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John Finley
John Finley
DELAVAN — Alderman John K. Finley has been cited for disorderly conduct for what prosecutors say was his involvement in an election-related incident March 30.
Finley is accused of threatening to use his position on the city council to have the city reconsider its contract with Nieuwenhuis Bros. garbage hauling after being told that a Nieuwenhuis employee took one of Finley’s campaign signs before the election.
Prosecutors say Finley left a message on the company’s answering machine.
“I have an eyewitness account of one of your people stealing one of my election signs,” he said on the recording. “If you want to do business in the city of Delavan, you’d better shape up. If I get elected, despite your stealing my signs, I’ll come after you in my own way.”
Nieuwenhuis Bros. owner Eli Nieuwenhuis contacted the sheriff’s department.
In a verbal agreement with the city, Nieuwenhuis Bros. picks up garbage at city-owned properties including the municipal building, police department, streets department headquarters, Aram Public Library, city parks, Delbrook Golf Course and compost site.
Nieuwenhuis told a detective May 21 that he wasn’t looking to press charges against Finley, but he wanted to get the incident on file in case something happened in the future, according to court documents.
Finley admitted he probably overreacted that night, according to court documents.
“Yeah, it was foolish on my part,” he said, according to court documents. “In retrospect, I should have shut up when I heard the answering machine pick up. But I was fired up.”
According to Walworth County Sheriff’s Department reports:
Finley said a friend—the “eyewitness” he mentioned in the message—told him he saw a man driving a green pickup truck remove one of Finley’s campaign signs from a neighbor’s property, throw it into the truck and drive away.
Finley said his friend believed the man to be a Nieuwenhuis Bros. employee.
After exchanging answering machine messages, Nieuwenhuis talked to Finley on April 4. Finley apologized, saying he had no ill intent toward Nieuwenhuis or his business and would sign a statement to that effect.
Nieuwenhuis told a detective that he asked his employees if any of them had thrown a Finley campaign sign into the back of a garbage truck. None admitted to stealing a sign.
When the detective told Nieuwenhuis the property from which the sign was taken, Nieuwenhuis said he knew who took it. He declined to name the person but said he or she has nothing to do with Nieuwenhuis Bros.
Finley said this week he believes he and Nieuwenhuis have made their peace.
The district attorney’s office filed the citation against Finley in Walworth County Court on Aug. 28. Finley’s initial appearance is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 10. He faces a fine of up to $1,000.
Nieuwenhuis declined to comment when reached by The Janesville Gazette.