End of Watch September 11, 2008

Sgt. Dario “Scott” Aponte, 43, a 17-year veteran and Officer Diane Gonzalez, 47, who has 13 years in uniform in the Elm City, were responding to a report of a man beating a woman in the city’s Fair Haven section when their cruisers collided. The patrol cars crashed just before 11:30 p.m. in New Haven, Connecticut.

Sgt. Aponte joined the department in November 1991 and was promoted to Detective in April 2004. Sgt. Aponte worked in the crime scene unit until his promotion to Sergeant July 25, 2004, when he switched to the overnight patrol shift. Sgt. Aponte is survived by his wife and four children. Sgt. Aponte’s wife is also a New Haven Police Officer. On Saturday, September 13, 2008, services were held at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, in New Haven.

Officer Diane Gonzalez, 47, who was driving the other squad car racing to Fair Haven, remained in critical condition at Yale-New Haven Hospital with severe head injuries.

May Sgt. Dario Aponte’s family “find justice in their hearts and peace in their souls.”

Rafael Segarra Jr.,
Detective New Haven Police, CT
NLPOA National Historian