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Wed Jan 18, 2006 at 09:51:36 AM EST
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Today at 4:00 pm in Room 119, first floor, Ocean County Administration Building, 101 Hooper Ave., Toms River, N.J. (map) is the Ocean County freeholder meeting where a videotaped message from Lt Laurel Hester will be played Her lung cancer has spread to her brain and she is too weak to attend. This will be her last plea asking for the right to allow her to pass on her pension benefits to her partner, who will otherwise not be able to afford to keep their home.All are encouraged to attend and support Laurel.
Several news outlets have taken notice:
The Asbury Park Press presents just the facts: "Pension death benefits for the Police and Fire Retirement System (PFRS) and the Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) are different. All PERS retirees are allowed to designate their pension death benefit to anyone from a newborn child to a senior citizen. PFRS employees — the category Hester falls into — can only leave a pension death benefit to a legal spouse."
The Ocean County Observer notes that there is likely to be a lawsuit against Ocean County's freeholders. They also preview Hester's video message: 'Make a change for good — a change in the lives of so many people who have dedicated their lives to county government,' Lt. Laurel Hester will urge Ocean County's freeholders this afternoon as her life slips away to the ravages of cancer."
The "Student for Life" column at Rutger's Daily Targum weighs in: "The claim the decision of the freeholders was based upon financial reasons is ludicrous and insulting. The county has enough money to allow partners of heterosexuals to receive the pension of their spouse in the event of their death. Yet, they will not extend this same right to other government employees who live a different lifestyle because they claim they don't have enough the financial resources."
An editorial in the Herald News notes that today, Passaic County will become the sixth county to grant health and retirement domestic partner benefits, though Ocean County still has not. "The Ocean County freeholders have refused, citing financial considerations. But no one really believes it is about money. There aren't that many county employees in registered domestic partnerships. The underlying issue is morality -- or a lack of it. Is it moral to deny the domestic partner of an employee the same benefits given to a spouse when marriage is not an option?"
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Fri Jan 13, 2006 at 09:22:38 AM EST
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The irony of Ocean County's freeholder's coldhearted refusal to grant pension benefits to Laurel Hester is that their bigotry has served as the catalyst for advancing civil rights in New Jersey:Goldstein said that the attitude in Trenton toward expanding the partnership law was enhanced dramatically by the recent, highly publicized refusal of the Ocean County Board of Freeholders to extend benefits to Lieutenant Laurel Hester, a 24-year veteran police officer with the county prosecutor’s office who is dying of cancer. This past October, Hester personally asked the Board for such benefits, which the county can extend under the 2004 law, so that her domestic partner, Stacie Andree, could have the same pension rights that surviving spouses of county employees enjoy. Despite widespread protests and public condemnation of the freeholders—some of whom cited the “sanctity of marriage†as a defense—Ocean County has refused to budge. Several other counties, however, have since acted to extend domestic partner benefits to their employees.
“The Hester case was a real factor,†Goldstein said. “It was mentioned by every legislator I talked to you.†And we learned yesterday that yet another county (Passaic) will also be extending domestic partner benefits soon.
Laurel is sick and will not be able to attend the freeholder meeting on January 18th, but there will be a video message from Laurel - her last direct appeal to the freeholders - played at the meeting. If you're in the area, considering coming out to support her on Wed, Jan 18 at 4 pm at the Ocean County Administration Building, 101 Hooper Avenue, Toms River.
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Tue Jan 03, 2006 at 06:15:33 PM EST
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Great letter to the editor supporting Laurel Hester, who is trying to get pension benefits for her partner. Below are some excerpts, but go read the whole thing.
Since we pay our police good salaries and provide them with medical and pension plans, this garbage about Lt. Laurel Hester of the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office not being able to pass her pension on to her registered domestic partner because she is gay is pure bull.
She did the same job as the heterosexuals did, took the same risks, and deserves the same benefits.
Hearing the freeholders talk about contracts and rules makes me sick.
I've lived in this state for 45 years, and I've seen politicians caught cheating on their taxes, police fixing tickets and doing racial profiling, judges doing drugs in public buildings and a whole slew of other crimes that should have sent them to jail, but instead they were allowed to retire on the public dime.
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But now that it's a gay person they would have to bend the rules for, suddenly they have a conscience, morals and a desire to follow the law to its fullest extent.
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Fri Dec 23, 2005 at 11:43:18 AM EST
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Ocean County's freeholders now cite a "tremendous cost" as the reason they are unable to extend pension benefits to domestic partners. According to their inflated estimates, the costs would be between $114,000 and $220,000, or 23 to 45 cents per taxpayer in the county.
