For
Immediate Release:
July 17, 2020
Curley
lawsuit against Freeholders and County Administration dismissed
FREEHOLD, NJ – Monmouth County officials have been
notified that the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has
dismissed the complaint by former freeholder John Curley against the Freeholder
Board and various County employees.
"It is unfortunate that so much time and money
had to be spent in order to fight to support Monmouth County employees,” said
Freeholder Director Thomas Arnone. “Through the lens of the current environment
facing America, I am very proud of the Monmouth County Freeholder Board for
deciding to fight for all employees, regardless of gender, age, race or job
title, nearly three years ago.”
In 2017, the Freeholder Board learned that an
employee had complained about the inappropriate actions of then Freeholder
Curley. The matter was investigated by retired Judge Mary Catherine Cuff. Judge
Cuff provided a report to the County.
After reviewing the report, the Freeholder Board
took the unprecedented action of voting to Censure Curley for his actions
against County employees. Curley filed suit shortly thereafter and the first
complaint was dismissed. Curley filed a second complaint, which was also
dismissed. Curley then appealed the Federal Court Judge’s decision to the Court
of Appeals.
“Justice has prevailed, and, most importantly,
Monmouth County employees can continue to feel safe at work. The County has, and
will continue to, take any complaints of inappropriate treatment in the
workplace seriously regardless of the offender,” said Freeholder Director
Arnone. “In this matter, the offensive conduct came from the highest level of
County government and was not ignored; in fact, the complaints were taken head
on—as they always should be.”
Although Curley could appeal this decision to the
United States Supreme Court, the County remains steadfast in the belief that
the frivolous nature of the complaint will be seen by all.
County Administrator Teri O’Connor and County
Counsel Michael D. Fitzgerald were each sued individually by Curley. The Third
Circuit has also dismissed the claim against O’Connor and Fitzgerald.
The decision from the Court of Appeals did not reference
the investigative report from Judge Cuff and whether the report outlining the
offensive conduct can be made public. Additionally, the Court of Appeals
assessed the costs of the suit against Curley.
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