‘There Is a Noose Upstairs’: White Firefighter Racially Harassed Black Firefighter Multiple Times, Threw Racist Symbol at Him, Lawsuit States
A Black firefighter filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a New Jersey fire department where he works failed to intervene and take immediate action after he suffered heinous racist harassment from one of his colleagues. In the $25 million complaint filed by Patrick Thomas, he alleges that the Bloomfield Fire Department never took steps to protect him from or discipline a white firefighter who repeatedly racially discriminated against him. According to the suit, per Fire Law Blog, Bloomfield firefighter Walter Coffey made verbal and physical references about hanging nooses to Thomas on two separate occasions. Patrick Thomas is suing the Bloomfield Fire Department. (Photo: YouTube screenshot/4 New York) The complaint alleges that even before those incidents, Coffey had used the N-word on numerous occasions "in the presence of African American members of the BFD to harass, intimidate, and as a means of informing minorities of their status as inferior within the institution." On Nov. 8, 2023, during a departmental training focused on rope and knot techniques, the suit states that Coffey approached Thomas and said, "Thomas, there is a noose upstairs on the table, did you see it?” ‘My Neck Is Broken’: Connecticut Cops Avoid Jail Time and Pay $15 Fines After Black Man Paralyzed During ‘Rough Ride’ In Police Van Without Seatbelt A week later, in the middle of a knot training session, the suit states that Coffey tied a hangman’s noose and threw it toward Thomas while laughing and saying, “I want you to figure out what kind of knot this is.” Thomas replied, “I know exactly what this is, this is a noose. This is what people used to hang my ancestors from trees. You think this is funny?” The suit states the incident "was intended to degrade and humiliate (Thomas) because of his race, resulting in severe emotional and psychological harm." Surveillance footage obtained by WNBC from the firehouse corroborates the act, showing Coffey tying the noose and throwing it toward Thomas in front of several other firefighters. The complaint states the incident happened in the presence of their colleagues, supervisors, and the course instructor. The incident made local news headlines after prosecutors criminally charged Coffey with bias intimidation in December 2023. He was admitted to a pre-trial intervention program that, upon completion, could result in the dismissal of those charges. "I think there should have been some jail time or a little bit more than two years' probation, and if he does everything right in two years, he has no criminal record," Thomas recently told WNBC. "It's like it never even happened." The Bloomfield Fire Department launched an internal investigation into the noose incidents, according to the suit, but nothing panned out. Agency officials paused the investigation when Coffey was charged and resumed it in May 2025. They interviewed both Coffey and Thomas, but the investigation has yet to reach a conclusion, according to Thomas' suit. Coffey has been employed with the department since 2000, but town officials say he is currently on unpaid suspension pending his termination. Thomas sought an independent clinical evaluation in December 2023 after Coffey was charged to assess the extent of the mental and emotional distress he suffered. The fire agency required him to use sick leave for the time he spent out of work in the months after the incident. In March 2024, Thomas filed a workers' compensation claim that was denied, despite the assessments from multiple clinicians — both independent and township-appointed — who diagnosed him with psychological injuries related to the incident, the suit states. One recent evaluation to determine whether he was fit for duty concluded that he was “unlikely to be restored to duty in a reasonable period of time.” Township of Bloomfield Mayor Jenny Mundell released a statement on Facebook shortly after Thomas's suit was filed, reaffirming the town's “zero tolerance stance” on racism: “This is why upon learning of the November 2023 racial harassment incident involving a Bloomfield firefighter, the township took immediate and decisive action, promptly referring the incident to law enforcement. Additionally, the firefighter, Walter Coffey, was suspended without pay and the legal termination process was initiated the same day the conduct was reported. Walter Coffey remains on unpaid suspension and has not been permitted to return to duty while the township finalizes the legal process of terminating his employment. The Essex County Prosecutor's Office conducted an independent investigation, ultimately charging and indicting Walter Coffey for bias intimidation. This criminal accountability reinforces what has been clear from the outset: racist conduct will not be tolerated in Bloomfield.” When the incidents happened, there were only four Black firefighters among the 80 firefighters employed with the Bloomfield Fire Department. Thomas now seeks a $25 million judgment for the “loss of liberty, emotional distress, humiliation, loss of property, costs and expenses, and other damages and injuries.”
