In Willingboro, elected officials feud

It was perhaps a new low in political discord when the mayor of Willingboro sued his deputy mayor for defamation last month. But then a process server interrupted a town council meeting and stunned the standing-room-only crowd when he approached the dais to deliver the legal summons.

"He was trying to embarrass me. . . . People were outraged, saying it was unprofessional, disrespectful, and grandstanding," said Deputy Mayor Chris Walker, who was served with the legal papers at the Feb. 4 council meeting.

Three years ago, Walker and Mayor Nathaniel "Nat" Anderson were Democratic running mates for two open council seats. Now they have become such rivals that the town solicitor is sitting between the two men during council meetings.

In recent months, Anderson, Walker, and the town have been torn apart by accusations of conflicts of interest, influence peddling, campaign spending violations, and defamation. Residents in this Burlington County community jam the meetings and question officials.

The five-member governing body, dominated by Democrats for decades, has split into factions, and answers are elusive.

The public feud is an example of how government, even when not divided along party lines, can unravel when elected officials clash repeatedly over ethics issues and engage in finger-pointing.

Whether the fight is hurting township business is yet another point of contention between Anderson and Walker.

Anderson, 47, said in an interview last week that he keeps his "personal stuff" and problems with Walker from interfering with the council's work. He declined to discuss the lawsuit and controversies embroiling the town, saying he has "strict orders" to refer questions to his attorneys.

Walker, 48, said the continuing tension "isn't good for Willingboro. . . . It takes away the focus on the needs and the concerns of the community."

Having a process server appear at the February public meeting, Walker said, didn't help, and contradicted Anderson's statement at a January meeting that he wants the council to be unified. Walker said the lawsuit was without merit.

Councilman Martin Nock, who aligned himself with Walker in voting against Anderson's being named mayor last month, said Anderson has caused unease in the town, especially after a state agency found Anderson had violated some campaign-finance reporting laws last month. Nock also said it was wrong for the process server to appear at the meeting. "It was orchestrated for maximum effect," he said.

Anderson said last week he had nothing to do with that and expressed surprise that the process server came to the meeting. "I don't think that was appropriate," he said, adding that he had his attorney handle the matter.

Larry Luongo, his lawyer, said in an interview that the process server could not reach Walker at his home, and that he and Anderson then discussed sending him to the meeting.

Former Mayor Eddie Campbell Jr., who retired in December after serving decades on council, said the fighting between Anderson and Walker was "deplorable." He said that a few months ago he had offered to "sit down" with the two men to work out their issues, but Anderson was not interested. The two men are not up for reelection until 2017.

Anderson's lawsuit alleges Walker hurt his reputation and his business, Nothing But Green Living L.L.C., and caused "extreme mental anguish" when Walker "published false and defamatory statements." The suit said Walker made statements to the effect that Anderson had "pressured and coerced" the town's recreation director to hire Anderson's company to recoat a community center gymnasium floor in 2012 when he was a councilman. Anderson is a managing partner of the Mount Laurel-based firm, which also has used the name Nothing But Clean Living.

Luongo said he did not know if Anderson was affiliated with the company when the bid was awarded, but he said that the town later hired a special counsel to investigate the $4,100 contract and determined there was no wrongdoing.

The lawyer said Walker made the false verbal remarks to Councilwoman Jacqueline Jennings in 2012 and the word published is legal terminology used in a defamation suit.

The suit also alleges that Walker falsely told others that the FBI was investigating Anderson and that the allegation had cost Anderson his seat on a charitable board.

Walker denied the allegations. He said that before he was elected to council, he had learned of the flooring contract and asked Jennings whether it was appropriate for a councilman's company to be given this work. More than a year later, he said, Jennings requested the internal investigation.

More recently, Walker raised new concerns at a November council meeting about another potential conflict of interest involving Anderson.

Walker said that a banner promoting Green Living hung behind the stage at the town's popular annual Jazz Festival. The company was cited on the festival's website as a sponsor of the weekend affair, which attracted 20,000 people, but it did not pay to sponsor the event, Walker said.

Instead, the town paid about $84,000 for the events, more than the $50,000 it had budgeted, according to Councilman Nock, who obtained festival documents through a public records request. Anderson contributed about $1,900 to the township for the festival, but paid for it with a check from his election fund, Nock said.

Nock joined Walker in criticizing Anderson for using a campaign account to help pay for the festival. Walker said that Anderson's company "was promoted without paying for a sponsorship."

"The money came from his campaign funds, and there's a question as to whether it is legal to use these funds to promote your personal business," Walker said. He said the town attorney was asked to look into the matter.

Anderson did not return calls for comment on the Jazz Festival.

Walker said his conflicts with Anderson escalated after Anderson was named the chair of the town's Democratic Committee in June 2014 and stated at a committee meeting that he would do "everything in his power" to remove Walker from office. Walker said that he was not present but that several people at the meeting reported hearing the remark, including Nock.

Four months later, Walker said Anderson encouraged Walker's car mechanic to file criminal charges against him based on a dispute over a repair the two men had a "whole year" earlier.

Anderson had escorted the mechanic to the police department and arranged a meeting with the public safety director to discuss a possible theft charge, Walker said. Police looked into the allegation that Walker did not pay $2,500 for the car repair and a municipal judge brought in to hear the claims later dismissed the matter.

Walker said he was confident Anderson's defamation lawsuit also would end up being dropped.

"As with all the other false allegations," Walker said, "I look forward to my name being cleared and getting focused back on the business of Willingboro."

jhefler@phillynews.com

856-779-3224 @JanHefler

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