Katie Brennan

Katie Brennan, State of New Jersey, Murphy campaign, Al Alvarez reach $1m settlement in sexual assault suit

May 15, 2020 | Smith Eibeler LLC

TRENTON (May 15, 2020)–Attorneys for Katie Brennan said on Friday that they have reached a settlement agreement in Brennan’s lawsuit against the State of New Jersey, Murphy for Governor, Inc., and Al Alvarez. Brennan came forward in October 2018 about having been raped by Alvarez when he was a senior member of Gov. Phil Murphy’s 2017 gubernatorial campaign staff. She filed suit in January 2019.

As part of the settlement, the State of New Jersey and Murphy for Governor, Inc. will pay $1 million, of which $600,000 will go to Brennan and $400,000 will go to cover the legal costs for more than a year of work with her attorneys at Smith Eibeler, LLC. Brennan will donate the entirety of the $600,000 she will receive to The Waterfront Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting Hudson County’s economically disadvantaged people–the working poor, seniors, veterans, and those living with disabilities–by providing information, advice, and pro bono legal representation to address their civil legal issues and concerns. The Waterfront Project will use the donation from Brennan to fund legal services and support for low-income survivors of sexual assault and harassment.

“The Waterfont Project is honored to play a part in making New Jersey a more equitable place for survivors of sexual assault,” said Rebecca Symes, Interim Executive Director of the Waterfront Project. “We look forward to partnering with sexual assault survivors, advocates, and policymakers to design an innovative project addressing this very complicated, but urgent need.”

Katie Brennan Lays Out Policy Reform Recommendations to Address Sexual Violence, Harassment in NJ Politics

February 18, 2020 | Smith Eibeler LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Brennan plans to present to Weinberg working group

TRENTON (February 18, 2020)–Sexual assault survivor Katie Brennan laid out a list of policy reform recommendations to improve the criminal justice process for victims of harassment, sexual assault and sexual misconduct in New Jersey in a letter to Sen. Loretta Weinberg and members of the Workgroup on Harassment, Assault and Misogyny in New Jersey Politics sent last week. Brennan, who has advocated for sweeping policy change since coming forward in October 2018 about her own sexual assault by senior Phil Murphy campaign and administration staffer Al Alvarez, also said she would like to present to the Workgroup about her proposals at its next hearing in March.

Katie Brennan responds to Verniero report

February 6, 2019 | Smith Eibeler LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TRENTON (February 6, 2019)–Following is a statement from Katie Brennan in response to the findings of Peter Verniero’s inquiry into the vetting and hiring processes of the Murphy administration’s transition office:

“It’s clear from the report that there was a lack of accountability and effective policies and procedures to address a glaring personnel problem in the Transition. I appreciate the recommended reforms and I look forward to seeing additional recommendations from the Joint Select Legislative Oversight Committee so that comprehensive reform can be implemented.

Brennan attorney responds to Murphy HR policy revisions

February 5, 2019 | Smith Eibeler LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TRENTON (February 6, 2019)–Following is a statement from Katy McClure, attorney for Katie Brennan, of Smith Eibeler, LLC, in response to Gov. Phil Murphy’s statement issued following a January 28, 2019 memo from Deirdre L. Webster Cobb, Esq., Chair/Chief Executive Officer Civil Service Commission, and Mamta Patel, Esq., Director Division of EEO/AA, Civil Service Commission, recommending that N.J.A.C. 4A:7-3.1 be revised to include Gubernatorial Transition Offices.

“We appreciate the Murphy Administration’s clarification to the New Jersey State Policy and Procedures Prohibiting Discrimination in the Workplace. However, pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution 148 creating the Joint Select Oversight Committee investigating this matter, it was already established that ‘Gubernatorial transition office employees are, in fact, employees of the State of New Jersey[]’ and, therefore, covered by the State’s policy.”

