NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—Superintendent Richard Kaplan confirmed that the New Brunswick school district has suspended one of its Vice Principals with pay after his arrest over the weekend.

Lester Voorhees, Vice Principal of McKinley Community School, was arrested on Friday for drunk driving and possession of marijuana and cocaine, among 13 total charges, according to Police Captain JT Miller.

Voorhees was pulled over by the New Brunswick Police at the corner of Hamilton Street and High Street at 11:07 PM on Friday, November 21.

Voorhees was charged with:

  • driving while intoxicated (DWI),
  • DWI in a school zone,
  • obstruction of traffic,
  • failure to keep right,
  • reckless driving,
  • open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle,
  • possession of controlled dangerous substance in a motor vehicle,
  • failure to inspect,
  • failure to exhibit license,
  • unregistered vehicle,
  • possession of marijuana,
  • possession of cocaine,
  • and possession of paraphernalia. 

Sources said that Voorhees’ bail was posted by Bruce Hawkins, a former city police officer and school security officer at McKinley School.

The administration of McKinley Community School has refused to comment on the incident.

Voorhees has worked for the school district since 1997, and as of July 2012 earned a $126,234.

Back then, he was a Vice Principal at the city’s Middle School, according to public records.

He was bitten by a dog at a protest against the police killing of Shaun Potts in 1991, suing the city in the aftermath of the incident and accusing police of falsely charging him with “assaulting a police officer and assault of a police canine.”

“While the police were using dogs to patrol where crowds had gathered, Lester Voorhees, a black man, was bitten while leaving a social club. He is suing the city for $1 million,” reads a 1992 article in the New York Times.

“The police, under the direction of Captain McCloskey, dispersed this crowd utilizing the police canine unit,” reads a 1997 court ruling in a separate matter.  “One of the dogs bit a civilian, Lester Voorhees, as he exited a nearby building.  Voorhees was not part of the crowd on the street corner.”