By Jennifer Solis
Correspondent
August 28, 2008 03:53 am WEST NEWBURY — After three hours of testimony and contentious discussion, the Board of Registrars upheld a challenge by former Selectman John McGrath against Kristi Devine, and her name will not be placed on the ballot for a special election on Sept. 27. Devine was one of three candidates seeking to fill the seat McGrath left vacant when he resigned in July with 10 months remaining in his term. But despite strong objections from the candidate, the four-member Board of Registrars voted unanimously to disqualify her candidacy, concluding sufficient evidence was presented at Tuesday's hearing to support McGrath's claim that West Newbury was no longer Devine's primary residence. The board voted to revoke approval of Devine's nomination papers, remove her as a candidate on the ballot and strike her name from the voter rolls. Devine asked Town Clerk Larry Murphy, who serves as a registrar, what the appeal process is for this ruling. But Murphy, who is also town counsel, said she would have to ask her own lawyer that question because he could not provide her with legal advice. At the start of the hearing, Murphy told those present that Devine was not able to attend the session. He then placed into evidence 10 e-mail exchanges between him and Devine in which she repeatedly requested postponement of the hearing so that she could "prepare and retain counsel as a matter of fundamental fairness." Murphy rejected the request, noting that the board was under strict legal time restraints to approve the ballot and get it printed. The legal notification he sent via registered mail to her 7 Montclair Road address was returned by the post office as "undeliverable, forwarding address expired," Murphy said, so as a matter of courtesy, he followed up with e-mails and telephone calls to Devine. Devine, who filed a lawsuit against the town, numerous town officials and several neighbors last year and was subsequently ordered out of town, said she was running for selectman to bring long overdue transparency to the board and "to look out for the community as a whole instead of the special interests." After numerous confrontations with police over problems she was having with her neighbors as she attempted to build her home and what she alleges was a lack of proper redress from town leaders, Devine was arrested for the third time on June 21, 2005, and sent to Framingham State Prison. Following a four-day incarceration and a dangerousness hearing, she was ordered out of town. Devine insists she was falsely arrested and wrongly accused. According to court documents from the lawsuit placed into evidence by McGrath, Devine lists her address as 78 Rattlesnake Road, Andover. McGrath and Murphy as well as police Chief Lisa Holmes and Building Inspector Glen Clohecy — who also testified at the hearing — are among the numerous defendants named in Devine's suit. A third witness at the hearing, Barbara Foster, was also added to the lawsuit but has yet to be served. Foster is a tenant-at-will in Devine's Monclair Road home. Murphy said he notified most all of the 15 people present at the hearing about when it was being held and indicated that a majority of them were defendants in Devine's lawsuit. Forty minutes into the hearing, Devine arrived, saying she had a serious family medical appointment that prevented her from attending the start of the hearing. "I'm here just to see what is going on; as far as I'm concerned, this is an illegal hearing," she told the board. The burden is on McGrath to prove she is not qualified, Devine said in an e-mail to Murphy dated Aug. 25. " ... all my research indicates that my driver's license, my voter's registration, and much, much more on record are indicative that this is nothing more than further harassment to keep me from exposing what really goes on in West Newbury." Throughout the hearing, Devine made objections, claiming testimony was false and the process was flawed, repeatedly insisting it should be tape-recorded so a transcript could be provided. At one point, an exasperated Murphy warned Devine that she was close to be ejected from the room. "I think you are playing games with this board," he said, to which Devine responded, "I think you are playing games with the constitution." It was imperative that registrars review Secretary of State William F. Galvin's booklet, "Residence for Voting Purposes," prior to rendering any finding in the case, Devine said. She contended that according to the state, "even if you are incarcerated in Framingham State Prison for three years — or whatever — your residency is the last place you lived before whatever incident caused you to move." Noting that her belongings are currently stored in two large storage containers and that her family has been "staying with friends or living in hotels," Devine repeatedly stressed that her intention has always been to live in West Newbury "forever." Fear of retaliation from what she alleges is "a corrupt police force" has prevented her from returning, she said. The sticking point for the board, however, was the fact that Devine did not return to town once the temporary court-ordered exile was over and instead entered into rental agreements to lease out her West Newbury home. "She told me the town was corrupt and she had no intentions of ever living there again," Foster, her tenant, testified. "I don't believe you had any intention of moving back to West Newbury," concluded board Chairman Rosamond Veator. Pending appeal by Devine, the race for McGrath's seat is now between Pentucket Chairman Tom Atwood and former Selectman Albert Knowles Jr. Polls are open for the rare Saturday election from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the first floor hearing room of the 1910 Town Office Building. No official plans for a Candidate's Night have been announced yet.
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