This weeks meeting of the Atkinson Circus was illuminating.
A Quick recap. The Conflict of Interest Committee(COI) last year faced two complaints regarding selectmen. The First, dealt with the latest in Phil Consentino's 15 year history of COI violations, which was two fold, voting to appoint Sapia to School Board, and voting to increase pay for Police dept employees, including his WIFE. Then he lied, as usual claiming that his wife left the dept, prior to his vote. She did not leave until a couple of weeks prior to this lie.
The Second involved ALL the selectmen at that time, about voting while in conflict. In both cases the COI found that the selectmen had violated the ordinance. In Consentino's case as it is his approximately 756,342 nd violation(slight exaggeration, Phil, no need to get your beach ball attorney to sue) they recommended removal from office.
Now HERE is where it gets interesting.The selectmen succeeded in hiding this until after the election, They put the COI Chair on the agenda for Mar. 23, 2015 to discuss the investigation and reveal the recommendation. HOWEVER the selectmen evidently had a meeting(Illegal as it was neither posted, nor minutes kept) where they discussed this(they referred to it during the meeting) punishment of Consentino may have been discussed.
Flash forward to this week. They bump the COI from the agenda, and announce in bright red letters that NO PUBLIC COMMENT WILL BE ALLOWED AT THIS MEETING!
WHAT ARE THEY TRYING TO HIDE?
Evidently they are trying to hide the fact that rather than do THE RIGHT THING, and pass this issue to Rockingham Superior Court to decide, whether or not to remove the disgraced former serial sexual harasser from office(as it would be a further conflict for the selectmen to decide his fate), The selectmen have decided to hire an outside attorney as Town Counsel informed them it would be a conflict for him to represent them in this case, to defend Phil ONCE AGAIN. How many hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars have been wasted defending this corrupt man from his own violations?
Once again the selectmen choose to ignore the best interests of the town, its taxpayers, and the people in favor of circling the wagons around Phil.
You know, Guys, if the selectman had fired him in the early 1980's when he was caught dipping his hand into the cookie jar, you could have saved this town, and its insurers close to a million dollars in settlements and legal fees.
Atkinson Town Hall
The Norman Rockwellian picture of Atkinson
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26 comments:
Not to mention how many people he's hurt in the process.
VIVA LA PHIL!!! VIVA LA PHIL!
Leave him alone he has done great things in Atkinson its all the snobs who are trying to bring him down.
Right, that's it. He does stuff he shouldn't do and it's everyone elses fault and the taxpayers are OK with paying yet another legal bill. Get rid of him.
91-A:7 Violation. – Any person aggrieved by a violation of this chapter may petition the superior court for injunctive relief. In order to satisfy the purposes of this chapter, the courts shall give proceedings under this chapter high priority on the court calendar. Such a petitioner may appear with or without counsel. The petition shall be deemed sufficient if it states facts constituting a violation of this chapter, and may be filed by the petitioner or his or her counsel with the clerk of court or any justice thereof. Thereupon the clerk of court or any justice shall order service by copy of the petition on the person or persons charged. When any justice shall find that time probably is of the essence, he or she may order notice by any reasonable means, and he or she shall have authority to issue an order ex parte when he or she shall reasonably deem such an order necessary to insure compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
The selectmen are not the ones to take this to court, the petitioner can as well as any one effected by this complaint. Don't even need an attorney THEY DO.
They don't need one and shouldn't be allowed to hire one and spend our money defending a person(s) who broke the law. Enough is enough.
Atkinson Selectmen take Consentino issue under advisement
By James Niedzinski jniedzinski@eagletribune.com Eagle-Tribune
ATKINSON — Selectmen are deciding whether to hire an attorney to help deal with alleged conflicts of interest.
Selectman Philip Consentino has come under fire for allegedly violating the town’s conflict of interest ordinance during two separate incidents.
Consentino, the town’s former longtime police chief, declined to comment on the issue Wednesday.
The Conflict of Interest Committee recommended Consentino be removed from office. The committee was supposed to present its findings to selectmen Monday.
When the alleged conflicts of interest came up at the meeting, selectmen barred public comment.
Selectmen voted, 3-0-2, to see if they should hire an attorney to help determine how to move forward.
Selectman William Friel recused himself because he’s named in some of the Conflict of Interest Committee decisions.
In addition, Friel has used some of the law firms that have been recommended, he said Monday.
Consentino recused himself at the request of Selectman Jason Grosky to make sure selectmen are not involved in any more potential conflicts of interest.
“I think it just makes sense to be as careful as we can going forward,” Grosky said Monday.
Selectmen have taken the issue under advisement, Town Administrator William Innes said.
“The selectmen have all the information they need to work on the issue,” Innes said Wednesday. “They’re looking to determine whether we need to hire an attorney.”
The alleged conflicts of interest revolve around two decisions Consentino made as a selectman.
The first alleged conflict started when former Timberlane Regional School Board representative Michael Mascola resigned in September.
Selectmen had to appoint someone to finish Mascola’s term.
Friel, Timberlane School Board member Jack Sapia and former Conflict of Interest Committee member Peter Torosian all applied for the post.
At a Conflict of Interest Committee meeting last month, members voted, 3-0, that Consentino had violated the town’s conflict of interest ordinance.
Consentino had a conflict of interest with the three applicants, the committee decided, and he should have disclosed any possible conflict of interest before voting on a replacement.
The complaint was filed in December by Leon Artus, who at the time was running against Consentino for selectman.
Torosian recused himself from the vote because he was still a member of the committee at the time.
Conflict of Interest Committee Chairman Raymond Fournier also recused himself. Fournier was also running against Consentino for a selectman’s seat.
Artus filed another complaint, alleging Consentino violated the conflict of interest ordinance when he voted to increase the salary of non-union police employees.
