A Sign of the Times

Sign “We addressed the situation immediately as soon as we were contacted,” Police Chief Scott Reinert told the crowd gathered at the Atlantic Highlands meeting of the Mayor and Council. “We did not want to create a mass public alarm. We handled the situation behind the scenes quickly and immediately.”

The chief spoke at the end of the meeting in which half a dozen or so parents expressed shock, fear, intimidation, and an inability to discuss the situation with a ten year old child while at the same time calling for more police protection and government action to insure more safety for students in the elementary school.

The subject was started during the public portion at the meeting following comments which started with complaints about the police not only permitting but also aiding a group of what was described as a hate group in cars and motorcycles who, one speaker said, formed a parade down First Avenue to the Yacht Harbor.

Mayor Lori Hohenleitner explained that she has seen the group in the harbor multiple times in the past, describing it as a group that appears to meet weekly and travel together throughout Monmouth County. While they have in the past parked at the harbor, that did not happen this year because of the heavy crowds present for the Flea Market which was ongoing there Saturday, she said.

Most of the comments then focused on the previous day, a Friday morning when a man appeared on the sidewalk across the street from the school wearing a handmade sign tied across his shoulders that said “Dems = Murder. “

The chief confirmed indeed there was a man wearing a sign, he was not doing anything unconstitutional or not permitted. He said he spoke to him about security, and had a conversation with him in Police Headquarters. Because of fears expressed, he also checked with school officials who have their own security in the building rather than the police presence. His decision was bringing further attention or action where it was not needed would only cause public alarm.

Kathleen Scatassa, who has a daughter in the third grade at the school, was the first to speak during the public portion on this matter, citing her concerns about the “parade” which she said was by a hate group as identified by the Anti- Defamation group .She would not specifically identify the group, she said, to avoid giving them any further attention. She said such a group should not be welcomed to the borough, let alone assisted by the police.

Scatassa, who has lived in Atlantic Highlands for seven years and is a former newspaper reporter according to her biography, is a Democratic candidate for council in the November election.

Lindsay Cohen objected to an organized group using borough roads and questioned whether permit were required or secured and noted this town is no place for hate groups, pointing out they are bad for business. Hohenleitner said while she has seen the group in the past, the group appeared larger this year and noted the police had to “act in the moment’ when alerted to it. She praised the “wonderful police department and how they moved in quickly.” The mayor also told the resident “I feel you are here to make us accountable,” thanked her for it and said she feels the council encourages people to attend meetings, give suggestions and become involved. Hohenleitner also said she feels the borough far more welcoming than it was 20 years ago and much more friendly.. She advised the resident that she needs to trust the police department.

Several residents spoke about the man with the sign, some admitting they had not seen it but had heard about it and were appalled. One mother said her child went to school and lived in his fear throughout the day until going to bed at night. Another resident said she was out of town but was calling into the meeting to voice her concern, another said she was horrified at the lack of response and said the police should have remained in the school all day.

One mother said if there were a borough meeting at 3:05 in an afternoon, every student from school would attend, and idea Hohenleitner supported and said she would follow through with a special meeting. One resident said she was “horrified” by the response by the police to the fact the man was walking with the sign in front of school, while yet another said she could not explain the situation to her son saying that freedom of speech was different from the event under discussion. One resident suggested that communications perhaps through the school PTA might be a solution, whole another noted that communication and education could be part of the cure.

The resident carrying the sign the parent complained about was Michael Ciano, a borough resident since 1973, and a frequent attendee at council meetings. Ciano, when contacted by VeniVidScripto, displayed the sign he had carried and explained he had left home shortly before 8:30 a.m. Friday morning and began his walk along the First Avenue side opposite Borough Hall at approximately 8:30.. He walked the sidewalk on that side of the street, not adjacent to the school, from borough hall to the area by Naylor’s, then returned to the borough hall area before returning home about 9 a.m.. Ciano said he also believes in free speech and felt the need to express his own opinions openly in the wake of other incidents which have occurred in the nation recently.

Nor is this the first time the resident has been challenged for his free speech, losing his position with the US Post Office several years ago. When he challenged that action, he was returned to employment when a federal court judge ruled there was no basis for the allegations charged against him and restored his position. Now retired, Ciano, who has also faced several family illnesses and deaths within a short time, also said a number of people who saw him walking with his sign applauded him and thanked him for his courage in expressing an opinion. He is the son of a veteran and a strong supporter of defense of the American flag and a person’s right to free speech.

In other business at the meeting, the council unanimously approved an ordinance amending its ordinance on standby generators, with no one offering any comments during the public portion. It also proclaimed the weeks between September 15 and October 15 as Hispanic Heritage Month and another resolution honoring the Celebration of the Discovery of Quantum Mechanics, at the request of resident and frequent council attendee Joshua Leinsdorf.

It approved an amendment to the approved minutes of the April 26 meeting at the request of Councilman Brian Dougherty, a well as authorizing the award of a bid for contract for mooring tackle helix inspection at the municipal yacht harbor. Another resolution approved the payment of bills since the last meeting totaling $36,677.13.