The appellate court ordered a new trial on the retaliation claims against Aviles, Hudson County, and the Hudson County Department of Corrections.
“We are pleased that the Third Circuit righted this wrong by the district court,” Ocasio’s attorney, Jeffrey D. Catrambone of Sciarra & Catrambone LLC, said in a statement. “We look forward to retrying this matter and a jury rendering a verdict as to the county defendants and director Aviles, so that they may be held accountable.”
The initial trial resulted in a $662,000 jury verdict for Ocasio on claims that Eady wiretapped his phone and violated his free speech, freedom of association, and union rights by retaliating against him for his union activities.
Ocasio served as a corrections officer at the Hudson County Department of Corrections from 2000 to 2014 and was the president of Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local 109 from 2010 to 2014. In 2014, he filed a lawsuit claiming that Eady extensively harassed him for his union activities, leading to his constructive discharge, while Aviles, the county, and the corrections department looked on.
