A lengthy series of disciplinary hearings for officer Regina
Tasca, who is fighting to keep her job after over a year of suspension, ended
with a psychiatrist testifying that the veteran cop was fit for duty, according to a report on NorthJersey.com.
But that testimony contradicts an earlier finding by a
doctor commissioned by the borough to perform an evaluation, which found her
unfit for duty, leading the department to seek her dismissal.
Tasca has been accused of dereliction of duty and a host of
other charges stemming from two incidents in April of 2011. In the first, her
partner claimed she did not assist him as he was assaulted by a drunken woman
outside a Bergen County hospital.
In the second incident, caught on camera and subject to much
scrutiny during the proceedings, Tasca intervened when two Ridgefield Park
officers subdued an emotionally disturbed man. Tasca and her attorney claim the
Ridgefield Park officers, who were responding to a mutual aid call, acted
inappropriately, tackling the man and punching him in the head in the struggle.
The borough is seeking to dismiss Tasca on the grounds that
a psychological evaluation, ordered after the second incident, found her unfit
for duty. The defense brought its own expert in for testimony this week to
dispute that finding, The Record reported.
Tasca told NJ.com in April that she was being targeted
for "crossing the thin blue line."
Tasca, who is gay and the only woman on the force, is suing the department for harassment and
discrimination.