New York Post

Christian V. McOmber, Peter D. Valenzano, and Lauren M. Hill represent Anthony Smith in a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit against Hudson County. Named Defendants in the lawsuit include Mario Fernandez, Paul Morales, and Becky Scott.

As alleged in the lawsuit, Mr. Smith is a Corrections Officer in Defendant Hudson County with twenty (20) years of exceptional service. Not only has he gone above and beyond the call of duty with the department, but he has also had a long-standing commitment to bettering the community. In 2009, Mr. Smith founded the Blacks and Law Enforcement Servicing the Community Organization (“BLSEC”), which aims to bridge the gap between the Hudson County Community and its law enforcement officers.  BLSEC also provides mentorship programs and community outreach services.

In recognition of Mr. Smith’s loyalty and dedication to both the department and the community, in 2020 he was promoted to the position of Community Outreach Officer. As Community outreach officer, Mr. Smith would travel to schools throughout Hudson County to foster positive relationships with students, visit students’ homes when they did not attend school, attend court proceedings with juveniles, and mentor students.

In August 2022, Mr. Smith learned Defendant Fernandez, a Sergeant at the Hudson County Corrections Facility, choked an inmate who was being processed into jail. In fact, the choking incident was captured in the inmate’s mug shot. Mr. Smith immediately reported Defendant Fernandez’s unnecessary and unlawful use of force to the Hudson County Board of County Commissioners, which launched an investigation.

As alleged in the complaint, thereafter Mr. Smith was subjected to a relentless campaign of retaliation.  The retaliation commenced just a few days later when Defendant Morales, Mr. Smith’s supervisor, sent Mr. Smith a series of text messages demanding to know who sent Mr. Smith the photograph of Defendant Fernandez choking the inmate. Mr. Smith refused to disclose the identity of the individual who sent him the photograph and suggested Defendant Fernandez cease his inquiry, as the matter concerned “whistleblowing.”

Subsequently, Mr. Smith was stripped of his prestigious Community Outreach Officer title and demoted to a position inside the Hudson County Corrections Facility.  Because Mr. Smith was renowned in the Hudson County Community for his tireless efforts to bridge the gap between the County’s residents and its law enforcement officers, the Hudson County community was outraged by Mr. Smith’s retaliatory demotion. The community even held several supportive rallies calling for Mr. Smith’s return to his Community Outreach position.

In further retaliation, Mr. Smith was also provided job assignments that were not commensurate with his twenty (20) years of tenure at Defendant Hudson County. For example, while Mr. Smith’s peers were assigned to favorable jobs outside the Hudson County Corrections Facility, Mr. Smith was relegated to working a detail with federal and maximum-security inmates, who are notoriously the most difficult and dangerous inmates in the Hudson County prison system. Although Mr. Smith complained about the retaliation, Defendant Hudson County failed to take corrective measures. Instead, Defendant County commenced a perfunctory investigation, which entirely failed to remediate Mr. Smith’s hostile and retaliatory working environment.

“Mr. Smith has given every ounce of his heart and soul to the department during his long tenure. He has faithfully served his community by actively supporting and mentoring at-risk youth, both personally and in his role as Community Outreach Officer.  As alleged in the complaint, after Mr. Smith exposed an egregious abuse of power in the Hudson County Corrections Facility, he was retaliated against and stripped of his Community Outreach Officer position and further subjected to retaliatory assignments. We stand united with our client in exposing this outrageous and unlawful behavior.” Christian V. McOmber, Esq.

 

 

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Christian V. McOmber, Peter D. Valenzano, and Lauren M. Hill represent R.N. (Plaintiff’s initials are provided in lieu of her full name to protect Plaintiff’s identity as permitted by court rules) in a sexual harassment and gender discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against Surf BBQ, a restaurant owned and operated by celebrity chef Victor Rallo, located in Rumson, New Jersey. Named defendants in the lawsuit include Robert “Bobby” Rallo, Max Rallo, Andrew Bouthillettew, Montana Perez and Daniel Boswell. 

The Complaint alleges on October 28, 2022, Plaintiff, a nineteen-year-old woman, was working a shift at Surf BBQ as a bartender when Mr. Boswell, a regular customer, came into the restaurant. Upon arriving, Mr. Boswell proceeded to drink copious amounts of alcohol at Surf BBQ’s bar while chatting with Bobby Rallo, an owner, and taking shots of alcohol with Ms. Perez, a manager. Although Surf BBQ’s management and ownership were well aware that Mr. Boswell was becoming belligerently intoxicated, the restaurant failed to intervene. 

After several hours of drinking at Surf BBQ, Mr. Boswell snuck behind an unsuspecting Plaintiff and groped both of her breasts. Max Rallo, Bobby Rallo, and Mr. Bouthillettew were mere feet away during the assault, but failed to intervene. Therefore, Plaintiff immediately reported this egregious sexual assault to Max Rallo, Mr. Bouthillettew, and Ms. Perez to no avail. Indeed, rather than remove Mr. Boswell from the premises, Defendants indifferently suggested Plaintiff “cut him off” and stop serving him alcohol.  

