Hamilton council selected its first female mayor to replace convicted former mayor John Bencivengo.

After a meeting that lasted more than three hours, the council voted to approve Councilwoman Kelly Yaede as the mayor to serve until a special election next November. She promised to move the township forward and "start a new chapter in Hamilton township."

“People come first, politics come second,” she said during her interview with council. “We all stood shoulder to shoulder in good times and bad.”

The confirmation did not come without its controversy; Yaede herself chaired the meeting after Council President Kevin Meara recused himself. In addition, only two of the three nominees received a second for a vote. The other two nominated were Councilman Ed Gore and David Maher, a former freeholder candidate and Notthingham fire commissioner.

Meara said he felt that a meeting all the council members had attended, which was supposed to discuss poltical matters, had talked about township business and recused himself.

At one point, the meeting broke down over a contentious exchange between Councilman Dave Kenny and former Councilman Vinnie Cappodano. Cappodano said he thought the process had violated the Open Public Meetings Act.

“You are going to choose an illegitimate mayor,” he said. “It’s a farce and a joke.”

Kenny said Cappodano had a motive of becoming closer with Meara, who has served as temprorary mayor since last week’s resignation of Bencivengo.

“You want to become part of Meara’s inner circle,” he said.

Several members of the public commented on the “cloud” hanging over the township in regard to the Bencivengo scandal. Councilman Dennis Pone, among others on the council, bristled at questions about the conduct of the township and the politicians.

“It’s patently unfair and it does upset us because we have done such a good job,” he said. “Believe me we are outstanding public servants.”

“What is the secret here? What is the difficulty of responding to questions about Marliese Ljuba?” said George Fisher, a former candidate for the school board. “Why couldn’t those questions be asked?”

Fisher and others questioned the timing of the meeting, which had been originally scheduled for Dec. 20. A petition by Councilman Dave Kenny moved the meeting to Friday.

“Allowing the public to participate, let them ask their questions. They want to have confidence in you,” said Mark Cuverle. “I don’t understand the rush.”

Bencivengo was convicted of taking $12,400 in bribes from the government’s cooperating witness, Marliese Ljuba, in exchange for his influence with the Hamilton Board of Education, so that she could keep her lucrative health insurance brokerage for her employer, Allen Associates.

The council has now gone into session to select the new mayor of Hamilton. You can read live coverage here or @awisefool

Hamilton Mayor Kevin Meara, as another part of his short tenure, has announced a series of public safety measures.

He said he has initiated a process to replace the four police officers who retired in August and September. Currently, the police force is at 166 out of 170 budgeted officers. Hamilton Police Chief James Collins said that as many as 15 officers could retire in the next year, meaning they may need to hire as many as 19 officers.

"It could get to a level that it would take a long long time to get back," Meara said.

He said he also wanted the police to establish a standard operating procedure for when they encounter people with substance or alcohol abuse problems. Collins said the department already has a standardized procedure when handling domestic abuse changes.

The hiring of officers will not happen immediately. In fact, the township likely will not finish the first administrative step to start those hires -- receiving the lists of eligible people -- before Meara's replacement takes over.

He said that, along with other moves he's made in his short tenure, could be easily reversed once the next mayor takes over.

"The ship is starting to turn in a positive direction that is not only desired by the residents, but demanded," he said.

HAMILTON TWP. — The town may soon open its books to state investigators in the wake of the scandal that brought down convicted Mayor John Bencivengo.

Mayor Kevin Meara, who stepped in for up to 30 days after Bencivengo’s resignation, announced yesterday he had asked the town’s auditing firm to come up with a proposal for an extensive audit of the town’s finances that could stretch back years. He also said he has reached out to the state to see if the comptroller’s office might want to conduct its own investigation.

“We have to do everything that we can so that at some point...At some point residents begin to feel this is their government again this is their house,” Meara said.

Meara said he had spoken to many residents who had expressed frustration with municipal politics and equated the former mayor’s scandal with the township as a whole. He said the investigation would help the town get past the scandal much quicker.

Bob Morrison, the accountant whose firm has conducted the township’s audits, said the more in-depth forensic audit would examine financial transactions in ways that the normal yearly audit would not catch. He said auditors, whether from his firm or the state, would analyze phone and email records as well as conduct interviews, in addition to looking at financial records.

“We assume nothing is legitimate and basically take the transactions apart and put them back together to make sure everything is appropriate,” Morrison said.

Meara, who said he could not put a timeframe on how long the process would take. Partially because the process is in its first stages; township officials have not decided the scope of the audit and do not know whether state officials will intervene. he said any expense for the audit would also need approval from council.

“We’re all aware there is a cloud over Hamilton Township and we all know it is not going away immediately,” he said.

Acting Business Administrator John Barrett said he had conversations with the state Comptroller’s office about looking at the township’s finances.

