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BY JOE TYRRELL
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Hunterdon County Sheriff Deborah Trout has vowed to remain in office despite an indictment, but has "determined that it is appropriate" to put Undersheriff Michael Russo on paid administrative leave.
Trout's announcement came a day after the Hunterdon freeholders pushed her to take a leave and suspend Russo after indictments were unsealed against them and a former sheriff's officer.
"I was elected by the voters of Hunterdon County to a term as sheriff, and I intend to complete that term," Trout said in a statement.
Trout has already said she is not running for re-election. Three candidates, including one of her aides, are running for the Republican nomination to succeed her, while Russo is seeking the Republican nomination for sheriff in neighboring Warren County.An upset winner in the 2007 GOP primary, Trout, a former sheriff's officer, began sparring with her fellow Republicans on the freeholder board almost from the moment she was elected. Even before she took office, they were upset that she did not accept budget cuts.
Although the department's finances are not at issue in the indictments, Trout also announced she will give in to freeholders' demands to have the county treasurer sign off on her accounts, and to cooperate with an additional audit they authorized.
Trout made the concessions grudgingly, saying, "I do not believe the freeholders possess the legal authority" to oversee a separate constitutional office. The sheriff said she agreed to the conditions "in the interests of transparency."
The accounts already are reconciled monthly with the treasurer and are subject to random audits, including on so far this year, making it unnecessary for the county to pay for another one, she said.
If the legal authority is murky, Trout does not have much political leverage after the March indictments were made public as former county Prosecutor J. Patrick Barnes left office on May 7.
Trout is charged with requiring her appointees to take political loyalty oaths and exercising lax oversight over Russo, a long-time associate. Like Trout, Russo has disputed the charges.
Russo faces more substantial complaints stemming from incidents early in Trout's administration. Russo threatened to investigate the moderator of a website that posted remarks critical of him and the department.
He also is accused of maintaining business cards with erroneous titles and performing incomplete or false background checks on hires for the sheriff's department. One sheriff's officer was barred from law enforcement after admitting he failed to list a disorderly persons offense on a county personnel form.
Former officer John Falat Jr. faced the same charge but refused to plead guilty. He has been charged with keeping department property, including ammunition.
Joe Tyrrell may be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
