Judge Dismisses Sexual Harassment Case Against Former San Diego Supervisor Nathan Fletcher
SAN DIEGO, CA – A San diego superior Court judge has issued a tentative ruling to dismiss the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against former County Supervisor Nathan fletcher, citing “rampant and willful spoliation of evidence” by the plaintiff, Grecia Figueroa. Judge Matthew Braner found Figueroa selectively preserved evidence favorable to her case while deleting or allowing the deletion of perhaps damaging details.
The ruling, published Thursday, marks a meaningful development in the two-year saga that derailed Fletcher’s political career and plunged San Diego County politics into turmoil. Fletcher admitted to an inappropriate relationship wiht Figueroa, but has consistently denied allegations of assault.
According to the judge’s ruling,Figueroa engaged in a pattern of preserving only evidence she deemed helpful,actively deleting or allowing the deletion of evidence detrimental to her claims. This behavior led Judge Braner to question the integrity of the evidence presented.
This dismissal follows a similar outcome last week, where Figueroa’s wrongful termination suit against the Metropolitan Transit system (MTS) was also dismissed. She had claimed her firing from MTS was unjustified.Figueroa has cycled through multiple legal representatives throughout the course of these legal battles, most recently parting ways with her second attorney in March 2024 as demands for private messages intensified.
Figueroa expressed shock at the judge’s decision to the San Diego Union-Tribune, stating she found it disrespectful to invalidate her experience and characterize “abuse of power an affair.” She told the court Friday she had cooperated extensively with discovery, including over 25 hours of deposition and the production of over 10,000 messages and personal records, and maintained no evidence was deleted with malicious intent. She even suggested missing evidence could have supported her case.
Fletcher currently has an ongoing defamation case against Figueroa. Figueroa has indicated her intention to appeal Judge Braner’s decision, as reported by Fox 5 San Diego.
Background: The Fletcher Scandal and its Aftermath
The allegations against Fletcher first surfaced in early 2023,leading to his resignation from the Board of Supervisors in May of that year. The scandal involved claims of unwanted advances and a unfriendly work environment. The initial accusations centered around interactions between Fletcher and figueroa, then a regional representative for MTS.
The case has been marked by shifting narratives and a lack of corroborating evidence for the most serious allegations. Previous reporting by Voice of San Diego highlighted inconsistencies in Figueroa’s accounts and a dearth of evidence supporting claims of assault. The dismissal of both her lawsuits against Fletcher and MTS signals a potential end to the legal battles stemming from this high-profile case,though the defamation suit remains active.
The case number for the dismissal is 37-2023-00021110-CU-PO-CTL.
