Judge rejects Fletcher accuser’s request for restraining order against Lorena Gonzalez

For the second time in three weeks, a San Diego Superior Court judge has refused to issue a restraining order against Lorena Gonzalez sought by a former public relations specialist who accused her husband of sexual assault and harassment.

Grecia Figueroa, whose lawsuit against former San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher and her one-time employer Metropolitan Transit System was dismissed this summer, failed to persuade Judge Blair A. Soper that Gonzalez presented any threat to the accuser.

At the end of a 30-minute hearing Tuesday, Soper said there was no evidence to support Figueroa’s claim that the powerful statewide labor leader had targeted her with repeated threats.

“The words that you presented from her to this court do not rise to the level of harassment,” Soper said in announcing his decision. “The burden of proof just has not been met.”

Figueroa last month requested a temporary restraining order against Gonzalez, identified in court documents as Gonzalez Fletcher, saying she was stoking harassment against her.

In one instance, Figueroa said an unknown man banged on her front door late one night hours after Gonzalez posted a provocative statement online. In another, she said someone slashed a tire on her car the morning of a critical court hearing.

The filing came weeks after another judge dismissed the last of all claims Figueroa filed against Fletcher and the transit system, citing what he called her deliberate withholding and destruction of evidence.

According to Figueroa, Gonzalez used public statements and social-media posts during and after the civil litigation to create a “false narrative” that portrayed her as a victimizer rather than a victim.

“For the past two and a half years, I have been harassed by this woman constantly,” Figueroa told the court. “It’s hard to even remember because it is so painful.”

But the judge declined to approve a temporary restraining order she sought — both last month, when Figueroa first requested a protection order, and again on Tuesday following her petition for a permanent order.

Within minutes of the court’s decision, Gonzalez issued a statement promoting the ruling.

“This was another attempt by Ms. Figueroa to inflict harm upon me and my family by wielding egregiously false allegations in court filings designed to drive press attention to herself,” said Gonzalez, a former state lawmaker.

“Clogging up the courts with these false charges denies access to justice for actual victims, just like false accusations of sexual assault only hurts actual victims.”

Figueroa was working as a public relations specialist at Metropolitan Transit System, or MTS, when Fletcher served as board chair due to his role as an elected county supervisor.

She was fired in February 2023 on the same day Fletcher announced he was running for the California Senate.

The following month, Figueroa filed a lawsuit alleging that Fletcher sexually assaulted her inside the MTS headquarters and sexually harassed her over many months. Her lawsuit also accused MTS of retaliating against her.

Fletcher denied the accusations but acknowledged what he called an inappropriate but consensual relationship with Figueroa. He resigned from the MTS board and later his seat on the county Board of Supervisors. MTS similarly denied the allegations.

Figueroa withdrew the most serious charges late last year, and a judge formally dismissed the remaining claims at a hearing in August, just before they were set for trial. The judge said Figueroa had credibility issues due to text messages and other material she deleted or withheld from the defendants.

Fletcher filed a defamation lawsuit against Figueroa early last year and has said he is pressing forward with that case. Outside court Tuesday, Figueroa said she still plans to appeal the dismissal of her lawsuit.