Lawyers: Resolution nears in Ellis Tech administrator's weapon case

DANIELSON — A lawyer for a local assistant principal charged with bringing a semi-automatic pistol onto school grounds said the case against his client could be “resolved” by next month.

Inside Danielson Superior Court on Friday, Attorney Trent LaLima said he’s had a “number of discussions” with prosecutors recently regarding the direction of the case against his client, 43-year-old Rolando Navarro.

LaLima said he expected the case to be resolved before Navarro’s next court date on May 26. State’s Attorney Anne Mahoney, who is handling the prosecution, said last month her office was also preparing for a “resolution” in the matter.

There has been no mention in court regarding what such a resolution would entail. A person convicted of a Class D felony in Connecticut – the least serious felony charge – can face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

What is alleged to have happened

Navarro was an assistant principal at Danielson’s Harvard H. Ellis Technical High School in June 2021 when a pistol was allegedly found in his personal vehicle by a student asked to perform a tire rotation for the administrator.

Navarro and Principal Rafael Calixto were placed on paid administrative leave the following February, just weeks after the state Department of Children and Families, or DCF, and state police announced an investigation into a report of a gun at the school.

State police from the Central District Major Crime Squad interviewed a former student who said he was tasked on June 8, 2021 with performing maintenance on Navarro’s personal vehicle inside the school’s automotive shop, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

More: Ellis Tech assistant principal, still on paid leave, appears in court on felony gun charge

More: State police reopened the Ellis Tech gun investigation and made an arrest. What we know.

The student - who confirmed the chain of events in a separate interview with The Bulletin - and his shop teacher said they found a gun box in the vehicle’s rear tire well containing an unloaded semi-automatic pistol and magazine. Soon after the weapon was reported, Navarro retrieved the gun box and left, police said.

Navarro told police he wrapped the box in a seat cover and walked it outside to the vehicle of Assistant Principal Sarah Smith and placed the weapon in her trunk – without notifying her. At the end of the school day, Navarro retrieved the weapon box and left the school.

Navarro told police he knew bringing a weapon on school property was prohibited and had mistakenly left the gun in his vehicle. He said he provided Calixto later that evening with a detailed emailed account of the incident.

Navarro, a Hebron resident, told police the weapon, a registered .40-caliber Glock semi-automatic pistol, and magazine were unloaded.

Calixto told police he was unaware Navarro placed the handgun in Smith’s vehicle and he later forwarded Navarro’s account of the incident to the CTECS central office human resource department.

The investigation

Calixto said the school’s administration conducted an internal investigation and Navarro was “disciplined.” Navarro told police he received a two-day unpaid suspension beginning on Oct. 29, 2021.

Calixto said the parents of the student who found the gun were notified, but the incident was not reported to DCF or police. In explaining why no such notifications were made, Calixto said the student was 18 years old; no other student viewed the weapon’s case; and that the situation was “contained and under control.”

State police out of Troop D in Danielson – which handled the initial investigation – ended their investigation into the incident in March 2022 with a finding of “no criminal aspect.” A new investigation was later ordered by the Windham County State’s Attorney’s Office which believed Navarro’s actions were potentially criminal, the warrant states.

That second investigation resulted in Navarro's arrest in August on a felony count of possession of a weapon on school grounds. He pleaded not guilty to the charge in November.

More: Ellis Tech asst. principal pled not guilty to weapon charge, after 10 months paid leave

Navarro, Calixto on paid leave

A spokesman for the Connecticut Technical Education and Career System, or CTECS, which oversees all the state’s technical high schools, said in November Navarro and Calixto had continued to collect their full contracted salaries since being placed on leave.

Navarro earns $147,136.14 annually and Calixto is paid $164,844.20 each year, CTECS officials said.

An email to CTECS officials seeking an update on the administrators’ employment status was not immediately returned. The school’s administrative web page did not list any information for Navarro or Calixto on Friday.

More: 'A culture of fear': Ellis Tech teachers speak out as CT investigates handgun incident

Navarro and Calixto are barred from working in any capacity in the CTECS system and are relieved of “normal job responsibilities while on paid leave.

John Penney can be reached at jpenney@norwichbulletin.com or at (860) 857-6965

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Lawyers expect resolution in Ellis Tech administrator's weapon case