“This will put the sunshine back in Hamilton Township,” Barrett said.

You can read the full story here.

Barbara Plumeri

The first Democrat to reach out to the media in the wake of the resignation of Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo is Barbara Plumeri.

She is looking to get the Democratic nod to run for mayor in the special election next fall. She'll likely face the person selected by the Republican council in the next few weeks to serve as mayor. In the interim, Council President Kevin Meara serves as mayor until as late as Dec. 20. The candidates will face off for the rest of Bencivengo's term, which runs until 2015.

Plumeri has worked as Director of Administrative Services for Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-New Jersey) after he was elected in the 1980s. She has also worked as a Regional Director for Job Placement for the New Jersey State AFL-CIO, as well as several positions in the administrations of two Democratic governors.

“The next mayor of Hamilton faces the daunting task of helping our community heal from a terrible betrayal of the public trust,” Plumeri said in a press release. “Based on my work in the private and public sectors, I know what it takes to make government work for the people it serves, instead of the other way around. Together, we can move beyond the travesty of the past and restore ethics, integrity and fiscal stability to Hamilton Township.”

Her husband, Sam Plumeri, Jr., served as Sherriff of Mercer County for more than a decade and served as Superintendent of Police and Director of Public Safety for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Sam Plumeri Jr. is currently the Vice Chairman of the State Parole Board and Chairman of the Board of Capital Health Systems.

Bencivengo was convicted in federal court last week of taking $12,400 in bribes from the government’s cooperating witness, Marliese Ljuba, in exchange for his influence with the Hamilton Board of Education, so that she could keep her lucrative health insurance brokerage for her employer, Allen Associates.

After the trial and conviction of former Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo, the local state assemblyman has called for a state investigation into municipal contracts there.

Assemblyman Dan Benson (D-Hamilton) said he asked the state Attorney General to investigate the township, partially because of Marliese Ljuba's testimony in the case. Ljuba, the government's key witness in the case, said she gave tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to local politicians in order to secure contracts for her employer.

“I believe it is imperative that there be a thorough investigation of the township and school district to ensure that those who are entrusted with taxpayer monies to oversee and operate our township and local school system have done so according to state and local laws,” he said in a press release.

Ljuba said at various times she paid off current and former school board members, as well as making illegal "straw" donations through third parties to campaigns for town council and school board.

Bencivengo was convicted in federal court of taking $12,400 in bribes from Ljuba in exchange for his influence with the Hamilton Board of Education, so that she could keep her lucrative health insurance brokerage for her employer, Allen Associates.

Less than a day into his tenure as mayor, Kevin Meara is struggling with council over exactly when his tenure will end.

Hamilton may have its next mayor Friday afternoon, if the town council has its way. A majority of that body has requested they meet less than a day after the municipal Republican committee decides on three names to replace convicted former mayor John Bencivengo.

Councilwoman Kelly Yaede, who has put her name forward as a potential mayor, signed off on the Friday meeting and said the council can’t delay.

“I believe it is best to have a more permanent mayor as soon as possible in order to move forward from this unfortunate chapter in Hamilton’s history,” she said.

Meara, who took over for Bencivengo after he resigned last week, said he was concerned about the council’s motivations. He still maintains his presidency of council and scheduled a special meeting to select the new mayor Dec. 20, two days after conducting interviews with the candidates.

“If we start to try to hijack and manipulate the process the public is going to lose full faith in what we’re doing,” he said.

You can read the rest of the story here.

Among his first few days in office, the acting mayor has fired the business administrator in Hamilton.

John Ricci, who has been business administrator since 2008, said he received a letter from Meara this morning notifying him his services were no longer needed.

“Obviously I’m not too pleased with it,” he said. “I think I have been doing a good job and from I have been hearing from the council and the public, they agree.”

He said he will appeal the decision to council, which meets the first week of December.

“We’ll see what the council has to say,” he said.

Meara, who took over last week after Mayor John Bencivengo stepped down following his conviction on federal corruption charges, could not be reached for comment immediately.

Ricci said he did not know whether any other department heads or township administrators had been fired. He said he also did not know who was doing the work of the business administrator today.

Meara will be acting mayor for up to 30 days from Bencivengo's resignation last week. In 15 days, the municipal Republican committee will provide three nominees to town council. The council would then select one of those three to serve as mayor until next November. Then there would be a special election to fill the rest of Bencivengo’s term, which lasts until 2015.

Ricci, when he was acting mayor during Bencivengo’s trial, fired Cathy Tramontana, who was described as the “best friend” of the government’s key witness, Marliese Ljuba.

Until two weeks ago, Cathy Tramontana served as the director of Health and Recreation in Hamilton Township. Her husband, Joe Tramontana, was placed on administrative leave from his job as the Hamilton School Board Business Administrator two weeks ago.