Brennan’s legal team responds to Middlesex County Prosecutor’s refusal to prosecute rapist Al Alvarez

January 23, 2019 | Smith Eibeler LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New Brunswick, NJ (January 23, 2019)–Katie Brennan and her legal team responded on Wednesday to the news that the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office (MCPO) has declined to prosecute her rapist, Al Alvarez. Brennan’s attorneys cited grave concerns about the MCPO’s process and vowed to continue the fight for justice.

“We are deeply disturbed and disappointed by this egregious miscarriage of justice,” said Brennan’s attorney, Katy McClure of Smith Eibeler, LLC. “The Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office failed Katie Brennan. The Governor’s staff failed her. The Attorney General failed her. And now the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office has failed her as well.”

Katie Brennan files Emergent Application Seeking to End the State of New Jersey’s Use of Strict Confidentiality Directive

January 8, 2019 | Smith Eibeler LLC

Smith Eibeler, LLC, on behalf of our client, Katherine Brennan, has filed an Order to Show Cause For Temporary and Preliminary Restraints against the State of New Jersey (hereinafter, the “State”), from (1) enforcing the “strict confidentiality directive” found in N.J.A.C. 4A:7-3.1(j) against Ms. Brennan and any witnesses in the EEO/AA investigation being launched in response to her December 4, 2018, testimony before the Legislative Select Oversight Committee (“LSOC”)(hereinafter, the “EEO/AA Investigation”); (2) requiring Ms. Brennan to participate in any EEO/AA investigation until after this litigation and any criminal proceedings resulting from Ms. Brennan’s allegation of sexual assault are completed; (3) requiring Ms. Brennan and other witnesses in the EEO/AA Investigation to sign the “strict confidentiality directive” form; (4) requiring the EEO/AA to investigate the numerous violations of the State’s Policy Prohibiting Discrimination in the Workplace (“State Policy”) as set forth in the Complaint; and (5) declaring the “strict confidentiality directive”of N.J.A.C. 4A:7-3.1(j) as null and void.

For the past year, the State has refused to conduct any investigation into any of Ms. Brennan’s reporting that she had been raped by Alvarez. Ms. Brennan exhausted all possible internal avenues of recourse and received no aid or support. Having no other option, Ms. Brennanwas compelled, as a last resort, to bring her allegations into public light. On October 14, 2018, her story was published in The Wall Street Journal. The article laid out in detail not only the rape Ms. Brennan had endured, but also her extensive efforts to prompt the State, through complaints to numerous high level State officials, to take action.

Ms. Brennan’s act of publicly telling her story accomplished what her numerous internal complaints and reports could not: it triggered investigations. As a result of the October 14 Wall Street Journal article, in or about October 2018, numerous investigations and/or reviews were launched in various departments of State and county government, including: (1) an ongoing review by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office of the criminal investigation conducted by the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office (“HCPO”) into Ms. Brennan’s criminal complaint; (2) a review by Attorney General Gurbir Grewal and the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (“OPIA”) into Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez’s involvement in the investigation of Ms. Brennan’s allegations of sexual assault; (3) the ongoing investigation by the LSOC into how sexual misconduct complaints are handled by the state, as well as hiring practices; (4) Governor Murphy’s directive to the Division of EEO/AA to review policies and procedures for addressing allegations of sexual misconduct; and (5) an investigation on behalf of the Office of the Governor by former Supreme Court Justice Peter Verniero into the hiring of Alvarez.

Katie Brennan responds to AG’s finding in review of rape investigation

November 29, 2018 | Smith Eibeler LLC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TRENTON (November 29, 2018) – Following is a statement from Katie Brennan in response to Attorney General Gurbir Grewal’s Office of Public Integrity and Accountability has found no evidence that Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez acted improperly in the investigation into Brennan’s rape by former senior Murphy administration staffer Al Alvarez:

“The Attorney General’s swift conclusion that the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office acted properly in my case may bring a sense of relief to some. However, for those, like me, who have not yet seen justice in New Jersey, the Attorney General’s decision only heightens my already grave concerns about the treatment of sexual assault victims in the investigation process.