I attended the Town Council Candidates’ Forum and was struck by the contrast in the discussion, particularly the rise in violent crime.
On one hand, two accomplished businesswomen, Janice Caccuro and Tara Banasz, who happen to be committed moms and lifetime Moorestonians responded to the questions with facts. They knew that our police department’s budget is $300,000 less than it was in 2020. They recognized that violent crime is on the rise and want to meet with our police to spend that so-called ‘savings’ to protect us.
On the other hand, incumbents Gillespie and Law’s response was startling. Gillespie told us that crime was down and glossed over the increase in violent crimes. Did our mayor not know about the recent home invasion or the violent beating of a woman outside the mall? Or was she hoping we voters had not heard about them? Law boasted that he voted to add one new officer, without mentioning that three officers are not active or that our number of Class II officers is down from 15 to 3.
It was refreshing when Banasz told the audience that she and Caccuro do not see Blue or Red. They only see Black and Gold which are the only colors I see. Please join me in voting for Caccuro and Banasz on Nov. 8th. With their leadership and fact-based decision-making, we put Moorestown back on the right track.
Karen Avis
Moorestown, NJ
