Connecticut Judge Arrested for Drunk Driving After Hitting Police Cruiser and Hurling Racial Epithets at Black Officer

Connecticut Judge E. Curtissa R. Cofield is at the center of a firestorm after an arrest for drunk driving during which she hurled racial epithets at a black police officer. She also succeeded in striking a police cruiser with her BMW. Cofield, who is also black, is now the subject of both a criminal proceeding and a proposed legislative investigation.

During her arrest, Cofield used the n-word to refer to the black officer and also addressed state police Sgt. Dwight Washington as “Negro Washington.” The conduct was recorded on videotapes in the booking room.

Cofield allegedly drove her 2003 BMW X5 into a state police cruiser, which was parked in the right shoulder protecting a construction zone. The police department has refused a media request for the tape despite the fact that most such booking tapes are treated as public, as in the recent case of Sidney Blumenthal’s arrest for drunk driving.

This is not a great period for Cofield, who just had a major case reversed based on her erroneous jury instruction. She had previously attracted much media attention for her efforts to combat . . . you guessed it . . . teenage drunk driving.

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