Ljuba testified that while she was the insurance broker for Hamilton Township School District, she gave the Tramontanas gifts, trips and meals.

In addition, Ljuba testified she told the Tramontanas about her recording Bencivengo for the FBI investigation in June 2011, shortly after she began cooperating in the case.

She did not tell investigators she had told the Tramontanas until June 2012, when Joe Tramontana was approached by the FBI and Ljuba had received a nonprosecution agreement.

Editor's note: Marliese Ljuba testified at length in the trial of former Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo that she paid certain people to act as “straw donors” to political campaigns.  The Trentonian and Trenton Times incorrectly reported at various times that Joe and/or Cathy Tramontana were used by Ljuba as “straw donors.”  However, transcripts of Ljuba’s testimony show that Ljuba never accused Joe or Cathy Tramontana of being used as “straw donors.”   In addition, it has been reported that Cathy Tramontana received “money” from Ljuba.  However, Ljuba only testified that she paid for meals and trips with the Tramontanas, a contention which the Tramontanas dispute.

HAMILTON — When the Hamilton Town Council started its meeting Tuesday night, a jury had convicted the mayor some five hours earlier.

One of the primary topics of discussion then, was the bevy of issues surrounding the case and the mayor’s conviction and resignation. Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo was convicted of taking $12,400 in bribes from the FBI’s cooperating witness, Marliese Ljuba, in exchange for his influence with the local school board.

Shortly into the meeting, Ricci said the mayor has said he will resign Wednesday afternoon. Once he resigns, Council President Kevin Meara will take over as mayor temporarily, Township Attorney Lindsay Burbage said.

“I’m ready to for whatever we have to do,” Meara said.

In 15 days, the municipal Republican committee will provide three nominees to town council. The council would then select one of those three to serve as mayor until next November. Then, he said there would be a special election to fill the rest of Bencivengo’s term, which lasts until 2015.

The members of the public who spoke all mentioned some part of the Bencivengo scandal, and some in a more personal way. Resident Christopher Bran, a veteran, said he was offended by the mayor’s name on the recently dedicated Naval Memorial in Veterans Park.

“I’ll go out there and remove that name myself,” he said. “Someone from the township as soon as possible should go to not only that Naval Monument but also...wherever his name may be to have his name stricken from the monuments.”

Michel Donato, an attorney speaking on behalf of clients for the Christopher Estates, also took time to praise the efforts of the Citizens Campaign in Hamilton.

Steve Cook, director of the Arc of Mercer, and Connie Silakoski, both from the Citizens Campaign, talked about the township adopting an ordinance that would require all insurance brokerage to go to public bid. The town currently seeks bids on all its insurance contracts, but is not required to by law.

“Ordinances are the best protection that there are to ensure that brokers can’t come in like (Ljuba) and do business,” he said. “I’m speaking from experience, knowledge is power.”

Ljuba, in court, said she had paid School Board members to vote for her contract, which was not publicly bid. She earned as much as $1 million or more in commissions for her health insurance brokerage for her employer, Allen Associates.

Donato and others also talked about the problems in Christopher Estates with the developer there. The construction, which was approved eight years ago, differed from the town’s water management ordinances, Donato said.

“That basin, not only is very unattractive as a mudhole, but is also a mosquito haven,” she said.

Burbage said the town would likely need to go to court to recoup money for repairs from the developer.

Councilman Dave Kenny took some time to respond to allegations that he, Councilman Dennis Pone and former Councilman Tom Goodwin accepted straw donations from Ljuba in their 2005 campaign for council.

“No cash that ever came from Marliese Ljuba or Joy Tozzi or anybody else in a brown paper bag,” Kenny said. “Marliese Ljuba and Allen Associates have never gotten a dime from the township.”

Ljuba did not have business with the township, but had contracts with surrounding municipalities such as Robbinsville and Hightstown. Ljuba said she used Joy Tozzi, the current business administrator for Robbinsville, to make “straw” cash donations to political campaigns.

Nick DeMaria, a junior at Notingham High School, posed a question to the council.

“In the wake of mayor bencivengo’s verdict what would be an appropriate response to a young person who questions the integrity of local polticians?” he said.

“Questioning is something our young folks don’t do a lot any more,” Meara said. “You’re going to have to go along with the fact that you need to question things.”

Pone also responded.
“One or two bad eggs don’t spoil the whole bunch,” he said.

In the wake of the conviction of Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo, the township council has started its meeting.

Almost undoubtedly, there will be some discussion about that. You can follow the meeting here or @awisefool.

Props to Trentonian reporter Sherrina Navani for getting this clip:

Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo is guilty.

The jury, after deliberating for more than four hours, convicted him of all five federal corruption counts against Bencivengo, which could send him to prison for decades. He will be sentenced in February.

