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Politics & Government

Sea Girt Hires New Municipal Judge

Judge George C. Pappas appointed to replace retired judge as shared services agreement with Wall is renewed

A new municipal judge will soon be sitting on the bench in Wall Township’s courtroom to hear Sea Girt cases.

Municipal Court Judge George C. Pappas has been appointed by the Sea Girt Borough Council to complete the unexpired term of Judge E. Thomas Brennan, who retired from the bench on Feb. 1.

As a part-time borough employee, Pappas will earn $14,000 annually, the salary set by the town’s ordinance. By municipal law, he is not entitled to any raises during his term.

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Councilman Joseph Bonacci, who chairs the governing body’s personnel committee, and Borough Administrator Al Bunting interviewed Pappas before recommending him to the council for a vote on March 23.

Like Brennan, Pappas will hear Sea Girt’s cases in Wall Township under the ongoing shared services agreement with the borough’s larger neighbor to the west. To date, the arrangement has worked well for both Sea Girt and Wall, Bonacci said.

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Recently, the boroughs of Spring Lake and Spring Lake Heights, who until recently also shared a courtroom, approached Sea Girt about joining their arrangement. Under that arrangement, the municipal court would be held in Spring Lake Heights.

However, the savings amounted to only about $6,000 annually according to Borough Administrator Al Bunting.

Spring Lake eventually opted to end their arrangement with Spring Lake Heights in favor of a municipal court shared services agreement with Belmar. Pappas, who also serves as Municipal Court Judge for Spring Lake, will continue his role with them in Belmar.

Had it joined with the two smaller boroughs, Sea Girt might have also been asked to eventually kick in about $100,000 towards renovating a courtroom in Spring Lake Heights to make it entirely compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards, Bonacci said.

“The situation that we have in Wall Township still makes sense,” Bonacci said. “I suggest that we stay there.”

Only about three percent of the cases heard in the Wall courtroom are related to incidents in Sea Girt, he noted.

Pappas will fill out the remainder of Brennan’s current term which expires Dec. 31, 2013.

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