Alvarez may pursue case against Brennan

Former Schools Development Authority chief of staff Al Alvarez told NJ Advanced Media he may pursue a legal case against State Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency chief of staff Katie Brennan and others.

Brennan has accused Alvarez of sexually assaulting her in April 2017, when he was in charge of Muslim and Latino outreach for Gov. Phil Murphy’s campaign, for which Brennan would volunteer.

Alvarez denies the allegations, claiming his encounter with Brennan was consensual.

The two are currently fighting another legal battle.

In January, Brennan sued Alvarez, the state of New Jersey and Murphy’s campaign, claiming the state’s workplace discrimination policies were used to silence her.

She amended the suit Wednesday to include a defamation charge against Alvarez over statements he made to the Select Committee on Oversight, the Hudson County Prosecutor Office, news media and others.

The amended complaint also claims the state retaliated against Brennan by closing an investigation State’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity into her allegations against Alvarez after she filed the suit in January.

Brennan’s accusation against Alvarez has since spawned multiple investigations, including ones by a legislative select committee and prosecutors in Middlesex and Hudson Counties.

Prosecutors in those counties declined to pursue charges against Alvarez.