NFL star Justin Jefferson is facing a paternity lawsuit in New Jersey, where the trustee of the Minnesota Vikings is accused of pressuring the child’s mother to have an abortion.
Jefferson and his ex-girlfriend, Andrea Galea, filed counterclaims against each other in Essex County (New Jersey) Family Court last month. These documents have since been obtained by DailyMail.com.
Galea recently graduated from the University of Miami Law School and previously studied with Jefferson at Louisiana State University. The two became romantically involved in 2019 before breaking up and reconnecting in April 2023, according to her paternity suit filed on January 19. It was in April that Galea claimed Jefferson was the father of her daughter Stella, who was born in late December.
In addition to a paternity test, Galea has pushed for financial support and health care coverage from Jefferson, while accusing the former first-round draft pick of pressuring her to abort the child during her pregnancy.
In his own Jan. 26 complaint, Jefferson also pushed for a paternity test while seeking an injunction against Galea to prevent her from sharing information about the child.
Andrea Galea (pictured with daughter Stella) hopes to secure health care for the child
Justin Jefferson (left) reportedly fathered baby Stella with Andrea Galea (right) in April
“Defendant (Galea) has a substantial presence and following on various social media platforms and has apparently strategically positioned himself in recent years to become an ‘online influencer,’” Jefferson’s complaint states.
Jefferson’s filing accuses Galea of ”using the birth of the child and her claims about the plaintiff’s alleged fathering of the child as an apparent promotion on her various online platforms to self-promote her online presence and following.”
His complaint also includes text messages, purportedly exchanged between Jefferson and Galea, that were previously published online.
“In numerous communications to Plaintiff, Plaintiff’s family, Plaintiff’s friends and other individuals, including but not limited to text messages, social media posts, blogs and various internet messaging platforms, Defendant announced in the most unfortunate and moderate terms to the entire world that she is the natural mother of the child, and that the plaintiff is unquestionably the father of the child,” Jefferson’s filing reads.
Jefferson’s attorney Peter Till declined to respond to DailyMail.com’s questions about the case: “It is the policy of this office not to comment on pending litigation, and to leave all matters to the courtroom.”
Galea’s lawyer, Gary Newman, initially declined to comment, telling DailyMail.com that he would do so at the “opportune time.”
In her filing, Andrea Galea accuses Justin Jefferson of pressuring her to have an abortion
Galea’s complaint paints a very different picture than Jefferson’s: one that accuses him of failing to financially support the child while steadfastly refusing to acknowledge Stella.
“Despite earning millions of dollars a year, Defendant has not provided a cent of financial support to the child,” Galea’s complaint states.
Jefferson, the 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, will become a free agent in 2025
“In addition to his physical absence from the life of his newborn baby, Defendant has unequivocally and reprehensibly demonstrated a strong unwillingness to voluntarily support the child in any capacity, be it emotional, financial or otherwise.
“Suffice it to say that Defendant’s actions (or, more accurately, inaction) left Plaintiff no other alternative than to file this verified complaint to ensure the protection of their child’s interests.”
Text messages, purportedly between Jefferson and Galea, are included in his complaint and show the former couple struggling to decide how to handle the pregnancy.
“So are you okay with getting this,” Jefferson Galea wrote in a text message attached to his file.
In another conversation, Jefferson wonders if Galea used Plan B, also known as the morning-after pill, to terminate the pregnancy.
‘The longer you wait, the more difficult the situation will be. That’s why I wanted to give you the plan. (Because) I didn’t want to be in this situation, but it’s completely my fault that I shouldn’t have done it in the first place,” he wrote in a text message.
Galea then responds, “Justin, I took plan b even though it was just too late to be effective. Sometimes, depending on the cycle, it can be too late unless you take it within two hours… and there are always two people to blame for that. Personally, I have never had to deal with a situation like this…’
In a text message included in Jefferson’s files, he asks Galea if she is “situating” this.
Also included in Jefferson’s file was a text message in which he told Galea she was “annoying.”
In her filing, Galea accuses Jefferson of pushing for an abortion.
“Unfortunately, Defendant subsequently attempted to pressure Plaintiff to obtain an abortion,” Galea’s filing reads. “Defendant actively encouraged Plaintiff to terminate the pregnancy and offered to do ‘whatever (Plaintiff) needed (him) to do.’
“When he realized that he could not convince the plaintiff to terminate the pregnancy, the defendant began to behave toward her with great insensitivity and extreme cruelty,” the filing continues. “Defendant blocked plaintiff from communicating with him and coldly told her to ‘talk to me when the legal matters came up.’
Jefferson claims that Galea started “irritating” him about Stella, forcing him to change his number.
His file contains text messages from Galea and her sister in which they try to convince Jefferson and his relatives to be part of Stella’s life.
“Hello, this is Clio – Andrea’s sister,” read one message. ‘I just wanted to let you know that Andrea gave birth to a healthy baby girl today at 2:54 PM, she weighs 2.5 kilos. She is very sweet and beautiful and is doing great…’
In another conversation, Jefferson tells Galea, “You wanted the child you could take care of.
“I tried to tell you how it would go, you didn’t believe me,” he added later.
In another exchange in his filing, Jefferson tells Galea, “You wanted the child you could take care of.”
The lawsuit comes at a pivotal time in Jefferson’s distinguished NFL career.
His expiring contract will pay him almost $20 million in 2024. And unless he comes to terms on an extension with the Vikings, he could become one of the most sought-after free agents in recent memory.
The Louisiana native was the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2022 while leading the league with 128 receptions.
“I want to break the bank, and I want to be part of an organization that wants me and actually gives me what I deserve,” Jefferson told SiriusXM radio earlier this month. “I feel like the Vikings will ultimately do what they have to do to have me in the building, but I don’t know exactly at this point. Time will tell.’
According to her file, Jefferson and Galea were previously close, and he even stayed at her mother’s house in New Jersey for “two weeks” during their college years (LSU).
A former swimmer for the Tigers, Galea graduated from Miami Law with honors in 2023 and is just embarking on a legal career while caring for her daughter with the help of her own mother.