Op-ed: Domestic violence should not be condoned
The Chester Telegraph | May 21, 2025 | Comments 5
By Marilyn Mahusky
©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC
Marilyn Mahusky
By not rejecting the candidate for school board who pled guilty to charges of domestic assault earlier this month, (and who remains under the supervision of Probation and Parole for the next 12 months), the GMUSD Board, like the Chester Select Board before it, condoned domestic violence in our community.
The select board is charged by statute with “consultation” when a vacancy on the school board occurs. Only one select board member spoke out against the candidate; the others voted to avoid their duty to consult. Taking no further action, the select board kicked the can down the road to the school board, who improperly kicked it right back.
After publicly interviewing two candidates: John Keller (who pled guilty to a criminal charge of domestic assault against his female partner on April 28), and Patricia (Penny) Benelli (a well-respected local attorney who recently retired and has a degree in education), the school board went into executive session to deliberate on the candidates’ qualifications.
No one addressed the elephant in the room – the recent guilty plea.
After a lengthy deliberative session, the school board announced its decision not to appoint either candidate. The decision was made in private in violation of Vermont’s Open Meeting Law. Instead of selecting the only qualified candidate, the board decided to send the matter back to the select board who must now decide whether a special election should be held.
Instead of choosing a clearly qualified candidate, the school board, like the select board before it, chose cowardice.
Our elected officials on the school board and the select board shirked their statutory duty and responsibility to fill the vacancy on the school board with an eligible and qualified candidate. (The candidates’ answers to the interview questions are publicly available).
Our elected officials failed to take a principled stand against domestic violence. Our children deserve better. Our community deserves better.
Marilyn Mahusky is an attorney who was a long time member of several area school boards. She lives in Chester.
Filed Under: Commentary • Op-ed
The word “cowardice” says it all. That, and the fact that the only people who “politicized” this issue were the school board members. One candidate knew what she was talking about. The other didn’t. It was an easy call.
And what will happen tonight? Will there be an excuse for choosing the candidate who–in addition to his formal status as one who has engaged in domestic violence–pretty much knows nothing about schools, given what he said during his interviews. I wonder if he’ll have spent some time learning something about what he would actually be doing between the last interview and tonight’s.
It’s hard not to be reminded of the absurd presidential statement “there are some very fine people on both sides.” When it comes to domestic violence there should be no equivocation, no controversy. Domestic violence is horrific and should disqualify anyone from holding a public position. Those who appointment or recommend people for public positions must call it out and act decisively, without hesitation. The choice isn’t even about a highly qualified candidate on one side and an unqualified candidate on the other, the choice is about right and wrong.
I remember the feeling I had after the OJ Simpson verdict was announced. You brought me back in time, Marilyn, to another time when I was dismayed and aghast. I also remember the message that I received after watching the school board meeting last week. I was dumbfounded by both. I just kept shaking my head and saying, “What? Why? How?”
Marilyn, thank you for speaking out.
To our community leaders, now is the time to listen and not shirk your duties.
To Arne Jonynas, thank you.
Thank you.
Folks, we have some board seats that need filling in the coming years. This behavior cannot stand.