Deputy Mayor Denies Claim She Intimidated Howell Bar Manager

HOWELL, NJ — Deputy Mayor Pamela Richmond has denied claims made by an employee of a local restaurant that she intimidated the employee and was disruptive at the bar when she and a friend were patrons there on Oct. 9.

Richmond said in a written statement that comments about her and her companion, made by employee Kimberly Shulskie to the Township Council at an October meeting were "false."

Richmond did not respond at the time of the allegations to Patch and she removed herself from the meeting where Shulskie made her comments.

On Tuesday, she emailed Patch a response on the matter.

She said, in part, comments by Shulskie "in writing and at a council meeting ... are false," Richmond said in the statement she released Tuesday.

Richmond said she hired a lawyer to tell anyone disseminating information about the incident that she would "have no alternative but to pursue all of our legal rights and remedies."

Richmond said Tuesday her attorney is Mark Roselli, she said. He was not immediately available to comment.

No one from the restaurant was available to comment and Shulskie could not be reached.

Shulski told a reporter for jerseyshoreonline last month that she refused further comment to avoid the threat of legal costs.

Richmond said she "never made statements that she claimed were made by me and significantly, neither (her companion) or I, was intoxicated and we have many folks who were at the Ivy League that afternoon who will attest to the truth.”

She also criticized Howell Mayor Theresa Berger, who requested her resignation after hearing the comments by Shulskie. She also criticized Councilman Jon Bonevich who, while not calling for her to resign, did suggest a leave of absence. Berger and Bonevich are the minority Democrats on the council. Richmond is a Republican who is currently in the last two months of her term on the council. She did not seek re-election.

She said they "jumped on the proverbial bandwagon and called for me to resign, without obviously confirming the facts or seeking out the truth."

She also thanked "everyone who believed in me and supported me from day one," another part of her statement said.

Shulskie of Jackson spoke at the public portion of the Howell Township Council Oct. 18 to say that Richmond and her friend were watching a football game at the Route 9 restaurant on Sunday, Oct. 9, and became angry with Shulskie when she spoke to them.

Shulskie said the couple was chanting "Let's Go Brandon," a phrase used in the past to denigrate President Biden at various venues.

Shulskie, who told the committee that she is a Republican, as is Richmond, said she had no political motivation in speaking publicly. She also said she is Trump supporter.

But she said she "calmly" went over to Richmond and her friend to ask them to not disturb the other diners and to "not go there" with the "Let's Go, Brandon," phrase because it might provoke others.

Shulskie said Richmond and her friend cursed at her, threatened her job and made other intimidating comments. She said she felt she had to make the incident known publicly to the council.

Shulskie filed a report with the Howell Township Police Department to document the incident, said Chief John Storrow yesterday. But he said she did not file a complaint. She has one year to do so. Without a complaint filed, there is no current investigation, he said.

Bonevich said an Ethics Committee should be re-instated by the council to address issues like this.

"There are two sides to every story," he said.