Kenilworth superintendent accused of Holmdel HS pooping offers no explanation

Kathleen Hopkins | Asbury Park Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Holmdel high school track 'pooper' makes court appearance Thomas Tramaglini, schools superintendent in Kenilworth, made his initial appearance in Holmdel Township municipal court.

HOLMDEL - The North Jersey schools superintendent accused of turning the Holmdel High School track into a personal potty appeared in court Tuesday, but offered no explanation for what landed him in the unsavory predicament.

So-called super pooper Thomas Tramaglini, the schools superintendent in Kenilworth, was in municipal court to answer charges of public defecation, littering and lewdness stemming from allegations he sullied the high school track with his own excrement on April 30.

Previously: Kenilworth school chief arrested, pooped at Holmdel track 'on a daily basis'

While his attorneys did not divulge a possible defense to the charges or ask for them to be dumped, municipal Prosecutor Steven Zabarksy indicated that Tramaglini may have been caught with his pants down.

Zabarsky said the evidence against Tramaglini includes a surveillance video, photographs and a witness. Other evidence includes a report by the police officer who charged Tramaglini and audio of a police dispatcher, all of which will be provided to Tramaglini's defense attorneys, Zabarsky told Municipal Court Judge Mary H. Casey.

Matthew S. Adams, one of Tramaglini's attorneys, called into question the surveillance video, saying it consisted of "compromised video snippets," and "not the entire video."

The judge showed no urgency to set a trial date. Instead, she gave the attorneys time to flush out any problems with the evidence before Tramaglini returns to court on an unspecified future date.

At the onset, Tramaglini, dressed in a grey suit, looked straight ahead as he walked past media representatives and took a seat at the front of the courtroom.

When it was time for him to go, a large, black sport-utility vehicle and driver were waiting outside to whisk the 42-year-old Matawan resident away from reporters who were firing questions at him.

Tramaglini and his attorneys completely ignored the reporters, not even offering a "no comment" before climbing into the SUV. ​



Earlier: Kenilworth superintendent who allegedly pooped on Holmdel track due in court

Later in the afternoon, Adams sent an email to the Asbury Park Press, saying that "logistics at the Holmdel Municipal Court made it impossible to speak to reporters at the conclusion of the session."

Adams then offered the following written statement:

"The hallmark of our system of justice is the presumption of innocence. Unless or until proven guilty at trial within the framework established by the rules of evidence, every defendant enjoys that basic, liberty-defining right.

"Leaks, half-truths and outright falsehoods about a good man with an exceptional record of public service are not a substitute for admissible evidence," Adams' statement continued. "Today was only the beginning of the constitutionally secured due process that Dr. Tramaglini is entitled to receive."

Adams' statement did not elaborate on what he considered to be half-truths and outright falsehoods.

Tramaglini was issued summonses in the case after police investigated reports from Holmdel High School staff and athletic coaches who said they were finding human feces on or near the school track and football field on a daily basis.

Tramaglini, reportedly a marathon runner, was allegedly caught in the act about 5:45 a.m. on April 30.

Tramaglini subsequently requested and received a paid leave of absence from his $147,504-a-year job as Kenilworth schools superintendent, a post he has held since December 2015.

Kathleen Hopkins: 732-643-4202; Khopkins@app.com