Town of Ocean City officials release statement regarding political mailer

OCEAN CITY, Md. – Just days before the mayoral election in Ocean City, the town released a statement regarding a political mailer claiming that candidate, and current Council President Matt James, used an aerial surveying flight with Maryland State Police, as part of his political campaign.

City Manager Terry McGean was on the surveying flight with Council President James and City Engineer Brad Parks, and spoke to WMDT regarding the mailer.

“The most important thing was for everyone to understand, this was not a trip arranged for a political campaign.” Said McGean. “This was a damage assessment, a process that that we have done in the past.”

The aerial storm damage assessment took place following the nor’easter in September, where the town requested assistance from Maryland State Police to assess the coast and coordinate recovery. The mailer, which claims to be paid for by Truth For Maryland PAC, claimed that, “Matt James probably violated state ethics laws”.

McGean released a statement on November 1st, clarifying that the effort had no political intent, and was a regular task following a severe storm.

“The town does take the use of our own resources and state resources very seriously.” Said McGean. “And we would never jeopardize our relationship with the state police or waste resources on something that we didn’t feel was important.”

The released statement also included that the clarification “should not be interpreted as an endorsement of anyone seeking office.”