NEWBURY — Town Administrator Tracy Blais has confirmed the town will be receiving $70,000 in the next few weeks as part of a $250,000 settlement reached by former Newbury police officer Daniel Cena and the Neptune Club in Newburyport.
Cena, who is now a sergeant with the West Newbury Department, reached a settlement with the club in October related to a 2007 car crash that left Cena badly injured. Cena suffered two broken bones in his leg and was forced to miss more than 15 months of work after a drunken Rowley man who had been served liquor at the club slammed into his cruiser. By the time he returned to active duty in June 2008, he had transferred to the West Newbury Police Department, filling a vacant sergeant position.
The club, operated by the Neptune Veteran Firemen's Association, initially indicated it would pay within a month, but with February approaching, Cena has yet to be paid. In late December, Cena went back to court to force the club to pay the money, and Judge Maynard Kirpalani issued the order giving the club one month to come up with the payment.
Cena, the brother of World Wrestling Entertainment wrestler John Cena, originally sued the Neptune Veteran Firemen's Association for $500,000, claiming it was negligent when it over-served Rowley resident Robert Nolan, who slammed into the officer's cruiser on Route 1 in Newbury in February 2007. Nolan eventually pleaded guilty to drunken driving charges and recklessly and negligently causing serious bodily injury.
Blais said she was told by town attorney John Bowman that he spoke to Cena's attorney, Jason Ranallo, and confirmed the town would soon be receiving the money. The $70,000 represents a good chunk of the roughly $110,000 the town spent to cover Cena's medical bills and other expenses as required when an officer is injured on duty. A call to Ranallo to confirm the conversation with Bowman was not returned.
"It's certainly positive news for us," Blais said.
With the town forced in recent months to whittle down the number of public employees and slash the budgets of multiple departments, such an influx of cash may seem to some as a way to reverse some of those losses. But Blais said the town will have no choice but to put the money into the town's coffers.
By law, the proceeds from the settlement will be put into the town's general fund that could only be touched if approved by voters at a future Town Meeting. Blais added the settlement funds would be classified as unexpected revenue and would be considered a component of the town's free cash total for next fiscal year.
As part of the settlement reached in Newburyport Superior Court, the Neptune Veteran Firemen's Association avoided any admission of wrongdoing, responsibility or liability in terms of the incident. The Neptune Club is one of four private clubs in Newburyport, the others being the North End Boat Club, the Elks Club and the Dalton Club.
Cena joined the West Newbury police force as a dispatcher at age 19. He eventually earned a criminal justice degree from UMass Lowell and became a reserve police officer in 2003. He joined the Newbury Police Department in 2003 and then returned to the West Newbury Police Department in 2008.
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