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Gomez Noriega filed a lawsuit in United States District Court against Fulop and other city employees over what he claims was his wrongful termination.
Gomez-Noriega's was forced to resign from the city's LGBTQ+ task force after it was revealed he made four donations to his sister, Valentina Gomez, who was running for the Republican nomination for Missouri Secretary of State. Her brother's donations totaled $1,200.
Gomez's campaign was filled with numerous posts attacking the LGBTQ community and later included attacks against Fulop. Gomez-Noriega was fired after he shared a phone call he had with the mayor with his sister, who promptly posted it online.
Fulop violated Gomez-Noriega's constitutionally protected right to support his sister, according to the lawsuit.
"Gomez’s termination was not based on job performance but on his familial and political association, showcasing Fulop’s willingness to sacrifice an employee’s career to maintain political favor," the lawsuit reads. This lawsuit seeks redress for the significant harm inflicted on Gomez’s life and career, affirming that political association and familial support remain protected under the Constitution, even for public employees.
The lawsuit tells a tale of friendship between Fulop and Gomez-Noriega that began when they met at a swimming pool when Gomez-Noriega, a champion swimmer was training for the Olympics. He was eventually hired as a full-time employee with the city in 2022, with Gomez-Noriega giving swimming lessons to Fulop's children, according to the lawuit.
Gomez-Noriega said he told Fulop about his sister's campaign in a text message saying he didn't agree with her decision but he had to support her.
Fulop was supportive, writing, “It does not cause any problems- how is her campaign go[ing]," and was aware of Gomez-Noriega's donation to his sister, according to the lawsuit.
The mayor was supportive of Gomez-Noriega's donations to his sister, often joking about her social media posts. It only became a problem for Fulop when the media started covering Gomez-Noriega's sister and contrasting her views with Gomez-Noriega's appointment to an LGBTQ+ task force the city formed, according to the lawsuit.
While Gomez-Noriega was in Missouri visiting his sister, Fulop began pressuring him to renounce his sister's views, ordering him to resign from the task force, even though Fulop had known of his support since last November, according to the lawsuit.
"Your values in helping her [Ms. Gomez] are not consistent with our office or city," Fulop wrote in a text message to Gomez-Noriega.
The lawsuit attempts to link Gomez-Noriega's firing with Fulop's need to remain in the good graces of the Hudson County Democratic Committee as he runs for the Democratic nomination for governor. Hudson County Executive Craig Guy, the chairman of the Hudson County Democratic Committee, called for Gomez-Noriega' firing on social media.
"Mayor Fulop felt continuing Mr. Gomez’ employment would undermine his chances of securing support from both Hudson County and progressive Democrats statewide given Guy’s public condemnation of Mr. Gomez," the lawsuit reads.
Gomez-Noriega was fired by Fulop on Monday, Aug. 5, the same day Guy called for his termination. Since his firing, Gomez-Noriega said he has been unable to secure employment because the city painted him as a racist and bigot.
"This is not about a job, or a political party," Gomez-Noriega said on X, formerly known as Twitter. "This is about our constitutional right to freedom of speech. Steven Fulop and the mayor’s office tried to use me as a political pawn to further his campaign for governor of New Jersey, but this only backfired tremendously, by bringing a national spotlight to the wrongs he had just committed. Like Elon Musk says, the hammer of justice is coming."
Kimberly Wallace-Scalfione, a spokeswoman for the mayor's office and named in the lawsuit, said it has no merit.
"Jonathan was an at-will employee, and part of his responsibilities were focused on the LGBTQ Community along with diversity and inclusion," Wallace-Scalfione said. "Once he decided to partake in a hate-filled campaign, the community in Jersey City no longer wanted to work with him, making him unable to do his work responsibilities. It’s as simple as that, and we wish him luck in his next chapter.”
Valentina Gomez celebrated her brother's lawsuit, taunting Fulop.
"Steven Fulop lawyer up," Gomez said. "Feel free to leak more text messages that only incriminate you."
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