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Craig Sworn In, Questions Officer’s Visit to Committee Meeting
From left: Lindsey, Voll.
VILLAS — Newly sworn Lower Township Councilman Walter Craig is questioning why a police officer may have been sent to a Lower Township Republican Committee meeting Jan. 18.
A regularly scheduled Township Council meeting was opened Jan. 18 was but cancelled when only Mayor Michael Beck and Councilman Glenn Douglass were in attendance.
While members of the public, Beck and Douglass waited for 90 minutes, Lower Township Republican Committee selected Craig to fill an open Ward Two council seat.
Craig did not appear at Township Hall and the scheduled council meeting was cancelled.
Councilman Tom Conrad and Deputy Mayor Kevin Lare were on vacation leaving just Beck and Douglass for the regularly scheduled meeting.
Craig told the Herald Fri. Jan. 20 he was surprised Beck and Douglass expected him to come right from the committee meeting to Township Hall to engage in township business “which I had little or no prior knowledge of.”
“I’m surprised a police officer showed up at the front door (of the Senior Center where the Republican committee was meeting),” he said.
Craig said the committee was receiving text messages from people in Township Hall advising a police officer was coming to the committee meeting “to escort you back to the meeting.”
“If that’s correct, well then I have to question the use of a police officer in that matter,” he said. “I certainly hope it’s not correct.”
There were a whole lot of people “stirring the pot,” said Craig. He said some questioned why a police officer would show up at a political meeting.
Craig said if anybody from Township Hall had reached out to him, he would have told them he was not coming to the Township Council meeting. He said he wouldn’t ask any new member of council, who came into office in the same manner to appear five minutes later, get sworn in and participate in a council meeting in a professional manner.
“I had no packet, I had no idea what was on the agenda,” he said.
Craig said his intention was to go to Township Hall the following morning, something an attorney advised to do as normal procedure.
Craig received his oath of office as a councilman from Township Clerk Claudia Kammer at 11 a.m. Thur. Jan. 19 with Township Manager Michael Voll holding a Bible.
On Jan. 18, Voll, a Class II Lower Township police officer and four reporters walked a half block to the Lower Township Senior Center where the Republican Committee was meeting. Voll them asked Republican Committee Chairman Jeff Lindsey to inform Township Council when a new councilperson had been selected by the committee and to send the person to Township Hall to be sworn in. (See the above video of Voll, the officer and reporters at the Senior Center.)
The committee did not send official word to Beck and Douglass that Craig had been selected and the council meeting that never officially started, due to a lack of a quorum, adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
Lower Township Council will hold a special meeting on Wed., Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. at Township Hall.
The purpose of the meeting will be to review and act on the agenda items originally scheduled for Jan. 18.
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Mon, 01/23/2012 - 1:08am - Posted by: john
Sally , He was probably too drunk to remember .
Sun, 01/22/2012 - 11:21pm - Posted by: Sally Sunshine
Just wondering, was (the former mayor and repub leader) Craig married when he was tending to this employee grievance, in his car, in a deserted area near the marsh, in a neighboring township?
Sun, 01/22/2012 - 4:18pm - Posted by: ABSALOM ABSALOM
Sorry, May 18, 2006 must be also a black-out date--and it was a weekday. Just go to the top of the page, type "POWALS," in the SEARCH box, Press the "GO" key, click on first article and read! Where's Wendra now?
Sun, 01/22/2012 - 4:43am - Posted by: barracuda
The lies and distortions start already. Why didn't the Republican party tell the township manager when he FIRST contacted them at 7:30, after the public, council and media had been waiting a half an hour, that they had no intention of announcing the "winner." Instead, the message sent was "We are holding our regular organizational meeting first, then we will vote for the new council member". The public, council and media are kept waiting another hour, until the Manager, police escort, and the media go over to ask if they are done, did they select the candidate, who it was and are they coming to the council meeting. The organization says they are still meeting....then they all leave without any official notification to the approximately 60 members of the public, council or the media who are left waiting in town hall. Craig could have told the person he was texting back and forth with at town hall, to tell the people to take a hike..I'm going home.
Sat, 01/21/2012 - 11:46am - Posted by: ABSALOM ABSALOM
Cape May County Herald-1/20/12:
Walter Craig is questioning why a police officer may have been sent to a Lower Township Republican Committee meeting Jan. 18.
“I’m surprised a police officer showed up at the front door (of the Senior Center where the Republican committee was meeting),” he said.
“If that’s correct, well then I have to question the use of a police officer in that matter,” he said. “I certainly hope it’s not correct.” Craig said his intention was to go to Township Hall the following morning, something an attorney advised to do as normal procedure.
Always, follow the advice of your attorney. My councilman’s surprised at seeing the police? Are August 17, 2006 or 1984 complete black-outs? Read the 9/13/06 Herald.
Fri, 01/20/2012 - 10:32pm - Posted by: Jets Sanchez
The Cape May County Prosecutor and the Attorney General both need to investigate this!! Why was a Lower Township Police Officer made to go to the Senior Center and Escort The manager there?? Was the Chief aware of this?? The manager, nor Beck can make that officer do what he was forced to do. This is a direct violation of the Faulkner Act!!
Fri, 01/20/2012 - 5:47pm - Posted by: IRISH
UNBELIEVABLE...DONE ON THE DOWNLOW SO THE RESIDENTS WERE NOT INFORMED TO ATTEND??? DOES ANYONE QUESTION WHY??? I DO!!!!! THUS, it begins again the same old "Good Ole Boys" agenda. I never saw the Mayor send a Police Officer to go get Craig....MANY residents waited until 8:40pm when the Mayor aannounced NO Meeting because Craig would not give us, the residents, the opportunity to watch him be sworn in. He, along with others, who were at the Senior Ctr for the vote, I guess, decided WE WERE NOT WORTH HIS TIME!!!