TRENTON >> Three city municipal court judges, including the highly respected chief judge, have been notified by Mayor Eric Jackson’s administration they are being replaced, drawing sharp criticism from members of the local legal community who have accused the mayor of playing politics.
The Trentonian has learned one of the candidates up for the judgeships was law partners with George Saponaro, an attorney who made political contributions to a PAC which donated to Jackson’s campaign in 2014.
Records show his firm, Saponaro & Sitzler, was also awarded two $80,000 contracts to provide legal services to the city in 2014 and 2015.
“There’s politics involved,” said Robert Ramsey, a New Jersey attorney and author who is an expert on municipal court law. “These are [judges] who were appointed by other administrations. They have no allegiances to the Jackson administration.”
Among the judges on their way out is Harold George, the top judge in municipal court who has served since 2008 when he was appointed to the bench by former Mayor Douglas Palmer, multiple sources told The Trentonian.
George – a longtime Trenton resident, former prosecutor and city public defender – referred all questions to a judiciary spokeswoman and said he could not comment about the rearrangement when he was reached by The Trentonian.
George will continue serving as a municipal judge in Willingboro.
Criminal defense attorney Jack Furlong said, regardless of the political affiliations, Trenton is losing a dynamic leader in George, whom he lauded as the “finest jurist I’ve appeared before in the last 20 years.”
“If the mayor is looking to replace Harold George, then the mayor is an ass,” said Furlong, channeling Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist. “In the catalogue of administrative error, this will rank in the hall of fame. Trenton’s loss will be some other county’s gain. He’s not just a thoughtful and relaxed guy. He’s an efficient manager. It’s tough to find someone like that.”
Other casualties included in Jackson’s judicial shuffle are Gregory Williams, a Palmer appointee, and John McCarthy, who was appointed to the bench by now-convicted former Mayor Tony Mack.
Mayor’s picks
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity said Williams was actually told by the mayor he was staying put. It’s unclear the reasons Jackson changed his mind.
The lone holdover is Judge Rodney Thompson, in an otherwise complete overhaul of Trenton’s municipal court, regarded as the front porch to the judiciary since it is often many citizens first encounter with the criminal justice system.
Last year, former city attorney Kimberley Wilson was appointed by Jackson to replace Nakia White as chief municipal prosecutor despite questions about her lack of experience as a prosecutor.
The mayor was not immediately available for comment because he was attending Gov. Chris Christie’s State of the State address, city spokesman Michael Walker said.
Winnie Comfort, a spokeswoman for the judiciary, said the names of those who are up for the judgeships are expected to be submitted to City Council on Jan. 19. The judges must be confirmed by city councilors.
“We have no role in that process,” Comfort said. “If new judges do come to the Trenton bench, we will see to training, orientation and other judiciary administrative functions.”
Municipal Court Director Eunice Lewis would only say, “There’s going to be some changes in the judgeships.” She referred all other questions to Walker.
The departures of George and Williams, who are almost universally respected in Trenton, are more curious when considering who is tabbed to replace them.
The Trentonian has learned Jackson plans to appoint attorney and former Trenton school board member Geraldine Eure and William Sitzler, whose former law partner made the political contributions to a PAC that donated to Jackson’s campaign in 2014.
The Trentonian has been unable to confirm Jackson’s third pick for the opening judgeship.
City councilman George Muschal said he has requested information about Jackson’s candidates but has not yet received it as of Tuesday afternoon.
“He’s allowed to make the changes,” Muschal said. “That’s his prerogative.”
Jackson ties
Sitzler, a former partner at the now-defunct law firm Saponaro & Sitzler, is a municipal judge in Mount Holly, Ramsey said.
He and Saponaro shuttered their law firm shortly after Sitzler was sworn in as municipal judge, partially to avoid any complications that could arise if Sitzler continued with the firm while working as a municipal judge.
The state Supreme Court ruled in 2010 law firms that employ municipal judges are not allowed to make political contributions.
Under the ruling, Saponaro was allowed to make personal political donations as long as they didn’t come from the law firm’s business account.
In March 2014, Saponaro donated $2,500 to Initiate Civic Empowerment, or ICE PAC.
The PAC, founded and run by partners of the law firm Long Marmero & Associates, contributed $8,200 to Jackson’s campaign a month before Saponaro’s payment. The maximum allowable donation from a PAC to a candidate is $8,200.
Saponaro & Sitzler were also awarded two city contracts totaling $160,000 the last two years for legal services, according to city records. The city paid out $7,100 to close out its contract with the firm, which coincided with the shuttering of Saponaro & Sitzler.
The city authorized a new contract with the Saponaro Law Group for $20,000 for legal services, records show.
While acknowledging politics are a consideration, Ramsey said Sitzler is highly qualified for the judgeship. He called him an “enormously knowledgeable and capable person” and a “tremendous student of the law.”
“He’s probably represented well over 150,000 people easily between his private practice and being a public defender,” Ramsey said.
Trentonian reporter David Foster contributed to this report