Nearly all counties sued by Rep. Andy Kim over New Jersey’s county-line primary ballots have settlement agreements in place or awaiting approval, but two counties and two party organizations have yet to reach a deal to settle the lawsuit.

Clerks in Bergen and Union counties are the last government officials to remain in litigation over whether New Jersey’s system of county lines — a ballot design that groups party-endorsed candidates in a single row or column — violates First Amendment protections to free association and a constitutional provision that limits state control over election results.

The suit, lodged by Kim (D-03) a few months into his campaign for a U.S. Senate seat, spurred a federal judge to order 19 counties to use a new ballot design in June’s Democratic primaries and spawned a special Assembly committee to legislate new ballot design.

“I think there’s a real opportunity here for everyone to put the case behind them,” said Flavio Komuves, an attorney representing Kim and other plaintiffs. “I think that the plaintiffs have offered extremely generous settlement terms, and we don’t want to see a situation where the remaining clerks are spending tax money on a trial or other hearings that shouldn’t be necessary.”

Attorneys representing clerks in Union and Bergen counties did not return a request for comment.

Seventeen county clerks have agreed to settlement terms that require them to print ballots to use what are known as office-block ballots — these group candidates by the office they’re seeking — and to draw ballot positions randomly for each office. The agreements each call for $32,533 in attorney’s fees for Kim.

Eleven counties have finalized settlements in those terms, and clerks in six other counties — Hudson, Hunterdon, Morris, Ocean, Cape May, and Passaic — have agreed to them in principle but are awaiting approval from their county commissions.

The Camden County Democratic Committee and the Morris County Republican Committee, which both intervened in the litigation, also have yet to reach settlement agreements.

Kim’s lawsuit targeted 19 county clerks, arguing their county-line ballots violate First Amendment protections on free association by denying some candidates the top ballot position unless they share a slogan with a candidate for higher office. The complaint also alleged these ballots impact race results in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s elections clause.

Critics of county-line ballots say they give party-backed candidates an unfair advantage at the polls by providing them with better ballot placement.

In March, U.S. District Court Judge Zahid Quraishi barred the use of county lines in Democratic primaries, finding Kim and two congressional candidate co-plaintiffs were likely to succeed at trial, and a federal appeals court panel later upheld his ruling. Because the suit had no Republican plaintiffs, Quraishi’s order did not bar the use of county lines in GOP races.

Ballots in Sussex and Salem Counties do not feature a county line, and clerks there were not named in Kim’s suit.

The parties went before Magistrate Judge Tonianne Bongiovanni for a settlement conference Thursday.

Bergen County Clerk John Hogan is the only clerk remaining in a related suit lodged by former congressional candidate Christine Conforti, who challenged county lines after her primary in 2020. Camden Democrats and Morris Republicans are also party to that litigation.

The special Assembly committee on Tuesday took testimony from clerks and other election officials, the first step in lawmakers’ promised process to revamp New Jersey’s ballots through legislation.

A police chief suspended from his duties in a Middlesex County borough filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the mayor and other officials, alleging harassment, retaliation, and violations of his rights.

Philip Corbisiero, the police chief of Spotswood, claims in court papers that Mayor Jacqueline Palmer, who took office in January 2021, has a pattern of interfering in police department matters.

The complaint states Palmer’s administration “weaponized” internal affairs procedures, creating a work environment where certain officers were reportedly penalized or pressured based on Palmer’s personal views.

Palmer and the attorneys representing the borough did not immediately respond to requests for comment made by phone and email.

The complaint, filed in state Superior Court in Middlesex County, seeks monetary damages, reinstatement and an end to what Corbisiero claims is a hostile work environment stemming from Palmer’s alleged interference with police department operations.

Corbisiero has served in the Spotswood Police Department since 1994 and became chief in April 2022.

He was suspended with pay in March after he was accused of incompetence and insubordination. A judge later dismissed the charges, according to mycentraljersey.com.