The verdict closes a chapter in the scandal that has rocked Hamilton. But the testimony from the case has blown off a lid in the controversy surrounding the school board’s practices, which has already resulted in the firing of one township official and administrative leave for the business administrator of the school district.

The prosecution alleged that Bencivengo took the $12,400 in exchange for influencing two school board members so that Ljuba could keep her lucrative health insurance brokerage with Hamilton School District. The charges carry a maximum of 20 years in jail each and a guilty verdict on any one could remove Bencivengo from office.

“This isn’t about friendship this is about business,” AUSA Harvey Bartle said. “There’s a Latin phrase for that. It’s called quid pro quo, something for something.”

Defense attorney Jerome Ballarotto in defending the mayor from those charges, which largely rests on the recordings made by Ljuba and her courtroom testimony, tried to pull out inconsistencies in the prosecution testimony, recordings and investigation. Ljuba also received immunity from prosecution for her crimes in exchange for her testimony against Bencivengo.

The mayor was charged with extortion under color of official right, attempted extortion under color of official right, two violations of the travel act and one charge of money laundering.

“The prosecution’s case is nothing but suspicion and conjecture and not beyond a reasonable doubt,” he said.

The guilty Bencivengo will be removed from office and Council President Kevin Meara will take over as mayor for as much as 30 days. In the interim, the municipal Republican party will provide three nominees to town council. The council would then select one of those three to serve as mayor until next November.

Then, there would be a special election to fill the rest of Bencivengo's term, which lasts until 2015.

It is unclear exactly when the mayor will be removed from office. Meara said he had consulted with lawyers who had differing opinions over exactly when the mayor would need to be out of office, including immediately, based on a resignation, court action or at sentencing.

After four days of testimony and arguments from the lawyers, Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo's fate rests with the 12 members of the jury.

They'll decide his guilt or innocence in the face charges related to the federal corruption case against him, stemming from $12,400 he received from the FBI's cooperating witness, Marliese Ljuba.

The prosecution alleges he took the money as a bribe from Ljuba in exchange for his influence with members of the school board so that she might be able to keep her lucrative health insurance brokerage there.

Bencivengo's defense though, has asserted he took the money as a loan from a friend which he intended to pay back.

Both sides argued most points of the case yesterday and even brought out several new ones, including a lawsuit settlement that brought Bencivengo tens of thousands of dollars weeks after accepting $7,400 from Ljuba last July.

“It’s been suggested to you (the jury) that Mrs. Ljuba is the puppetmaster; where she is pulling the strings of the mayor and everyone else in town,” said Assistant US Attorney Dustin Chao in his rebuttal argument. “He’s sitting on $24,000, not using a dime to pay property or income taxes. Who is manipulating who?”

After selecting a foreperson yesterday, the jury adjourned for the night before returning this morning. The charges carry a maximum of 20 years in jail each and a guilty verdict on any one could remove Bencivengo from office. They are extortion under color of official right, attempted extortion under color of official right, two violations of the travel act and one charge of money laundering.

A guilty Bencivengo would be removed from office and Council President Kevin Meara would take over as mayor for as much as 30 days. In the interim, the municipal Republican party would provide three nominees to town council. The council would then select one of those three to serve as mayor until next November.

Then, there would be a special election to fill the rest of Bencivengo's term, which lasts until 2015.

It is unclear exactly when the mayor would be removed from office if he was found guilty. Meara said he had consulted with lawyers who had differing opinions over exactly when the mayor would need to be out of office.

Before a jury has reached a verdict in the Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo federal corruption case, one of the central figures from the testimony has lost her job.

Hamilton Business Administrator John Ricci, who was named acting mayor while Bencivengo stands trial, said he fired Cathy Tramontana, the director of the Department of Health and Recreation for the township, Monday.

Asked whether the termination was connected with the testimony about her at Bencivengo’s trial, he said he would only give the reason the township had given her for her firing.

“We have lost confidence in her ability to perform her duties and therefore she is being terminated,” he said.

Ricci said department directors have no contracts or tenure and serve “at the pleasure of the mayor.”

Ricci said he asked for her resignation Friday, but she refused. She will remain on the town’s payroll for 20 days while she can appeal to the town council, but, Ricci said, will stop not be at her job effective immediately.

The town council can reinstate her as a director with a two thirds vote, in this case four council members.

Ricci said he did not consult with Bencivengo about Cathy Tramontana before he fired her, but informed Bencivengo and the council after he did so. She got the job after Bencivengo was first elected in 2007.

Her husband, Joe Tramontana, has been placed on paid administrative leave from his job as the business administrator for the Hamilton Township School District.

Marliese Ljuba, the prosecution’s key witness against Bencivengo, described Cathy Tramontana as her best friend when she testified that she gave $12,400 in bribes to the mayor in exchange for his influence on the school board.

