Hall’s suit came after the April 2012 promotions of white officers Larry Branson and Richard Zapal to the rank of major.

The suit contended that former Police Chief Willie Lovett described an opening for major as a “white position” and said that blacks need not apply during a 2011 command staff meeting.

Hall, who is black, applied for promotion and was informed on Feb. 4, 2012, that he had been denied the position. About two months later, Branson and Zapal were promoted.

Hall’s suit, filed in January 2013, contended he was denied “a significant increase in rank, compensation, responsibility and prestige.”

A separate lawsuit making similar allegations was filed in September by then-Capt. Dean Fagerstrom, who is Asian-American. Interim Police Chief Julie Tolbert promoted Fagerstrom to a major in December, in the wake of Lovett’s resignation. The Fagerstrom case is still pending.

Hal Hazelton seeks $500,000 for libel and slander, unspecified punitive damages, back pay, attorney’s fees and court costs.

Four months after being fired as the police chief of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, Hal Hazelton has sued three agency officials and a former board member, saying they engaged in a conspiracy to punish him for being a whistle-blower for alleged internal wrongdoing.

Graco Children’s Products is recalling almost 3.8 million car seats because faulty buckles can make it hard to free the child in an emergency, the company said on Tuesday.

But federal safety regulators said the recall, the largest in five years, did not go far enough, and have asked for an additional 1.8 million seats to be included because they use the same buckles.

In an unusual move, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told Graco in a letter that unless those additional seats were fixed it would take legal action to force a recall.

The seats in the recall are the 2009 to 2013 model years of the Cozy Cline, Comfort Sport, Classic Ride 50, My Ride 65, My Ride with Safety Surround, My Ride 70, Size 4 Me 70, Smartseat, Nautilus, Nautilus Elite and Argos 70.

The investigation into the seats began in 2012 after some parents complained to regulators that they had to cut the straps to remove their children.

One parent complained to the safety agency that it took 45 minutes to free her toddler and that worked only after the straps were loosened and the girl was squeezed between them. “It is extremely unnerving to have this happen to your child,” she wrote. “What if we had a car fire or a car accident?”

Graco told regulators that the problems with the buckles stemmed from…

By John Marzulli / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Wednesday, February 12, 2014, 2:30 AM

Noel Polanco was shot and killed during traffic stop on Grand Central Parkway in October 2012.

Noel Polanco was shot and killed during traffic stop on Grand Central Parkway in October 2012.