For
Immediate Release:
July 30, 2020
Monmouth
County prevails
in the defense of
the Seidle Lawsuit
FREEHOLD, NJ – The
Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday, July 28 that the New Jersey Attorney General’s
Office must indemnify the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office in the defense of
the lawsuit by the estate of Seidle.
Monmouth
County felt that the determination by the Attorney General in the Seidle case
had gone too far. Simply, the Attorney General has, over the course of time,
attempted to move more cases to the “Administrative” side so they would not
have to devote resources to defending the counties for following the state
directives.
Effectively,
the Attorney General’s Office was shifting the cost of defending matters to the
county taxpayers.
“It’s
really simple to me—if the Prosecutor is expected to enforce the laws of the
State, then the State should defend them,” said Freeholder Director Thomas A.
Arnone. “In Monmouth County, we will always support our law enforcement.
Sometimes in order to do what’s right, you have to fight and for this matter
alone, I believe we have spent more than $200,000 to defend the Prosecutor.”
The case
is significant as the Attorney General’s Office previously determined that they
would not defend the Prosecutor's Office in its exercise of the law enforcement
function.
“This
unanimous decision by our highest court should be a welcome relief to anyone in
law enforcement. It ensures the AG’s office will have our backs when we carry
out our sworn obligations and AG directives,” said Monmouth County Prosecutor
Christopher J. Gramiccioni. “We and the entire CPANJ are grateful for the
Supreme Court’s decision - one that not only properly indemnifies us, but will
also save counties and taxpayers money.”
“As a leader in law enforcement, I commend the
Supreme Court’s decision since its essential that the Attorney General’s Office
supports those who enforce the laws in the State of New Jersey,” said Sheriff
Shaun Golden. “Without that support, law enforcement operations may be
affected, as there could be apprehension on how to operate, when state law is
being followed.”
The case is now being sent back to the trial court
to determine how much the State must reimburse the County for defense costs.
“It is my understanding that there are more cases
that the Attorney General’s Office should be defending and we will be looking
into being reimbursed for all of the taxpayer money spent on those cases as
well,” said Freeholder Director Arnone.
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