Board Member Sues Toms River School Board Over Attorney Hiring

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A member of the Toms River Regional Board of Education is suing the the school board over the hiring of an attorney to represent Superintendent Michael Citta and the board in an ongoing dispute.

Marisa Matarazzo filed the lawsuit Jan. 30, accusing the school board of violating school contract laws and the Open Public Meetings Act in the hiring of Patrick Toscano in December. The lawsuit also accuses board president Ashley Lamb of improperly voting on the hiring, alleging she had a conflict of interest.

A request for comment Friday from attorney Ronald Israel of CSA Law (Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi), who is representing the board on this lawsuit, was not immediately answered.

The Toms River Regional school board approved the hiring of Toscano at its Dec. 17 board meeting by a 5-2 vote. Lamb and board members Kevin Kidney, Kathy Eagan, Lisa Contessa and James Capone voting in favor and Matarazzo and Paola Pascarella voting against. Board members Joseph Jubert and Katie Coyne were absent from that meeting.

Matarazzo's lawsuit asks that the contract with Toscano — as special litigation for conflict attorney — be voided on the basis that it was executed in private more than a week before it was presented to the school board for approval and that it should have been put out to bid. She also alleges Lamb should have recused herself from voting on the contract because Toscano represents her husband, Justin Lamb, in an unrelated matter.

The contract includes a $15,000 retainer and is slated to pay Toscano $750 per hour for out-of-court work and $850 per hour for in-court appearances, with Matthew Toscano to be paid $350 out of court and $450 per hour in court.

Toscano was hired in the wake of an ongoing battle between Citta and Toms River Mayor Daniel Rodrick that heated up around the time of the November election campaign.

Matarazzo was elected to the board in 2024 during a bitter school board election campaign. She and Pascarella, who was elected in 2023, have been seen as aligned with Rodrick.

In October Citta asked the school board to reopen his contract and replace it with a new deal that would have lasted for five years and would have increased Citta's salary by $80,000 over that period, including a nearly $50,000 increase for the 2025-26 school year.

That request was dropped amid a public outcry but became a heated campaign point in the waning days of the Toms River Regional school board election in November, with campaign mailers attacking Eagan as she sought re-election.

Rodrick criticized the requested pay raise in light of the district's fiscal struggles after years of state funding cuts under S2. The district threatened to file for bankruptcy protection in July because of a large gap in its budget, as board members refused to approve a budget that included a 12 percent increase in the property tax levy. The state Department of Education imposed the district's tentative budget — with the property tax increase — shortly afterward.

In December the battle between Rodrick and Citta exploded, with heated statements in press releases followed by public statements by Citta, Lamb and Pascarella at the Dec. 17 school board meeting.

In a letter posted to the district's social media and at the board meeting, Citta accused Rodrick of interfering in the district.

Citta also alleged Matarazzo had been peeking in the windows of his home on a night in December, and alleged the Toms River Police Department did not take the matter seriously.

Toms River Police Chief Guy Maire at the time said he had spoken with Citta "on several occasions and he never mentioned any questionable conduct. All proper procedures were followed and a thorough investigation was completed. Toms River Police Department treats everyone equally and fairly."

Citta's statement can be viewed beginning at the 1-hour, 36-minute mark of the Dec. 17 school board meeting video. Pascarella blasted Citta's remarks later in the meeting during board member comment, and Lamb addressed both Pascarella's comments and Rodrick — who was in attendance at the meeting — during her remarks.

Lamb and Contessa had also raised concerns with the School Ethics Commission alleging Rodrick and his chief of staff, Drew Chabot, were interfering with the school board, contacting members and demanding they not approve Citta's proposed contract.

The letter raising those concerns noted that Matarazzo works for the Toms River Township building department, and Pascarella is the stepmother of Peter Pascarella, who at the time was Toms River's assistant township attorney.

Matarazzo is represented in the lawsuit by Donald F. Burke, who represents Rodrick in Rodrick's lawsuit against the Middletown Township Schools and who also was hired by Toms River in 2024 to represent the township in its fight with the state Department of Environmental Protection over the state's plans for the Ciba-Geigy site.

Peter Pascarella stepped down as assistant township attorney in early January.

Paola Pascarella, meanwhile, resigned from the school board at the Feb. 18 meeting. Lamb, in announcing Pascarella's resignation, said the board was slated to vote on removing her from the board after Pascarella missed four consecutive board meetings and also failed to include $300,000 in income on her financial disclosure forms that are required to be filed by all public officials.

Rodrick, in his demand for Citta's resignation, said the claim that he was controlling the board members' response were false.

"While I believe such a raise is outrageous, I have no authority over the superintendent’s contract," Rodrick said. "The decision rests with a handful of school board members who, rightfully, have serious concerns about approving an excessive salary increase at a time of fiscal crisis. The superintendent’s focus should be on improving our schools, not on spreading false aspersions or pushing for a pay raise that most taxpayers would find indefensible."