BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer
ALLENTOWN – Upper Freehold Regional Board of Education member Howard Krieger has not yet decided whether he will step down from the board.
During the board’s March 21 meeting, which Krieger did not attend, the board took a vote that resulted in a nonbinding resolution asking him to resign for allegedly using inappropriate language.
Krieger allegedly made an obscene gesture and used a racial slur toward Arun Singh, an Upper Freehold resident, after Singh made public comments at the Feb. 7 board meeting.
Krieger denied making the gesture and alleged he was saying to himself, “Don’t be an [expletive] hothead” instead of calling Singh an “[expletive] dothead,” which Bressi and Township Committeeman Stephen Alexander both told the board they heard Krieger say.
Krieger could not be reached prior to press time last week but did respond to questions about what took place at the March 21 meeting later on in the week.
When asked if he was aware of what was going to be discussed at the meeting and if that played a part in his not attending, Krieger said, “No, I was not aware. I had called [Board President] Joe Stampe so he could let the board know that I needed to miss the meeting as I had an emergency come up with my business.”
Krieger said the issue was not on the board’s agenda for discussion.
“As far as I knew, the board censured me at the February 21 meeting and that was the extent of the action they could take as a board,” he said.
The board censured Krieger on Feb. 21 for the Feb. 7 incident upon advice from its attorney, who said the action is the strictest legally binding action the board could take. However, during the discussion about the matter at the March 21 meeting, which came about as a result of public comment, the attorney said the board could take a nonbinding vote to send Krieger a letter asking him to resign.
Board member Steve Murphy made the motion to direct Stampe to draft and send the letter to Krieger. The motion was seconded by Lisa Herzer. Murphy, Stampe, Herzer, Jeanette Bressi and Chris Shaw, who all represent Upper Freehold on the regional school board, voted in favor of the motion, while Doug Anthony, Bill Borkowski and Elizabeth Trent, all members who represent Allentown, voted against sending the letter, as did Kathy Winecoff, who represents Millstone on the regional board.
Krieger said the vote surprised him for two reasons.
“First, when we discussed this issue on February 21, the option of the board making this motion and voting to ask me to resign was never discussed or even mentioned as an option,” he said. “Second, I was very surprised to learn Steve Murphy made the motion and voted ‘yes’ on the motion, as he was not at the meeting on February 21.”
Krieger said Murphy never spoke to him about the issue.
“He made up his mind that this action should be taken without seeking all sides to the story,” Krieger said.
Krieger said since the March 21 meeting he has spoken to several members of the board who are concerned that the action was brought up when he was not present, which members like Winecoff and Trent expressed when they voted on the resolution.
“As board members, we should never vote on a motion that has not been thoroughly discussed – and you cannot do that with a clear head at 11:30 at night,” Krieger said.
Once the public brought the issue up and the board went into executive session to discuss their options with the attorney, the board returned shortly before midnight to vote on Murphy’s motion.
Krieger said he feels the motion should have been tabled until he was present and until the board could have further discussed the matter after more careful consideration.
“While this is not a court of law, I feel I was denied due process,” Krieger said.
When asked if he considers any of the allegations slander or considers the incident something he might take to a court of law, Krieger said, “Once I receive the letter, I will discuss the issue with my family, my attorney and New Jersey School Board Association and their legal department.”