The Journal News (Westchester County, New York), October 24, 2007, Wednesday
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The Journal News (Westchester County, New York)
October 24, 2007 Wednesday
RK Edition
BYLINE: Suzan Clarke
BODY:
SPRING VALLEY - Four people will battle for two village trustee seats, and two others will vie for the village justice position in the Nov. 6 general elections.
The trustee candidates, all of whom are village residents, are Demeza Delhomme, Anthony Leon, Darlene Roc and incumbent Joseph DesMaret.
The race has been marred by accusations of violence. In August, Delhomme filed a police report claiming Leon attempted to choke him. Leon denied the allegation, claiming that Delhomme was the aggressor in the attack.
DesMaret, a one-term trustee, lost the Democratic line in the Sept. 18 primary elections. In Spring Valley, Democrats have a big majority in voter registration.
The other village trustee seat belongs to Bettie Brown, who chose not to seek re-election so she could run for county Legislature.
Delhomme and Leon took the lines in the primary.
Delhomme is a former Spring Valley trustee who has run for the county Legislature and who nearly edged out Mayor George Darden in the 2005 Democratic primary.
Delhomme was widely criticized in 2003 for claiming in his cable TV show that Jews received preferential treatment. He has denied making any anti-Semitic comments, saying his remarks - which were made in Haitian Creole - were misinterpreted.
Leon is a village Planning Board member, and Roc serves as local liaison for Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee and ran unsuccessfully for village trustee in 2005.
The trustee candidates have expressed concern about a range of issues, including the high salaries for the mayor and others at Village Hall; the administration of the village's urban renewal project; and the need both for affordable housing and a reduction in taxes.
Village Justice Christine Theodore will face a challenge from Judeline Constant-Rouzard of New City.
Theodore was appointed to the post by Mayor George Darden in March. Theodore and Constant-Rouzard are both lawyers.
In the primary, the candidates ran in two teams, one led by Delhomme with Roc and Constant-Rouzard, and the other led by DesMaret with Leon and Theodore.
All the candidates are either Haitian natives or of Haitian descent. Spring Valley is home to the largest concentration of Haitians in the county.
Village justices are paid $38,000 a year and serve four-year terms. Trustees also serve four-year terms and are paid $16,000 a year.
Reach Suzan Clarke at snclarke@lohud.com or call at 845-578-2414.
{}Darlene Roc
{}Ballot line: Republican
{}Born: Sept. 29, 1972
{}Occupation: Sales representative
{}Political, community experience: Member, Spring Valley Youth Court program; serves as local liaison for Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern; member, United Haitian American Caucus; ran for Spring Valley village trustee in 2005
{}Education: Bachelor's in business administration from Quiskeya University in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
{}Top two things candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
- Create affordable housing
- Work on behalf of village youth.
{}Contact her: 845-821-0501 or lapause2@aol.com
{}Judeline Constant-Rouzard
{}Ballot line: Republican
{}Born: April 11, 1973
{}Occupation: Lawyer
{}Political, community experience: Served on board of the Spring Valley Housing Authority from 1994 to 2001
{}Education: Bachelor's in social science, Dominican College in Orangeburg; paralegal certificate, Mercy College in White Plains; juris doctor, Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Mich.; completed courses for a master's in business administration at Long Island University's Graduate Campus in Rockland
{}Top thing candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
- Work to see justice done for everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic or racial background.
{}Contact her: judeline.esq@rouzardlaw.com
{}Joseph DesMaret
{}Ballot line: Independence
{}Born: Aug. 18, 1957
{}Occupation: Financial analyst
{}Political, community experience: Trustee; ran for village trustee in 2001 Democratic primary; has two local-access cable TV programs that appear weekly
{}Education: Bachelor's in public accounting, Mercy College in White Plains; associate degree, Westchester Business Institute in White Plains
{}Top two things candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
- Create affordable housing
- Increase village funding for after-school programs.
{}Contact him: josephdesmaret@optonline.net
{}Christine Theodore
{}Ballot lines: Democratic; Independence
{}Born: Jan. 10, 1974
{}Occupation: Lawyer
{}Political, community experience: Appointed village justice in Spring Valley in April
{}Education: Juris doctor, Albany Law School of Union University; bachelor's in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.
{}Top two things candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
- Collaborate more with the community with respect to preventing crime
- Hold public informational seminars about how the court operates
{}Contact her: Send e-mail to newyorklegal@yahoo.com
{}-Anthony Leon
{}Ballot lines: Democratic; Independence
{}Born: Jan. 17, 1956
{}Occupation: Runs own management company
{}Political, community experience: Two-term appointed member of the Spring Valley Planning Board
{}Education: Master's in public administration and completed advanced studies in nonprofit management and health-care management, Long Island University, Rockland; bachelor's in secondary education, St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkill; attended educational institutions in Mexico and Haiti; trained in physical education and basketball coaching, diplomacy and electronics
{}Top two things candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
- affordable housing
- urban renewal
{}Contact him: anthonyleon22@hotmail.com
{}Demeza Delhomme
{}Ballot lines: Democratic; Republican
{}Born: Feb. 17, 1948
{}Occupation: Bridge welder
{}Political, community experience: Former Spring Valley trustee; ran for Spring Valley mayor against George Darden in a Democratic primary in 2005; ran for county Legislature in 2004; ran for Spring Valley mayor against Allan Thompson in 1997
{}Education: Educated in Haiti and the Bahamas; attended Apex Technical College in New York for welding training
{}Top two things candidate would like to accomplish if elected:
{}- Unite the community, which he believes has become racially and ethnically divided
- Work with local law enforcement and village youth to prevent youth crime.
{}Contact him: 845-821-3917
LOAD-DATE: October 25, 2007
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