attorneys for Colon and the borough declined to comment.

Another federal lawsuit is pending against Colon, this one brought in September 2012 by a Lawnside woman who claims she was assaulted and wrongly arrested by the officer during a traffic stop.

That suit asserts Lawnside hired Colon after receiving records that showed she'd been fired by the Camden Police Department due to administrative charges of conduct unbecoming a public employee and for breaking department rules.

Reach Jim Walsh at jwalsh@courierpostonline.com or (856) 486-2646. Follow him on Twitter @jimwalsh_cp