Prosecutor Finds No Wrongdoing in Officer Sent to Republican Meeting

VILLAS — In a February 24 letter to Lower Township Council, County Prosecutor Robert Taylor said he found no criminal wrongdoing on anyone’s part and no reason for his office to conduct an investigation of why a police officer was sent to a Lower Township Republican Organization meeting Jan. 18.
In a 3-2 vote Mon., Feb. 6, Lower Township Council approved a resolution to “requesting the county prosecutor investigate certain actions.”
The resolution stateed that “at some point that evening” Voll and a Lower Township police officer “were in some way instructed to go to the Lower Township Republican organization meeting in some official capacity for the township and it is of great concern to the members of the governing body” that a police officer and Township Manager were sent to a private political caucus.
A meeting of Township Council was scheduled for Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. while at the same time the Republican organization was meeting a half block away at the Senior Center to determine the person to fill a vacancy in Ward Two.
While members of the public and Mayor Michael Beck and Councilman Glenn Douglass waited for 90 minutes, Lower Township Republican Committee selected Walter 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. Beck and Douglass were prepared to wait for the Republican Committee to select the next council member, have that person sworn in and conduct a regular meeting.
Voll, a Lower Township police officer and four reporters walked a half block to the Lower Township Senior Center where the Republican Committee was meeting. Voll asked Chairman Jeff Lindsey to inform council when a new councilperson had been selected by the Republican committee and send the person to Township Hall to be sworn in. The Herald recorded the event on video.
At Monday’s meeting, Township Solicitor Michael Donohue said he was not investigating the incident. Taylor said Police Chief Brian Marker has the option of investigating if there were any rules or regulation infractions and if he takes exception to the way his officer was either directed to act by someone else or chose to act on his own.
Taylor said he had not heard any suggestion that the officer involved or the police supervisors have expressed any objection and if they did so, it would be a departmental matter to investigate.
As to Voll’s involvement, Taylor said if the mayor and council wanted answers to their questions, they have the power to start an investigation. He said the Township Solicitor could advise council if any civil laws violations.
Voll said “the matter is over.”