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Pension Board Strips Scarpelli's Pension, Medical Benefits
By Catherine Snipe
Former Mayor Joseph Scarpelli, who pled guilty this year to accepting bribes, has had his pension and health benefits suspended.
The state pension board ruled that in light of Scarpelli's guilty plea to corruption charges, his benefits would be suspended, effective immediately.
The Public Employees Retirement System board cited the magnitude of the offense as among the reason, according to published reports by Gannett New Jersey.
Scarpelli, 67, admitted in federal court this year that he accepted more than $5,000 in bribes from an unnamed developer. The township has yet to discover which projects were tainted by the bribes.
Gannett New Jersey reported that during the hearing,
Scarpelli offered little comment on the advice of his lawyer,
Michael Nolan, who also told the board Scarpelli was a "condemned man" who could face prison.
The injustice of the board's decision, according to Nolan, was not to Scarpelli but to his wife, 67, who had no part in the illegal acts but now had no health coverage as a result of the ruling, which took place late last week in Trenton.
Next in the process is Scarpelli's sentencing, which is scheduled for May 29. He could serve up to 30 months in prison.
In Brick Township, residents and officials alluded to the decision during the public comment portion of the most recent weekly council meeting.
Council President Stephen Acropolis said the former mayor inquired about his pension in January 2006.
Resident Melanie Briggs asked whether another disgraced Brick official, former Director of Public Works John Nydam, had initiated his pension and whether his benefits would face a hearing by the Public Employees Retirement System board, too.
Acropolis said no, Nydam, who was found guilty on charges such as official misconduct, was not collecting a pension.
Nydam plead guilty April 3, 2006 to official misconduct, theft and witness tampering. His sentencing, rescheduled several times since the guilty plea, was again postponed this month. He could face five years for each of the three offenses.
Acropolis said a state law awaiting the governor's signature would now make it illegal for public officials convicted of corruption to collect benefits. Elected officials and public workers convicted of corruption would lose pensions and face mandatory jail time under a bill the Senate passed.
However, Acropolis said he's disappointed the law has a grandfather clause, meaning it doesn't apply to officials who did the deed and initiated their pension before the bill is signed into law.
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