Corbisiero is asking for relief under the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act and the state’s Civil Rights Act. The chief seeks compensatory damages, reimbursement of legal fees, and other financial relief, including emotional distress damages.

Although no exact amount is specified, Corbisiero’s legal team claims the harassment and retaliation have severely impacted his mental and professional well-being.

Corbisiero claims Palmer has sought access to department facilities, security systems, and personnel files and has attempted to control departmental policy and officer promotions.

The suit details Palmer’s involvement in daily department operations, allegedly demanding access to police vehicles, radio frequencies, and confidential disciplinary records, among other resources typically reserved for law enforcement personnel.

The complaint also describes incidents involving Palmer’s alleged attempts to place favored officers in higher-ranking roles while circumventing standard promotion protocols.

Corbisiero claims these actions violated his statutory authority as chief under New Jersey law and created a work atmosphere where officers feared repercussions from Palmer.

Alleging that his objections to these actions were met with further retaliation, Corbisiero states he was unlawfully suspended and that his job responsibilities were reallocated to other personnel, which he contends has undermined his position.

He also claims that Palmer’s administration has not acted on his prior complaints and whistleblowing reports about alleged misconduct and abuse of authority by borough officials.

Corbisiero previously filed a Notice of Tort Claim in January, but the borough did not provide him relief, according to his lawsuit.

Corbisiero’s lawsuit comes after a series of legal disputes involving Spotswood officials, including other employees who have reportedly filed complaints against the borough in recent years.

The Spotswood Police Department employs about 23 to 25 sworn officers and serves this borough of around 8,000 residents.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Here are the top New Jersey news stories for Thursday:

New Jersey’s largest newspaper will soon no longer be available in a print format.

The Newark Morning Ledger Co., the owner of the Star-Ledger, said it will no longer publish a print edition of the newspaper after Feb. 2. The company also plans to close its Montville production facility. The online version will continue at NJ.com.

Sister newspapers the Times of Trenton, the South Jersey Times and the weekly Hunterdon County Democrat, owned by Advance Local, will also end their print editions. All will continue to be available online.

NEW BRUNSWICK — A Rutgers University student has been accused of using his cell phone to take video of several female students while they showered at dorms on the Rutgers campus in New Brunswick.

Rutgers Police Department received a call on Oct. 2, reporting one such student being recorded while in the bathroom.

In the following weeks, police received at least two reports of similar incidents in nearby dorms.

Several New Jersey towns have set teen curfews for Halloween activities this week as a proactive measure against possible problems.

Edison, Long Branch, Perth Amboy, Voorhees, South River, Wall Township and Washington Township in Morris County have set a 9 p.m. curfew for most of the week, including Wednesday, which is known as Mischief Night. Middletown and Point Pleasant Beach have curfews starting at 8 p.m. South Plainfield and Woodbridge’s curfew takes effect at 7 p.m. Clementon’s curfew starts at 7:30 p.m.

In some of the towns, the curfews apply to those age 16 and under, while other towns impact those 18 and younger.

TRENTON — A state grand jury has voted to file charges against six state correctional police officers in connection with the alleged assault of an inmate at the Garden State Youth Correctional Facility in Burlington County, over four years ago — and an alleged coverup in officer reports.

A seven-count indictment was returned against the following sergeant and five senior corrections officers, stemming from what authorities said was a pepper spraying and forceful cell removal incident on April 8, 2020.

OCEAN TOWNSHIP (Ocean) — A New Jersey woman lied about having to help her child with cancer treatments so that she could convince a judge to repeatedly delay her case, according to authorities.

Alicia Campbell, 37, of Mays Landing was charged on Tuesday with records tampering, impersonation, forgery, obstruction of justice, and making a false statement, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said.

Authorities said that during an ongoing criminal case, Campbell claimed her child had leukemia and that she needed to take care of them.

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