Ex-Toms River Councilman Violated Ethics To Try To Get Son Hired On PD, NJ Panel Says

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A former Toms River Township councilman violated state ethics laws by using his position to try to get his son hired by the Toms River Police Department, a state panel has ruled.

Brian S. Kubiel has been fined by the state Local Finance Board, which enforces the state's Local Government Ethics Law over his actions in 2018, which resulted in four ethics violations, the board said.

The fine is $100 for each violation for a total of $400, according to John Paff of TransparencyNJ.com, which first reported the violation notice.

Kubiel has requested an administrative hearing on the violations, his attorney, Jonathan F. Cohen of Plosia Cohen LLC said Monday. An email message to Kubiel was not immediately answered Monday.

The violation notice, dated March 27, says Kubiel violated the ethics law as follows: by using his official position to attempt to secure unwarranted privileges or advantages on two occasions; by acting in his official capacity in a matter where a member of his immediate family had a personal interest that could impair his objectivity, and by using his public office to seek financial gain for a family member.

In 2018, Kubiel was president of the Toms River Township Council. His son, Kevan Kubiel, was applying for an entry-level position in the Toms River Police Department, according to the notice.

In August 2018, the council approved an ordinance that would allow the police department to hire additional special law enforcement officers and allowing applicants to enhance their written exam scores, the violation notice said.

In addition, when the ordinance was adopted on Aug. 28, 2018, the council approved an emergency resolution that enacted the ordinance immediately, instead of the standard delay of 20 days from the date of publication in a newspaper.

Kubiel voted in favor on both the ordinance introduction and adoption, and on the resolution for the immediate enactment, the violation notice said

Kevan Kubiel took the New Jersey State Chiefs Association written test for police officers on Sept. 8, 2018, and was notified soon after that his score did not qualify him to advance in the hiring process, the violation notice said.

Brian Kubiel then emailed Toms River Police Chief Mitch Little on Sept. 13, 2018, asking Little to review his son's test score and to consider his work experience, the violation notice said.

Kevan Kubiel worked for the Silverton EMS at the time he was applying to be hired into the Toms River Police Department.

He also had been working as a dispatcher for the Howell Township Police Department in 2018 and was hired as a police officer there in 2019. He left the Howell police department in 2023 and filed a lawsuit against it in September 2024 accusing that department of discrimination and harassment because he is gay.

Brian Kubiel serves as administrator of Toms River Fire District 1, which is embroiled in a dispute over the February 2025 fire district elections. Anthony Cirz has been declared the winner of that election by Superior Court Judge Craig T. Wellerson, who ruled that a write-in vote for Cirz should have been counted in the vote totals. That vote gave Cirz a 1-vote margin over Michael Hopson in the fight for a commissioner's seat.

Kubiel opposed the seating of Cirz as a commissioner at the March 5 District 1 Board of Fire Commissioners meeting, questioning the election result. He had suspended Monica Bisceglie for posting the updated election results, which she had done so at the direction of Commissioner Dan Roman.

Bisceglie was reinstated later in the evening at the March 5 meeting by a vote of the commissioners.

Wellerson's ruling has been stayed pending the outcome of an appeal.