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Bass River Medford Medford Lakes Pemberton Pemberton Borough Shamong Southampton Tabernacle Washington Woodland
Vol. 1 - No. 29
Southeastern Burlington County’s News Leader
March 18-24, 2017
Woodland Township BOE Member Penalized For Violating School Ethics Act
Medford Woman Sentenced After Inflicting Unnecessary Cruelty on Ailing Beagle By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
MEDFORD—Burlington County SPCA Humane Police (BCSPCA) have concluded an investigation into the death of a one-year-old beagle found badly decomposed at the Creekside Apartments located off of Route 70 in Medford Township. Police launched an investigation at the apartment complex on Nov. 15 after the dead dog was discovered on an apartment balcony. “The dog had been deceased for some time,” said Detective Armand King, who is a public information officer for the BCSPCA. “It was decomposed to the point that a necropsy would not have provided a cause of death.” Investigators believe the dog had been dead for a month or so before the discovery was made. Charges were filed in Medford Township Municipal Court against Denai Carter, 26, of Medford on Nov. 27. She was charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty. Carter appeared before Judge Peter C. Lange on March 6. She admitted that the dog was sick and couldn’t eat or drink. She also admitted that she did not seek veterinary care for the dog. The dog was left to die in a cage. “The defendant said the dog could not eat or drink and a cause of death might be drawn from that,” King said. The woman pleaded guilty to failure to provide necessary care, inflicting unnecessary cruelty on a living creature, failure as the owner to provide necessary care causing bodily injury, and causing the death of a living creature. King said Lange was appalled at Carter’s actions. He sentenced her to pay a $5,000 fine along with court costs. She was banned from ever owning an animal again. “The animal ban is recorded in a SPCA database,” King said. “All contacts with people investigated are compared to the names in the database. In a case of an individual found to be in possession of an animal, in violation of the ban, it is reported to the jurisdiction where the ban was imposed. Those individuals are considered in contempt of court.” Lange also sentenced Carter to serve 90 days in jail. However, jail time was suspended on the condition that she pays the fines and the restrictions are honored. “If an animal becomes ill, the person responsible for its care is required to provide veterinary care,” King said. “Failure to do so can result in charges being filed.” The BCSPCA investigates reports of abuse, neglect and cruelty. Most of what the officers do
CRUELTY>>PAGE 20
PHOTO BY TOM WALKER Chatsworth Elementary School. By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
WOODLAND—Kirk Harris, a former member of the Woodland Township Board of Education, has been penalized for violating the state’s School Ethics Act. A resolution detailing the penalty was read into the record by order of the state’s School Ethics Commission at a Feb. 28 Woodland Township Board of Education meeting held at the Chatsworth Elementary School. “This resolution was a result of the fact that a former board member did not complete his required training to be a board of education member in the state of New Jersey,” said Superintendent of Schools Misty Weiss. On an annual basis, school board members are required to complete a training program prepared and offered by the New Jersey School Boards Association (NJSBA). “The Act was enacted by the New Jersey State Legislature to ensure and preserve public confidence in school board members and charter
school trustees,” said Robert Bender, who serves as the chairman of the School Ethics Commission. The commission determined that Harris received repeated notifications of the longstanding training requirement and that he had ample opportunity to complete the mandated training. “Communications about mandated training were sent to the respondent on Nov. 18, 2015, Dec. 14, 2015, and Jan. 8, 2016,” Bender said. “After Jan. 19, 2016, the NJSBA sent reminder communications to the respondent on June 30, 2016 and July 5, 2016.” The NJSBA also sent reminder communications to Maria Funches, who just recently handed in her resignation after serving as the longtime business administrator and board secretary for the district, on April 1, April 15, June 14 and July 12. “Notwithstanding these communications, the respondent did not complete the training,” Bender said. He said the Burlington County Office of
Education also communicated with Harris regarding his failure to complete the mandated training requirement. “The county sent correspondence to the respondent, with a copy to the business administrator and the solicitor, advising that the respondent remained delinquent in completing training,” Bender said. “Notwithstanding this correspondence from the county, the respondent did not complete training as directed.” The commission sent a final warning letter to Harris on Sept.13, via regular and certified mail. The letter advised him that the commission requires completion of the training and provided detailed instructions for how he could complete it. “For convenience and ease, the training is offered online and, in this way, a board member or charter school trustee may complete it at any time, from anywhere,” Bender said. Harris ignored the warning and did not complete the training. On Sept. 28, the commission voted to issue an Order to Show
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