TOWN OF EAST FISHKILL – The estate of 31-year-old Cara Ann Stumm, a Town of Poughkeepsie police officer has filed a “Notice of Claim” against the Town of Poughkeepsie and others, on the grounds of wrongful death and other factors that led to the death of the pregnant officer. Stumm, a cop for three years, committed suicide on November 4, 2022. Stumm’s estate, through its attorney Michael Fakhoury, is preparing to bring suit against the town and others for contributing to Strumm’s death.
The nature of the claim, according to documents filed by Fakhoury, is that the town and others are responsible and contributed to Stumm’s death through:
- Wrongful death
- Personal Injury
- Negligence
- Failure to Warn,
- and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, resulting in the wrongful death of Officer Cara Ann Stumm and her unborn child.
Stumm’s estate says the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department, the Town of Poughkeepsie, and the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Chief on November 4, 2022, Joseph Cavalieri, Lieutenant Mel Bruschetti (now retired), and others were negligent, careless, wrongful, and in other ways careless in their supervision, treatment, and care,” of Stumm.
The discovery of a suicide note has implied that Stumm’s supervisor, Lt. Mel Bruschetti, who has since retired from the department, was the father of Stumm’s unborn child. It is further alleged that Bruschetti refused to leave the relationship he was having with another woman, to join Stumm in raising their yet-to-be-born child.
The estate’s attorney will pursue litigation against Bruschetti and the others if an acceptable settlement agreement is not reached.
