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A parent and former police officer in Guilford, William Maisano, just got arrested for allegedly making a threat to a Guilford Public Schools official over a teacher’s anticipated display of LGBTQ pride at high school graduation.
The parent had heard that a teacher, Regina Sullivan, was planning to dye her hair with a “rainbow Pride” stripe especially for graduation. Sullivan is the president of the local GEA teachers union, which is part of Connecticut Education Association (CEA). She is also the advisor to the school's Gender Sexualities Alliance (GSA) Club.
Maisano was upset about Sullivan's alleged plan to "hijack graduation" in order to make her own personal political statement when he felt the day should be about the graduating seniors.
In an email to Guilford High School Principal Julia Chaffe, Maisano said, “I am told that Regina Sullivan has seen fit to dye her hair in Pride colors for graduation. I didn’t say a word last year. I’m telling you right now, if I see her dragging her personal politics and sexual preferences into this event there is going to be hell to pay. As a teacher, by law, she will be crossing the line, and so will the school by not shutting this down.”
As soon as Chaffe received the email, she contacted police.
Sullivan told Guilford police that she had “prior run-ins” with Maisano, who has filed Freedom of Information Act Requests in order to obtain more information about the GSA club’s fundraising activities. In one of the uncovered emails from June 2022, CEA President Kate Dias, who uses she/her/hers pronouns in her email signature, wrote ironically about Maisano, saying “oh man - his agenda is pretty transparent. So what does he really want - just to disrupt DEI work?”
Meanwhile, Guilford Police Sgt. Martina Jakober advised Maisano to clarify the intention behind his email in light of rising tensions over threats made to public officials.
Maisano told police that he never intended his email to be a threat of violence, but he feels incredibly frustrated by the increasingly political agenda being promoted in Guilford Schools. He immediately obliged with the sergeant’s suggestion, and emailed a clarification to the school.
“My phrasing was meant as a statement that if she were allowed to make graduation about herself, then I would respond. Not with violence but with media exposure. A faculty member is being allowed to hijack what should be a day just for students. The fact that Regina can’t put aside her politics and sexual preferences for an afternoon should be concerning. No other teacher would behave this way. That was my only point and I am disappointed that you couldn’t recognize that. Unless one of my kids is graduating I don’t even go. For the record, the only violence in Guilford has been committed against people like me and my family. But I think you knew that.”
Maisano was released on a promise to appear and is scheduled to be arraigned at state Superior Court in New Haven on July 19.
Sullivan ended up dying her hair, as planned.
Now he’s facing up to five years in prison because prosecutors added a Class D felony threatening charge on top of the original misdemeanor breach of peace charge.
Connecticut Inside Investigator spoke with free speech attorney Mario Cerame about Maisano’s conviction. He thought it was “absurd” and felt that the euphemism didn’t indicate a specific threat.
“This isn’t even a close question, this is basic First Amendment law,” Cerame told CII. “This cannot stand. This is not okay. It’s obvious viewpoint discrimination.”
Cerame referenced the Connecticut case State v. Krijger in which defendant, Watertown resident Stephen Krijger, was arrested for threatening town attorney Nicholas Kepple.
But it ultimately wasn’t deemed a “true threat”.
“If Kreiger came out as not a true threat, it’s very difficult for me to understand how [Maisano] could possibly be a true threat,” Cerame told CII.
Law Enforcement Today spoke to attorney Todd Callender who believes Maisano “got the shaft” from the Guilford Police Department and the court.
“The cops, town, and court knew there was no Articulable Reasonable Suspicion to even investigate such a broadly-worded statement–yet they sent their message, and I’m astounded that a jury even heard that case,” Callender said. “It should have been dismissed by the judge before jury selection. THAT goes to show you how horribly corrupt these institutions are and corrupted the minds are that conceived such a plan.”
That reminds us about the foul-mouthed teacher from Cheshire who said that Trump supporters should "no longer be safe" in America immediately after Trump won the election last month.
Cheshire Police investigated her and decided not to charge her because her comment apparently wasn’t viewed as a “true threat.”
In fact, she was even given a softball of an interview and an opportunity to apologize to people on television.
But not Maisano, even though he immediately clarified his statement to the school, confirming he had no intention of violence.
Yet now he finds himself in a really tough spot, with sentencing scheduled for December 12th.
Maisano maintains he did nothing wrong, and believes he is being targeted over of his vocal opposition to the woke agenda in Guilford Schools and his pending class action lawsuit against the Guilford BOE and certain district officials.
By the way, since it’s Giving Tuesday, please consider helping to support Maisano’s appeal. He would be ever so grateful for your support.
