Evelyn Williams

Evelyn Williams, who may have set a new record: she lasted seven days from the time she took her oath as an Assemblywoman until the time of her arrest on shoplifting charges. Two days later, she was fired from her job with the Essex County Corrections Department for filing for and receiving illegal pension checks from the state Police and Firemen's Retirement System.  She resigned two weeks after her arrest. Williams is no stranger to controversy: she was the School Board president when the state took over the Newark public school system in the 1980's, and as an Essex County Jail employee in 2002, she escorted an inmate who had been a member of a major drug ring, to attend an outdoor concert.

If you’re home with a snow day, go back and read about New Jersey’s Best Feud Ever, the story of a State Senator who planted drugs in the car of a rival Assemblyman from his county.

Don’t miss the legend of Silvio Failla, the Hudson County Assemblyman who was robbed and murdered by a prostitute he picked up at a Neptune bar.

Remember Evelyn Williams? She was an Assemblywoman for about one week in 2005 before she was arrested for shoplifting and forced to resign.

And reminiscences of bizarre New Jersey stories is never complete without mentioning Judge Florence Schreiber Powers, who stole two $29 watches from T.J. Maxx and blamed it on an “ungodly vaginal itch.”

Atlantic County Republicans have called a Special Election Convention to fill Bill Gormley's State Senate seat on Tuesday, February 20, according to a report filed by radio personality Harry Hurley. The vote is set for five days after Gormley's resignation is effective. State law requires these Special Election Conventions to be held seven to 35 days after the vacancy occurs, but like many election laws, those dates appear to be flexible. In 2006, Essex County Democrats filled Evelyn Williams' vacant Assembly seat just a few days after she resigned, and there was no challenge to Oadline Truitt's election.

Gormley is backing Assembly Minority Whip Frank Blee as his successor. Egg Harbor Township Mayor Sonny McCullough has announced that he will run in the June Senate primary, but has not yet said if he will compete at the Special Election Convention.

If Blee wins, the Atlantic County Republican Committee will need to return for a future vote to fill his Assembly seat.

Evelyn Williams skipped Monday's legislative session. That means she missed half the sessions during her tenure as an Assemblywoman from the 28th district. She sponsored no legislation, used her only speech on the Assembly floor to thank a former legislator removed from office following a criminal conviction, and was arrested for shoplifting just seven days after taking office. Two days later, she was fired from her Essex County Corrections job, allegedly for faking her retirement to collect a salary and a pension. Still, she will collect about $4,083 before taxes for her one day at work in the Legislature -- about $4,023 more than the amount she tried to save switching price stickers on a sheet and comforter set at the Variety Fair in Irvington.

Democrats say that the selection of a 65-year-old school librarian to represent Essex County in the State Assembly may be a short-term solution following the resignation of Evelyn Williams this week. Oadline Truitt, who has spent thirty years as a Democratic District Leader in Newark's South Ward, will enter the Legislature this month without any guarantees of serving more than ten months in the seat initially left vacant following the October death of Donald Tucker. Essex County Democrats must decide in April whether they will back her in a November Special Election to fill a fourteen-month term. Truitt's political future could be tied to the electoral successes of her longtime ally, Newark Mayor (and former South Ward Councilman) Sharpe James.

Congratulations to Assemblywoman Evelyn Williams, who may have set a new record: she lasted seven days from the time she took her oath as a legislator until the time of her arrest on shoplifting charges. Two days later, she was fired from her job with the Essex County Corrections Department for filing for and receiving illegal pension checks from the state Police and Firemen's Retirement System.

Assemblywoman Evelyn Williams was arrested for shoplifting on Monday at a variety store in Irvington. Williams, a former Deputy Mayor of Newark, is charged with changing price stickers on two items. She took office on December 12th after winning a special election convention to replace the late Donald Tucker.

Former Newark Deputy Mayor Evelyn Williams was sworn in today as the new Assemblywoman from the 28th district, taking the seat held by the late Donald Tucker. Williams briefly addressed the Assembly after taking the oath; among those she thanked was Jackie Mattison, who had served in the Assembly until his 1997 bribery conviction Mattison, who was Chief of Staff to Sharpe James, had over $150,000 in cash hidden under the floorboards of his home. Mattison (aka Federal Prisoner #19139-050) served nearly three years in a federal prison.

Democrat Evelyn Williams easily won a Special Election Convention to replace the late Donald Tucker in the New Jersey State Assembly. The former Deputy Mayor under Sharpe James defeated Essex County Freeholder Ralph Caputo by a 73%-27% margin. Not that it matters, but Williams will enter the Legislature with some baggage: she was Newark School Board President when the state took over the city's public schools -- the reviews on her performance were rather negative -- and she took some heat a few years ago when as an Essex County Corrections employee she signed out a inmate (a member of a drug ring) and took him to a concert. Williams becomes the first Newark woman to serve in the State Assembly in more than 25 years.

Caputo was never a serious contender for the seat, but had he won, it would have marked his return to Trenton after a 33-year absence. Caputo was a 29-year-old Republican when he was elected to the State Assembly in 1967 -- running on a countywide ticket that included future Governor Thomas Kean. He served two terms before losing his 1971 re-election bid, and made a political comeback as a Democrat in 2002 when he defeated an incumbent in a race for Freeholder. He was easily re-elected to a second term last week.

Essex County Democrats have scheduled a November 14th Special Election Convention to fill the 28th district Assembly seat left vacant by the death of Donald Tucker. Possible candidates include Tucker's widow, Cleopatra Tucker, and Evelyn Williams, a former Newark Board of Education President and onetime Deputy Mayor. Some Democrats say that John James, the son of the Mayor, is also a possible candidate. Williams has several liabilities, according to one Newark Democratic insider. She was the School Board president when the state took over the Newark public school system in the 1980's, and as an Essex County Jail employee in 2002, she escorted an inmate who had been a member of a major drug ring, to attend an outdoor concert.

Editor's Note: There are multiple reports over the residency of John James; one party official says he resides in the 29th district.