Glenn Jorgensen - Resignation And A Guilty Plea Ends 43 Years of Town Employment

Glenn Jorgensen - Town of Smithtown After months of speculation Glenn Jorgensen, Smithtown’s Superintendent of Highway, has resigned from his position and entered a guilty plea to a felony and misdemeanor in State Supreme Court in Riverhead, Friday morning.  

Mr. Jorgensen, 63, was employed in the Smithtown Highway Department for many years before being elected as the Superintendent of Highway in 2009. He easily won a second term in 2013. He has been employed by Smithtown for forty-three years.  His second term began Jan. 1, 2014 and has been marred by a sexual harassment claim currently before the Town, and by accusations that he falsified and removed documents from the Smithtown Highway Department office.

Mr. Jorgensen was arrested by the Suffolk County Police in April 1, 2015 for an incident occurring Nov. 18, 2014. The most serious charge was a D Felony - 1 count of tampering with public records. Mr. Jorgensen pleaded not guilty.

Today, Jorgensen went before State Supreme Court Justice Mark Cohen and pleaded guilty to one felony charge and one misdemeanor. The plea agreement reached by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office and Mr. Jorgensen. 

Mr. Jorgensen was not sentenced, but according to Newsday by pleading guilty to felony, the agreement calls for four months in jail or 560-hour community service.

A guilty plea to the felony charge means that Mr. Jorgensen is barred from elected office.  Deputy Superintendent of Highway Robert Murphy will now serve as the acting superintendent of highway.

Supervisor Vecchio had called for Jorgensen’s resignation earlier this year and expressed confidence in Deputy Highway Superintendent Robert Murphy’s ability to take on the role of Acting Superintendent. In a phone conversation he indicated that Mr. Murphy would serve in the position until an election in 2016  unless the Town Board appointed someone to fill the position of Superintendent of Highway until the 2016 election. In both cases voters will have the opportunity to vote in for a Superintendent of Highway in November 2016. The winner of the election will finish Mr. Jorgensen’s term of office which ends December 31, 2017. 

Smithtown Democratic Chairman Ed Maher called for Mr. Jorgensen’s resignation earlier this year. When questioned by Smithtown Matters he emailed the following statement, “The last two Smithtown Republican Highway superintendents have been indicted and forced to resigned in disgrace. A far contrast from the days when the Smithtown Highway Dept. was the envy of every town in New York under James Dowling. The Smithtown Democrats are determined to return the Smithtown Highway Dept to a honorable and qualified superintendent. Someone that can be trusted and respected by both the highway department workforce and the residents.”

The Highway Department has 142 full time employees and a budget of almost $25 million. In addition to maintaining the town’s 470 miles of roads, the department is responsible for drainage systems, recharge basins, driveway aprons and curbs, snow removal, ice control and street sweeping.