By Jennifer Golson
The Star-Ledger
ELIZABETH, N.J. — An Elizabeth firefighter who previously received pretrial intervention on a charge of masturbating in front of a neighbor was convicted of a similar offense.
Green Brook resident Timothy Clarke, 41, was convicted of lewdness, a disorderly persons charge, officials said. While it was a municipal case, the 16-year veteran firefighter challenged the local conviction.
He appeared in Superior Court Wednesday in Somerville, alongside his attorney James Wronko, for a municipal appeal. Judge Edward Coleman convicted him of the disorderly offense that dates from July, but suspended the 100-day jail sentence the municipal court had imposed, Wronko said.
The judge gave Clarke one year’s probation and ordered him to undergo counseling, Wronko said, declining further comment.
Now, Clarke could face trial for the original offense that occurred in March, fourth-degree criminal trespass, officials said.
Clarke is entitled to a hearing, and a judge will decide whether or not to terminate him from pretrial intervention, said John Higgins, chief probation officer for Vicinage 13, which includes Somerset, Hunterdon and Warren counties. They notified him in August of their intent to terminate him from the program based upon the most recent charge, Higgins said.
At the same time, his employers in Elizabeth are trying to determine what impact the recent conviction will have on his job.
Clarke, who makes $75,743, may be in violation of department regulations. He failed to notify his superiors after this week’s conviction, said William Reyes, city spokesman. An internal investigation is under way, he said. While he was scheduled to work tomorrow, it’s unclear what his status will be, Reyes said.
Clarke’s troubles stem from March 25. At 2:46 a.m., he was on his neighbor’s property in Green Brook, Police Chief Martin Rasmussen said.
The homeowner saw him masturbating on the back deck and peering into their window, according to court papers.
Police saw him running naked to his property, Rasmussen said. “It took the officers about 15 minutes of banging on the door for him to come out and speak to them,” the chief said. By then, he was fully clothed. He received a summons and was ordered to avoid contact with the victims.
On June 8, he was enrolled in pretrial intervention, Higgins said. He did not have to plead guilty to the fourth-degree charge, Wronko previously said.
On July 4, one of the residents said Clarke yelled for her to return a chain saw, court papers say. Fifteen days later, he was arrested again. At 3:40 a.m., the same victim saw him doing naked push-ups on his lawn and sitting on a stool in his garage, next to a window, court papers say. The woman said Clarke was masturbating.
Clarke was still in the garage and naked when police arrived, but put on sweat pants and a sleeveless shirt. Officers brought him to headquarters, and he was released on $1,500 bail.
The July 19 incident led to the lewdness complaint.
Clarke is divorced and has never been in trouble with the law before, officials said.
“We’ve never had him before,” Rasmussen said. “This just automatically started.”