While they complain about the costs for petty things such as death pension benefits, they approve $175,000 worth of funding for expanding a library, including $60,000 for a "floor...with a special seascape." They then go on to hand out 192 turkeys and 400 toys to Ocean County veterans saying that each and every one deserves a "blessed holiday season." How ironic that as they honor war veterans, they refuse to let Laurel Hester - a veteran herself of the county's prosecutor's office - have the benefits she has worked 23 years for. Apparently they feel no shame in ruining her holiday season.
Part three of "It's Laurel Hester's Wonderful Life" is below, stolen completely from The Big Gay Picture. Read it all, and considering sending the Ocean County freeholders To Kill a Mockingbird before their January 7th meeting.
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Thu Dec 22, 2005 at 01:03:46 PM EST
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Below I've reproduced part two of a three part series written by The Big Gay Picture on Laurel Hester. But there are also two important letters to the editor in today's Ocean County Observer on this issue.
A letter by Dane Wells rebukes the freeholders' claims that the pension benefits requested would be a "tremendous cost": Using the county's own inflated numbers, it seems the price of providing death benefits to the partners of all county workers would amount to about 23 cents a year for a typical taxpayer, or about half the cost of a single mile traveled in just one take-home county car.
Aside from a certain five freeholders with an annual budget exceeding $300 million, I don't think there are many county residents unwilling to pay just half the price of this newspaper to ensure the dignity and peaceful death of a fellow human being, let alone one who was such a loyal and devoted public servant.
As for the benevolence of the freeholders in pointing out the value of Laurel's employee life insurance, how horribly cruel that they left out the part that she has to die before her sick time runs out in a little more than a week for her beneficiary to collect it. I can only assume this deception was somehow sanctified.
But I was pleased to see that Lt. Hester is in the freeholders' "personal prayers." As they gather with their own pension-protected loved ones at Christmas, I would ask each of them to remember Laurel, struggling in agony for every breath, and yet hoping her last gasp will come before Jan. 1, when the stone coldheartedness of the Ocean County freeholders will leave her family homeless.
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Wed Dec 21, 2005 at 09:18:07 AM EST
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Michael from the Big Gay Picture had a chance to speak with and interview Laurel Hester - only the second time she has spoken to the media (the first was a brief NY Times interview). Below is the first of a three part profile of Laurel Hester and her struggle to secure domestic partner benefits in Ocean County.
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Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 09:52:42 AM EST
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On Friday, the Ocean County Observer reported on the possible costs associated with approving pension benefits for domestic partners in Ocean County. Lt Laurel Hester, a 24 year veteran of the prosecutor's office, is dying of lung cancer and has asked the freeholders to let her pass her pension benefits to her partner, who otherwise will not be able to keep their home.
Their excuses have ranged from immoral smoke screens about the "sanctity of marriage" to vague complaints about costs to taxpayers. Six months after Laurel Hester made her request, they've finally decided to actually work out some numbers and guessed that it could cost between $114,000 and $220,000 to fund pension benefits for domestic partners - or 23 to 45 cents per resident in Ocean County. Freeholder Kelly calls these added pension benefits a "tremendous cost."
Kelly, who fears that his marriage would be ruined by granting Hester the same pension benefits that he's double-dipping into, tried to take credit for the help that Laurel is getting (from The Big Gay Picture): Freeholder Kelly pointed out what the county has so generously done for Ms. Hester. Her salary continues to be paid in full as other employees have donated sick leave since Ms. Hester has used up hers fighting cancer. Note that this is not something extra done at the behest of the freeholders. It is what would be granted to any employee. It's nice that Freeholder Kelly tries to take credit for it though.
The freeholder also notes that the county provides life insurance for Ms. Hester and that along with the money Ms. Hester put into the pension system herself, she will be able to leave $450,000 to her partner. But wait--there's a catch. To get the life inusrance, Ms. Hester must die within the next nineteen days. After that her sick time runs out and she will have to retire. You see, the life insurance benefit only applies to active employees. Odd that Freeholder Kelly failed to mention that. Kelly comforts himself by adding that his "personal prayers have been for the lieutenant." He can pray all he wants, but his actions tell us everything we need to know about his values. While his wife will benefit from taxpayer-funded pension plans, he washes his hands clean of another couples' misfortune by citing a possible added tax burden of 45 cents.
To solve this dilema, I would like to offer to pay for Mr. Kelly's 45 cents, as well as the 45 cents of the other freeholders (I doubt anyone else in the county would complain about 45 cents). Although I am putting my financial health and the future of my marriage at great risk, a check for $2.25 will be in the mail soon. Don't spend it all at once, guys.
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Wed Dec 07, 2005 at 09:43:04 PM EST
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 At the freeholder meeting tonight in Ocean County, over 100 residents packed the meeting room to support Lt. Laurel Hester, the cancer-stricken cop trying to get domestic partner benefits so she can pass on her pension to her partner.
