ORANGE, NJ — Superior Court Judge Stephanie A. Mitterhoff ruled on Friday, Feb. 12, that former Orange school teacher Marilyn Zuniga can continue to pursue her wrongful termination lawsuit against her former employer.
On May 12, 2015, the Orange Board of Education decided by resolution to formally terminate Zuniga from her position as third-grade teacher at Forest Street School. A first-year teacher at the time, she had been been suspended for having her students write “get well” cards to convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu Jamal, who was apparently suffering from health complications related to his diabetes.
After she was terminated, Zuniga filed a lawsuit against the district, claiming school board members violated the state’s Open Public Meetings Act when they voted to terminate her employment. Zuniga alleges in the suit that board members discussed her case in a private session before coming to the meeting on May 12, 2015, and voted to fire her without public discussion or debate.
According to court papers, Zuniga is asking the court to force the board to discuss the matter in a public session. The Orange School District, represented by Hunt, Hamlin & Ridley, said there was never any private discussion among board members regarding Zuniga’s case before she was fired.
According to published reports, attorney Ronald Hunt admitted for the record that a private discussion between Superintendent of Orange Public Schools Ron Lee, the board attorney at the time, Zuniga and her representatives did take place prior to the public board meeting when she was fired, but Hunt said none of the board members who voted that night were present at this private discussion.
People’s Organization for Progress Chairman Larry Hamm said Mitterhoff’s ruling to allow Zuniga to move ahead with her lawsuit is good news.
Hamm’s organization has championed Zuniga’s case from the start. Representatives from the organization came to the meeting April 14, 2015, and helped convince the board to table the motion to decide her case until the subsequent meeting May 12, 2015, even hosting a teach-in the week before that meeting at International Faith Ministries on Main Street in Orange, to educate the general public about the case and try to galvanize community support. This proved to no avail, however as the board voted to fire Zuniga at its meeting anyway.
After getting word about Mitterhoff’s recent decision, Hamm said he is glad the third-grade teacher is going to be have her day in court.
“I was elated at the judge’s ruling in that regard,” Hamm said Tuesday, Feb. 16. “The school district was trying to have her suit dismissed and I think the judge rightly pointed out that she is within her constitutional rights to bring a lawsuit and she has grounds. The People’s Organization for Progress has supported Marilyn Zuniga from the beginning. We support her now and we will continue to support her throughout this ordeal and throughout this legal fight.”
The Orange School District did not respond to requests for comment about Mitterhoff’s decision as the Record-Transcript went to press this week; calls to Zuniga’s legal team were not returned.
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