The Officer Harassed a Black Man for Washing His Car, Unaware the Man Was His Police Sergeant and His Career Was About to End

He had made assumptions based on race rather than behavior. But the investigation uncovered something much larger than a single incident. Investigators tracked down the nine individuals who had filed previous complaints against Castellano. Eight of them agreed to be interviewed. Their stories were remarkably consistent.

A 45-year-old black attorney named Jerome Buckley described being stopped by Castellano while jogging in a park near his home. Castellano had demanded ID and asked what Buckley was doing in the area. Buckley explained he lived nearby and ran there three times a week. Castellano had made him wait while he ran Buckley’s ID for warrants. There were none.

Castellano let him go without explanation or apology. A 32-year-old Latina small business owner named Elena Fuentes recounted being stopped by Castellano while loading equipment into her van outside her own store. Castellano had accused her of stealing and demanded to see receipts for the equipment. Fuentes owned the store and the equipment was hers. She showed Castellano her business license.

Castellano claimed he was just being thorough. Fuentes filed a complaint. It was marked unfounded. A 19-year-old black college student named Tyrell Washington described being stopped by Castellano while walking home from class at 8:00 p.m. Castellano asked where he was going, where he had been, and why he was in that neighborhood.

Washington explained he was a student who lived three blocks away. Castellano made him empty his backpack on the sidewalk. Washington filed a complaint. It was investigated by Lieutenant Kowalski and dismissed as a lawful investigative stop. The pattern was undeniable.

Castellano consistently stopped people of color in situations that didn’t warrant stops. He consistently demanded identification without legal justification. He consistently assumed people of color were out of place in certain neighborhoods. More importantly, the investigation concluded that Castellano’s nine previous complaints should have been taken more seriously. A pattern review showed that all nine complaints described similar behavior, Castellano assuming people of color didn’t belong in certain neighborhoods, Castellano demanding ID without legal justification, Castellano being aggressive in situations that didn’t warrant aggression.

The investigation also revealed that Lieutenant Kowalski had been deliberately vague in his investigations of Castellano’s complaints. Kowalski’s reports used phrases like “officer was conducting legitimate police work” and “complainant misunderstood standard procedures” without actually examining whether the stops met constitutional standards. In three cases, Kowalski hadn’t even interviewed Castellano before closing the complaint as unfounded. He had simply reviewed Castellano’s incident report and accepted it at face value. In two other cases, Kowalski had interviewed Castellano but hadn’t asked any challenging questions about why the stop was made or whether racial bias might have been a factor.