Nyenhuis v. Metropolitan District Commission, 22 A.3d 1181

Nyenhuis, a uniformed police officer for the Metropolitan District Commission, faced criminal charges after the Atkins incident.
She was suspended on administrative duty following the incident; arrested June 14, 2006, and charged with assault, reckless endangerment, and falsely reporting.
Nyenhuis was acquitted of all charges on November 5, 2007, and reinstated on November 8, 2007.
In November 2007 she pursued grievances under the collective bargaining agreement seeking vacation/earned time and lost overtime, while pursuing § 53-39a indemnification in court.
The trial court granted summary judgment for liability under § 53-39a and conducted a damages hearing addressing prearrest and postarrest economic losses.
The court ultimately found damages of $73,072.50, including leave time and overtime, and the defendant appealed challenging jurisdiction, damages, and accrual date.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Exhaustion of remedies required?	Nyenhuis يجوز §31-51bb allows court action on independent statute.	Exhaustion under the agreement required unless futility.	§31-51bb permits court action without exhaustion; independent statutory claim exists.
Prearrest economic loss recoverability under §53-39a?	Prearrest losses with nexus to prosecution are recoverable.	Recovery limited to post-arrest losses or losses tied to formal prosecution.	Prearrest losses with clear nexus may be recovered; not limited to post-arrest.
Does §53-39a cover lost leave time and overtime?	Economic loss includes leave time and overtime damages.	Leave time and overtime are not economically recoverable or were not proven causally tied.	Economic loss includes leave time; causation issues to be resolved on remand for overtime.
Nexus and damages causation for administrative duty?	Prosecution caused loss of overtime due to administrative duty restrictions.	Causation depends on whether placement on administrative duty was due to the investigation.	Remand for a specific nexus finding on administrative duty causation; damages recalculated accordingly.

Genovese v. Gallo Wine Merchants, Inc., 226 Conn. 475 (1993) (exhaustion doctrine; independent statutory claim under §31-51bb)
Cislo v. Shelton, 240 Conn. 590 (1997) (statutory indemnification for police against unwarranted charges; immunity abrogation)
Rawling v. New Haven, 206 Conn. 100 (1988) (measure of damages under §53-39a; entitlement requires duty-related charges)
Derrane v. Hartford, 295 Conn. 35 (2010) (statutory interpretation under §1-2z; plenary review; prearrest losses)
Walsh v. New Britain, 2009 WL 4684021 (2009) (prearrest §53-39a decisions; illustrative of ambiguity)