Hudson County Schools of Technology Board Secretary Joey Muniz is seeking final judgement by default against Acting Superintendent of Schools Joe Sirangelo after he did not file an answer to an amended complaint.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“I make this Certification in support of Plaintiff’s request that a Final Judgement by Default be entered against Dr. Joseph Sirangelo in both his official capacity and his individual capacity and this this matter now be scheduled for a proof hearing,” Stephen J. Edelstein, Muniz’s attorney in the matter and a partner at the Weiner Law Group, wrote on March 7th.
At that time, he requested a Hudson County Superior Court hearing on March 28th at 9 a.m.
Edelstein filed an amended complaint on December 18th challenging the ratification of Muniz’s suspension by the HCST board on December 12th, alleging that Sirangelo, who was appointed at that meeting, did not yet have the authority to set an agenda.
While default judgements were also entered against the HCST and nine board trustees, they all filed before the January 22nd court-imposed deadline and Sirangelo still has not filed an answer as of Tuesday morning.
Muniz currently has two pending lawsuits against his employer, most recently alleging the district violated the Open Public Meetings Act (OPRA) in January 2024 and another alleging he was suspended for retaliation over an 18-year affair with Superintendent of Schools Amy-Lin Rodriguez – who has also been suspended and did not have her contract renewed.
Lin-Rodriguez filed a counterclaim against Muniz last month, alleging that he “engaged in a pattern of severe abuse.”
A spokesman for the HCST did not return an email seeking comment, though the district typically does not comment on pending litigation.
