Assemblyman David P. Rible retired as a Wall Township police officer at age 31 with a bad back and a fat pension. He’s collected $570,000 in disability payments since a state board decided he was “totally and permanently disabled.”
Yet Rible competes in five-mile and five-kilometer runs along the Jersey Shore. He exercises at a gym, dances as a celebrity and hauls trash to the curb at his Monmouth County home. He commutes to Trenton to represent the11th District in the State Assembly, where he holds a leadership position as Republican Whip and seeks publicity as a tax-fighter.
In addition to his $49,000 salary as a legislator, Rible continues to receive a state disability pension that pays $54,502 a year – without a second look from authorities.
Now 42, Rible is set for life. If he lives until 80, he will pocket another $2 million from the state pension fund. That would raise Rible’s jackpot to roughly $2.6 million, not including cost-of-living hikes or his medical coverage.
“I do oppose government waste, but I don’t see this as government waste,” said Rible, leaving his health club after a workout. “This is something that has been set forth in the rules of the pension.”
Politics, good work if you can get it.
A corrupt politician in New Jersey? Why I am astonished!!
Seriously, is anyone really surprised by this. I mean its New Jersey after all.
The VA is stupid about how it qualifies some people for disability too. Basically if you get out something that you didn’t have when you entered, you get disability for it; even for genetic ailments such as Psoriasis.
Jersey is the most corrupt state in the union. What’s going on here is clearly wrong.
However, and just to play devil’s advocate, let’s not forget that police really do have a high standard for fitness. Almost any injury can get one removed from the force, even if one wants to stay on it. I just met a friend of a friend who is a retired cop. He would love to be back on duty. His injury is quite minor. They won’t take him back. So, should he stop cashing his disability checks?
Would you? Even if your new job pays less? I wouldn’t.
This guy is indeed now getting two public salaries. However, imagine an alternate universe where politics really is a way to serve the public good (choke, gag, almost got that thought out with a straight face, but failed miserably). Now, in that very hypothetical utopia, has he not simply found an alternate way to serve the community to the best of his now very slightly diminished capacity?
Anyone know how his race times compare with non-injured competitors? I don’t follow any sports well enough to know.
OK, I’m going to crawl off and puke now. I just defended not only a Jersey politician, but a Repugnican to boot.
Er, almost EVERY California State Highway Patrol officer retires around age 51 on a medical disability, and gets full pay for life. “Um…my back hurts. Must have been all that sitting on my ass in the patrol car…” Duh.
Scott…the headline is apparently wrong, he runs 5k races. The time in the photo, 26:52, is slow…he’s not winning anything with that at age 42.
“tax-fighter”! That’s rich. You guys always make me laugh!
This would be easy to stop even in a corrupt system. He gets the disability pay but it gets diminished by any private income. If the guy decides not to work because he wants the disability, then that leaves that second job open for someone else. If he gets bored, then the disability that he doesn’t deserve to begin with get reduced.
Not an absolute fix but better than nothing and very easy to monitor and enforce, and it leaves the disabled with their own free choices.
Arguing for tax cuts while pigging out on the public dole is rather special though. MUST BE a Repuglican.
He could move to Indiana and start a scholarship fund that raises millions but never gives out a scholarship. the congressman here who does that uses the funds to hold golf outings. I’m sure this guy can play golf.
For the confused foreigners, Americans who are employed by big government organisations, especially those with guns and uniforms can retire at an early age if they can present medical certification papers that they are feeling unwell. Being unwell is not a hinderance to seeking public office in politics.
[Actually, I think it’s a prerequisite – ed.]
When its you getting the disability, its just the way the rules are set up. When its someone else, its government waste.
If the local head of the teacher’s union was also collecting disability while running races, working out at the health club and such, you know Assemblyman David P. Rible would be tireless in the defense of his fellow disabled pensioner. (sarcasm)
Wow,
Another corrupt politician… Who’d have thought?
#1 for the win
Suprise, Suprise, another republican playing “by the rules” they don’t like. Hey maybe this guy can run the Relay for Life for poor BP.
I mean pension and disablility, should he give it back to support my nephew’s Marine unit in Af-Pak? What a dick.
I’m sure this loser is one of the ones who boycotts paved (taxpayer) trails to run in the road in the dark. He’s hoping to get grazed by a bus so he can sue the local transit authority. Tea Party/Creationist better vote his ass out. If they don’t they suck worse than this loser.
Nice time fat ass.
This is a BS story, you haven’t even taken the time to check how long a marathon is! I can agree that it seems that he got a high pension but that doesn’t necessary make him a cheater.
All other considerations aside, unless you’re in the kind of shape I am, 5k is NOT a marathon.
“Suprise, Suprise, another republican playing “by the rules” they don’t like.”
I am glad he is a Republican. The vast majority of these government union double-dipping early retiree people vote (D), and if it wasn’t for this guy being an (R) people like (name deleted because I don’t want to be accused of attacking him) would never post about this critical issue.
These people, all of them, are leeches sucking us dry. The good news is we can no longer afford it, and governors like Chris Christie are stopping it. The bad news is Barry O’Bama wants to loot us federal taxpayers of somewhere between $50-$100 billion this year alone to keep the graft flowing.
Of course he is not going to hide it. He was a pig when he pulled this scam. They are not too smart and very very crooked. I had a friend who married a cop in chicago. You wouldnt believe the stories she would tell me. Before anybody gets go, no that wasnt the exception there werent any good ones. This would logically carry over into his political career which as everybody know, in the morning, is nothing but a scam no matter what. His assumption that he is untouchable may be true.
#16. I assume your talking about me. Yeah, I’m a real leftie…..have you ever read my posts?
Try to keep up, Louie.
McCullough said, “Yeah, I’m a real leftie…..have you ever read my posts?”
Of course he has, just like the one this a.m.: “Sen. Dodd (D) Awards 54 Million in Stimulus to Highly Profitable Casino”
That posting alone shows it.
#19–Anonsense==McCullough is clearly against that spending program. How does that indicate he is a lefty?
Please use English in your response.
I assume your talking about me. Yeah, I’m a real leftie…..have you ever read my posts?
At a wild guess he can’t lift. Ran into that with a fireman. His doctor had to put his back together and said no more lifting. You can run all you want. Climb all you want but you can’t lift more than a few pounds or you back goes out. He asked for desk duty and they put him on disability.
Then they found out he could still do most things and dumped him with no disability. Fact is if he tried to pick up a case of beans to put them on a store shelf he would most likely need major surgery. He is basically not employable.
Well, one of the very few times I agree with deowll. A friend of mine, now deceased, had a similar problem. There were some things he could do but others were out of the question. To most, he appeared in good health. To those who knew him though, he wasn’t.
Addiction to pain medication was the least of his worries. Relief from pain was. He could only stand for short periods. He could stand for short periods. But, he could ride his motorcycle with little discomfort.
With the gentle man at hand, we don’t know the severity of his disability. Running 5K though does sound like he might be exaggerating his condition, but WE don’t know.
It may be how the rules are set up, but Rible is clearly gaming the system. I agree with the notion that disability payments should be reduced by any amount of alternate income.
It’s too funny reading how people defend time and time again such a corrupt system. I really get a good chuckle out of it! And no, this problem isn’t unique to New jersey. It’s endemic.