The defense has made Ljuba’s credibility an issue at trial, which goes to the jury for deliberations today. Ljuba testified that while she was the insurance broker for Hamilton Township School District, she gave the Tramontanas gifts, trips and meals.

In addition, Ljuba testified she told the Tramontanas about her recording Bencivengo for the FBI investigation in June 2011, shortly after she began cooperating in the case.

She did not tell investigators she had told the Tramontanas until June 2012, when Joe Tramontana was approached by the FBI and Ljuba had received a nonprosecution agreement.

Editor's note: Marliese Ljuba testified at length in the trial of former Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo that she paid certain people to act as “straw donors” to political campaigns.  The Trentonian and Trenton Times incorrectly reported at various times that Joe and/or Cathy Tramontana were used by Ljuba as “straw donors.”  However, transcripts of Ljuba’s testimony show that Ljuba never accused Joe or Cathy Tramontana of being used as “straw donors.”   In addition, it has been reported that Cathy Tramontana received “money” from Ljuba.  However, Ljuba only testified that she paid for meals and trips with the Tramontanas, a contention which the Tramontanas dispute.

You can find the live coverage of today's testimony here:
What do you think of today's testimony? Let me know here or @awisefool.

TRENTON — Though the prosecution’s key witness finished her testimony two days ago, much of the defense testimony Thursday in the federal corruption trial of Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo still concentrated on Marliese Ljuba.

Retired FBI Agent William Monks talked about Ljuba, and — after a brief trip into the specifics of municipal law in former township administrator William Guhl’s testimony — Bencivengo’s friend Deanna Nelson talked some more about Ljuba as testimony came to an end after three days.

The trial will not convene today and closing arguments are scheduled for Monday.

Bencivengo’s attorney, Jerome Ballarotto set out with his three witnesses to show a different picture of Ljuba from the prosecution. He has said Ljuba, a “dear friend and political ally” of Bencivengo, lent him money while he was in need and turned to cooperate with the FBI when she saw she was in trouble. But Bencivengo himself did not take the stand in the face of charges he took $12,400 in bribes in exchange for his influence with the local school board.

Nelson said Bencivengo is a “best friend of mine — strictly platonic — very tight friend,” who she had known since 2008. She said she met Ljuba several months later and she would “see them together all the time.”

Nelson on Ljuba: “They would walk hand in hand, arm in arm wherever they went...She was always all over him.”

You can read the full story here.

You can find the live coverage of today's testimony here:
What do you think of today's testimony? Let me know here or @awisefool.

So for those of you who haven't been following this riveting trial, here's a quick update:

Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo and his soon-to-be-ex wife may take the stand as part of his defense tomorrow

Defense attorney Jerome Ballarotto said the mayor would make the decision about testifying that night. He said Donna Bencivengo, the mayor’s estranged wife, may also be called to testify and they would waive the privilege of communication between spouses.

Ballarotto made that announcement after the prosecution rested its case after two full days of testimony and Federal District Judge Anne Thompson denied a request from him to dismiss the case; she denied it and said the “astounding” testimony would need to go to a jury.

“’I love you’ and a kiss does not upturn the proofs that I have been presented,” she said.

Much of the morning’s testimony concentrated on those kisses passed between Bencivengo and Marliese Ljuba, the government’s key witness in the case. Ballarotto questioned her about the alleged bribery, her cooperation with the FBI and her close friendship with the mayor.

Ballarotto, in his cross examinations of the government’s three witnesses, set to poke holes in the prosecutors’ argument that Ljuba gave Bencivengo $12,400 in bribes to influence two member of the school board in particular: Board President Patty Del Giudice and Board Member Stephanie Pratico.

He continued a line of argument from Tuesday; Ljuba, a “dear friend and political ally” of Bencivengo, lent him money while he was in need, then turned to cooperate with the FBI when she saw she was in trouble.

In the afternoon, the prosecution presented testimony from by FBI Agent Stephen Montgomery , who took over the case in December 2011, and admitted middleman, Rob Warney, former school board member who resigned his position as the Director of Community Planning and Compliance in Hamilton to plead guilty to money laundering.

Ballarotto may also call Deanna Nelson, Stacy Bencivengo and retired FBI Agent William Monks, who handled the investigation before he retired in February. Ballarotto said his questioning of Monks would be limited.

Now for some of the stuff that we couldn't fit into the paper:

The judge has made it very obvious she plans for the case to conclude tomorrow so the jury can begin deliberations. She said they will not be sequestered.

The prosecution is planning an hour and a half for its summation of the case tomorrow.

"I will make it as short and as concise as I possibly can," said AUSA Harvey Bartle.

Judge Thompson also emphasized that just because Warney had plead guilty it did not mean anything for Bencivengo's case.