Thereafter, Mr. Boswell was permitted to remain at Surf BBQ for hours. All the while, Plaintiff begged management to eject him from the premises. However, Surf BBQ refused to do so. In fact, Mr. Boswell finally stumbled out of the restaurant of his own volition several hours after the assault, where he passed out in the parking lot next to Plaintiff’s car.  

Needless to say, Surf BBQ’s gross indifference towards Plaintiff’s sexual assault and failure to take prompt remedial action demonstrated that she was no longer safe working for the restaurant. Although Surf BBQ’s management was present and could have readily prevented the situation and ejected Mr. Boswell, they decided not to do so and permitted the man who groped Plaintiff’s breasts to remain at the restaurant. Therefore, Plaintiff was forced from her employment with the restaurant. 

This lawsuit, which is filed in Monmouth County Superior Court, alleges violations of New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination, Battery, Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress, Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress, and Negligence. Plaintiff seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs. 

“As alleged in this Complaint, Surf BBQ utterly disregarded its obligation to provide Plaintiff a safe working environment.  First, Surf BBQ facilitated overdrinking at its establishment and Ms. Perez, a manager on duty, even did shots with Mr. Boswell prior to the incident.  Second, despite Plaintiff’s repeated requests, Surf BBQ failed to eject Mr. Boswell from the restaurant after he sexually assaulted our nineteen-year-old client in public. We stand united with our client in exposing this outrageous and unlawful behavior.” Christian V. McOmber, Esq.  

Christian V. McOmber, Peter D. Valenzano, and Lauren M. Hill represent Quincidy Boston in a whistleblower retaliation claim against Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. and Chipotle Services, LLC. Named defendants in the lawsuit include Ms. Boston’s supervisors during her employment, Julia Burke, Hilda Quezada, and Anthony Rentas.

The Complaint alleges that Ms. Boston was terminated from her position as an Assistant Manager with Chipotle after objecting to management’s directive to forego necessary and legally required food safety checks throughout her shifts. These checks included the “Chipotle Wellness Check” and food temperature checks to ensure food was being prepared and stored to safety standards. Management also pressured Ms. Boston to fraudulently indicate that such inspections had occurred in the store’s “Black Book,” the store’s FDA required Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points compliance record when they in fact had not. Chipotle’s management even went so far as to forge the Black Book records themselves, writing that legally required inspections had been completed when they had not.

The Complaint also alleges Ms. Boston was instructed by Chipotle’s management to falsify the company’s daily COVID-19 checks. Ms. Boston was told to indicate that employees had no symptoms without actually surveying them to ensure this was accurate.

As further alleged in the Complaint, in April 2022, a customer vomited at the restaurant. Rather than abide by Chipotle’s standard operating procedure to clean the spill, which would require employees to use a spill kit and personal protective equipment, and then leave their shift afterward, Chipotle management instructed an employee to clean the spill without the proper personal protective equipment and then return to the line, preparing and serving food.

Ms. Boston objected to each of these food safety violations, however, her concerns were brushed aside. Fearing that Chipotle’s negligent and reckless approach to food safety would result in a customer or employee falling ill, Ms. Boston requested a demotion from her management position, citing Chipotle’s unlawful and unsafe conduct as the reason. However, as alleged in the Complaint, Chipotle refused to let Ms. Boston take the demotion. When Ms. Boston escalated the issue to Chipotle’s corporate ethics portal, she was terminated.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Union County Superior Court, alleges violations of New Jersey’s Conscientious Employee Protection Act. Ms. Boston seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs.

“As alleged in the Complaint, Chipotle shirked its clear duty under New Jersey Law to abide by well-established food safety standards. When our client objected to this conduct and voiced concerns for the health and safety of Chipotle’s customers and employees, she was subjected to retaliation and ultimately terminated. We stand united with our client in exposing this outrageous and unlawful behavior.” Lauren M. Hill, Esq.

Partners Christian V. McOmber and Peter D. Valenzano represent AnnaMarie Ferrara in a sexual harassment and retaliatory termination claim against Healthcare Services Group, Inc. and HCSG East, LLC. Also named as an individual Defendant in the lawsuit is Howard Lawton, a Dietary Supervisor for HCSG East and Ms. Ferrara’s supervisor during her employment.

The complaint alleges that Ms. Ferrara was subjected to constant sexual harassment during her brief time working as a chef for HCSG East, and the factual assertions set forth herein are a summary of the allegations set forth in the complaint.  Specifically, starting on the day he offered Ms. Ferrara a job, Mr. Lawton attempted to force Ms. Ferrara into participating in his sadomasochistic fantasies. Mr. Lawton constantly told Ms. Ferrara he wanted to be her “slave,” referred to her as his “master,” and asked her what she wanted to do to him sexually. Further, Mr. Lawton forced Ms. Ferrara to watch as he searched for various fetish and sex toys on his office computer, telling her he would order items for her branded with the word “MASTER.” Further, Mr. Lawton asked Ms. Ferrara to change into her work uniform in his office so he could watch her undress.

