A former New Jersey mayor, previously arrested on a drunken-driving charge while her toddler was in the vehicle, is now accused with her husband of forging voter signatures to secure her place on the Democratic primary ballot before she was overwhelmingly defeated.
Lumberton Township Committeewoman Gina LaPlaca, 47, and her husband, Jason Carty, were charged in connection with an alleged scheme to fraudulently qualify LaPlaca for the ballot during her reelection campaign in the south-central New Jersey community, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office said Tuesday.
Prosecutors said the couple, both of whom were involved in “collecting signatures,” allegedly added names to a nominating petition backing LaPlaca and signed on behalf of those individuals without permission ahead of the June 3 Democratic primary.
Several people listed as supporters of LaPlaca told investigators they had neither signed the petition nor authorized anyone else to endorse her candidacy for them, authorities said.
LaPlaca allegedly certified the petition, attesting that she “personally circulated the petition [and] that such petition was signed by each of the signers thereof in his/her own handwriting.”
Carty then submitted the allegedly falsified nominating petition to the Lumberton Township clerk, according to prosecutors.
Authorities did not disclose the exact number of signatures they believe were forged, but said the disputed names were critical to LaPlaca’s effort to get on the primary ballot.
“Without the fraudulent signatures, the investigation revealed, LaPlaca’s petition would have lacked the requisite number of signatures required to be a candidate for the primary,” the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office said.
LaPlaca, who was one of three candidates vying for two spots in the Democratic primary, garnered a measly 323 votes, finishing dead last.
She was effortlessly defeated by current Mayor Terrance Benson and former committeewoman Kendra Hatfield, who received 1,100 and 1,052 votes, respectively.
LaPlaca was charged by summons with Making a False Statement Under Oath, Knowingly Filing a False Petition, two counts of Tampering with Public Records or Information and Falsifying or Tampering with Records.
Carty was charged with Knowingly Filing a False Petition, two counts of Tampering with Public Records or Information and Falsifying or Tampering with Records.
Their first court appearance is scheduled at Superior Court in Mount Holly on Sept. 21.
LaPlaca alleged voter intimidation five days before the election when she claimed people in dark suits had visited at least 10 of her supporters demanding to know if they signed her petition.
“I can’t believe these kind of tactics have come to Lumberton, but I guess if someone is that scared of me winning, I must be doing something right,” she wrote on Facebook.
LaPlaca is currently serving a three-year supervision sentence for the March 17, 2025, arrest where she had a Blood Alcohol Concentration of .30%, nearly four times the legal limit in the Garden State.
She pleaded guilty in March to DUI and child endangerment over her dangerous St. Patrick’s Day stunt while she was mayor.
Her light sentence was a “second chance” for her because she was a first-time offender and was accepted into an intervention program.
Days before the June 3 primary, LaPlaca accused Carty of aggravated assault, claiming he “literally tried to kill me,” according to the New Jersey Globe.
Carty allegedly strangled his wife inside their home during an early morning incident.
He was told to leave the home and later charged with aggravated assault by strangulation and harassment with the intent to cause alarm, the outlet reported.
One of the responding officers reported LaPlaca being inebriated and smelling like alcohol, but she denied the allegations, saying she wasn’t the one drinking and had been
“My husband was the one drinking, not me,” she wrote on social media, according to the outlet. “I am on antidepressants and anti-anxiety meds, and this incident happened at 6:45 AM when, frankly, I’m not at my best. Never been a morning person.”
A pre-indictment conference is scheduled for Aug. 19, according to court records.