Warney said he approached Ljuba at the 2011 Mayor’s ball to talk about the mayor’s financial situation. Ljuba told him to have Bencivengo speak to her directly.

Bencivengo was the best man at Warney's wedding.

Warney said when a school district budget gets rejected by voters, as happened in 2010, the township needs to approve it, giving the mayor some official say in the school district's functions.

Warney also said Bencivengo told him the $5,000 from the payment in Atlantic City was won at the roulette table. Bencivengo said he hit black 13 straight times.

Ljuba said she told Del Giudice about her contributions to her slate, but did not tell Pratico or Board Member Joe Malagrino.

Ljuba said she told the Tramontana's about the investigation and Cathy Tramontana, the Director of Health and Recreation in Hamilton, is her "best friend."

Ljuba said her husband helped her pass along payments and bribes over the years, but did not expect he would be prosecuted, either.

The Ljubas and Tramontanas met in June after he was approached by the FBI. After that meeting and after she received an immunity agreement from the USAO, Ljuba told the FBI she had told the Tramontanas about the investigation.

Random facts: Neil Bencivengo, the former superintendent, is John Bencivengo's cousin.

You can check out live updates of the testimony here:


What do you think of the trial? Is there an aspect we are missing? Let me know down below.

Before I go into the weird things that happened in court today, here’s primer on the situation.

Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo has been accused of taking $12,400 in bribes in exchange for his influence with the local school board.

In particular, Marliese Ljuba, the government’s key witness and alleged briber, wanted help with two board members: Board President Patty Del Giudice and Board Member Stephanie Pratico.

Ljuba worked as the insurance broker for the district and made more than half a million a year on that contract alone in commissions.

Bencivengo’s attorney Jerome Ballarotto, has argued that the money was not a bribe but a loan for a friend in need.

Now that you’re caught up, here’s a wrapup of what hasn’t gotten into print today after the first day of the Bencivengo trial:

Ljuba and Bencivengo apparently got Joy Tozzi her first job in Robbinsville as the assistant to the mayor. Ljuba said Tozzi accepted more than $10,000 in bribes gifts and an all-expenses-paid trip to Disneyland in exchange for her vote when Tozzi was a member of the school board

Tozzi is now the business administrator of Robbinsville. Ljuba said she used Tozzi and others to funnel illegal campaign contributions to council members and school board members through the years.

David Boyne, newly elected member of that town’s council think’s Tozzi should step aside until these allegations are resolved, even though there are not any criminal charges.

“I’d sort of like a higher standard with regard to the appearance of impropriety and until its resolved I’d like her to step down,” he said.

In a recorded Feb. 2012 meeting, Ljuba and Bencivengo discussed an OPRA request filed with the school district making her commissions public

While the request was filed by Connie Silakoski, the pair quickly jumped on Steve Cook, the executive director of The Arc of Mercer, as the one who helped prepare it.

For those that don’t know, the Arc of Mercer helps house, educate and employ hundreds of developmentally disabled people throughout the county.

To be exact, Bencivengo said "What a jerkoff he is, he is such a f***ing jerkoff" about him.

Then, Bencivengo went on to say he would get Vinnie Cappodano, former town councilman and employee of the Arc, to get to him.

Cappodano, by the way, said he was never approached about any of this stuff and if he was, would not participate in it.

If Cappodano was not enough, Bencivengo said he would call Rep. Wayne DeAngelo (there’s no indication that he did)

Now, if Cappodano wasn’t enough Bencivengo said he would “get Rob Warney to have him have a visit from the screw guys,” he said. I’ll let him explain them himself.

“Yea theyre construction workers, they’re Russians they’ll put a couple of screws in your knees if you don’t stop,” he said.

“That would give him the message,” he said.

Final little tidbits; the government has two witnesses left and plans to rest its case tomorrow.

There are two portions of the recordings that have been redacted; one by court order and one by agreement of both sides.

On the jury; they are half men, half women and mostly white. Apparently one juror has had to drop out due to a death in the family.

In addition, the FBI funded $7,400 in bribes and a trip to Atlantic City in July for Ljuba, Bencivengo and others. The price for the Atlantic City was not mentioned in testimony.

And I’ll leave you with this. When attending the New Jersey Conference of Municipalities in Atlantic City, Bencivengo, according to a recording, apparently left $1,500 in his other pair of pants.

But Ljuba bailed him out, picked him up and gave him about $300, she said.

With that, I leave you for the night. More testimony comes tomorrow. YOu can check out updates throughout the day here or just wait for another one of these.

You can find a live chat of this trial at the following:



I'll be updating it periodically through breaks in the testimony. Questions? Comments? Go ahead and let me know below.

The federal corruption case that starts today might have the largest effect on the Hamilton mayor’s work since the scandal began in April.

