Morristown councilwoman, constituent take it outside; police respond

Morristown Councilwoman Alison Deeb listens to resident Richard Ray, Oct. 22, 2019. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
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As turf wars go, it doesn’t quite rank with Lexington and Concord.

But Dogwood and Crestwood stirred some tempers on Thursday, culminating in a spurned handshake and a call to Morristown police to make peace between a councilwoman and a constituent.

Councilwoman Alison Deeb told police she was “verbally attacked” by resident Richard Ray when she drove through his neighborhood around 8:30 am to check out a property dispute raised at Tuesday’s council meeting.

Ray, who called police, told Officer Brendan Murphy that Deeb insisted on shaking his hand even when he declined, touching his hand. Although not injured, “Ray advised he did not like this, and emphasized nobody should ever touch someone,” the police report states.

Deeb told police that Ray “was the aggressor during the conversation and would not shake her hand at the end of the conversation.”

The two had exchanged words after Tuesday’s meeting. The Fourth Ward councilwoman, who is running for a fourth term on Nov. 5, took exception to Ray’s assertion that she had not responded to his concerns about a patch of property between Dogwood and Crestwood roads.

At the council meeting, Ray echoed complaints by resident Nico Zavaleta about the messy condition of the parcel. Zavaleta asked for the town to clean it up, apply mulch and create a pocket park. He presented a petition from neighbors who he said support his requests.

On Thursday, Ray showed police a pile of leaves and debris near a retaining wall at the dead end. Police noted the location as Knollwood Road.

The town is researching ownership of the steeply sloped property, Mayor Tim Dougherty said on Friday. The Department of Works was sent on Thursday to inspect drainage of the site, the mayor said.

DPW Superintendent Joseph Curlo was among witnesses interviewed by police. Others included Zavaleta, and his neighbor, Kevin O’Brien.

Zavaleta is at odds with O’Brien and some other neighbors over Zavaleta’s renting of his home on Airbnb, a practice the town is attempting to curb with a pending ordinance. He told police he thinks drainage problems on his Crestwood property and on the vacant parcel could be caused by a neighbor–who happens to be O’Brien’s mother.

No charges were filed.

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