DOE Commissioner Affirms Court Ruling, Restoring Lt. Ralph Johnson
to Piscataway Board of Education
Initial Decision Adopted by DOE, Confirms Board’s “Arbitrary and Capricious” Action

Piscataway, NJ – NJ’s Interim Commissioner of Education Kevin Dehmer adopted in full last month’s ruling by Administrative Law Judge Kim Belin, paving the way for Lt. Ralph Johnson to be reinstated to his position on the Piscataway Board of Education (BOE) in time for this Thursday’s BOE meeting. ALJ Belin and the Commissioner ordered the popular community leader and coach restored to his seat after he was improperly removed by the Board’s “Better, Safer Schools” slate members.

The Commissioner adopted the Office of Administrative Law’s decision for the reasons expressed by the ALJ. “The Board failed to demonstrate that it was unable to conduct its business as a result of Johnson’s truncated attendance on April 9, 2020… Johnson has more than two years left on his term and thus his removal undermines the will of the public who elected him and unduly smears his reputation,” ALJ Belin wrote.

As a result, no candidates will be able to run for Johnson’s improperly vacated seat. Warren Zimmerman, who ran with the ‘Better, Safer Schools” slate last year but lost to Johnson, had filed a candidate petition to run again on the same slate for the remainder of Johnson’s term.

“I am so glad to be returning to the Board this week. Now more than ever, our students, faculty and families need Board members who stand up for them and put their needs first,” said Johnson. “I am thrilled to be able to get back to work at this challenging time, when our students are starting the year remotely. I am deeply grateful to the students, parents, staff and community members who stood with me and sought justice.”

The “Better, Safer Schools” slate members of the Board of Education, who have run with support from the local political machine run by Brian Wahler, removed Lt. Johnson after claiming that he missed a meeting on April 9. Lt. Johnson has repeatedly said he was present, and was marked as such according to the Board’s own minutes, for a portion of that meeting and was disconnected as a result of technological issues. ALJ Belin agreed, writing:

“The Board offers no rational basis for its determination that thirteen minutes does not qualify as attendance at a Board meeting, especially under the circumstances presented here where absent the technical difficulties, Johnson would have remained on the call. Indeed, following the Board’s logic would render the statute as a “gotcha” law wherein a Board member can be removed for committing a violation without being advised of the conditions which will warrant their removal (i.e. that attending a Board meeting for thirteen minutes constitutes a violation of the attendance statute). This ‘fits the very definition of arbitrary and capricious action’ and is an untenable position.”

The Commissioner of Education had up to 45 days to accept, reject or modify the decision. Johnson sought expedited review by the Department’s Office of Controversies and Disputes after the Board’s attorney indicated it would not restore Johnson until the Commissioner ruled. That could have created voter confusion, as ballots would have been printed for the upcoming November election that erroneously included Johnson’s seat.

Attorney Brett M. Pugach, Bromberg Law LLC, who argued the case said, “Democracy and justice were served in this case. We want to thank the Commissioner and the Department of Education for moving quickly to protect the rights of voters who elected Ralph last year and preventing ballot chaos that could have resulted if this matter was not settled. We look forward to Ralph resuming his position on the Board to continue serving the residents of Piscataway,” he said.

Attorney Yael Bromberg, Principal of Bromberg Law LLC and co-counsel on the case said, “It is unfortunate that the arbitrary and capricious actions of six members of the Board had to be litigated at all. At a time when schools are struggling to adapt to the needs of students and staff, these Board members chose to pick a legally untenable fight and waste crucial resources by kicking a three-time elected board member off the Board. Democracy is for everyone, not the few who position themselves to be arbitrators of who is in and who is out.”

Parents and students who supported Lt. Johnson were elated. Zoe Scotto, a former student representative to the Board of Education who served with Johnson for the last two years, helped organize a protest to support Lt. Johnson, cheered the decision.

“Our community knows that Mr. Johnson is a valuable leader who deserves to remain on our Board. No amount of vendettas plotted against him or political schemes by some members of the Board could ever diminish that fact,” said Scotto, who graduated Piscataway High School this past June. “Mr. Johnson’s victory shows that when a community of people fight for the right thing, they’ll make sure justice is served.”

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