CITY OF NEW HAVEN ANNOUNCES LAWSUIT AGAINST EASTCOASTIN COMPANIES TO RECOUP TAXPAYER COSTS FROM ILLEGAL MOTORCYCLE RALLY
Civil action seeks to recover over $90,000 in city funds that were required to maintain public safety, as part of the City’s latest effort to hold entities accountable for 5,000+ person illegal rally.
(Link to video of press conference)
New Haven, CT – Today at City Hall, Mayor Justin Elicker -- joined by Assistant Corporation Counsel Blake Sullivan, Police Chief Karl Jacobson, and others -- announced a lawsuit the City of New Haven has filed against the Eastcoastin companies and their agents, which, through event organizer Gabriel Canestri, Jr., planned and held an illegal motorcycle rally in September 2021 without proper City permitting.
Despite repeated warnings by the City that the event would not be allowed, the Eastcoastin defendants spent months planning and promoting the rally, ultimately drawing more than 5,000 people from all over the country to what was widely known to be an illegal event. Providing the necessary police protection and coordination to keep the gathering under control and maintain public safety cost the City over $90,000. With this lawsuit, the City is seeking to recoup those costs and to ensure that the defendants are held accountable for their actions and not allowed to profit from an illegal event at the expense of city taxpayers and public safety.
“When you put New Haven residents’ public safety at risk through flagrant, reckless, and unlawful acts like Eastcoastin did with their illegal motorcycle rally, the City of New Haven will hold you accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” said Mayor Justin Elicker. “Through this lawsuit, the City intends to recover the loss of tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars that were incurred to pay our police officers and other city staff – many of whom had to work overtime and spend time away from their families – in order to maintain public safety and order at this illegal event. This lawsuit is the latest in a series of actions that the City and our law enforcement partners have taken to ensure Eastcoastin and all associated parties are held responsible for their actions, and we look forward to recouping these funds on behalf of New Haven’s taxpayers.”
The lawsuit was filed on Friday with Superior Court for the Judicial District of New Haven. The five defendants named in the lawsuit are: Eastcoastin Entertainment, LLC; Eastcoastin Enterprises, LLC; Gabriel Canestri, Jr.; Salvatore Fusco; and C&D Investments, LLC. The complaint can be found here.
Specifically, the lawsuit seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorney fees from the defendants pursuant to their violation of two state statutes and related city ordinances. The first, Connecticut General Statutes § 7-284, also known as the Public Amusements statue, enables municipalities to charge for costs incurred for crowd control and police protection to ensure public safety for both the event attendees and the greater public at public events. The New Haven Police Department incurred over $80,000 in costs for personnel.
The second, Connecticut General Statutes § 42-110a, et seq., also known as the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA), provides municipalities with the ability to seek additional damages arising from the defendants’ illegal business practices. The City will seek punitive damages, attorney fees, and compensation for costs incurred by other city departments, including over $12,000 to The Department of Parks & Public Works, The Department of Traffic, Transportation & Parking, and other city departments to provide for crowd control and public safety.
Today’s announcement is the latest in a series of actions the City has taken to hold the parties accountable for the Eastcoastin 2021 event and to prevent an event of this nature from happening again. In addition to today’s civil action, the City and its law enforcement partners have pursued a criminal action against Mr. Canestri and code compliance action against Eastcoastin’s real property.
As an immediate result of his actions, Mr. Canestri was arrested by the New Haven Police Department (NHPD), prosecuted by the State’s Attorney’s office, and found guilty of reckless endangerment by a Judge of the Superior Court. As part of the plea agreement, Mr. Canestri agreed to a suspended one-year prison sentence, a three-year conditional discharge, and not to solicit, organize, hold or participate in any unpermitted organized motorcycles events in New Haven – or risk imprisonment.
In addition, city departments have worked to ensure that the site of Eastcoastin’s business operations – 153 Forbes Avenue – is not illegally used for residential purposes. The City investigated earlier evidence that the address was improperly being used as a residence, a use not permitted in an industrial zone under the City zoning ordinance. City agencies have worked to secure ongoing compliance by the Eastcoastin’ entities with the City’s zoning ordinance.