At the time, according to the committee’s decision, Consentino’s wife, Joanne, still worked for the police department.
He also failed to disclose the conflict of interest, according to the decision.
Selectmen have to make a decision by April 13, according to the town ordinance, Fournier said.
While the committee has asked Consentino be removed, selectmen may censure him instead, Fournier said.
The Conflict of Interest Committee may hire its own attorney, he said.
“The selectmen have to act,” he said. “If they don’t act, it will go further to court.”
Censor not good enough even if it is for 3 years!
SOur current Temberlane school rep who was voted in illegally was once a member of the conflict of interest committee! He must of read that conflict ordinance and known it backwards and forwards. But he said nuttin to nobody. No warning to selectmen buddies about bad bad conflicts. The rep was in a lawsuit with Artus and the selectman who was found guilty too. Imagine that. But he Just sat back and allowed it all to go down.
who is the Atkinson reporter?? Is she tall dark and handsome? Please do tell
It's a knight in shining armor.
He's really opening my eyes about this town, what an embarrassment to be asked about town politics when out of town.
Who's been fired?
Who're they connected to?
Why do people keep voting for him?
Has anyone reported this to the State?
Isn't that illegal?
Where are the police?
Why aren't the newspapers reporting more information?
Why do you live there?
A knight in shining armor? Hahaha. You must be a cop.
Ok, ok. We got the best most experienced police officers as Atkinson selectmen. Then we got Salem's most distinguished prime prosecution lawyer as an Atkinson selectman. Then we got two builders. Hmmmm, well, builders are generally ignorant of or just try to get around the law. But the first three should be Knights in Shinning Armor when it comes to defending and enforcing the law. In fact, the first three should jump out of the foxhole and charge to fight to uphold the Atkinson town's Conflict of Interest Ordinance,,, not to mention State and Federal laws, etc.
But no! They hunker down in their Monday night fox holes scared out of their wits and wetting their pants! Insisting Atkinson selectmen can make up their own laws...encore what they choose.
Then they whimper that the laws are just too hard to understand and follow and it is best if a very expensive lawyer is hired by the town at taxpayer expense to guide them!!
Because It's just too much to understand how they ran afoul of the conflict ordinance and continue to fumble and flail with multiple new bumblings.
Pretty disgusting really. Watching them search in their fox hole for a flashlight to then get lucky and find a pineapple grenade... then argue and fight with each other over which one pulls the pin and who throw it at the enemy.
(The enemy being, of course, THE LAW ITSELF.)
Ho Hum. So they continue to hunker down screaming for a legal savior, praying to Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, all the while browning in their pants. Scared to death the Sherman "tank of justice" may lumber up on top of their fox hole, do a quick 360, and bury them alive in their excrement.
COI actually stands for Constantino's Obsessed Individuals.......
And to our new Selectmen.... Welcome to Community Service..... Lawyer up, boys, The haters got beat like mules at the polls, last and more last...Honest, haters, what does that tell ya... Oh, I know, Constantino mind control causes good men to go bad, hey, he turned the Lions into the Mafia....
Your grabbing at straws trying to take him down this way.... your delusional ideas make you look foolish and paranoid but what else is new...
You haters need a new villain, how's about the one you see in the mirror?
Peace
Stevie Van Beck..
Listen Mr. Zappa Mr. Sinatra Mr. Valle, no one is obsessed with the old coot except himself. You on the otherhand are obsessed with Mr. Acciard and you're the hypocrit hater if anyone is.
He should be Stevie Wonder because he can't see passed his own nose.
Frank, Frank, Frankie.
Selectmen agenda! NO COMMENTS FROM THE RESIDENTS WILL BE TAKEN....AGAIN! NEVER! EVER! EVER! AGAIN! WE do not believe in the first amendment when it comes to our godly actions over your lives and especially your lovely money. "LONG LIVE THE King and his squires." They are as pure as the driven snow!
Ozzy Osbourne
The best way to take control over a people and control them utterly is to take a little of their freedom at a time, to erode rights by a thousand tiny and almost imperceptible reductions. Never allowed to ask questions or criticize. In this way, the people will not see those rights and freedoms being removed until past the point at which these changes cannot be reversed. --Adolf Hitler
Having difficulty's getting to this site..
Way to go, Selectmen, gave the COI haters the old bully beatdown.... But, gentlemen, no more closed door meeting, even to appoint someone as controversial as JS...
Jeff Clapton
Ahh Jeff Clapton. An alias for that guy who did the really good stalking job on Meditation Lane. That service to our community is much respected by some police officers and but may....make our police officer selectmen....a little cautious to appoint you in an open meeting. But in a super secred nonpublic workshop with no stenographer...most likely you could be appointed to the offensive and nasty conflict of interest board as an assistant to the new liaison to that Committee. Go for it! You should jump on it man. You could possibly be authorized by the board to follow what each member does, where they go, to who they speak, where they sleep. There might even be opportunities for spray paint and carving skills for important messages on cars and homes. Ask and see what the parameters of this new position for youthe selectmen might enjoy! Seems a really juicy job to showcase your proven talents. And town officials owe you---a lot!
JMHO
E“The receptivity of the masses is very limited, their intelligence is small, but their power of forgetting is enormous. Especially in regard to the details of legal admonitions of the misuse of authority. Ignore these facts, findings, judicial opinions. Instead, limit all effective propaganda to a very few points that confuse and misrepresent. And you must harp on these continually in slogans to the people until the last member of the public understands what you want him to understand by your slogan.”
― Adolf Hitler
er, ah, nice post but i think jeff beck/eric clapton was refering to jack s.
A fine example of cronyism at best. Hopefully the fight has just started.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAH
Take that Accaird....ROFLOL!
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