Statement of John Lugo for Internal Ethics and Values of New Haven Police Dept.

In reference to police report #80196

On December 31 at 12:00 pm. I was one of the organizers for the New Haven Workers
Association picket line against Goodfellas café, located at 759 State Street. We have a complaint
against this restaurant for their continuous practice of not paying their workers.

This was the second time that we organized this type of action against this particular place.
On December 31, 2010, we were doing our picket line and 15 minutes later a few police officers
from the NHPD show up in several cars including a Van.

Sargent Anastasio (shield #403) and Officer Morris (shield #71) approached us and ask to
stop our action. Sgt Anastasio ask for the person in charge and I replied that I was one of the
organizers. Then he told me: “Lugo, let me speak with you.”

He called me aside and asked me what was going on. I explained to him our reason for doing the
demonstration, and he stated that we already did make our point on the previous demonstration
two weeks before. I explained that our group decided to hold this demonstration every week,
because the owner of Goodfellas is a continuous violator of the labor laws in New Haven and
currently owes four workers more than $23,000 and has ignored our request for these unpaid
wages.

Then, Sgt Anastasio stated that if we continued doing this type of action that would destroy
business and that would not be good for either the workers or the owners. He stated that he was
ready to arrest us, but because we were behaving well he would not arrest us, but he was going to
write a report.

He asked me to tell everybody to give him our names, addresses and phone numbers. He then
stated that the owners of businesses of New Haven could create blacklist with our names and
the worker’s names, and pass around this blacklist to other business owners so that workers who
complained would be hired by no restaurants or businesses in New Haven. I replied that this
sounded like a threat. He said that he was not threatening us, he was just saying that owners can
get a copy of the police report through a Freedom of Information request and could use it against
us. I said nothing but I was scared and disappointed that Sgt. Anastasio was telling me this,
because it is his job to maintain public safety no to imply a threat against New Haven residents.

Also, the threat that he would arrest us the next time we appeared at the restaurant had no basis
in the law. We were six people doing a quiet picket without blocking the sidewalk or business
entrances. When we went to City Hall to inquire if we needed a permit, the City replied that we
did not need a permit to have a moving picket line on the sidewalk.

When Sgt. Anastasio took the names, phone numbers and addresses of the protesters, threatened
us with arrest although he had no legal basis, and made comments about a blacklist, he made
it impossible for some protesters to return because they fear what the police officers will do.
This infringes on our First Amendment right to peacefully assemble in a public place. This
intimidation has no place in our democracy. It should not be the job of New Haven police to
suppress dissent.