Healy safe

by: Thurman Hart

Fri Nov 07, 2008 at 07:44:22 PM EST

A former state legislator has no legal standing to seek the ouster of Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy over a scuffle in Bradley Beach, a Superior Court judge in Monmouth County has said in dismissing the lawsuit.

So Lou Manzo isn't a three-time loser anymore.  He's now a FOUR-time loser.

But the reasoning leaves me a bit put-off.  Everyone understands that Manzo is only doing this to try and jump into office himself.  But that should be immaterial to the legal reasoning.  No one has said that Manzo is not a resident of Jersey City, and if a resident of a city cannot seek to remove their mayor from office through legal means, then who would have standing to do so?  Would a citizen of Bradley Beach have better standing?  

Or is the judge simply saying that only those in the backroom of the legal system can determine if and when an official can be removed from office?