|
CHESTERTOWN---Do as I say, not as my family does is the message Chester Town Justice James McDermott is struggling to deliver from the bench.
But the hypocrisy isn't sitting well among some local residents who ask who is James McDermott to be sitting in judgment of anyone when his own backyard isn't clean.
In February, the judge's daughter allegedly caused an automobile accident at the treacherous intersection of Routes 8 and 9 in Chestertown by allegedly sailing on through the stop sign and flashing red light---literally almost in the town justice's backyard.
On March 27, McDermott's son, Ryan, 21, was arrested by the New York State Police in Lake George for driving while intoxicated and no turn signal. He's due to appear in Lake George Town Court on Thursday, April 27 according to the court.
Kudos to the State Police for not turning their heads, just because he's the judge's son.
This isn't the first DWI arrest for McDermott's son. He was arrested several years ago for drunk driving following an accident after leaving an under-aged drinking party hosted by the stepsons of the county coroner and president of the North Warren Board of Education. That's the same coroner whose stepson was arrested and convicted of statutory rape for admitting to having sex with an underage girl when he was being interviewed by the state police to become a state trooper.
As an aside note, North Warren students were recently suspended after admitting to using alcohol on a recent school trip with the county coroner heading the school board.
Something wrong with that picture.
So far McDermott's offspring haven't killed anyone while behind the wheel which is a good thing considering that McDermott is the local undertaker or he might profit from it.
It's hard to respect officials, especially judges, who seem to have a problem instilling upon their children right from wrong, thinking that because of "who they are", they can do whatever they want and there won't be any consequences. Sometimes children don't have any values because their parents aren't setting any kind of example for them.
The McDermott family has a history of apparently believing that they're above the law because of who daddy is-----or pretends to be. In fact, according to informed sources, the judge---and we use that term lightly---has publicly bragged that the police won't stop him 'cause he's the judge.
Daddy's been known to imbibe a few at the local bar with a sheriff's investigator and fellow fireman and then drive home while allegedly under the influence. There's been a few times he's been seen parked in front of fire hydrants---some fireman--- and he's a habitual violator of the V&T law section that prohibits parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk. So who's gonna ticket him and who's gonna adjudicate the ticket?
And Mama McDermott got caught unlawfully parking in a handicapped zone but that matter disappeared.
The Town of Chester deserves a town justice that they can respect. That's obviously not James McDermott and if he had any integrity at all, which is highly doubtful, he'd quietly and quickly resign. 4-24-06
© 2005 North
Country Gazette
|
