Philadelphia Register of Wills John Sabatina Sr. has been hit with three more federal lawsuits filed by former employees who say they were fired for lack of political support, a move that could leave city taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in new legal settlements.
This is in addition to the $400,000 the city has already paid to settle four of five lawsuits filed last year based on the allegation that former Registry of Wills director Tracey Gordon fired employees for lack of support her re-election campaign.
Let’s work backwards:
Sabatina, an attorney and district leader in Northeast Philadelphia, defeated Gordon in the May 2023 Democratic primary and took office in January 2024.
According to a federal lawsuit filed in September 2024 on behalf of five of them, one of Sabatina’s first orders was to terminate the employment of 19 employees. The employees, who worked at the office from eight months to about four years, say Sabatina retaliated against them for exercising their First Amendment right to support another candidate — or no candidate at all.
Two more lawsuits were filed in October on behalf of former records clerk Ian Ewing and community outreach coordinator Mark Harrell, both hired by Gordon in 2020 and fired by Sabatina.
In these suits, Sabatina, who has the endorsement of the Democratic City Committee, is likened to the head of a “Tammany Hall”-style political machine, a reference to a New York political organization known for hiring patrons.
Like the September complaint, both lawsuits allege violations of the First Amendment because the men did not support Sabatina’s candidacy.
“You can’t get into office and fire everyone and hire your friends,” said Timothy Creech, a lawyer representing seven laid-off workers. “These people lost their good jobs in the city for no reason.”
A fourth lawsuit was filed last month on behalf of former administrative deputy Stephanie Graham, hired by Gordon in 2020. She claims Sabatina was targeted because she supported Gordon’s re-election campaign.
Employees of the Office of the Registrar of Wills do not enjoy the civil service protection afforded to other City Hall employees. However, Alice Ballard, a lawyer co-representing Graham, said the employees had constitutional rights and could not be fired based on their political beliefs.
“This is not a corruption system,” Ballard said, referring to the process of replacing existing employees with supporters of the winning candidate.
Ava Schwemler, a spokeswoman for the Philadelphia Department of Law, declined to comment on the lawsuits, as did Sabatina’s office. In a court filing responding to a September lawsuit filed by five employees, Sabatina’s lawyers denied any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Gordon’s one term remains costly to Philadelphia taxpayers.
Elected in 2019, Gordon left behind a barrage of lawsuits alleging that she essentially turned the office into an arm of her re-election campaign and retaliated against staffers who refused to pay contributions.
Last week, the city paid $120,000 to Patrick Parkinson, a former administrative deputy who said Gordon “constantly and relentlessly solicited” him for campaign contributions. In his lawsuit, he said he did not want to be associated with her campaign because he believed Gordon was “ruthless, corrupt, unethical and incompetent” and she “conducted illegally.”
Three other former Gordon employees who claimed they were also retaliated against received a total of $280,000. A similar lawsuit filed by former official Nicholas Barone is pending. He said he was fired for failing to donate money to Gordon’s campaign.
The register of wills processes inheritance records – wills, property inventories and inheritance tax documents – and issues marriage certificates. The position, a holdover from the days when Philadelphia had a separate county government, remains independently elected, like other so-called line offices such as sheriff and city commissioners.
Creech said the city will likely continue to face these types of lawsuits until the issue of hiring patrons at the office is resolved.
“They will have this hole in the budget that they close every time the administration changes at the office of the Registrar of Wills,” Creech said. “The city should not allow this to happen. It should reform the office and eliminate patronage, as it has done in courts, city halls and other municipal offices.”
Staff Writer Abraham Gutman contributed to this article.
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