State Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson in Trenton rejected a request by the Election Law Enforcement Commission to hold open its case against Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo indefinitely. The powerful Democrat is accused of spending thousands in campaign funds on personal expenses.
TRENTON -- Efforts by the state's election watchdog agency to keep alive its enforcement action against Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo were rejected by a judge Tuesday, but the matter was sent to the Appellate Division for possible appeal.
State Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson in Trenton turned down a request by the Election Law Enforcement Commission to hold open the case indefinitely, transferring it over to the Appellate Division which she said had exclusive jurisdiction.
ELEC now has 45 days to appeal the decision.
Attorneys for DiVincenzo said it would be inappropriate to comment because the matter was still potentially pending, assuming ELEC pursues the matter in the Appellate Division.
The stalemate over the enforcement matter has been tied in large part to the continued inaction by Republican Gov. Chris Christie, who has yet to appoint a Democrat to the election commission since the death four years ago of Lawrence Weiss, a Democrat and retired Superior Court judge. That, combined with the decision of the only other Democrat on the commission, Walter Timpone, to recuse himself for still unknown reasons, has essentially given DiVincenzo a free pass in the case.A hearing officer for the Office of Administrative Law in September recommended dismissal of the case--citing the recusal of the lone Democrat on the commission that left it without a necessary bipartisan quorum.
DiVincenzo, a powerful Essex Democrat and major Christie supporter, is accused of spending thousands of dollars in campaign funds for personal expenses, including gym membership fees, tickets to sporting events and trips to Puerto Rico. First charged by the election commission in October 2013, DiVincenzo allegedly misused more than $16,000 in campaign funds and failed to disclose nearly $72,000 in campaign spending over a two-year period.
Those expenses included more than $9,000 for airfare, as well as hotel stays and food for two trips to Puerto Rico during the Super Bowl weekends in 2011 and 2012. The county executive described the event as a political retreat for Essex County Democrats. According to the complaint, DiVincenzo also used his campaign account to pay for tickets to the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Devils games and a Houston Astros game; a $676.94 tuxedo at Joseph A. Bank; a $97.25-a-month gym membership; and more than $100 in parking tickets in Nutley, his hometown at the time.
ELEC took action after a DiVincenzo political opponent, Marilynn English, filed a complaint in 2011 about the Essex County executive's lack of disclosure on campaign finance reports.
Attorneys for DiVincenzo argued the complaint against the county executive was legally deficient, and a hearing officer ultimately agreed. By law, the four-member election commission cannot have any more than two members of the same party--traditionally two Democrats and two Republicans. With the recusal of Timpone and the other seat vacant, however, just two Republicans were left to vote to bring the complaint.
Administrative Law Judge Jeff Masin, who issued the recommendation calling for the case to be dismissed, said the Legislature had specifically precluded the ability of a single-party majority from making a determination in any campaign enforcement matter in New Jersey.
ELEC attorneys argued that the statutes governing ELEC were silent on the specifics of a quorum in the section that empowers it to issue complaints. At the same time, the commission sought to the matter kept alive indefinitely until the governor appointed another Democrat.
Attorneys for DiVincenzo argued in court briefs, however, that the commission was in the wrong court in its efforts to block dismissal of the case. "The appellate division has the sole and exclusive jurisdiction to consider appeals of state agency actions," stated Angelo Genova in a filing. "Here, ELEC seeks to do an 'end-run' around the appellate division's exclusive jurisdiction over final agency actions."
The judge agreed that jurisdiction rested with the Appellate Division. ELEC officials had no comment on the judge's decision.
"We're considering our options," said a spokesman.
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
