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** STATEMENT FROM THE EXECUTIVE BOARD
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The Morris County Young Democrats have today called for the immediate resignation of Dover Council Member Sergio Rodriguez and released the following statement to that effect:
"Mr. Rodriguez, who is an elected Young Democrat representing Dover's Second Ward, was arrested on February 9 by the Dover Police Department following a confrontation between himself and a group of unhoused individuals on the night of February 7. ([link removed])
Following an investigation, Mr. Rodriguez was booked on charges of Simple Assault and Harassment.
In the immediate aftermath, Mr. Rodriguez took to social media not to apologize for his actions but, among other things, to blame Dover's Chief of Police for what he called "political retribution." It took three days for Mr. Rodriguez to issue any kind of apology, but he never walked back his initial statements.
On February 16, due to multiple OPRA requests from town residents, the Town of Dover released CCTV video footage of the incident. ([link removed]) This footage showed Mr. Rodriguez had exhibited a disturbing amount of anger and a shocking lack of restraint for a human being, let alone an elected official.
This footage also showed Mr. Rodriguez had very clearly attempted to mislead the public through the release of his own very heavily edited footage on the night of the incident.
Our Executive Board held an emergency meeting on February 16 and voted unanimously to call for Mr. Rodriguez’s immediate resignation. We ultimately decided to hold back on issuing a statement until after Mr. Rodriguez had his day in court - initially scheduled for March 4. So far, his case remains pending.
We are choosing to move forward today because of comments made by Mr. Rodriguez during a Special Meeting of the Dover Town Council on May 7. Mr. Rodriguez made statements not only defending his actions from February 7, but implied that they “worked” and have made things “better.” ([link removed])
Let’s be clear: vigilante justice has no place in a law-abiding society.
Mr. Rodriguez’s actions since February 7 and the comments made last night prove that not only has he learned nothing from this episode but that he somehow feels empowered.
This attitude is dangerous, unbecoming of an elected official, and cannot be accepted under any circumstances.
Mr. Rodriguez has proven himself incapable of rising to the standards expected of an elected official and needs to not only resign immediately but to reflect on all of his actions surrounding these events.
He has not only cast a shadow over his own service, and the constituents he swore an oath to represent, but his actions could very well make it harder for future Young Democrats to be taken seriously as candidates.
The actions he chose to take, and the comments he has made in the aftermath, fly in the face of the very core values Democrats believe in, run on, govern on, and fight every day to uphold.
Mr. Rodriguez - for yourself, your family, your constituents, and for democracy, it’s time to resign."
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