Arrested Old Bridge school board member shows up for meeting. Here's what happened

OLD BRIDGE – The president of the Old Bridge teachers union is among those who’ve called on the school board member charged with stealing more than $50,000 from a PTA and a youth sports program to resign.

Board of Education member Leonardo Marchetta, who was in attendance at Thursday's school board meeting, and his wife Dana were charged April 8 by Old Bridge police with stealing $41,067.90 from the Grissom School PTA and its vendors, and $12,417.16 from the Rebels Football and Cheer Program .

Dana Marchetta, police said, was involved in the Grissom and Salk schools PTA organizations and the Rebels sports program, and allegedly misused her positions in the organizations for her own financial benefit.

Since then, there have been calls for Marchetta to resign his board seat .

"As an association we cannot help but notice Mr. Marchetta's alleged actions and the impact that these actions have had on our schools, our community and the board," said Andrew Lewis, president of the Old Bridge Education Association.

“We hope that now is the time that members of the Old Bridge Board of Education will act in the best interest of Old Bridge students and the community at large and join us in calling for the immediate resignation of Marchetta,” Lewis said.

Several parents also called for Marchetta’s resignation.

At the April 16 school board meeting, Board Attorney Christopher Parton explained that the Board of Education currently has no authority to remove a fellow board member because he is innocent until proven guilty.

A board member cannot be removed after just being charged with a criminal offense, Parton said.

Marchetta has not been convicted, Parton said.

State law allows the removal of a board member following certain criminal convictions, he said.

However, a board member can be removed for other reasons.

Parton said meeting attendance requirements remain in place for all board members regardless of what they are alleged to have done.

However, Parton explained that the board can vote to remove a member after missing three consecutive meetings without "just cause or excuse" as determined by the other board members.

Marchetta did miss two consecutive meetings in a row but was in attendance at Thursday's meeting.

Marchetta's wife is charged with altering checks by falsifying signatures and modifying an Old Bridge Police Department Incident Report, which she then presented to the Salk PTA Board, police said. Police also allege that some of the stolen funds were deposited into her husband's personal accounts, and the two allegedly "conspired" to benefit from the stolen money.

She has been charged with seven counts of forgery, four counts of passing bad checks, three counts of theft by deception, two counts of theft, theft by failure to make required disposition of funds, forgery by altering documents, public records fraud, falsifying records, money laundering, and conspiracy, police said.

Leonardo Marchetta has been charged with seven counts of passing a bad check, two counts of theft, theft by deception, and conspiracy, police said.

Email: sloyer@gannettnj.com

Susan Loyer covers Middlesex County and more for MyCentralJersey.com. To get unlimited access to her work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Arrested Old Bridge school board member shows up for meeting. Here's what happened