Political meddling in Roselle Civil Service case?

If you think Plainfield politics is a jungle, consider outside political intervention in the affairs of Roselle, and the statewide effects of same.

When Roselle's mayor, Garrett Smith, appealed a borough Council layoff plan which eliminated the borough's CFO, Adrian Mapp (who is also a Plainfield council member) to the state's Civil Service Commission, he received a preliminary ruling in his favor.

The Civil Service Commission held that the borough council had improperly made the borough clerk the 'appointing authority'.

Yesterday, the Ledger reported that that ruling was reversed by the Commission, which declared borough councils to be the appointing authority for civil service jobs (see here). The fallout from that ruling will be widespread, predicted Bill Dressel of NJ's League of Municipalities.

Today's Ledger runs a story (see here) of several boroughs' reactions -- indicating a wide range of methods of handling civil service appointments -- but basically aligning the newspaper on the side of Roselle's borough council in the matter.

Word on the street is that a certain state senator allegedly intervened upon learning that the Civil Service Commission was preparing to issue a final ruling upholding Roselle's mayor Smith as the 'appointing authority', insisting that Attorney General Milgram make a determination on the point of law. And that Milgram found against the pro-Smith ruling; hence the Civil Service Commission's reversal of course.

Milgram had come under attack in October by Sen. Ray Lesniak and state Dem chair (and Assemblyman) Joe Cryan (see here) for her 'indictment by accusation' of Roselle council president Jamal Holley over alleged voter fraud.

Holley, who was chief of staff to disgraced former Assemblyman Neil Cohen, now works for Union County and is considered the darling of Union County Dem power brokers.

One has to wonder whether the attack on Milgram by Lesniak and Cryan had anything to do with how the Attorney General arrived at the opinion said to be behind the Civil Service Commission's reversal.

And why, after more than two years, Milgram has yet to resolve the investigation into the financial dealings of Union County Dem chair Charlotte DeFilippo.

Union County political hanky-panky has been curiously exempt from the high-profile investigations that have snared so many pols over the past few years.

Will that change once corruption-buster Chris Christie takes the Governor's chair?

If so, the possibility of political meddling in the Roselle situation would be as good a place as any to start.

---

• Ledger --
• Thursday: "Roselle ruling has statewide impact"
  
• Friday: "Borough governments weigh new hiring rules"
• PolitickerNJ: "Lesniak and Cryan pummel Milgram over Holley case"
  

-- Dan Damon [follow]

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