Burlington County school district pays $450K to settle whistleblower retaliation suit

District resolved former security supervisor’s claims with a confidential payout, records show

The Burlington County Special Services School District approved a confidential $450,000 settlement this month to resolve a former security supervisor’s lawsuit alleging retaliation, workplace discrimination, and whistleblower violations.

The March 10 settlement, brought to light by New Jersey government transparency advocate John Paff, resolves claims brought by Henry Richard Brown, a former district security officer who alleged he was demoted and later fired after reporting what he described as dangerous conditions involving student restraints and staffing practices.

Brown, who began working for the district in 2015 and was promoted to security lead in 2021, alleged in court filings that he intervened in March 2023 after seeing an administrative assistant place a student in what he believed was a “potentially life-threatening” choke hold.

According to the lawsuit, Brown reported the incident to supervisors and later raised repeated concerns that security staff had not been properly trained to physically restrain students, putting both staff and students at risk of injury.

Brown also alleged that he reported timekeeping and attendance concerns involving other security officers, including one employee who he said clocked in while off campus.

The lawsuit further claims that after Brown returned from medical leave following knee surgery, the district failed to provide accommodations recommended by his physician and instead reassigned him from his security lead role to what he described as a less desirable bathroom monitor position with reduced hours.

Brown also alleged that race played a role in the treatment he received and that he later filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission before being terminated on June 30, 2023.

Under the settlement agreement, Brown will receive $169,627.28 for emotional distress and other non-wage damages and $100,000 in wages. The remaining $180,372.72 is allocated for attorney fees and costs.

The agreement permanently severs Brown’s employment with the district and bars him from seeking reemployment.

The settlement also includes a confidentiality provision requiring Brown not to disclose its terms. But because the district is a public entity, the agreement remains subject to disclosure under New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act.

“Calling a government settlement ‘confidential’ doesn’t make it so under OPRA,” noted Paff. “When public money is used to resolve lawsuits, the public has the right to see the terms. There ought to be full transparency, especially when taxpayers are ultimately footing the bill, whether directly or through insurance premiums.”

The settlement does not establish whether Brown’s allegations are true. The district expressly denied wrongdoing in the agreement and stated that the payment was made for reasons including the cost of continued litigation.

This is the second major legal payout involving the district in recent months. In November 2025, the district agreed to pay $650,000 to resolve an unrelated lawsuit involving alleged student-on-student sexual assault.