Toms River Lawyer Involved in Council Spying Case Pushes to Quash Discovery in Township Bias Discrimination Suit

by Phil Stilton

TOMS RIVER, NJ – The law office of Kevin Riordan, the lawyer who allegedly washed several thousands of dollars in campaign funds from the Ocean County GOP as a third-party intermediary during a once-secret investigation by the party against a councilman and his wife is representing Toms River against a bias and defamation suit against the township.

Former Toms River Business Administrator Don Guardian is suing Toms River officials Mayor Maurice Hill, Council President Kevin Geoghegan, Toms River Councilmen Josh Kopp and Matt Lotano for creating a hostile work environment for the openly gay former employee.

Guardian is also suing former Democrat council members Laurie Huryk and Terrance Turnbach, along with former Councilwoman Maria Maruca, who now works for the township’s senior service department.

Riordan was at the center of a clandestine spying operation against a township councilman and his wife, a Toms River school board member, paid for by the Ocean County GOP, which paid Riordan to pass checks to a Monmouth County private investigator in an attempt to hide the transaction from the public and from the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.


According to emails released by the Ocean County GOP, Riordan was chosen by OC GOP finance committee member Jerry Dasti, Toms River Township Director of Public Law Greg McGuckin and Council President Kevin Geoghegan to pass thousands of dollars to the Monmouth private investigative firm in an attempt to conceal the voyeuristic operation against the councilman and his wife.


The lawsuit Riordian is defending for the township by Guardian claims Toms River Mayor Maurice Hill and Business Administrator Lou Amoruso called Guardian a ‘f-ggot’ and ‘pillow biter’, two derogatory insults against the former administrator who is openly gay.

Riordan is now trying to block Guardian’s request for Amoruso’s personnel file from his short stint as a New Jersey State Police administrative employee. Guardian’s lawyers claim that Amoruso’s employment record shows a long history of homophobic beliefs and statements by Amoruso and suggest Amoruso was terminated by the department for conduct unbecoming of a New Jersey State Trooper.

Multiple attempts to contact Amoruso directly and through Mo Hills, $90,000 per year public information officer, Art Ghallager, a former political blogger and campaign manager for Hill were unsuccessful.

Gallagher stated this summer that the township does not comment regarding ongoing litigation.

Three weeks ago, Riordan filed an objection to Guardian’s requests for all documents pertaining to a comment allegedly made by Amuros about missing his old job as a police officer where he could arrest ‘f-ggots’ at rest stops along the Garden State Parkway.

“Defendants object to the form of the proposed scheduling Order submitted by Plaintiff to the Court on August 12, 2022 as the various tasks to be completed are too condensed and request that they be amended per the enclosed proposed scheduling Order,” Riordan wrote in the August 18th memo the courts.

Guardian’s legal team is requesting the personnel file of the defendant, Louis Amoruso; all internal affairs files, and copies of all police reports, summonses, complaints, and/or tickets issued to or pertaining to any individual at a rest stop by former Trooper Louis Amoruso.

The township, under Riordan’s counsel, has fought to suppress that vital information which it deems critical to its case against Amoruso.

New Jersey Pay to Play reports show that Riordan, prior to 2021’s state filings did not receive any legal work from the Township of Toms River in recent years, but in 2021, Riordan made political donations in the amount of $1,700 to Mo Hill team candidate James Quinlisk; and commissioners Bobbi Jo Crea and Gary Quinn.

Riordan also collected $118,000 this year as the legal counsel for Point Pleasant Beach, and $22,000 from Brick Township. Prior to 2021, Riordan received regular large payments from the Joint Insurance Funded headed by former Ocean County GOP Chairman Joseph Buckelew.

We attempted to contact Riordan when news of the check swap happened, but he has yet to return calls from Shore News Network on the matter.

You appear to be using an ad blocker

Shore News Network is a free website that does not use paywalls or charge for access to original, breaking news content. In order to provide this free service, we rely on advertisements. Please support our journalism by disabling your ad blocker for this website.