The Ruins of Trenton

Trenton Communication Director Irving Bradley got into a serious car accident in his city-owned Crown Victoria in the early afternoon on Thursday May 22, 15 miles outside of city limits, sources say, at a time when most city employees and other people are at work.

Mr. Bradley was allegedly heading north on the New Jersey Turnpike in the area of exit 8, far outside of his city of employment and legally required place of residence.

Remember, Mr. Bradley was caught months ago in photographs in what certainly looked like the misuse of another city-owned vehicle, taking the Trenton car up to the location of his old residence in Rahway, where his family apparently still lives. Mr. Bradley has taken up a residence in the Broad Street Bank building, likely to try and comply with the city's residency law.

But the legal definition of maintaining a bona fide domicile within the City of Trenton includes not only moving into the city, but also moving any immediate family into the city, to make the Trenton locations truly the new primary place of residence.

Also, city employees assigned city vehicles are allowed to use them to take back to their place of residence, which in Mr. Bradley’s case should be within the City of Trenton.

What exactly was he doing, again, with tens of thousands of dollars worth of city property, 15 miles outside of the city?

These questions need to be asked of administration officials, who previously responded to questions about Mr. Bradley’s residency with fairly evasive answers like “what employees do on the weekend is none of our business.”

Actually it is their business, especially when it involves now-destroyed city property, and a city employee who is living outside of the law, in a manner that has resulted in the terminations of dozens of other city employees.

This looks like more of the “business as usual” attitude of those enjoying the favor of Mayor Douglas H. Palmer and former Police Director Joseph Santiago.