New Haven police officer suspended for alleged inappropriate contact with high school student Student, school official complain of inappropriate, sexually suggestive behavior; officer denies allegations

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NEW HAVEN >> A police officer previously assigned to New Horizon School and later suspended for 10 days had begun a pattern of inappropriate behavior shortly after beginning his assignment, including visiting a student at her workplace and sending sexually suggestive texts to the school principal, an internal investigation concluded.

Officer Jeremie Elliott was suspended for 10 days without pay by Interim Police Chief Anthony Campbell and was reassigned this month after an Internal Affairs investigation begun in January concluded Elliott had acted inappropriately toward students and staff at New Horizon School, an alternative school, while working there as a school resource officer. The Internal Affairs report was obtained by the New Haven Register through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Elliott was removed from his school assignment following the start of the IA investigation in January, Officer-in-Charge of Internal Affairs Capt. Anthony Duff confirmed by email. Campbell could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Board of Education Chief Operating Officer William Clark declined comment.

The investigation found Elliott had “sullied” the law enforcement profession for students, staff and administrators at the school with an already vulnerable student population by violating general rules of conduct. His behavior allegedly started shortly after he started his assignment in June 2013.

According to the report, the investigation started in January after an 18-year-old student at New Horizon filed a civilian complaint. During an interview on Jan. 8, investigating officer Sgt. Rose J. Dell said the student told her that on Dec. 14, 2016, she and a friend had been viewing her Facebook page at school. While doing so, Elliott allegedly stood “uncomfortably close” to her and overheard where the student worked.

Later that day, the student said Elliott showed up in full uniform at her workplace while she was alone, greeting her with a hug and kiss on the cheek, which made her uncomfortable, according to the report. The student said Elliott then asked if he could take her home once she was completed with her shift. After the student refused, the student said Elliott asked her to come to his house so he could give her a full-body massage, the report says. The student told police she felt “creeped out” following the encounter. The report said the student began to cry during her interview with the officer about the incident, the IA report says.

Elliott continued contacting the student over the cellphone app Snapchat that same night and for the following few days, asking the student not to tell anyone or he would “get into trouble.” The report said this led to the student deleting the app from her phone. She said Elliott also contacted her through Facebook.

Sgt. Albert McFadden, Elliott’s supervisor, told Dell during a Jan. 12 interview that he had received several complaints about Elliott from New Horizon School Principal Maureen Bransfield, who McFadden said had previously requested a different SRO. Dell interviewed Bransfield Jan. 12. Bransfield told Dell that Elliott had been inappropriate shortly after being assigned at the school. This included sending her “numerous text messages that contained sexually inappropriate content and innuendos,” she told IA. While at first ignoring the messages, Bransfield said she later told Elliott that she was not interested, the report says.

At least two other female school staff members told Bransfield that they had been the target of Elliott’s inappropriate behavior, including one Bransfield said told her she asked Elliott to stop his “sexually unwanted advances.” Bransfield told Dell that she believed Elliott “abused his positional power as a police officer working within a public school.”

Dell asked McFadden to speak to Elliott after the initial complaint was filed. McFadden said Elliott told him he had been instructed not to speak to a student at the school. Elliott said he spoke to many students over social media networks, which McFadden said he believes is an inappropriate way for an SRO to contact a student. He said he also thought it was inappropriate for an SRO to visit a student at the place of employment. Elliott told McFadden he felt talking to the student wasn’t necessarily inappropriate because of her age.

Elliott was interviewed for the investigation on Jan. 18, by Lt. Racheal Cain with Union Attorney Marshall Segar present. He told investigators that he did remember making remarks about the student’s Facebook page in December and that he visited the student’s workplace to purchase an item there. He said he was not wearing his uniform. He acknowledged hugging the student but denied kissing her or offering her a ride or a massage.

Elliott said during his interview that he had given out compliments like “you look nice,” or “your outfit is nice,” but had never asked a female school staff member out on a date. He denied ever having any kind of dating relationships with a student while SRO and said he thought it was OK for an SRO to contact students on social media for personal communication.

Denying he had said or texted anything sexually inappropriate to Bransfield, Elliott also said Bransfield had made inappropriate comments toward him.

Elliott also was found to have violated the city’s computer and hardware policy after using his computer for personal use, which is prohibited. The report found Elliott regularly used the computer to search young women on Facebook and to watch online streaming content.

Reach Esteban L. Hernandez at 203-680-9901.