Frederick maselli nypd officer picture, shot Shirley Fontanez with Glock handgun
The orphan daughter of a teen mother who was murdered by her cop ex-boyfriend in a murder-suicide will earn $1 million from the county.
According to the Daily News, the city has paid $1.15 million to settle a case arising from the murder of a teen mother who was fatally shot in bed by her 40-year-old NYPD cop boyfriend, who then committed suicide.
Shirley Fontanez was shot five times in July 2007 by Police Officer Frederick Maselli, who was armed with a Glock service pistol.
Fontanez, who was 18 at the time of her death, reportedly started dating the cop when she was 16.
When Fontanez's daughter, who is now 12, reaches maturity, the payout will be made to her. Maselli was not the girl's biological father.
"The resolution of this unfortunate case was just and in the best interests of the community," said Nicholas Paolucci, a spokesman for the Law Department.
Fred Lichtmacher, the girl's legal guardian's attorney, refused to comment on the settlement Tuesday.
According to court documents, the teen's mother, family, and friends alleged Maselli's fellow cops at the 34th Precinct in Washington Heights were aware he was dating an underage girl and had dismissed their allegations that he was beating her.
Maria Espinoza, Fontanez's mother, claimed in a sworn affidavit that she learned of Fontanez's illicit relationship with Maselli in 2005 and told the cop's supervisor.
"(The sergeant) replied by denying the allegations and making sexual advances against me," the affidavit said.
The little girl's aunt, Kenia Grano de Oro, testified that she filed at least five reports with the precinct about Maselli beating Fontanez. She says that cops tried to arrest her for disorderly conduct if she did not leave the stationhouse on one occasion.
The lawsuit, filed in Bronx Supreme Court, contended that had the New York Police Department investigated the charges, the murder-suicide may have been avoided.
"I lived adjacent to the (34th Precinct) and witnessed how everyone in the precinct, including the commanding officer, was aware of the immoral relationship between Shirley and Fred but took no action," Fontanez's friend Monica Pineda said in an affidavit.
The suit was originally dismissed by a lower court, but was revived last year by a federal appeals court. The landmark decision stated that the city could be held liable even though Maselli was not on duty at the time of the crime if a jury determined that he was negligently supervised and that the violence was foreseeable.
All of Maselli's coworkers denied being aware of any allegations about him assaulting Fontanez.
Maselli was later accused of having financial difficulties, which may have prompted Fontanez to deposit thousands of dollars in stolen checks in New Jersey.
Prior to her death, Fontanez lost custody of her daughter. The infant is being raised by family at the moment.