Howard Schoor, 70, a founding member of the Schoor DePalma engineering firm, was sentenced in federal court on Feb. 10 to two years’ probation for paying a $15,000 “gratuity” to Stephen Kessler, the former chairman of the Township of Ocean Sewerage Authority (TOSA), in exchange for help securing contracts in Ocean Township.
Schoor must perform 250 hours of community service and pay a $7,500 fine for his admission to the crime. The crime carried a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to Justin Walder, Schoor’s attorney.
Schoor DePalma engineering is now known as CMX and Schoor has no connection to the firm.
“I think it was a fair and appropriate sentence under the circumstances,” Walder said. “Mr. Schoor has had no prior involvement in the criminal justice system. He is 70 years old. He has been an ideal citizen with his philanthropy and charity, and besides giving money to worthwhile causes, he was active in working with them.”
Schoor pleaded guilty in September to one count of conspiracy to defraud the public after admitting that he paid a $15,000 “gratuity” to Kessler in exchange for multimillion dollar sewage contracts in Ocean Township, according to Walder.
Kessler pleaded guilty in July 2005 to accepting a $15,000 payment in 2001 in exchange for voting to award contracts. Kessler did not specifically name Schoor or the Schoor DePalma firm in his plea, according to Walder.
Kessler has not been sentenced.
In his plea deal, Schoor said he made the payments to Kessler without the knowledge of anyone at Schoor DePalma.
Additionally, it was the government’s finding that Schoor DePalma would have been awarded a contract to perform sewage projects in Ocean Township regardless of Kessler’s vote, because the majority of TOSA members also voted in favor of the firm.

