A former Piscataway, NJ teacher pleaded guilty earlier this month to “theft by deception” for collecting $249,000 in disability retirement benefits from New Jersey while working as a teacher in Virginia. He had claimed in 2003 that he could no longer work because of stress and back pain.
His application for disability was approved in 2004, while he was already working as a substitute teacher in West Virginia. In 2005, he started a full-time job as a sixth grade science teacher at a school in Virginia.
The director of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, which conducted the investigation, said of the case, “It’s unconscionable that this teacher lied about his condition so he could collect a state disability pension at the same time that he was receiving a full-time salary in another state.”
I would agree with those sentiments, but would take it much further.
I would say it is unconscionable that this teacher could actually win a settlement while working elsewhere and no one noticed. I would say it is unconscionable that this teacher could actually get a substitute teacher position in West Virginia with apparently no one checking his background. Of course, the same would hold true for the Virginia district; it is unconscionable that this teacher could work for them without an apparent background check.
The act of verification by either of those districts would've been an immediate red flag for New Jersey authorities. Of course, retirement on disability from within the New Jersey public sector is so commonplace that it borders on the absurd. It may not have made any difference whatsoever.
But it is still nice to know the kiddies in Virginia are being so well cared for. I should note the man has since been suspended from his Virginia job “pending the outcome of the case”. I'd say a guilty plea should wrap that up nicely.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors will recommend he be sentenced to three years in prison. He must also repay $248,960 and will be permanently barred from public employment in New Jersey.
We have to ask why better verification systems are not in place to prevent something like this. Has this sort of corruption become so routine; so commonplace in various segments of our economy that working one job while settling a PTD claim from another doesn't even hit the red flag radar? It doesn't sound like he was even making attempts to hide the fact that he had assumed employment elsewhere.
That is what is so truly unconscionable here. The intentional fraud is itself disgusting, and I hope he gets every second of that three year sentence request. The rest of the system however, should not be given a pass. It settled his PTD claim while he was gainfully employed, and that bears further analysis. It is simply not enough to catch the perpetrator and talk about the “unconscionable” nature of his acts. He was enabled by a lax disability system that too often rewards bums and ne’er-do-wells.
Citizens of New Jersey and of our nation, as well as legitimate disabled workers deserve far better than that.