Among those who turned out were cops, clergy - including Lutheran, Unitarian and Methodist ministers from the area, and gay and lesbian groups. The clergy cited scripture about compassion and justice for your fellow man, and one clergy member kneeled before the freeholders begging them to relent. In all, about 20 people spoke - pleading for justice - and without exception, each strongly supported Laurel. Many everyday county residents came out to express their outrage at the freeholders' disgusting heartlessness.
According to a resident who attended "There was not a dry eye in the house, except for the freeholders, some of whom rolled their eyes and snickered at times."
(there's more below...)
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Mon Dec 05, 2005 at 11:52:40 PM EST
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(bump - promoted by jmelli)
Laurel Hester, a police officer dying of lung cancer, has been denied her pension benefits by Ocean County's freeholders because she is a lesbian. Her struggle and the freeholder's grotesque decision has spread to over 140 papers across the country and the world.
On Wednesday, Laurel Hester and her partner will attend the Freeholder's meeting in Ocean County and speak to them face-to-face.
Laurel's courage has already resulted in two counties passing domestic partner benefits, yet her own freeholders cowardly throw up morality as a smokescreen for denying her the same benefits they have double-dipped into.
Please come out and show your support for Laurel. The meeting is this Wednesday, December 7 at 4:00 pm, in Room 119 of the Ocean County Administration Building, 101 Hooper Avenue, Toms River.
Ocean County freeholders
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Sun Nov 27, 2005 at 09:06:07 PM EST
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Across the pond, the UK Gay News is covering Lt Laurel Hester's situation:How this situation – and the thousands of others that go unnoticed – can arise in the United States puzzles us at UK Gay News. America proclaims itself as the leader of the world. But when it comes for basic rights of same-sex couples living in a long-term relationship, the country is probably in the bottom quartile.
The old chestnut about family values and sanctity of marriage just does not wash. America has one of the highest divorce rates in the world and is where a pop star can get married for the weekend.
The word “humbug†comes to mind. And is this instance it applies to the Freeholders of Ocean County Meanwhile, an editorial in today's Ocean County Observer slams the OC freeholder's hypocricy:Never mind that the freeholders have demonstrated stupendous greed through their own history of feeding at the public through, often in jobs that helped boost their own pensions.
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Sat Nov 26, 2005 at 02:58:55 PM EST
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The five homophobic Ocean County freeholders (Gerry P. Little, John P. Kelly, James F. Lacey, Joseph H. Vicari, John C. Bartlett Jr.) denying Lt. Laurel Hester her pension benefits because she is a lesbian.
It's a slow news day, but Lt. Laurel Hester's simple request to pass on her pension benefits to her partner continues. In an editorial by Richard Schiff, Editor In Chief of the Greenwich Village Gazette, he writes on the next meeting of the Ocean County freeholders. Schiff notes that on December 7th, supporters of Lt. Hester will be out in force to hold their feet to the fire: On December 7th a very vocal and determined force backed with Lawyers will attend the next meeting of the Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders. These dedicated people are not prepared to take no for an answer.
I urge all citizens of conscience to be there to lend support and show the Freeholders that we value Lieutenant Hester's 24 years of service to the community enough to treat her as equal in all ways with every other officer.
Let her die in the arms of someone who loves her. Who that is is none of anyone's business. Choosing to turn Lt. Hester down and rejecting her basic rights should not be a decision the Freeholders get to make without a great uproar of injustice from the citizens.
From a few days ago - the Ocean County Reporter has video of the rally in support of Hester, where 200 supporters were joined by Congressman Frank Pallone.
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Fri Nov 25, 2005 at 10:16:45 AM EST
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A powerful editorial in yesterday's Ocean County Observer on Lt. Laurel Hester's struggle to attain domestic partner benefits for her partner. I wouldn't be doing it justice to just quote a portion of it, so go read the whole thing.
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Tue Nov 22, 2005 at 11:38:10 PM EST
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A tragic story, which only Republicans could possibly make worse:When lung cancer finally kills Laurel Hester -- and it will, in a matter of months -- she wants to know that her domestic partner, Stacie Andree, won't lose their home in Point Pleasant.
That legacy, however, is in doubt.
Ocean County's freeholders have refused to act on a request from Hester, an investigator for 23 years in the county prosecutor's office, to provide domestic partner benefits for gay and lesbian employees under a state law enacted last year. Without a resolution by the freeholders, her pension benefits cannot go to Andree.
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The surviving spouse benefit amounts to about $13,000 a year and would be paid from the state pension fund. For Andree, an auto mechanic, the money would "mean the difference in whether or not she can stay in the house," Hester said. The domestic partnership law that was passed leaves it up to each local government to decide whether or not to provide the benefits to partners. But the Republican freeholders in Ocean County have blocked them from receiving benefits...
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