The Democratic nominee for Town Council claims he is being harassed by current members of the town board and the Harrison Police Department, alleging he has been asked to speak to police regarding a request he made through the Freedom of Information Law, FOIL.
Chris Rodier, who is running for election in November, told the Review he was contacted by a police detective on Oct. 12, who allegedly asked him to meet at the Police Department for questioning regarding a FOIL request.
During an Oct. 17 League of Women Voters forum, the second of two debates between the Democrat and his Republican opponent Richard Dionisio, Rodier repeated his claims that he had been contacted by police regarding a FOIL request he made on Aug. 18 for information related to the 2015 Harrison budget, including a detailed list of the town’s expenses. He said his FOIL request was fulfilled on Aug. 26, more than a month before he was purportedly contacted by police. Rodier also accused the current Republican majority town board of commissioning the Police Department to harass him.
“These are the tactics that are being used by the current town board,” he said. “The police are being brought in to this election by the existing town government.”
Town board members responded from the audience during the debate, refuting the claims; Councilwoman Marlane Amelio, a Republican, called Rodier’s accusations inflammatory, and Republican Mayor Ron Belmont, told Rodier, “You insulted me and you insulted other town board members.”
Some town board members also urged Rodier, who has been running his campaign on a platform of transparency in government, to further detail why he had been contacted by police. Rodier maintained that he does not know why he is being investigated.
“When this is all said and done, please tell your audience what transpired,” Belmont said.
According to several sources, police are investigating whether Rodier impersonated a town employee in order to get access to information. When asked by the Review, Rodier said he did not misrepresent himself.
Lt. Michael Olsey, acting chief of the Police Department, confirmed that the matter was under review, but declined to comment further.
Bob Freeman, executive director of the New York State Committee on Open Government, said, “I’ve never heard of a situation in which a request made of the FOIL law could be equated to a crime.” He added that it would be “highly irregular” and “ridiculous” for a law enforcement agency to contact a person based on FOIL requests.
Rodier has also claimed that he has met with representatives from the Westchester County district attorney’s office, which he said is investigating the matter. The DA’s office declined to comment.
