Officer David Tafur takes the stand in Juan Estrella’s discrimination trial

The discrimination trial of retired Union City Police Officer Juan Estrella against the City of Union City and other defendants has produced some of its most serious testimony yet.

And Superior Court Judge Kalimah Ahmad made the right decision by allowing current Union City Police Officer David Tafur to testify before the jury.

Before Tafur appeared before the jury, Judge Ahmad conducted an evidentiary hearing concerning proposed testimony from Tafur and another officer. She ultimately permitted Tafur to testify while excluding the other officer’s proposed testimony.

That ruling allowed jurors to hear Tafur’s account directly rather than simply hearing what Estrella said Tafur had previously told him.

“I KNOW WHAT I HEARD”

Earlier in the trial, Estrella testified that Tafur told him that former Union City Police Chief Nichelle Luster had referred to Dominicans as “animals” at a Dominican Day Parade.

Then Tafur himself took the witness stand.

According to Hudson County View’s reporting, Tafur testified under oath that he was approximately five feet away from Luster at a Dominican Day Parade before the COVID-19 pandemic when he heard her equate Dominicans with “animals.”

Tafur stood by his recollection:

“I know what I heard.”

He testified that the parade had not yet begun, making it possible for him to hear the remark. He also explained why he did not report it at the time: He was young and did not want to jeopardize his career.

Tafur further testified that hearing such a remark made him wonder what was being said about other Hispanics.

The allegation is disturbing.

If a jury ultimately finds that a person who rose to become Union City’s chief of police made such a statement, Union City residents deserve answers about how someone holding those views could have reached the highest position in their Police Department.

No community—Dominican or otherwise—should be spoken about that way by a public official entrusted with authority over its residents.

THE DISCIPLINE QUESTION JUST GOT BIGGER

Tafur’s testimony was not limited to Luster’s alleged remark.

He also testified about an incident that involved both himself and Estrella.

According to Tafur, the two officers handled the same incident involving a woman who alleged racial bias after receiving a parking ticket. Tafur testified that he received an oral reprimand while Estrella was suspended.

Tafur is Colombian. Estrella is Dominican.

And Tafur told the jury about their conduct:

“He didn’t do anything different.”

That testimony goes directly to an important question raised by Estrella’s case: Was discipline applied consistently?

Estrella contends that his disciplinary history was used against him to deny him promotion to sergeant while non-Dominican officers were treated differently.

Union City disputes that allegation. The defense maintains that Estrella’s disciplinary record legitimately distinguished him from other officers and has argued that progressive discipline explains why Tafur and Estrella received different penalties.

That is precisely why Tafur’s testimony matters. The jury now has a firsthand witness who participated in one of the incidents being used to compare the treatment of the two officers.

UNION CITY KEEPS RETURNING TO ESTRELLA’S DISCIPLINE

Union City’s defense attorney, Phillip Morrow, has repeatedly examined Estrella’s disciplinary history and settlement agreements.

The defense is entitled to present that evidence, particularly because Union City maintains that discipline—not Estrella’s Dominican national origin—explains why he was bypassed for promotion.

But disciplinary history does not answer a separate and deeply troubling question raised by Tafur’s testimony:

Did the future chief of the Union City Police Department actually make the alleged remark about Dominicans?

Whether Estrella had previous discipline cannot determine whether Tafur heard what he says he heard.

And Tafur did not merely repeat a rumor on the witness stand.

According to the reporting, he testified that he was there, approximately five feet away, and personally heard the remark.

That testimony now belongs before the jury alongside the defense’s evidence.

MAYOR BRIAN STACK ALSO HAS QUESTIONS TO ANSWER

Mayor Brian Stack is not merely a spectator in this case. He is a named defendant and also served as Union City’s Director of Public Safety.

Stack previously testified that he relied upon the police chief’s recommendations concerning promotions.

When questioned about what independent review he conducted concerning Estrella, Stack repeatedly emphasized that he followed the chief’s recommendation.

Luster, meanwhile, testified that Stack was ultimately the authority who decided promotions and that she made recommendations.

That creates an obvious question for Union City residents:

Who was actually accountable for making sure promotion decisions were fair?

If the chief made the recommendation and the Public Safety Director routinely followed it, residents have every right to scrutinize how meaningful the oversight really was.

THIS IS WHY TAFUR NEEDED TO TESTIFY

Judge Ahmad’s decision allowed the jury to hear evidence directly from the person who says he witnessed the alleged remark.

That is exactly where this evidence belongs: in the courtroom, under oath, subject to cross-examination and evaluated by the jury.

Tafur was questioned by both sides.

The defense challenged his credibility and brought up that he is currently on restricted duty and has been the subject of an investigation that was referred back to the municipality.

Tafur nevertheless testified that he has no personal financial interest in Estrella’s lawsuit and expects possible retaliation because of his testimony.

ESTRELLA ATTORNEY SPEAKS

As Attorney Yasmin Estrella was exiting the court after Tafur’s testimony, she released a statement to the media stating,

“Well we are hope the jury saw what should have been seen a long time ago. As Officer Tafur testified today, the truth needed to be said and it was said today in court and the jury heard it.”

The media asked the attorney for Estrella,

“what did he say?” Attorney for Estrella responded,

“These Dominicans are animals, this is what…Chief Luster…this is what, the chief of police, former chief of police from Union City thinks about Dominicans. I hope the people of Union City are watching this trial.”

UNION CITY RESIDENTS SHOULD BE PAYING ATTENTION

This case is bigger than whether one retired police officer should have received a sergeant’s promotion.

It raises questions about discipline, promotions, national-origin discrimination, accountability and leadership inside the Union City Police Department.

A current Union City police officer has now testified under oath that a woman who later became the department’s chief made a degrading remark about Dominicans.

That allegation should be condemned, not minimized.

Dominicans make up an important part of Union City and Hudson County. No resident should have to wonder whether the people exercising governmental authority over them harbor contempt for their nationality or ethnicity.

And no amount of discussion about Juan Estrella’s old disciplinary record makes Tafur’s testimony disappear.

The defense has every right to challenge Estrella’s allegations and Tafur’s credibility.

But the public has every right to ask hard questions of former Chief Nichelle Luster, Mayor and Public Safety Director Brian Stack, the Union City Police Department, the City of Union City and the attorneys defending the City’s position.

The jury has not yet rendered its verdict.

But one thing has changed dramatically:

The jury no longer has to rely solely on Juan Estrella saying what David Tafur told him.

David Tafur walked into court himself.

He took the oath.

He faced cross-examination.

And he told the jury:

“I know what I heard.”

Now the jury—and the people of Union City—can judge the testimony for themselves.