N.J. Transit Authority police chief stuck in legal traffic jam

Joseph Bober, police chief for the New Jersey Transit Authority, is at the center of a five-lawsuit pile-up over everything from discrimination to punching an employee in the gut.

Lt. Theresa Frizalone filed the first suit—charging sex discrimination—in March 2007. Lt. Charles Thomas charged Bober with passing him over for a promotion because he was serving in Iraq. Capt. Nicholas Lucarelli followed with a lawsuit alleging that Bober punched him in the abdomen. His suit describes Bober as an “outrageous, tyrannical bully.” Another officer accused Bober of trying to “weed out” minority officers. All accuse the 34-year New Jersey Transit veteran of retaliating against them and covering up his conduct.

When pressed, New Jersey Transit spokesman Dan Stessel pulled the metaphorical “stop requested” cord, saying, “As a matter of policy, we don’t comment on active litigation.”