Fired Westchester County Cop Claims in Lawsuit He Was Let Go Because He Ticketed Driver Despite Showing a PBA Card
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former Westchester County Cop Joseph Saetta
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By Dan Murphy
Is a PBA Card a Get Out of Jail Free Card? Those of us who are family members of those in law enforcement know the answer to that question. No, it is entirely up to the officer who pulled you over.
A former Westchester County cop is suing the WCPD, Commissioner Terrance Raynor, and Westchester County for wrongful termination following his dismissal from the PBA Card incident, which he claims is why he was let go.
Joseph Saetta, 29, was serving as a probationary Westchester County Police Officer on December 6, 2023, when he pulled over a car in Yonkers. According to the lawsuit, “Saetta pulled over a car that was later determined to be “driven by Corinne Pascariu Costo. The motorist was driving a vehicle with an expired temporary New Jersey license plate. She could not produce a driver’s license, which she claimed was in the trunk.
“After failing to produce a driver’s license, the motorist took out a black leather wallet which contained a small replica police shield, which Officer Saetta knew was usually given by police officers to family and friends, and a “PBA card,” a card issued by a police union to identify friends, family members, or other individuals shown favor by police union members. The motorist identified herself as “a family member.”
“During the traffic stop of Ms. Pascariu-Costo, Petitioner looked at the mini-shield and PBA card, noted to himself that he did not recognize the agency allegedly associated with the PBA card, and returned the wallet to the motorist. When he returned to the patrol car, he did not tell his partner, Officer Chandoo, about it, thinking it was irrelevant and, as stated, within his discretion, how to respond to the motorist. There is a camera mounted on the interior ceiling of the police car that recorded all of the interactions between Chandoo and Petitioner.
“After an investigation, while he was along with the motorist, Petitioner decided to issue a ticket for a single minor traffic infraction and, after obtaining Chandoo’s approval, did so. The entire series of events was captured on Petitioner’s body-worn camera. The Petitioner was courteous to the motorist during the entire interaction.
“Shortly thereafter, Ms. Pascariu-Costo called the desk officer at Petitioner’s command and made a complaint about him. Upon information and belief, Ms. Pascariu-Costo informed the desk officer that she was an attorney and had connections in an out-of-state police department and, therefore, felt that she had been mistreated by Officer Saetta because he had issued her a lawful traffic summons.
“The desk officer on duty at the time did not note the call as an official civilian complaint but notified a superior officer of the call nonetheless. Officer Chandoo was then allegedly asked whether the motorist had shown a PBA card, which Officer Chandoo denied because Officer Chandoo had not been with Saetta as required and had not reviewed Petitioner’s body-worn camera or the in-vehicle camera. Chandoo then asked Petitioner, who confirmed that he believed he had seen a card from an unfamiliar organization.
“On or about December 9, 2023, Officer Chandoo informed Petitioner that Ms. Pascariu-Costo’s complaint had been escalated to DPS upper management and that other officers have been disciplined for “writing over” PBA cards, i.e., issuing tickets to motorists who provide them. Upon information and belief, none of these other officers were probationary, so they could not be summarily fired as Petitioner was.
On December 19, 2023, Petitioner was called into Captain Greer’s office and was told that Commissioner Raynor was reviewing Ms. Pascariu-Costo’s complaint and was deciding whether Petitioner would fail his probation as a result. On December 20, 2023, Petitioner was informed that Raynor had told multiple people, both within and outside the DPS, that the entire issue revolved around Petitioner having written over a PBA card.
“Petitioner was given passing marks of 4 on all evaluation reports, except for the date of the traffic stop in question, where Officer Chandoo’s evaluation for December 6 states, “P.O. Saetta needs to show more discression [sic] and professionalism with dealing with the public. He needs to show more honesty and integrity when dealing with the review of negative incidents and be more fourth [sic] coming when dealing with the public.”
“The Petitioner spoke with his union President and counsel later that day and confirmed that Raynor said that the Petitioner was being terminated for writing over a PBA card and that no one had ever been fired for this previously (possibly because no one else was probationary).
“To add confusion to this matter, perhaps in an attempt to avoid the consequences of his actions, Commissioner Raynor sent a letter to Petitioner on January 22, 2024, that read, in pertinent part:
This communication will confirm that Police Officer Joseph Saetta separated from service with the Westchester County Department of Public Safety effective January 31, 2024. This separation of service was during his probation and was neither a “removal for cause” as such term is defined by 9 NYCRR 6056.2(h) nor a “removal during a probationary period” as such term is defined by 9 NYCRR 6056.2(i).
“Police Officer Saetta has never, during his employment by the Westchester County Department of Public Safety, been the subject of a disciplinary investigation or been the subject of any misconduct, including such misconduct as is described in 9 NYCRR 6056.2(h)(1).
“As such, and according to Commissioner Raynor’s own statements, the Petitioner’s termination was arbitrary, capricious, and in bad faith,” end of lawsuit.
Saetta worked for several police departments before joining the WCPD, including the Mount Vernon Police Department in 2021 and the Pleasantville Police Department in 2022. He was hired on October 30, 2023, but was fired three months later, on January 31, 2024. Saetta lives in Rockland County.
We spoke to Saetta’s attorney, Peter Brill, who said his client was “a probationary employee fired for being discourteous. Now, they are saying that this was bad policing and a bad traffic stop. I have been representing cops for 20 years and understand the idea of police courtesy. But it’s a courtesy and not a policy.”
Everyone should agree on one fact. Officer Saetta was entirely within his rights to issue a ticket if he deemed there was a traffic crime committee. He is entitled to issue the ticket even after seeing a PBA card.
The suit says that Saetta did not recognize the PBA card. The expired license plate was from New Jersey. The driver probably showed Saetta an NJ PBA card, and Saetta did not recognize it.
Saetta alleges that he has been looking for” other jobs in law enforcement in the Westchester County area and beyond following his termination, “Petitioner has been repeatedly turned down and informed that he is being blackballed by his former employer (Respondents),” states the lawsuit.
As a result, he has been unable to obtain employment in his chosen field and is currently working as a security guard.
Brill says nothing else in Saetta’s 3-month-old personnel file warrants his firing. “He’s a young cop, maybe a little gung ho, but there’s nothing wrong with that.”
We spoke to former law enforcement officers in Westchester who did not believe that Saetta would be fired for issuing a ticket after a PBA Card was presented. “That’s not enough; it’s probably something else,” said one retired Westchester cop.
My dad was an NYPD cop, a sergeant, and a lieutenant. He frequently gave me and our family members PBA cards, SBA Cards, and LBA Cards.
I used those cards on more than one occasion, all for minor traffic incidents, such as speeding or making an illegal turn. Sometimes, the officer would let me go with a warning, but other times, I received the ticket and went on my way.
As a longtime member of the Law Enforcement family, I take offense if the allegations in the suit are true with Ms. Pascariu-Costo’s attitude toward office Saetta. Many family members of police officers feel they have a sense of entitlement when they get pulled over. But she took this to another level by calling in the complaint, which eventually got him fired.
If the allegations in this suit are true, that Officer Saetta was fired for denying a PBA card, that is a shame to all of us in the law enforcement family. My dad always said, “Show the officer the card and then leave it up to them.”
Saetta filed a similar suit in 2024, but it was thrown out on a technicality. The new suit was filed on February 22, 2025. In the prior case, Westchester County argued in court last year that the case had no merit. They will likely argue the same this year, with this case likely headed to trial.