
Olney will not be on June 24 Watertown council primary ballot
State Supreme Court Judge James P. McClusky on Thursday denied Olney's request to put him back on the ballot.
Olney was ready to give oral arguments, but the judge ruled from the bench.
"This was decided before I got here today," Olney said.
He reiterated that he will run as a write-in candidate and has already started taking steps to get the word out to the public on how to vote for him.
He has put together a campaign card explaining what voters have to do vote for him. Olney plans to go door to door to pass them out before the June 24 primary.
He also plans to notify all the people who signed his ballots to tell them that they've "been disenfranchised," Olney said.
Olney, a first-term councilman, was in court Thursday after refiling a motion seeking to have Judge McClusky reverse a decision that his name not be on the ballot.
Seven other candidates are running in the June 24 primary. Four will go on to the November general election.
Olney, who acted as his own attorney in the court matter, requested that Judge McClusky reconsider a ruling that a legal challenge of an elections board determination that he did not have enough valid signatures on his campaign petitions was not filed in a timely manner.
Olney initially filed suit asking to have his petitions reviewed by the court after it was determined he lacked the required minimum number of signatures to be on the ballot.
While Judge McClusky did rule that Olney had enough signatures to be on the ballot, he subsequently dismissed Olney's complaint because it had not been served on the defendants in a timely manner.
Olney, who contended he followed the court's timeline when serving the papers, filed a motion to have the matter reconsidered. Judge McClusky declined the request, ruling that Olney did not abide by state Civil Practice Laws and Rules when filing his motion for reconsideration.
Olney subsequently refiled the motion, indicating that he had corrected any procedural error in his filings.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Axios
5 hours ago
- Axios
Houston could ban scooters in downtown
Houston could soon ban the use of e-scooters in and around downtown. Why it matters: Transportation advocates argue the move furthers what critics say are Mayor John Whitmire's "cars over people" policies, while proponents say a ban would alleviate public safety concerns. Driving the news: A City Council committee will meet Thursday to discuss creating a "scooter-free zone" that includes downtown, Midtown and East Downtown. The proposal was drafted by Houston police and the city. The big picture: If the measure passes, Houston would likely become the first major U.S. city with an active e-scooter ban in its downtown. It would join international cities like Madrid, Toronto, Paris and Melbourne, Australia. Flashback: In 2021, the city banned scooters on sidewalks and prohibited vendors from using public right-of-way to rent them out. Since then, e-scooter rental companies have proliferated downtown. Zoom in: Whitmire says he is concerned with scooter riders operating dangerously around the city center. Twenty-three Houston crashes involved scooters in 2024, up from 20 in 2023, 10 in 2022 and three in 2021, according to the city. Riders died in three of those crashes, and at least one person died on an e-scooter in 2025. The other side: Michael Moritz, a Houston transportation advocate, says such a ban would limit downtown activity and hinder those who commute to work on e-scooters. "Mayor Whitmire has proven with his policies that he does not believe Houstonians should have the freedom to choose how they move," Moritz tells Axios. Some scooter rental vendors say a ban would be the "worst-case scenario" for business. What they're saying:"The vast majority of individuals using scooters in the area are not Houstonians but instead come here for joyriding, rather than using them for school or work," Whitmire said in a statement to Axios. "Many scooter users disregard traffic laws, putting themselves and others at risk," Whitmire said. "(Thursday's meeting is) part of the process, and I welcome public feedback."

Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
City grants some department heads exemption to residency law
Jul. 21—WATERTOWN — The City Council voted Monday night to exempt the current city manager, city engineer, and the superintendent of public works from a law that would have required the department heads to move into the city. "I appreciated the support and I'm going to continue to serve the city residents to my best possible ability," City Manager Eric Wagenaar said after the meeting. In a 4-1 vote, the only opposition was from Councilwoman Lisa A. Ruggiero. Under contract, Wagenaar was given until June 29, 2024, to make the move, with a possible six-month extension until last December. The City Council discussed the issue during an executive session but no action was taken. Mayor Sarah V. C. Pierce said she understands that there is frustration that the residency provision of Wagenaar's contract was not fulfilled, while adding Wagenaar's experience would be difficult to replace. "Over the past year and a half we've seen the city manager really do an exemplary job for the city," she said. "I think that his experience and connections to the community would be extremely hard to replicate." The mayor said the city is facing a number of issues it is making progress on. "To not grant an exemption would essentially stall that progress and I don't think that we can afford to do that at this point in time," she said. Pierce also said that there should be talks about ways to encourage more city employees to live in Watertown. "The next time those positions come open, what can we do to encourage the next person who takes that job to live in the city, or how can we give preference to people who live in the city for those positions," she said. While saying it wasn't an easy decision, Pierce added that she thinks it's in the city's best interest that they continue on the path they're on. "I think that this is important to move forward with this," she said. Ruggiero said she received a phone call from Assemblyman Scott A. Gray, who suggested doing "home rule" legislation. A home rule law "makes the local government a full partner with the state in the shared responsibility for providing services to the people," according to the state's website. City attorney Kristen Smith said if they passed the local law, it wouldn't stop the council from doing home rule legislation. Council member Clifford G. Olney III, in explaining his vote, said that he has heard people say they are doing a "workaround" to state law, which states that officers must live in their municipality. But he doesn't see it that way, instead calling it a "patch to a situation that wasn't addressed initially." Olney claims that what they did previously by allowing the city manager to have six months and then a potential additional half-year to move into the city, was a workaround because the council did not have a law in place permitting Wagenaar, and other city officers, to live outside the city. "What we would be doing this time is cleaning up that issue for this particular time with these three individuals but not doing anything about the next manager, the next department head... We would be faced with this again," he said. Olney said he would be open to putting the grace period they gave Wagenaar into law. Solve the daily Crossword


CBS News
a day ago
- CBS News
After CBP agent is shot in NYC, Tom Homan says sanctuary cities are now ICE's priority
President Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, says sanctuary cities are now his priority after the shooting of a Customs and Border Protection over the weekend in New York City. He said Monday he's fed up with the city's sanctuary laws and will now "flood" the area with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to arrest people where ever they find them. Homan said he's especially angry with the City Council, which went to court to stop a deal with Mayor Eric Adams to allow ICE to arrest people on Riker's Island, adding the new policies mean that people who are not criminals could get caught up in the new dragnet. "Sanctuary cities are now our priority. We're going to flood the zone. You don't want to let us into jail to arrest a bad guy in the safety and security of a jail. You want to release him into the street. So, what we're going to do, we'll have more agents in New York City to look for that bad guy," Homan said. The shooting of the 42-year-old off-duty CBP patrol officer in Fort Washington Park late Saturday night has Homan saying he's no longer going to play nice with the mayor, or hope he can convince the City Council or the courts to let ICE agents operate on Rikers Island. "Sanctuary cities get exactly what they don't want -- more agents in the community and more agents in the worksite. If we can't arrest that bad guy in the safety and security of county jail, we'll arrest him in the community," Homan said, "and when we arrest him in the community, if he's with others that are in the country illegally, they're coming, too." It's unclear just how soon Homan plans to flood New York City with more federal immigration agents and just how many asylum seekers who are not on the feds' wanted lists could get caught up in the new actions. It's also unclear whether Homan plans to send his agents into schools, churches, hospitals and other places that so far have been locations where asylum seekers have felt safe. However, one thing is clear: Adams doesn't want innocent people swept up in the raids. He says the feds should limit ICE to going after people who commit crimes. "If he's going to assist us to go after those individuals, I welcome it. If it's going to be to go after everyday individuals who are trying to complete the path to be a citizen, then I don't think we should do that," Adams said. The question now is whether the mayor could pay a political price for supporting sanctuary city laws. In the wake of the shooting of the off-duty CBP officer, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem expressed displeasure about the city's sanctuary policies. Noem is urging New Yorkers to consider Adams' support for sanctuary city laws when picking the next occupant of Gracie Mansion. "Boy, start looking at the candidates today and see which one is going to start making the city safer, because you've got a mayor today that could have done better, could have done better and maybe he'd have more support today if he had put his people first," Noem said. CBS News New York's Marcia Kramer asked Adams about Noem's comments. "I think that she's accurate. You should look at the mayors and determine the candidates, and determine who's going to do the best for this city when it comes down to migrants and asylum seekers," Adams said. "And, you know, the history is going to show, and the facts are going to speak on my behalf, that how well we've done at the city." Republican Curtis Sliwa says he's the best candidate to work with the feds. "Well, I'm the only candidate running who's opposed to the sanctuary city, but I would have used charter revision, put it on the ballot. Eric Adams had two opportunities to put it on the ballot. Tremendous number of voters would have come in and voted on that," Sliwa said. Kramer reached out to the campaigns of Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to get their positions on sanctuary cities and working with the feds, but did not immediately hear back.