VOM Hires Outside Counsel for Nepotism Inquiry

At Monday night's Village of Mamaroneck Board of Trustees work session, the board authorized the Ethics Board to retain legal counsel in a potential nepotism issue regarding Trustee Louis Santoro's son because they felt there was a conflict of interest with Village Attorney Christie Derrico, who was hired by Mayor Norman Rosenblum last year. While Derrico stated she did not see why the Board of Ethics needed outside legal advice in this particular case, everyone agreed that the request should be granted.

The Board of Ethics has requested advice to determine if hiring a seasonal employee in the same department as a family member working full-time for the village is a violation of the Ethics Code, which states that "Employees' relatives will not be employed by the village on a full-time basis" if one of the parties is an elected official.

Santoro's son was hired by the Department of Public Works a few weeks ago to cut grass for the village on a seasonal basis, and has been hired in past years. In an e-mail to the board, Village Manager Rich Slingerland said he and the former village attorney had determined in the past that summer seasonal employment was a part-time designation and that this issue was not a violation of the Ethics Law. The Ethics Board will review this matter again with the help of outside counsel.

At the work session, the board also approved a retainer agreement between the village and Wormser, Kiely, Galef & Jacobs LLP (the same firm that will provide legal advice to the Board of Ethics) for when outside counsel is required for a specific matter by any board. The attorney's hourly rate to work with the village will be $320.

Trustee John Hofstetter expressed concern over creating a "blanket" approval when this only involved one specific matter.

"We have an attorney who has been advising the Ethics Board and there hasn't been an issue," he said. But Slingerland explained that while the agreement was open, every request for counsel would have to come from the chair, go through him and be approved by the Board of Trustees.

During the discussion, Hofstetter asked Derrico if she would resign from her position as village attorney to run for office (last week, it was announced that she would be the Republican candidate for village justice). Derrico responded, "absolutely no," and Mayor Norman Rosenblum said he wouldn't allow it even if it were the case.

Check back for a full recap of Monday night's work session.