|
|
O'Connor, 58, has worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 30 years and is a supervisor at its facility at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks.
Officials from the postal service could not be reached for comment today.
Mail delivery ceased at the O'Connors' home on Nov. 12 after he and his wife, Gail, refused to take down two dog-related signs on the front door of their Bass Drive home. They must now pick up their mail at the Enfield post office.
The signs were in reference to the couple's 4-year-old female Rottweiler, Shadow, whom they say is more "marshmallow" than guard dog.
One sign on the door, with a picture of a Rottweiler, reads, "I can make the gate in 4 seconds, can you?" The other reads, "Never mind the dog, beware of owner."
Mail delivery was stopped after Postmaster Paul Buttafuoco and a supervisor told the O'Connors that their letter carrier -- whom the O'Connors know only as "Ted" -- said he felt threatened by the signs and a cartoon hanging above the mailbox that depicts a mailman about to run between two rows of Rottweilers.
A postal service official has declined to release Ted's full name or allow him to comment.
The O'Connors said last week that they have no problem removing the cartoon from the mailbox, located on their front porch, but say it is their First Amendment right to hang the signs on their front door. The signs have been there, off and on, for the last three years.
The O'Connors said their problems with Ted began in June when he delivered mail to their house while the couple was sitting outside with Shadow on a leash.
While Ted told his supervisors that the dog growled at him that day, Robert O'Connor said she did not.
From that day on, Shadow has been in the house every time the mail is delivered, he added.
O'Connor said he is sure the pre-disciplinary interview took place because he talked to the Journal Inquirer early last week about his problem with the post office.
After the story ran in the Journal Inquirer Thursday, it appeared in newspapers nationwide and on local newscasts.
O'Connor said he went to the press because he had tried to resolve the situation with the post office internally, but was unsuccessful.
"Who are you to tell me I can't put signs on my house, and now who are you to tell me I can't talk to the press when you do me wrong?" he asked.
With today and Tuesday being O'Connor's regular day off, he expects to hear more from the postal service when he returns to work Wednesday.
