Cathy Richardson returns to the Lowell Sun Politcal gossip column this Sunday morning:
“DESPITE THE heavy baggage she will carry into the election, Dracut Selectman Cathy Richardson
may still seek to retain her seat on the board.
Reached before the beginning of her trial in February — she faces five counts of animal cruelty — Richardson said that she had not yet made up her mind on whether she would run for another three-year term. Her trial has been postponed until April.
Richardson pulled nomination papers on Wednesday. She said Saturday she still may not run.
Richardson will still have to face a jury before the May 2 election, but the March 14 deadline to return nomination papers is fast approaching.
Unlike last year, when only two candidates vied for a single selectman’s seat, this year boasts a robust field.
Selectmen Chairman Tony Archinski is the only candidate so far to have returned completed nomination papers. Housing Authority Commissioner Jesse Forcier and Permanent Building Committee memberPhil Thibault, who narrowly lost to Selectman Joseph DiRocco Jr. last year, round out the candidates for two selectmen seats.
When Richardson last ran in 2013, she came in second behind Archinski by less than 100 votes. In that race, she edged out incumbent selectmen George Malliaros,who coincidentally is back on the ballot this year, albeit as the sole candidate so far for town moderator.”