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CH Town Council Member Czajkowski and ex-UNC VP Etta Pisano investigated by conservative South Carolina watchdog group

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Democracy & Open Government

More Information:

http://scthenerve.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/sc-launch-grant-to-musc-dean%e2%80%99…

Comments

Before you ask...

Submitted by Ruby Sinreich on October 6, 2011 - 12:08am

... I called the group conservative because their About page says "We promote ideas like limited government, free enterprise and individual liberty."

And in case you don't make it all the way down to the bit about Matt C, here's a quote:

Czajkowski, NextRay’s CEO, has had some of his past activities scrutinized, as well.
Czajkowski has a long history in corporate America, working for such well-known entities as Goldman Sachs and Bankers Trust Co. In 1997, he joined Pozen Inc., a Chapel Hill drug development company, and within a year helped take the company public.
Czajkowski resigned as CFO of Pozen Inc. in early 2004, just as the Chapel Hill drug development company was trying to get its first product, an experimental migraine treatment, approved by regulators.
Czajkowski, who had been with Pozen since March 1997, resigned for personal and family reasons, the company said.
Shareholders sued Czajkowski and other Pozen executives in June 2004, claiming they artificially inflated the stock price, but a judge dismissed the suit because the plaintiffs had not directly demanded any remedy from Pozen’s board of directors as required by law in Delaware, where Pozen is incorporated, the News & Observer of Raleigh reported.
Later that year, Czajkowski took a job with AAIPharma, a publicly traded pharmaceutical company in North Carolina. By May 2005, AAIPharma had declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and four former AAIPharma executives were later named in a shareholder lawsuit, though Czajkowski was not among them.
Shortly after emerging from Chapter 11 protection in March 2006, AAIPharma announced that Czajkowski had been replaced as executive vice president and chief financial officer.
An AAIPharma spokesman at the time declined to comment to the Triangle Business Journal about whether Czajkowski was fired, and denied that the executive change had anything to do with the company’s financial woes.
In June 2007, Aldagen Inc. brought on Czajkowski as its chief financial officer, but his employment with the Durham, N.C., biotech company was terminated in January 2008, according to information filed with the SEC.
In his disclosure report filed with Orange County, N.C., for his 2009 campaign for Chapel Hill Town Council, Czajkowski listed himself as retired. It’s not clear exactly when he became chief executive of NextRay.

Misleading

Submitted by Terri Buckner on October 6, 2011 - 8:54am

As I read this article, the investigation seems to be focused on the South Carolina group that awarded the $25,000 grant money. I don't see anywhere in this article that they are accusing Pisano or Czajkowski of doing anything wrong with respect to the grant or the application.

Pisano/Czajkowski

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on October 7, 2011 - 11:28pm

They are kicking up a fuss because MUSC, where Dr. Pisano is now dean, will not get any royalties or make money if the company, NextRay, becomes profitable. UNC would receive money per agreement for having aided the company to create its product.

Questions

Submitted by Ruby Sinreich on October 10, 2011 - 10:19am

Yes, but it does raise potential ethical issues. For example, Matt reported on his campaign filing in 2009 that he was retired, but then was listed as the CEO of NextRay. Did he file a misleading report? Could there be others?Also, when a candidate touts their business experience as a qualification for office, I think it's fair to investigate that experience a little more closely.

Matt's report this year

Submitted by James Barrett on October 10, 2011 - 10:22am

Also includes Etta as a contributor with a CH address. Is she still living here?

Still Owns Property

Submitted by George C on October 10, 2011 - 11:28am

I believe that Dr. Pisano still owes property here on Majestic Court. Although her residency in South Carolina would presumably mean that she (will) votes there, if she still owns property in Chapel Hill I wouldn't be surprised if she still maintains some interest in what happens at the Council level.

How to find info without damaging reputation

Submitted by Terri Buckner on October 10, 2011 - 11:06am

Ruby,If you want to know the answer to your questions, why not ask Matt first before you broadcast something so negative? It is my understanding that Matt serves in the CEO position as a volunteer because he believes in the value of this technology.Radiation is very hard on the body. Once you get a cancer diagnosis, you are subjected to repeated tests, all of which are valuable for diagnosis and treatment but which can have a negative side effects on quality of life. Any technology that can reduce the amount of radiation a healthy person is subjected too, and especially what someone who is already sick is subjected to, should be supported.To me, this is like the thread on CH Watch where Penny's ethics were challenged. It's divisive and has no news value, and it threatens the value of the underlying story (the innovation in this story, the retiring principal in the CHW story). If you think it's important, do your investigation privately and then write about the results. Don't just quote sections of someone else's report that weren't even the main topic of the story you are referencing. James--Etta Pisano lives in Charleston SC.

Investigation

Submitted by Ruby Sinreich on October 10, 2011 - 5:20pm

I wish I had time to research the many issues I'm concerned about in Chapel Hill. I have occasionally called or e-mailed a "source" to confirm something, but between work, family, and helping to run OP, I don't really have the time or attention to do that regularly. As a result, I try to limit my posts to things I know first-hand or to informed opinions that are not stated as hard facts. Sometimes I have to just raise a question here and hope someone can answer it. (As with campaign finance reports, which I have not had a chance to look at myself.)Maybe instead of raising money to pay for OP's web hosting, we should do a campaign to fund an actual reporter to do some journalism around here. :-\

Ms. Sinreich says "limit my

Submitted by Poppalax on October 11, 2011 - 3:47pm

Ms. Sinreich says "limit my posts to things I know first-hand".Where is the "first hand" knowledge in your first post? All I see is opinion by a group in South Carolina. All you have done is sling mud.

Reportage

Submitted by Ruby Sinreich on October 12, 2011 - 8:21am

I should have mentioned that, yes I often link out to reports by others such as local journalists. Since I can't attend many meetings in person, I rely greatly on their reporting.In this case I also linked to an article written by someone else. It seems pretty well-researched to me, at least as reputable/credible as most of our local media. In this case, I added no editorializing at all other than the title of the post and my subsequent comments.Are you saying I shouldn't have posted the link at all? As I said above, I think it's information that some folks might want to know. Especially given Matt's emphasis on his own business experience as a qualification for office, it merits a little more insight and analysis about what that experience is.

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