YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Leonia Police Chief Jay Ziegler retired the day after borough officials agreed to settle a civil rights suit he had filed against them, CLIFFVIEW PILOT has learned.
The Leonia Mayor and Council agreed to the settlement after a personnel discussion the night of Monday, March 18, records show.
The next day, Ziegler was gone (CLIFFVIEW PILOT this morning was the first to report Ziegler’s retirement. This story overwrites that version).
Ziegler, 50, filed the civil rights suit against Mayor John DeSimone, Council members Peter Knott, Darryl Whitter and Gil Hawkins, former Mayor Mary Heveran, former Council member Frank Raucci, Business Administrator Jack Terhune and the borough in Superior Court in Hackensack.
The trouble in Leonia is that union terms and benefits don’t apply to the chief, who is considered management. That also means no longevity or extra pay for holidays now worked — par of the basis of Ziegler’s suit.
The resolution approved by the council at last week’s meeting, a copy of which was obtained by CLIFFVIEW PILOT, is at the bottom of this article.
Ziegler’s retirement came as a surprise to some, with him two months shy of nine years officially in the job. Others, however, cited ongoing conflicts he had with borough administrators and elected officials.
Some were rankled when Ziegler accepted a $2,600 contribution from a local businessman, Munr Kazmir, for his abortive sheriff’s campaign in Sussex County.
He also went door-to-door in his uniform trying to convince Spring Street homeowners to side with an office/warehouse development of Kazmer’s.
The former chief has recently had run-ins with those officials, including over personal use of a borough vehicle. Last year the council decided they would no longer pay for his gas to and from his Sussex County home.
Ziegler and Borough Administrator Jack Terhune also disagreed a few years ago over the effect that manpower cuts would have on DWI arrests.
Terhune insisted that DWI checkpoints should continue unabated because the funds for them came from the state Division of Highway Safety.
Ziegler, in turn, said that Leonia annually registered high numbers of DWI arrests — as well as for other offenses caught by roadblock officers — because the borough supplemented the state portion with funds of its own.
Ziegler, a 26-year department veteran, is using accumulated vacation and leave to fill in the remaining month until April 30, sources in the borough told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
Lt. Tom Rowe is serving as acting commander until borough officials decide whether to hire a new chief or create the position of police director.
Law enforcement sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT today that Rowe has been handling department scheduling, assignments and other administrative duties for much of the past two years.
Technically, Ziegler’s retirement isn’t official until the state Pension Board signs off on it.
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THE COUNCIL RESOLUTION:
“WHEREAS, the Borough’s Attorneys in consultation with the Borough’s Insurance Carrier have recommended that in order to avoid the expense of further litigation, it would be in the Borough’s best interest to compromise and settle all claims which Plaintiff has alleged in the above aforementioned lawsuit; and “WHEREAS, the proposed settlement has been tentatively agreed upon by the Plaintiff and insurance carrier for approval by the Governing Body; and “WHEREAS, the Mayor and Council having considered their recommendation and determining that settling this matter is in the best interest of the Borough; and “WHEREAS, all retroactive and prospective adjustments to the Plaintiff’s salary/benefits are the exclusive result of ongoing and protracted contract negotiations, and that no terms of the agreement to settle this lawsuit will be considered or construed as an inducement to retirement, nor are any adjustments to the Plaintiff’s salary/benefits being requested or provided in anticipation of the Plaintiff’s retirement or in consideration of the Plaintiff’s retirement; and “WHEREAS, the parties agree that the settlement of this matter is not an admission of liability or damages on the part of the Borough, its elected officials, officers, employees or agents …. “NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Mayor and Borough Council of the Borough of Leonia, that the Borough does hereby approve and ratify the settlement agreement entered into between the Plaintiff Ziegler and the Borough Defendants which includes certain rights and obligations of the Borough. “BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Mayor and Borough Council of the Borough of Leonia, that the Borough does hereby authorize and direct Mayor John DeSimone to execute the Settlement Agreement/Release, and any other documents to effectuate the settlement agreement, for and on behalf of the Borough and to so bind the Borough by his signature.”