Dover mayor issues veto after officials imply his wife removed records
DOVER (WJER) (April 4, 2022) – Mayor Richard Homrighausen has apparently taken exception to City Council implying his wife removed documents from Council Chambers, and he’s expressing that with a veto.
Homrighausen in an email Friday announced he has vetoed an ordinance he described as “spiteful.”
It would allow the city to replace some missing 45-year-old documents with ones collected from records at the library.
The ordinance states the documents went missing after the mayor “permitted a non-city employee to have unsupervised and unfettered access” to Council’s records room March 12, 2021.
The ordinance doesn’t state it, but Council members and Law Director Doug O’Meara have said that “non-city employee” was the mayor’s wife, Linda Homrighausen. O’Meara questioned her about it at a January council meeting.
“I did not take anything with me and I did not do anything else in that Council room except look through [ordinance books from] ’88 and ’89,” she said at the time.
Homrighausen in his email veto message says the ordinance is “punitive,” “unprofessional, disrespectful and degrading.”
Council unanimously passed the ordinance March 7, and the mayor dated his veto March 10, so it’s likely an override can take place soon. City council meets Monday.
Homrighausen himself is facing an accusation of theft in office. He pleaded not guilty last week to a grand jury indictment. The state auditor’s office is accusing him of pocketing wedding fees.