City Worker Continues To Draw Paycheck Despite Being Jailed For DWI

For anyone wondering whether it's possible to draw a paycheck while sitting in jail, it appears the answer is yes -- at least for one municipal worker in Bayonne, N.J.

The employee, 71-year-old Edward H. Broderick, is serving 90 days in jail for a drunk driving conviction and is using vacation time to draw a paycheck while he does time in county jail, The Jersey Journal reports.

Broderick, who has worked for the city since 1973 and is employed as its supervisor of programs for the handicapped, was convicted of his third DWI following an incident last year in which he drove his car into a parked SUV, according to police reports.

Broderick began serving jail time on Jan. 11 and he remains behind bars. But he's also still on the payroll, according to the Journal's report.

Citing privacy concerns, City Attorney Charles D'Amico declined to discuss Broderick's case, including how much vacation time he has available to him. But the attorney told the newspaper that municipal employees are able to use their vacation time "in any way, shape or form they want to."

Further, D'Amico said, there is no law that permits the city to discipline employees for committing non-criminal offenses that don't "touch on the employee's public employment."

As the Journal notes, driving while intoxicated is considered a motor-vehicle violation, not a crime.

In a related story, a Minnesota man was charged last week with second-degree driving while intoxicated, for operating a Zamboni at a local ice arena while drunk, Minneapolis TV station KARE reports.

A complaint filed against Joel Bruss, 34, says his blood alcohol level stood at .32 on the night of his DWI arrest in late January -- four times the state limit.

Witnesses say Bruss, who has three prior DWI convictions, had obvious difficulty operating the vehicle while grooming the ice between youth games at the city-owned Hayes Arena in suburban Apple Valley.

Next: N.J. Cop Arrested For Domestic Violence Gets Thousands In Overtime

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