WEST WINDSOR: Morgan says he’s taking new action against mayor

   WEST WINDSOR — In a continuing legal fight with Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh, Councilman Charles Morgan says he plans to file a motion in the Superior Court Appellate Division and pursue a second lawsuit raising the same issues.
   In February, Superior Court Judge Douglas Hurd ruled in favor of Mayor Hsueh and dismissed all claims against him in Mr. Morgan’s suit seeking judgment that the mayor violated township code and state statute after failing to provide a report related to the 2010 budget. Mr. Morgan had requested the information in October 2009 and filed the civil suit last January.
   On April 1, Judge Hurd denied a motion by Mr. Morgan to withdraw the dismissal and denied a motion to amend his complaint.
   In addition to the appeal, Mr. Morgan said he would file another lawsuit in the Superior Court, claiming the mayor failed to respond to other requests for information last year. He said he has not decided yet which requests to pursue, but that “it’s a number of things.”
   ”This is another failure, another example of the mayor ignoring his council,” said Mr. Morgan. “I made a mistake in my original complaint that had tripped me up. I will cure that defect.”
   Mr. Morgan said he thinks the judge ruled against him because he did not make an explicit request for a declaratory judgment – when a court issues a legal opinion declaring the rights of each of the parties involved and does not require action to be taken. He said his original complaint also did not invoke the specific statute referring to mayoral control over administration.
   ”The mayor has a practice of ignoring requests for information, and I want to establish that he cannot do that under New Jersey law,” said Mr. Morgan.
   He said that soon after filing the original suit last January, he did get a response from the administration regarding the requested information. He said Judge Hurd had agreed with him — orally, not written — that responses should be given within a reasonable period of time but he did not define the time frame.
   ”In a certain sense, I did win but that’s not clear to the public,” said Mr. Morgan. “When I did file the suit, I got a response, but I don’t have a court opinion. I need something in writing from the judge.”
   Mayor Hsueh said he hopes Mr. Morgan will reconsider.
   ”It’s a waste of taxpayer money and of our resources,” he said.
   Council President Kamal Khanna said only, “It is a total waste of taxpayers’ money.” Township resident Lindsay Diehl said she has collected about a hundred signatures on a petition urging Mr. Morgan to drop his suit and repay taxpayer dollars spent on the mayor’s attorney. She said she plans to present her petition to the council at the April 25 meeting.