Ex-Superintendent Pleads Guilty To Pooping On School Grounds
Former Kenilworth Public School superintendent Thomas W. Tramaglini has pleaded guilty to defecating at the Holmdel High School athletic field, the Asbury Park Press reported.
According to court records, Tramaglini, 42, admitted on Wednesday to public defecation, a non-criminal municipal offense, and had to pay a fine of $500 plus court costs and fees. The two other charges against him, littering and lewdness, were dismissed.
Tramaglini was arrested in May by Holmdel police after a school resource officer (SRO) and staff members began monitoring the athletic field, setting up video surveillance of the area.
According to a Facebook post by the Holmdel Township Police Department at the time of his arrest, the SRO was alerted by the high school’s staff and athletic coaches “that they were finding human feces” at or near the track and football field “on a daily basis.”
The superintendent’s attorney Matthew Adams, said Tramaglini was diagnosed with a medical condition known as “Runners Diarrhea,” which is caused by acute blood flow during exercise, NJ.com reported, and is what prompted his need to relieve himself on the field.
Adams disputed the police’s account that his client was routinely defecating on school grounds, as the press release posted on the police department’s Facebook page in May.
“There’s no evidence he was a serial offender,” Adams said. “We were ready to go to trial on some of the allegations about certain dates with GPS evidence from his Garmin running watch. That story needs to be told. So much went on today that flies in the face of everything, unfortunately, he’s been through. He’s been through h*** and back. He deserves a story that tells the accurate picture.”
NJ School #Pooperintendent Accused of Daily Dumps on High School Field https://t.co/tjrIt3FAzM #CrimeNews #NewJersey pic.twitter.com/GaYJHGjcR5
— Investigation Discovery (@DiscoveryID) May 4, 2018
After the incident, Tramaglini took a paid leave of absence from his position, where he made $147,504 a year, NJ.com reported. His resignation was accepted by the Kenilworth School District in July.
“Based on events unrelated to his service for Kenilworth, it has become clear to both Dr. Tramaglini and the Kenilworth Board of Education that his continued service as Superintendent of Schools has become too much of a distraction to the main mission of the district,” a notice on the school district’s website read.
“In the best interests of all concerned, including the faculty, staff and students of the Kenilworth School District, Dr. Tramaglini has tendered, and the Board has accepted, his resignation effective September 30, 2018.”
According to NJ.com, Tramaglini was paid $100,000 by the district in salary, severance and unused vacation days.
The same month of his resignation, the Asbury Park Press reported Tramaglini would be suing the Holmdel Township Police Department for $1 million for “unlawfully” photographing him by taking his mugshot and releasing it to the public.