According to copies of the Mayor John Bencivengo’s and Business Administrator John Ricci’s calendar since the beginning of March obtained through an Open Public Records Act request, there has been little change in the way the township conducts its business.

“I most certainly kept myself busy doing the work I told the township I would do,” Bencivengo said. “We’re always working on new ideas and ways to become more efficient.”

Bencivengo said he will be using vacation time over the course of the trial, which could last two weeks. He said he will designate Ricci as the acting mayor.

Bencivengo has been indicted on federal corruption charges, after allegedly taking $12,400 in bribes from a cooperating witness, whom sources have identified as Marliese Ljuba, in exchange for influencing a member of the school board on behalf of her employer, Vineland-based insurance broker Allen Associates.

Bencivengo has maintained his innocence and stated in a financial disclosure filed after his arrest that the money was a loan and not a bribe.

Bencivengo has averaged 12 appointments a week, and had roughly five public appearances on his schedule for each week. He also averaged three scheduled meetings that could be identified as township administrative business each week.

Ricci and Bencivengo did not have significant fluctuation in their schedules after Bencivengo was charged or when he was indicted.

It should be noted that for both Bencivengo and Ricci, several entries in each week were withheld under OPRA exceptions, and not all entries had descriptions tied to them. Any entry with information withheld or without a description from the OPRA request was not categorized.

While the calendars show some cancellations, they do not note whether Ricci or Bencivengo attended each event or meeting.

“I don’t know what else I can say; business still went on here,” Ricci said. “ has been involved, the rest of us have been involved as we have been in the past.”

You can see the breakdown of the schedules here.

When Hamilton Mayor John Bencivengo steps into the federal courtroom today, he will face his most public confrontation with the scandal that shook the township and school board.

Bencivengo has maintained his innocence in the face of charges that he took $12,400 in bribes in exchange for peddling his influence with members of the local school board.

Jerome Ballarotto, who represents Bencivengo told the Trentonian last month he was confident in his client’s innocence.

“It will take less than two weeks to win this case, because he is innocent of the charges,” said Ballarotto. “What, haven’t you ever heard of innocent person getting charged? … the U.S. Attorney made a mistake and shouldn’t have charged him.”

Federal agents arrested and charged Bencivengo in April, before indicting him in June. Assistant US Attorneys Harvey Bartle IV and Dustin Chao will prosecute the case.

The scandal further hit the township administration with the guilty plea and resignation of Director of Community Planning and Compliance Rob Warney after being charged with money laundering in June.

Released on a $100,000 unsecured bond, Warney could face as much as 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine at his sentencing, which is now scheduled for Dec. 5.

The board has taken a licking from the public over its handling of the federal corruption case involving its previous health insurance broker, Allen Associates. The board's behavior in that issue, taken as exemplary of the board as a whole, has become the center point of critique from the field of candidates for the four seats up for election.

In addition to the public airing of the way the board's relationship with the vendor -- which included a former board member admitting to taking bribes for a vote as part of his plea deal -- the scandal has raised questions about how the district conducts business.

The state's Department of Education stepped in to sanction the district, making four findings of deficiency in following the law and its own policy and withholding $25,000 in state aid. Specifically, the district operated without a contract from 2009, failed to specify why it didn't bid out the contract for Extraordinary Unspecified Services, failed to publicize its attempts to do so, and didn't abide by state law when extending the contract from 2006 to 2009.

Prior to new Superintendent James Parla taking over, the district used a process called comparative analysis to research pricing for contracts. It involved calling up other districts and asking what they had paid for a specific service before agreeing to a contract with a vendor, Board Member Ron Tola has said.

This practice doesn't involve a public bid process and doesn't necessarily arrive at the lowest bidder, Tola said. The relationship with Allen Associates could have cost the district millions more than it had to in commissions, said Parla, Tola and other board members.

The board dropped Allen Associates after the news of the scandal broke and is currently working with a fee-based contractor until it finds another broker.

You can find the rest of the story here.

Perhaps no one could have predicted the outcome of last night's school board election.

No single slate or vision for the township got the nod from its residents; one incumbent and one member of each slate running got elected.

Richard Kanka will keep his seat for another three years, and Al Gayzik and Jen Barnock-Riddell won terms. Dina Thornton will also sit on the board for the next year.

More to come on this strange turn in the election.

Here are the latest numbers from the County Clerk:

Vote Count Percent
- Albert GAYZIK 8,158 13.46%
- Jennifer L. Barnock RIDDELL 10,971 18.10%
- Vincent McKELVEY 7,087 11.69%
- Anthony G. CELENTANO 7,506 12.38%
- Greg SCHULTZ 5,598 9.23%
- George W. FISHER 5,492 9.06%
- Richard J. KANKA 10,003 16.50%
- Eric W. HAMILTON 5,757 9.50%
Personal Choice 51 0.08%
Total 60,623 100.00%

And for the one-year seat:

Vote Count Percent
- Dina THORNTON 11,930 56.33%
- Timothy L. BAUERSACHS 9,240 43.63%
Personal Choice 10 0.05%
Total 21,180 100.00%

You'll be able to find us blogging as well as conducting interviews here at Scribble Live https://client.scribblelive.com/Event/Trentonian_Election_Chat_2012

We'll have updates as they come in along with interviews, photos and video.

