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DA investigating town clerk
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Brookhaven Town Clerk Pamela Betheil is being investigated by District Attorney Tom Spota for allegations that she overcharged couples for ceremonies performed as the town's marriage officer. A spokesman in the town's public information office said on Monday that Spota's office had issued subpoenas in the case that came to light last week.
According to a report in Newsday, Betheil has been charging couples up to $200 to marry them. The town resolution authorizing the clerk to perform marriages limits the fee — if the ceremony occurs outside of Town Hall or after regular business hours — to $75.
A spokesman for Spota's office had no comment other than to acknowledge receiving a referral in the case.
Betheil would not comment at the direction of the attorney she has retained in the matter, Jim O'Rourke of Hauppauge, except to issue a brief statement which read in part: "To say that I am devastated by what is occurring is an understatement. ... I have been advised not to speak about what is taking place."
O'Rourke defended his client. "The town resolution ... [has] no prohibition on reimbursements and expenses," he said. The lawyer said that represented the additional amount collected by Betheil over the $75 limit and added, "That which is not prohibited is permitted."
The town's spokesman, Kevin Molloy, said the town is conducting an investigation of its own.
O'Rourke opined that the town's investigation was a "result of a heightened sense of corruption Brookhaven feels." He said of his client's actions, "It's certainly not corruption." However O'Rourke also said his client "voluntarily chose to return the funds" in question. He said in over three years in office, Betheil had collected in the range of $10,000 to $12,000 in "reimbursements and expenses."
O'Rourke said he had reached out to the district attorney's office last week to discuss the case but, as of Monday, the D.A. had not yet returned his call.
Brookhaven Supervisor Mark Lesko had also not yet returned a call for comment to this paper.
Betheil also serves as president of the Eastern Suffolk BOCES, a position she has held since before being elected to the town clerk's office in 2005. She had previously served in numerous roles in Brookhaven, including a stint as chair of the Planning Board.
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