Embattled Middletown BOE Member Joe Fitzgerald Will Be At Tuesday Night Meeting

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Embattled Middletown school board member Joe Fitzgerald said he plans on attending the school board meeting Tuesday night.

Fitzgerald said he already attended two board committee meetings earlier this month, the facilities and curriculum meeting. He said he saw Board leaders Frank Capone and Jacqueline Tobacco there, and the three greeted each other hello.

This comes after Fitzgerald was arrested in June and charged with six illegal gun crimes. After his arrest, the Middletown school board suspended him in July, saying Fitzgerald was unable to attend any Board of Education meetings until the criminal charges against him are resolved. He was designated a persona non grata on the board effective July 2.

However, Fitzgerald hired a lawyer and challenged that determination. The case went to Monmouth County Chancery court, and a chancery court judge ruled over the summer that Fitzgerald could be fully reinstated to the elected board.

The public portion of Tuesday night's meeting begins at approximately 7:30 p.m. at High School North.

Fitzgerald is also still running for school board re-election this November. He launched this website for his election campaign: https://www.joefitzgeraldforbo...

The Middletown school board election will be Nov. 4, the same day as the New Jersey governor's election. Voters will be asked to choose three:

• Leonora Lacqua-Caminiti: Current Board member, seeks re-election. Red Bank address
• Sara Weinstein: Ran unsuccessfully for Middletown school board in 2024; running again. She ran that year with Kate Farley and neither of them won. Lives in Middletown.
• Erin Torres: Accountability Community Transparency. Atlantic Highlands address.
• James Dobis: Transparency and Accountability. Lives in Leonardo
• James Cody: Has served on the Board before, was elected to the Middletown school board in 2011. Lives in Lincroft.
• Christopher Aveta: Former Middletown school board president, in 2015. Lives in Middletown.

• Joseph Fitzgerald: Putting Education First. Atlantic Highlands address.

The timeline of Joe Fitzgerald's arrest:

Middletown School Board Member Joe Fitzgerald Arrested On Illegal Gun Charges (July 1)

Joe Fitzgerald Suspended From Middletown School Board Due To Criminal Charges (July 8)

Affair Was Behind Arrest Of Middletown BOE Member Joe Fitzgerald, Prosecutor Says (July 11)

Middletown BOE Member Joe Fitzgerald Hires 2nd Amendment Rights Lawyer To Defend His Case (Aug. 7)

Read The Transcript Of Joe Fitzgerald's First Court Hearing, As His Criminal Case Proceeds (Sept. 16)