Background check ordinance to be up for approval
By kathy baratta
Staff Writer

HOWELL — An ordinance requiring fingerprinting and background checks of all coaches and volunteers working in township-sponsored youth activities and organizations is expected to be adopted by the Township Council on May 20.

Once the ordinance is approved by a majority vote of the governing body, mandatory fingerprinting and background checks of all individuals working under the auspices of any township programs involving juveniles will be performed.

A $36 fee payable by the applicant will cover the costs of fingerprinting and a background check of the applicant by the New Jersey State Police. Following the review by the state police an applicant would be "recommended" or "not recommended" to participate as a volunteer.

In the case of a person who is not recommended following the state police review, the ordinance provides for a three-member review committee that would hear appeals by any employee or volunteer whose criminal history background check revealed a disqualifying criminal conviction.

According to the ordinance, the review committee would be comprised of the director of parks and recreation, the township manager and the chief of police.

According to Howell Director of Parks and Recreation Helene Schlegel, an applicant who was not recommended would be given access to a full personal disclosure of the basis for the recommendation and would be offered the option of appealing if they wished to dispute the state police recommendation.

The proposed ordinance states that when reviewing an appeal, if an applicant has "affirmatively demonstrated to the committee clear and convincing evidence of (his or her) rehabilitation," the review committee may take into consideration:

• the nature and responsibility of the position which the convicted person would hold or has held;

• the nature and seriousness of the offense;

• the circumstances under which the offense occurred;

• the date of the offense;

• the age of the person when the offense was committed;

• whether the offense was an isolated or repeated incident;

• any social conditions that may have contributed to the offense;

• any evidence of rehabilitation, including good conduct in prison or the community, counseling or psychiatric treatment received, acquisition of additional academic or vocational training, successful participation in correctional work release programs or the recommendations of those who have had the individual under their supervision.

The development of the new ordinance followed a recent presentation to the governing body by Schlegel and regional Little League baseball official Tony Richardson.

Schlegel and Richardson told members of the governing body that by adopting the ordinance they would be helping to ensure the protection of juveniles who participate in township-sponsored youth activities.

Schlegel and Richardson have contended that a mandated background check will deter pedophiles from even applying for fear of exposure, noting that among the immediate disqualification of applicants from serving as a volunteer were convictions for sexual assault and illegal sexual contact, as well as felony crimes such as robbery and homicide.

Under the guidelines of the ordinance, once completed, the Howell Police Department will serve as a clearinghouse for the collection and dissemination of the information gained as a result of the state police background investigation of an applicant.

All background checks will be submitted to the township police department which will coordinate subsequent background checks every two years after the date of the initial state police check along with a federal background check every four years after the initial check.