There has been too little information released on why the Mercer County Parks system has been the subject of a raid by the state Attorney General's Office and why its executive director has been fired.
There's a thick cloud of smoke rising from the Mercer County Parks system but the problem is that we don't know what's burning or how extensive the fire is.
What we do know is that Kevin Bannon, the executive director of the Mercer County Parks Commission, has been fired.
The county has been very tight-lipped about what is going on.
But something is certainly burning.
Back in April, investigators from the state Attorney General's Office raided the parks department's headquarters at the Hunt House in Hopewell Township and the county tennis center in West Windsor over allegations of official misconduct, corruption of public resources and theft by extortion at the Friends of Mercer County Parks, a nonprofit Bannon helped start.
The AG's office, as is their custom, refuses to comment on open investigations.
Embattled Mercer County parks director fired
Aside from confirming that a probe is ongoing and that they are fully cooperating with the state, the county has decided to keep the public in the dark.
Even the county freeholders were taken by surprise when they learned of the raid.
"I don't know what they're looking for and I don't know who they're targeting, if anyone," Freeholder Sam Frisby said at the time.
The lack of information has been very frustrating for Bannon's attorney, Jack Furlong.
"I don't know why he was fired," Furlong said after the parks commission met in private Wednesday and voted 7-1 to terminate Bannon from the $135,275 a year job that he has held since 2004.
There even seems to be some confusion over who Bannon owes his allegiance to: The park commission or the Friends of Mercer County Park.
Nonprofit target of AG's office raids
The Friends group was founded in 2013 to raise money to fund parks programs.
Its 2014 tax return lists its net assets as $176,835. Its fundraisers, which included a golf outing, summer concert and two other events, brought in $69,113 after expenses were deducted.
Despite their close relationship, the county has emphasized that the nonprofit organization is separate from the parks commission.
Following Bannon's dismissal, Mercer County Executive Brian Hughes said he supported the commission's decision and that it signaled a "change in direction."
"Our parks system is one of the finest in the country and we will continue to provide the quality programming and amenities that the people of Mercer County deserve and expect," he said.
What he didn't say is why Bannon was fired if the county's park system is in such great shape.
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