Gay Sex Sting Suspended in Newark Park After Fatal Shooting

An update to the case of Credit Union of Atlanta CEO DeFarra Gaymon, fatally shot by an undercover Essex County Sheriff’s officer during a crackdown on gay cruising. The five-year park sting operation in Newark's Branch Brook Park was suspended over the weekend, Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura tells the Star-Ledger.

 "We’ve temporarily suspended the undercover operation there, but we're increasing uniformed patrol at Branch Brook," he said. "It's on hold for now. We're looking to tweak it and make some adjustments." Fontoura declined to specify any specific changes regarding the operation — which cracks down on public lewdness and sexual activity at Newark's Branch Brook Park and South Mountain Reservation — but said, "there will be a full review."

The suspension of the park details comes as New Jersey LGBT groups demand an independent investigation into the Gaymon shooting and a "cease and desist" of sting operations "targeting gay men in Essex County."

Garden State Equality has asked for documents related to previous lewdness arrests made at Branch Brook Park since 2005, saying any operation "targeting gay men or LGBT people specifically, or anyone perceived as such, is unconscionable — and as we strongly believe, illegal." [...] Critics of the park detail say it shifts precious resources from more pressing public safety concerns in and around Newark...Garden State Equality chairman Steven Goldstein said he wanted to make sure men weren’t the only ones being arrested in these busts. Last week, he met with Fontoura, who showed a dozen instances where officers made arrests at the two parks for drugs, along with a few occasions where females solicited male officers for sex.

On July 16, the Montclair, NJ native had driven to New Jersey from his suburban Atlanta home to attend his high school’s 30th reunion. Authorities claimed Gaymon was masturbating in the park when he approached the detective. Officials said there was a chase and the officer fired one shot after the unarmed man "reached in his pocket and lunged" at the officer. There were no witnesses.

DeFarra Gaymon was married with four children. Gaymon's family has disputed the official version but has not commented on the sexual angle of the case. New Jersey Attorney General Paula Dow announced that she will not investigate the shooting. The family has asked the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark to take over the investigation.

Comments

[Drew]

Thanks for this follow-up. What a tragic injustice in many ways. The interpretive concepts of "bearing witness" really do have significance in this situation.

[Fred]

What in the world? This is the first time hearing this. It's insane. Was a police car chase really necessary? It's not like he just robbed a bank. Good grief.........

I read Palm Springs is doing something similar but the difference is anyone caught doing any public lewdness will be registered as a sex offender. It's all getting out of hand.....

[Cocoa Rican]

What most disappoints me about the Gaymon tragedy is that folks have tossed around certain details as though they are fact, when there is no corroborated evidence of the same. For example:

Where is the irrefutable evidence that Gaymon was in the park that evening to solicit sex?

Where are the previously reported men he may have engaged in “down low” behavior while either at home in Georgia or any other locale he visited while away?

Why did an officer trained to subdue a violent offender AND on a detail that included entrapping men seeking sex with other men, react so fatally/violently when Gaymon allegedly became aggressive?

Just as officers are trained to discontinue an active pursuit when the threat to human life is present, why did the officer choose to use lethal force to subdue Gaymon?

Outside of the allegation that Gaymon was masturbating and had his penis in hand, what other life threatening weapon did the officer encounter that prompted his need to brandish his gun?

With the high incidence of violent crime in the area where the tragedy took place, why is the Essex County Police focused on capturing men who engage in consentual sex in an enclosed park, rather than seeking to tackle the assault, robbery and drug statistics for that county?

A man is dead; a family is shattered and we have no proof for any of the allegations being made – by the officer or the media. The truth is that had Mr. Gaymon been given the opportunity of due process, he would have entered a courtroom, an innocent man with the state’s preponderance to prove him guilty.

As men of color and as gay men we should be compassionate and empathetic enough to stop retelling the story as one of a “down-low” man who cornered, panicked and risked his life to avoid a misdemeanor charge that would likely NOT have resulted in his friends, family or colleagues being privy to his plight.

There are two sides to every story and unfortunately, Gaymon’s version of the truth will never be heard.

[Derrick from Philly]

Very well written comment, Cocoa. The cop's story just doesn't make sense. It's not believable.

[Smith]

I do truly wonder WHY the police officer felt a need to shoot the victim. But I DON'T wonder WHY the victim was in the park. Because I feel pretty confident I already know.

[Jim]

Yes, Cocoa Rican. That was a very well-written comment. (Are you a lawyer?)

I think most of us here feel that it is likely that Gaymon was in the park for sex, just because we know from experience that is probably why a man would be there at nighttime. And if it is true he was there for sex, then he was probably (but not necessarily) closeted, since he had a wife and four children. And since he had a high-paying job with high status, and since he could have lost both with exposure, we can imagine how he might have panicked.

But none of us knows any of that, and I hope we all admit to it. All the same, we can’t help being especially saddened by the tragedy of the scenario we draw in our minds. It is the tragedy of the closet.

As for the cop’s story, though, I have no reason to believe it, and your questions about the cop’s behavior are very good ones.