Bedminster Man Can't Claim to be Journalist as Protection, Court Rules

A former Bedminster resident cannot claim to have been gathering news when he created a disparaging website focusing on an associate dean at Rutgers University, according to a state appellate court ruling on Thursday.

Joseph Oettinger III, filed a suit against Bedminster and Westwood claiming a search warrant executed at his home violated his rights as a member of the news media engaged in gathering information, reports MyCentralJersey.com. The ruling Thursday claimed Oettinger “has never been employed as a journalist by any conventional news outlet.” 

Oettinger had been found guilty of harassing the female associate dean after she contacted Bedminster Police about a website he created that that featured her picture with the accompanying text, “Only 208 days until the fun begins.” That ruling was later overturned.