COURIER-POST REPORTS

Winslow official gets copies of e-mails


Tuesday, March 28, 2006

By ERIK SCHWARTZ
Courier-Post Staff


There is no smoking gun.

No leaks of internal memos.

No secret political attacks revealed.

The public-records request filed by Winslow Township Committeewoman Barbara Holcomb disgorged from municipal computers some 170 e-mails to or from Holcomb's biggest critic, Republican activist Paul S. Kaplan, since September 2004.

After paying the clerk's office about $38, Holcomb took delivery of the paper copies of the e-mails late last month. She didn't return calls for comment, so it's unclear what conclusions she drew from the documents.

Her request, under the state's Open Public Records Act, represented a new tactic in Winslow's political wars, but such inquiries are staples of election campaigns around the state.

A review of the e-mails found that they mostly contained promotional messages from Kaplan encouraging people to visit his blog, UNofficially Winslow.

A few included correspondence between Kaplan and Winslow officials, such as David P. Fanslau, the township administrator, and Deborah A. Puchakjian, the municipal clerk.

Kaplan sometimes shares his thoughts with Fanslau about government affairs, especially radio communications, his expertise. And he often requests public records himself through the affable Puchakjian.

"Debbie," he writes in a typical exchange. "Are you able to accept record request forms by email instead of fax? I would scan the forms to include my signature. . . . If you want to stay with faxes that is okay too. Paul."

She replies: "The next time you have a request, send it email and I will see how it looks. I'm always open to suggestions. Deb."

On his blog, Kaplan regularly criticizes Holcomb, who is the vice chairwoman of the Camden County Democratic Party and a confidential aide in the administration of the county juvenile detention center.

Kaplan is a member of the township planning board who often serves as the driver for his friend, Republican Mayor Sue Ann Metzner, who is legally blind.

Kaplan said his blog has never relied on township employees for information.

"I have a perfect attendance record of the Township Committee meetings for more than 11 years," he wrote via e-mail. "No one else can say that! . . . I feel I can tell you more about local government than some of the Committee members."

Click here to review the original front page Courier-Post story on Holcomb's records request.