'Verbally abusive' sergeant faces domestic violence charges; drinking cop 'would retrieve his handgun,' victim said

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (TND) — A sergeant with New Haven police in Connecticut is facing criminal charges for incidents of domestic violence, despite the alleged victim deciding not to help the investigation.

According to the application for an arrest warrant written by a state police detective, the 41-year-old woman “made numerous complaints against [relationship], New Haven Police Sergeant Louis DeCrescenzo,” to internal affairs investigators on May 24.

Then, on June 28, prosecutors asked the state police to investigate and learned, “The victim made her initial complaint because she was fearful of DeCrescenzo and wanted him to get help with a drinking problem. She made it clear she did not want DeCrescenzo to get in trouble criminally or within the department.

“In fact, during the CSP criminal investigation, the victim reiterated her desire not to pursue criminal charges and/or cooperate further,” so the state police had to rely on internal affairs information.

The victim had explained she and DeCrescenzo had some sort of relationship but never lived together.

Their healthy relationship “began to deteriorate, becoming tumultuous towards its end. In addition to his verbal abuse, it appeared to DeCrescenzo’s substance abuse was a contributing factor in the downfall of their relationship.”

She had described DeCrescenzo “as verbally/emotionally abusive, obsessive, and controlling.

"Her fears of DeCrescenzo appeared general in nature, but a common theme was his verbally abusive behaviors, which were exacerbated by his increasing use of alcohol. For instance, she stated that when DeCrescenzo drinks, she feels like he is going to ‘snap and kill [her].’”

She described an argument “about a house she was buying” while in DeCrescenzo's bedroom on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14.

“During the argument, the victim said DeCrescenzo would stand in front of the doorway, causing her to feel like he was blocking her from leaving.

“She said he also went into his closet and retrieved his gun, which he then put in his pocket.

“Next, he reportedly told the victim, ‘You don't know what I'm gonna do to you.’ She said this made her nervous, especially because her [redacted] daughter was in the other room.

“She said she started yelling and screaming, telling DeCrescenzo, ‘Move. Like, please, like move.’ In response, she said he moved, allowing her to walk out of the bedroom where she told her daughter they were leaving.

“However, the victim said DeCrescenzo followed her and said, ‘You’re not leaving.’ She said they both then went back to the bedroom, where DeCrescenzo put his gun on a nightstand and said, ‘we're gonna talk.’”

And they talked, and he brought the victim and her daughter home.

There were reportedly “seven to eight other occasions when DeCrescenzo had been drinking, in which he retrieved his firearm during an argument.

"During these arguments, especially when she said he was drunk, DeCrescenzo would retrieve his handgun and either walk around with it or put it in his pocket. She said he never pointed it at her or verbally threatened to use it, but it caused her fear, presumably because there was no reason to retrieve it.

“She said the most recent incident was in March 2023. At least once, during one of the arguments in which he was in possession of his firearm, the victim told DeCrescenzo, ‘I want to go home,’ to which he replied, ‘You're not going nowhere.’”

Then, there was her “application for a restraining order protecting her from DeCrescenzo.”

The state police detective wrote, court proceedings were held on June 28.

“Both the victim and DeCrescenzo provided testimony. During her testimony, the victim was asked about threatening messages included in her affidavit to the court.

“Under oath, she claimed she had dozens of ‘threatening’ messages, which were then entered as exhibits.

“However, during cross-examination, it became evident that many of the messages she interpreted as threatening were not indisputably so.

“As a result of the testimony provided by the victim and DeCrescenzo, the judge concluded he could not find a present physical stalking or coercive control issue, therefore the victim’s claim was denied.”

As for the state police investigation, the detective wrote that DeCrescenzo chose not to participate.

The application for the arrest warrant was dated Dec. 7.

DeCrescenzo, 50, turned himself in on Tuesday. He's charged with two counts of threatening and two counts of breach of peace, and was ordered to have no contact with the complainant.