District 4 County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher announced this week he would be resigning his seat as he deals with a lawsuit from a former Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) employee.
The suit accuses Fletcher, whose District 4 includes La Mesa, Lemon Grove, a large swath of central San Diego including portions of the College Area, of sexual assault and harassment. According to a statement from his office released March 30, Fletcher’s resignation will take effect on Monday, May 15, 5 p.m.
In a series of tweets March 29, Fletcher wrote, “The strain on my wife and family over this past week has been immense and unbearable. A combination of my personal mistakes plus false accusations has created a burden that my family shouldn’t have to bear. I will be resigning from the Board of Supervisors, effective at the end of my medical leave. I will focus solely on getting healthy and being a good husband, father and friend. I am grateful to my constituents for the honor of serving you, my incredible team who worked tirelessly to make a real difference, and our county workers who put it all on the line for those most in need everyday. I am proud of what we accomplished together. My decision today is solely based on what is best for my family.”
Earlier in the week, Fletcher noted he was ending his short-lived campaign for State Senate. That was so he could enter treatment reportedly outside of California for both PTSD and alcohol abuse. Finally, Fletcher also stepped down as chair of the MTS.
In the lawsuit filed in San Diego Superior Court, the alleged victim, Grecia Figueroa, was an employee of San Diego’s MTS (also named as a defendant in the lawsuit), which provides bus and rail service around the area.
Figueroa, 34, who worked as a public relations specialist, alleges in her lawsuit among other things that Fletcher, 46, wanted a sexual relationship with her for a number of months and also stalked her on social media. Figueroa was ultimately fired from her job with MTS in early February, ironically around the same time Fletcher noted he would be running for California State Senate. Figueroa claimed she “was intimidated by the dynamic Fletcher had created” and stated she “felt pressured to reciprocate Fletcher’s advances because she knew he had authority, as both a career politician and as chair of the MTS Board, to destroy her career at MTS and to potentially humiliate her publicly if she made him angry.”
Fletcher noted in a statement released earlier this week that he had taken part in “consensual interactions” with the alleged victim but denies the allegations of assault and harassment.