Ms. Ferrara understandably recoiled from Mr. Lawton’s grotesque sexual harassment and made it clear she had no interest in reciprocating and wanted him to stop.   In response, Mr. Lawton’s predatory conduct only grew worse, as he started stalking Ms. Ferrara throughout the company’s offices during her breaks, forcing Ms. Ferrara to hide in the kitchen to eat her meals. Mr. Lawton did not restrict his sexual harassment to work hours, either. Mr. Lawton sent Ms. Ferrara explicit text messages at all hours, displaying his genitals and continuing to describe his fantasies of Ms. Ferrara as his sexual “master.” Even after Ms. Ferrara demanded that he stop texting her and advised him that she feared her granddaughter could stumble across his nude photos on her phone, Mr. Lawton refused to cease his perverted behavior.

Lawton’s threatening behavior reached its apex following Ms. Ferrara’s second day of work. In response to Mr. Lawton’s constant badgering about wanting to spend time with Ms. Ferrara outside of work, Ms. Ferrara mentioned that she was taking her granddaughter to a nearby park on the Delaware River later that day and did not wish to meet with him outside work. The next day, Mr. Lawton told Ms. Ferrara that he went to the park and waited for her for an hour and a half. In other words, Mr. Lawton stalked Ms. Ferrara and her young granddaughter. Fortunately, Ms. Ferrara changed her plans and never brought her granddaughter to the park, sparing them both further harassment. However, when Ms. Ferrara told Mr. Lawton his behavior was disturbing and again demanded that he stop, Mr. Lawton simply smiled and said, “you like it, you love it.”

After only three days of work, Ms. Ferrara was forced to call out of work due to her reasonable fear of Mr. Lawton.  In response, Mr. Lawton immediately terminated Ms. Ferrara. Making matters worse, Healthcare Services Group, Inc. and HCSG East, LLC did nothing to stop the harassment, fix the hostile work environment, and or punish Mr. Lawton, despite being well aware of what Mr. Lawton was doing. Supervisors for Ms. Ferrara’s employers overheard Mr. Lawton sexually harassing Ms. Ferrara in his office and often observed Mr. Lawton stalking Ms. Ferrara around the company grounds as Ms. Ferrara hid in the kitchen, yet nobody took any action to protect Ms. Ferrara or confront Mr. Lawton. In this way, Ms. Ferrara’s employers maintained and encouraged a dangerously hostile work environment in which female employees like Ms. Ferrara were treated as sexual prey for male supervisors like Mr. Lawton.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Mercer County Superior Court, alleges violations of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, including sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, and retaliation. Ms. Ferrara seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs.

“As alleged in the Complaint, HCSG East operated a workplace where a deeply disturbed supervisor was allowed to openly treat Ms. Ferrara as a sexual object for his own enjoyment and pursuit. When our client objected and refused to subject herself – or her young granddaughter – to this predatory conduct, she was immediately terminated in retaliation.  We stand united with our client in exposing this outrageous and unlawful behavior.”  Peter D. Valenzano, Esq., McOmber McOmber & Luber, P.C.

Press Coverage:

• NY Post

Partners Christian V. McOmber and Peter D. Valenzano represent Priya Gupta in a sexual harassment and discrimination claim against the Township of Franklin, New Jersey, and the Franklin Township Volunteer Fire Department. Named defendants in the lawsuit also include Raymond Read, the Fire Chief and EMS Director for Franklin Township; Jan Verkade, the Deputy Fire Chief; and Vincent Fortunato, a Lieutenant with the Fire Department.

In addition to his constant sexual harassment of Ms. Gupta and other women, Chief Read also made numerous racially discriminatory comments to Ms. Gupta. Chief Read openly praised white supremacist groups such as the Klu Klux Klan, which he characterized as a “charity organization,” used the “N-word” to describe African Americans, and told Ms. Gupta’s co-workers he “didn’t want to smell like curry” as a result of being with Ms. Gupta, who is of Indian descent.

Instead of stopping the harassment, fixing the hostile work environment, and punishing those responsible, Franklin Township and the Franklin Township Volunteer Fire Department knowingly encouraged it and allowed it to continue indefinitely. Even when Ms. Gupta complained to Deputy Chief Read about the harassment and hostile work environment in the hope that her concerns would be addressed, Deputy Chief Read merely acknowledged that her complaints were “a long time coming” but refused to investigate or take any other action in response.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Warren County Superior Court, alleges violations of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, including sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, and discrimination based on race and gender. Ms. Gupta seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs.

“As alleged in the Complaint, Defendants operated a firehouse where its deeply disturbed leadership promoted a culture rife with misogyny and bigotry.  Ms. Gupta fell victim to this to egregious sexual harassment and discrimination – much of which occurred while she was still a minor.  We stand shoulder to shoulder with our client in exposing this outrageous and unlawful behavior.”  Peter D. Valenzano, Esq., McOmber McOmber & Luber, P.C.

Press Coverage:

• NY Post