Washington Township board votes to release 340‑page conflict‑counsel report with redactions and publishes law firm resignation letter

At the Washington Township Board of Education’s October work session, members voted to make the conflict‑counsel investigation into an ethics complaint publicly available with redactions for personnel names, titles and medical information, and separately voted to release a resignation letter from the Bush Law Group.

The motion to publish the 340‑page report, as amended, requires the district to redact employees’ names and titles and any protected medical records before release. The board carried that motion by a simple majority; roll call in the meeting recorded 3 yes, 2 no and 2 abstentions. The roll call explicitly recorded Board members Mister Serrano and Mister Ross voting yes; Mister Laliberte and Miss Chilla voting no; and Miss Bloom and Miss Kozempo abstaining. The board later approved release of the Bush Law Group resignation letter by a 4–3 vote, with roll call answers recorded in the meeting showing Mister Serrano, Mister Ross, Miss Bloom and Miss Kozempo voting yes.

Why it matters: The investigation and the district’s handling of it have been the subject of months of public attention. The independent conflict‑counsel review cleared Superintendent Dr. Eric Hibbs of misconduct in connection with the complaint, but the process and the district’s earlier actions — including a five‑month administrative leave for the superintendent and a Superior Court ruling finding Open Public Meetings Act violations — prompted calls for transparency from parents and community members. The board’s votes aim to balance that demand for disclosure with legal limits…