Former Lacey BOE president used school lawyer for political gain: School Ethics Commission
LACEY — A former Lacey school board president violated parts of the School Ethics Act when he used the board attorney to investigate another board member for political advantage, according to a recent decision from the New Jersey School Ethics Commission.
Former school board President Shawn Giordano — who served on the Lacey Board of Education from 2013 to early January 2020 — requested the school board attorney do research on the conduct of fellow then-board member Regina Discenza, who campaigned against him in 2019.
Giordano's request of the attorney came in November 2019, the day after he lost a bid for re-election to the school board, according to the commission.
Legal bills to the board for November and December 2019 contained 15 entries on "member conduct" amounting to 33.9 hours of labor and $5,085 of legal bills, according to the Ethics Commission's decision.
Giordano and Discenza had a "substantial negative prior history and continuing mutual disdain," according to a decision from the New Jersey Office of Administrative Law, which reviewed the case before the ethics commission. The former board president used his position to "secure an unwarranted advantage for himself against a political rival" when he requested the investigation, according to the administrative law decision.
Giordano used "school resources for personal reasons" and as a result compromised "the integrity and accountability of the Board," according to the Administrative Law decision.
Earlier this year, Office of Administrative Law Judge Elia Pelios recommended a reprimand for Giordano. Because he no longer serves on the Board of Education, he could not be suspended or removed, Pelios noted in the court decision.
In July, the Ethics Commission opted to censure Giordano and forwarded its recommendation to the New Jersey Acting Commissioner of Education Angelica Allen-McMillan.
The Ethics Commission's decision on Giordano is but one of a number of pending ethics complaints against previous school board members, including a complaint Giordano made against Discenza following the attorney's investigation.
In 2020, the Ethics Commission found probable cause on four ethics complaint counts against Giordano and two counts against Discenza and referred the matter to the Office of Administrative Law.
Giordano's attorney argued to the School Ethics Commission that the Office of Administrative Law's conclusions against him were wrong, because Giordano had a reasonable basis to request legal research, which led to an ethics complaint against Discenza. That complaint against her is still pending.
Discenza, like Giordano, no longer serves on the board of education.
Christopher Dasti, Giordano's attorney, said he was planning to appeal the Ethics Commission's decision.
Discenza said the recent decision is not the end of the ethics fights in Lacey.
"We're waiting to see the outcome of more pending cases," she said.
Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 15 years. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Former Lacey NJ BOE president violated School Ethics Act: Commission
