It was, in other words, a perfect example of the kind of racially motivated call that officers are trained to investigate carefully rather than act on immediately. Anonymous calls using phrases like "doesn't belong" combined with racial descriptions and no specific criminal activity are often from people with bias who see any person of color in their neighborhood as inherently suspicious. Castellano should have called for more information, should have observed before approaching, should have looked for actual criminal behavior. Instead, he saw a Black man and assumed he was the problem.
The investigators also found something else troubling. They pulled dispatch records for Castellano's entire four-year career and found a pattern: Castellano had responded to calls about suspicious persons at a rate 40% higher than other officers in his district, and 87% of those calls had involved people of color. Either Castellano was assigned to an area with legitimately more suspicious activity by people of color, or Castellano was actively seeking out calls that allowed him to stop people of color. The data suggested the latter.
The investigation took seven weeks. During that time, investigators conducted 23 interviews, reviewed 14 hours of body camera footage from Castellano's previous stops, and analyzed four years of dispatch records and incident reports.
The findings were unequivocal: Castellano had violated department policy on racial profiling. He had conducted an investigatory stop without reasonable suspicion. He had failed to properly investigate before approaching a citizen. He had made assumptions based on race rather than behavior.
But the investigation uncovered something much larger than a single incident. Investigators tracked down the nine individuals who had filed previous complaints against Castellano. Eight of them agreed to be interviewed; their stories were remarkably consistent.
A 45-year-old Black attorney named Jerome Buckley described being stopped by Castellano while jogging in a park near his home. Castellano had demanded ID and asked what Buckley was doing in the area. Buckley explained he lived nearby and ran there three times a week. Castellano had made him wait while he ran Buckley's ID for warrants. There were none. Castellano let him go without explanation or apology.
A 32-year-old Latina small business owner named Elena Fuentes recounted being stopped by Castellano while loading equipment into her van outside her own store. Castellano had accused her of stealing and demanded to see receipts for the equipment. Fuentes owned the store and the equipment was hers; she showed Castellano her business license. Castellano claimed he was just being thorough. Fuentes filed a complaint. It was marked unfounded.
A 19-year-old Black college student named Tyrell Washington described being stopped by Castellano while walking home from class at 8:00 p.m. Castellano asked where he was going, where he had been, and why he was in that neighborhood. Washington explained he was a student who lived three blocks away. Castellano made him empty his backpack on the sidewalk. Washington filed a complaint. It was investigated by Lieutenant Kowalski and dismissed as a lawful investigative stop.
The pattern was undeniable. Castellano consistently stopped people of color in situations that didn't warrant stops. He consistently demanded identification without legal justification. He consistently assumed people of color were out of place in certain neighborhoods.
More importantly, the investigation concluded that Castellano's nine previous complaints should have been taken more seriously. A pattern review showed that all nine complaints described similar behavior: Castellano assuming people of color didn't belong in certain neighborhoods, Castellano demanding ID without legal justification, Castellano being aggressive in situations that didn't warrant aggression.