Hoboken council votes to support recent rulings to reinstate Crimmins as fire chief

The Hoboken City Council voted by a slim margin to support recent court rulings to reinstate Brian Crimmins as fire chief at last night’s nearly four-hour meeting.

By John Heinis/Hudson County View

“I struggle to understand sometimes government, this administration, and some of my colleagues on the council that tell me ‘don’t worry about getting sued.’ It’s funny you guys are all lawyers and that’s how you make your living, unfortunately I’m of the process that suing people or getting sued costs us money, it costs taxpayer dollars,” began 1st Ward Councilman Paul Presinzano, a co-sponsor of the resolution.

“I think, many times I’ve said up here, that there’s processes and there’s systems. And the system for an employee in civil service is to go through the civil service if there’s a dispute. Several times there was decisions handed down, correct me if I’m wrong, that had that individual, the fire chief, coming out on the winning side and the city was on the losing side.”

He continued that the process is set up to protect civil service employees and by ignoring or challenging it repeatedly, it is an insult to the other 500 to 600 municipal employees, also calling the litigation a waste of time and taxpayer dollars.

Back in May 2021, Crimmins was placed on administrative leave and Anton Peskens was named the acting chief without much explanation. He returned to work as a firefighter back in April 2023.

Then in October 2024, a New Jersey Office of Administrative Law judge issued an order for Crimmins to be reinstated and New Jersey Civil Service Commission voted for Crimmins to be reinstated the following month and the city still did not comply.

Then in February of this year, the NJCSC ruled that Crimmins must be reinstated by the end of March or the city will be fined $100 a day with a maximum penalty of up to $10,000, all as HCV first reported.

The city has never explained why they have not reinstate Crimmins, but they are now taking the matter up with the appellate court.

3rd Ward Councilman Mike Russo, another resolution co-sponsor, said that while the local legislation pushes for fiscal responsibility, it’s also about being fair and playing by the rules.

“I have always had the confidence in Chief Crimmins, I know some of our fire battalion chiefs did not, I know the backstory of how this happened, I know their may be some council members who do not have that confidence, the mayor might not have that confidence, but I have always had that confidence in him,” he exclaimed.

“I think now, after the decisions have come down, as Councilman Ramos said before, there are times where we get to kind of reassess and reevaluate a position or a decision that we made, I think now is the time that we should do that as a council and ask to comply and reinstate Chief Crimmins.”

2nd Ward Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher, the leader sponsor of the measure, said it was important to note that two judges – one from civil service and one from the appellate division – had already ruled for reinstatement and it remains a mystery why the city won’t do so.

“As of now, we have an administration that’s defying two judge’s court orders and we just need to not have that, right? Everyone’s kinda flipping out at the national level … we have a president that’s just trying to defy the law and we just need to file the law,” she declared.

She further stated that while the city still has a right to appeal, that does not change what the courts have already ruled in Crimmins’ favor, also pointing out that a motion to stay was rejected.

5th Ward Councilman Phil Cohen said that the council as a whole has been told repeatedly not to comment on personnel matter and/or pending litigation, yet that is what is being done with this non-binding resolution – which he called an election season stunt.

He also noted that the four resolution sponsors stood on the steps of City Hall alleging that former Health and Human Services Director Leo Pellegrini, though he didn’t say his name, lost his job for political reasons.

“That employee has since pleaded guilty to stealing from the taxpayers of the City of Hoboken. And there’s a reason we’re told not comment on active cases or talk about settling cases or that kind of thing because there are real implications for the taxpayers of the City of Hoboken,” Cohen asserted.

“So I’m gonna follow the lawyer’s advise, I’m not gonna talk about this, and I don’t think my colleagues should either. If we want to talk about settling this case, we should do it closed session, just like any other case that’s active.”

4th Ward Councilman Ruben Ramos, another resolution co-sponsor who was part of the aforementioned press conference, said Cohen was mistaken in what that event was about.

“People stood in front of the steps of City Hall saying a person that was fired is saying other allegations into other areas. It’s kind of like, Sammy the Bull was an assassin, right? He knew how to take John Gotti down. The federal government worked with Sammy the Bull to help get John Gotti. Same thing!” Ramos said explaining the mafioso mentality.

“Someone may have had some evidence to other things, we’re saying that individual may have evidence, please question that individual on that potential wrongdoing – if there is any wrongdoing. If there is, we pursue it, if there isn’t, thank you very much.”

Ramos also said that while he understood the challenges of reinstating Crimmins, it is the job of the city, including the council, to ensure it is a smooth transition that provides the chief with the resources he needs to succeed.

Finally Jabbour, who had not previously taken a decision on this matter, seconded Cohen’s notion that this only made the agenda as an election season stunt.

She also asked Corporation Counsel Brian Aloia if the city had actually been fined yet, to which he said they had, but they had not paid them yet.

” … I regret that we are not spending time talking about real issues facing that department because there’s just been this ongoing distraction of this litigation … As a matter of fact, and separate from the facts of this case, do I think the city needs to abide by the decisions that come down in these court matters? Absolutely,” Jabbour stated.

“But I don’t get to make that decision today, nor does anyone up here, that’s why it’s a spirit resolution. Because we don’t actually have the ability to make that decision, that rests with the mayor.”

The resolution ultimately passed 4-3(1), with Cohen, Council President Jim Doyle, and Councilman-at-Large Joe Quintero voting no and Jabbour abstaining.