SOUTH ORANGE / MAPLEWOOD, NJ — The saga of alleged incidents of bullying on the baseball team at Columbia High School continues. Former CHS baseball coach Joe Fischetti and former assistant coach Matt Becht have filed a lawsuit against the school district for violating their civil rights, defamation, malicious prosecution and more, all stemming from the school district’s investigation into alleged bullying on the baseball team.
For approximately two years, there was a great deal of back-and-forth between the school district and the coaches, who had been accused of bullying players. In November 2016, the BOE unanimously approved the hiring of a new CHS head baseball coach; neither Fischetti nor Becht were rehired as coaches.
Fischetti and Becht are suing the South Orange-Maplewood School District, Superintendent of Schools John Ramos Sr., the SOMA Board of Education and each person who served on the board during two-year bullying investigation, as well as parent Randy Nathan, who pushed for Fischetti and Becht’s termination.
During summer 2014, Nathan filed a harassment, intimidation and bullying complaint against the coaches, accusing them of benching his son and then taunting him, using inappropriate language, badmouthing players to other players and more; these complaints were bolstered by former player David DeFranco, who filed suit against the coaches for bullying. Then-Acting Superintendent of Schools James Memoli’s office concluded that no HIB had occurred. Yet, when Ramos joined the school district one year later, he reopened the investigation and confirmed the 10 alleged instances of HIB, overturning Memoli’s determination. Following another year of investigations, during which an outside investigator was hired, it was determined that Fischetti and Becht had not conducted HIB, except in one instance in which they had allegedly used inappropriate language in 2014. According to the plaintiffs, they received a letter in December 2016 from the district stating that they had not conducted HIB at all. According to the complaint, the district did not adhere to the required timeline to conduct such investigations.
Fischetti and Becht’s complaint also accuses Nathan of bullying behavior, such as maligning them to district administrators and Board of Education members, using profanities and threats to have the district investigate the coaches, dispersing false and inflammatory information, and more.
SOMSD spokeswoman Suzanne Turner declined to comment on that matter, as the district “cannot comment on pending litigation or the threat of pending litigation.”
Board President Elizabeth Baker declined to comment on specifics of the case, as it is a pending legal matter.
“I believe the suit to be without merit, but I cannot comment further at this point as counsel for the district will be preparing a response,” Baker told the News-Record in an Aug. 6 email.
Nathan told the News-Record that he hopes “for a successful outcome,” but deferred further comment to his attorney, Michael Dolich; Dolich told the News-Record he could not discuss the matter publicly.
Steve Farsiou, Fischetti and Becht’s attorney, said the case boils down to the school district not complying with timeline requirements, thereby violating his clients’ civil rights, all to cater to a parent.
“This is a case about the school, specifically the school board and administration, simply not knowing how to apply the HIB laws,” Farsiou told the News-Record in an Aug. 4 phone interview. “What they did to Joe Fischetti and Matt Becht … they catered to a parent who was not happy about their son not playing enough and getting cut. That’s not what this law is for.”
Chief among his clients’ complaints, according to Farsiou, is that the district did not follow state HIB investigation procedures, instead allowing the investigations into the accusations to continue for two years, leaving his clients in limbo with a damaged reputation.
“They permitted Joe and Matt to be hung out to dry,” Farsiou said. “They tarnished these guys in the community.”
According to Farsiou, the Board of Education violated its ethics when it persisted in its investigation of the coaches.
“The last thing Joe and Matt wanted to do was file a lawsuit against the school they went to,” Farsiou said, referring to the fact that Fischetti and Becht are CHS alumni.
Farsiou said that, while his clients are seeking damages, they mostly want to send a message to the school district that it cannot damage their reputations in such a manner without repercussion, adding that his clients want to clear their names.
“You have to follow procedure,” Farsiou said as an example of what he and his clients are saying to the school district with this lawsuit. “Your job is not just to cater to parents.”
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