Given the noise about the presidential race, I figured I'd brief you all about some races closer to home.

Including the statewide races (you can read more here) there are a few in Mercer County to keep an eye on. And now, a giant ICYMI for Hamilton and Robbinsville. You can check here and @awisefool throughout the night for updates.

Hamilton School Board

Meet the Hamilton Township School Board candidates

Mayor scandal dominates Hamilton school board race

Local unions endorse in Hamilton School Board race

Hamilton Township Education Association backs four board candidates

Robbinsville Town Council

Meet the Robbinsville Council candidates

Now, what do you make of these local races? Who do you support and why? Let's start a conversation.

After tallying up tens of millions in damages, the federal government will be coming in to help residents and municipal officials defray the costs of Hurricane Sandy.

Julie Willmot, spokeswoman for Mercer County, put the cost to governments here at more than $27 million already. She said the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, will provide financial assistance to governments and individuals up to 75 percent of the costs.

She said the county, along with the rest of the state, has been declared a major disaster area following inspections by FEMA officials after the storm.

The federal individual benefits will help residents who suffered damage from the storm to their property, or incurred expenses such as temporary housing, Willmot said.

“We appreciate FEMA’s swift response to Mercer County and the time they have devoted to touring,” said Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes in a release over the weekend. “We were able to point out the widespread destruction of Hurricane Sandy, and we believe that Mercer County residents should receive the same opportunity to apply for these federal benefits to begin putting their lives and property back together,” Hughes added.

You can read the whole thing here.

From a county press release:

"What this means is that government agencies, hospitals, colleges, public schools and certain nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply for partial reimbursement for emergency work, repairs and expenses incurred as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Mercer County still awaits a decision on eligibility for Individual Assistance for homeowners and business owners who suffered damage from the storm."

County spokeswoman Julie Wilmot said it could cover 75 percent of storm-related expenses. Still waiting on more information.

After extensive cleanup efforts throughout the county, several groups of first responders have moved on east to help the cleanup in Ocean and Monmouth counties, according to a press release from county officials.

The county has sent engines from the Whitehorse Fire Company in Hamilton, the Lawrenceville Fire Company in Lawrence and the Princeton Fire Department, as well as a rescue unit with two divers from the Hightstown Fire Department and a tanker truck from East Windsor Fire Company No. 1  to Ocean County.

Several officers from the Mercer County Sheriff's Office also went to Monmouth County to aid cleanup there.

I'll be looking into what work they are doing and who they are helping out.

After estimating the cost of cleanup so far at nearly $3 million and rising, Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes has officially applied for inclusion in FEMA funding after Hurricane Sandy.

Several other counties in the state have already received the designation, which allows governments and individuals to apply for federal relief to defray the cost of cleanup from disasters.

Waiting to hear more now.

Hurricane Sandy has so far cost Mercer County close to $3 million in cleanup costs, a figure almost guaranteed to continue rising.

Dean Raymond, the director of Mercer County’s Office of Emergency Management, compiled the first figures reported by the municipalities Wednesday, a total of $2.8 million. They come from equipment, debris removal costs and employee overtime.

“I honestly don’t think it would be fair to say one municipality was hit harder than any other,” Raymond said. “To us it looks really widespread.”

The storm, which caused billions in damages and dozens of deaths in its trek up the east coast, flooded wide swaths of coastal areas in New Jersey and New York. The AP estimated costs from the storm could climb to more than $50 billion, with $10 billion in property damage alone.

Raymond emphasized that the county’s estimates will almost certainly be higher than Wednesday’s number; they don’t include all work done before Wednesday and none done later Wednesday or Thursday. The county put together the estimate preliminarily in order to be designated a disaster area by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to receive reimbursement for part of those expenses.

The highest cost estimate so far came from Princeton, where the borough and township combined their emergency management offices in the wake of the storm. Raymond said their preliminary estimate came to more than $400,000.

He said the municipalities varied in how much they reported, but all had incurred at least $100,000 so far in cleaning up from the storm. Trenton reported more than $250,000 in costs from the storm.

Qareeb Bashir, the city’s fire director and running the city’s Office of Emergency Management, said it did not include damage to city property from the storm, which would be factored in later.

“I know there are a lot of people who are affected,” he said. “We’re working feverishly to get things back to normal.”

You can read the full story here.