After nearly eight months of hearings and testimony, a settlement was reached in the termination case against Plainsboro Police Corporal Nicholas Procaccini, just before Procaccini was scheduled to take the stand.
The settlement, which allows Procaccini to retire, was reached just prior to a continuation of the public hearing on June 22.
While the matter was pending, “Procaccini became eligible for his service time retirement in good standing,” said Timothy Smith, Procaccini’s lawyer, who said Procaccini will be retiring after 20 years on the job. “He’s submitted an application for his retirement, and that should be effected in the near future. He will be leaving an employee of the township and pursuing other career endeavors.”
Smith said the details of the settlement, however, are confidential.
“I am very happy to be away from there,” said Procaccini in his only comment to this newspaper.
Said Plainsboro Township Administrator Robert Sheehan: “I can confirm that we’ve come to a settlement with Mr. Procaccini,” but declined any further comment. The police department’s attorney, Arthur Thibault, was unavailable for comment by press time.
The public hearing process began in October. The department was pursuing Procaccini’s termination based on four charges: he was late for duty; he did not follow protocol when making motor vehicle stops; he violated procedure dealing with sick leave; and he violated policy in using the department’s E-mail system.
Procaccini’s attorneys, however, characterized Procaccini, of South Lane in West Windsor, as a whistleblower. He alleges that the charges are for behavior exhibited by many officers in the department and that his client is being targeted as a result of defending another officer whom he says was terminated for filing a sexual harassment complaint.
