Settlement discussions between a former village council member and the remaining defendants accused of using municipal resources to spy on her e-mail account will begin this week in federal court. Theresa Steinbach originally filed her complaint against Mayor Anthony Calderone, the municipality and officer Craig Lundt, but a judge dismissed the allegations against the mayor because the statute of limitations had expired.
Steinbach, a political rival of the mayor’s during her time in office until 2007, alleged that the defendants hacked into her municipal e-mail account and read private messages. Evidence of such access from a laptop belonging to Calderone was found, but the user logged into the system with Lundt’s password. Employee records submitted to the court state that Lundt was not at work the day his password was used on the mayor’s laptop. The mayor has steadfastly denied spying on the former commissioner.
According to a judge’s order, the remaining parties are to have exchanged settlement terms by Jan. 13, and will meet on Jan. 15 to discuss the offers.
