Journal & Topics Media Group

Several Maine Twp. Officials Unlikely To Attend Monday’s Meeting On ‘Harassment’ Report


Several Maine Township officials, including Supervisor Laura Morask, will not attend tomorrow night’s (Monday) special board meeting where a decision on the possible release of a report on alleged sexual harassment of one trustee against another may be made.

Two trustees—Susan Sweeney and Claire McKenzie—scheduled the meeting for Monday night at 6:30 p.m. at the town hall on Ballard Road in Park Ridge. Two elected trustees or the township supervisor can schedule a special meeting. But while the meeting will be held, unless it is postponed, will proceed with only two or three trustees attending. Maine Township has four trustees and a supervisor, all of whom can vote.

Sweeney and McKenzie want the meeting to be held Monday night in order for a recently completed report on the investigation of a claim by Maine Township trustee Kim Jones that fellow trustee Dave Carrabotta inappropriately touched her on three separate occasions, to be posted on the township’s website.

Morask said this week that she agrees that a meeting on the report, which was completed about a week ago, needs to be held. However, because neither she, Jones, township Clerk Peter Gialamas and attorney Keri-Lyn Krafthefer, are can attend due to prior commitments, the session should be held later. Morask said she suggested holding the meeting this Wednesday, but it appears that neither Sweeney nor McKenzie are willing to do so.

If the meeting is held Monday, only three trustees will likely attend: Sweeney, McKenzie and Carrabotta. A legal meeting with three trustees could be held because it represents a majority of a quorum of voting township members.

Morask said that it’s important that all elected officials attend the meeting where the report will be discussed because some have expressed that information contained in the document needs clarification or correction. All four Maine trustees and Supervisor Laura Morask have been given copies of the report. It has yet to be made available to the public.

Several weeks ago, board members agreed to conduct the investigation after Carrabotta, having been confronted by Jones about the touching allegations, insisted that trustees meet in an emergency closed session to discuss the charges. Jones said she took her concerns about Carrabotta’s alleged touching to the township attorney who advised her to confront the trustee, which she did. Carrabotta denied the accusations. He has said that the matter is “confidential”.

A few weeks later a letter was sent to Maine Township Republican Committeeman Char Foss, signed by 10 local GOP women, demanding that she call on Carrabotta to resign from the board. Carrabotta, like Eggemann, is a Republican. The letter mentioned Eggemann has said nothing publicly about the matter calling her silence “deafening”. Among the signees was Morask, Jones and Janice Provenzano. Since then, Jones has stated that Eggemann hasn’t even called her to express her support or concerns.

Jones has vowed not to let the matter end no matter what the report might state. 

Politically, Sweeney, McKenzie and Carrabotta has formed a bloc of votes that has opposed many measures proposed by Morask and her ally on the board, Jones.

 

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