[Adopted 10-2-2000 by Ord. No. 1311]
The Mayor and Council of the Borough of River Edge will certify by resolution that a position of entry level police officer is or will be vacant and may be filled and that a resolution will be distributed by the Borough Clerk to the Police Chief and the Borough Administrator.
In order to be considered for the rank of police officer, the prospective applicant must meet the following qualifications for a probationary police officer:
A. 
Age: must be at least 21 years of age.
B. 
Citizenship: must be a citizen of the United States.
C. 
Morality: of good moral character; never convicted of any criminal offense involving moral turpitude, any offense involving dishonesty or a crime of the third degree or above.
D. 
Residency: must live within the State of New Jersey at the time of appointment and thereafter.
E. 
Medical: applicant should be medically fit and sound exhibiting no physical impairment which would render the applicant incapable of performing the essential functions of a police officer, with or without reasonable accommodation.
F. 
Tests: applicant must pass and attain each cut-off score or level, as further described in this article, on each prescribed examination of physical agility or fitness, written, medical and psychiatric/psychological.
G. 
Background: candidates will undergo a thorough background investigation, which may include but not be limited to FBI, State Police, local police, schools, credit bureau, family, driving record, etc., at the discretion of the Chief of Police. Candidate must possess a valid New Jersey Division of Motor Vehicles drivers license at the time of the appointment. The license shall not be suspended or revoked at the time of the appointment.
H. 
Application: the prospective applicant must fill out completely the Borough application form, provide all required documents, pay the required fee and submit both on a timely basis.
I. 
English language: the candidate must be able to read, write and speak the English language well and intelligently.
A. 
The Mayor and Council shall direct the staff, by resolution, as to the desired testing and selection procedure prescribed herein.
B. 
The Mayor and Council may direct the staff to proceed with a "traditional," or an "alternate" testing and selection procedure, or both. If the Mayor and Council desire to simultaneously proceed with both procedures, the staff shall segregate the testing procedures and produce two separate lists for the Mayor and Council to rank and select from.
A. 
All candidates shall meet the qualification section of this policy.
(1) 
Failure to meet an acceptable passing grade, cut-off score or level as described in other sections of this article on any written test, psychological test, agility or physical fitness test, or medical exam, will end the candidate's consideration in the selection process.
(2) 
Written test. All candidates for promotion to the rank of police officer must first, as the initial step, successfully complete a written examination, conducted by an outside testing agency appointed by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of River Edge, and meet the cut-off score established by the Mayor and Council.
(3) 
The examination used for selection will be designed by an outside testing agency, which will score the tests. The candidate's identity shall be concealed. Each candidate will be given an envelope containing a numbered card. They will sign the card and use the number to identify the examination paper. The signed cards will be put back into envelopes and sealed. They will be retained by the Borough in a secure manner.
(4) 
The outside testing agency will receive tests, which will be identified only by number, and will report all scores.
(5) 
The Mayor and Council shall accept and consider any number of the highest ranking scores, as may be necessary in their determination, above the passing score of 70. Only after the highest scores to be considered have been determined will the identification of the candidates be released to the Mayor and Council.
(6) 
Candidates below the highest scores considered by the Mayor and Council will not be permitted to continue with the recruitment process unless the Mayor and Council decide that it is necessary to consider additional candidates from the above list. Continuing/Rejection notification will be made by the Police Department to the applicants.
(7) 
Any applicant who meets all qualifications, and who is also a veteran as defined in N.J.S.A. 11A:51b, shall receive a bonus of two points added to his/her written test score to be added to the score represented by the outside testing agency. Any candidate who is a resident of the Borough of River Edge shall receive a bonus of two points added to his/her written test score, to be added to the score reported by the outside testing agency.
B. 
Physical agility or fitness test.
(1) 
All candidates for promotion to the rank of police officer must complete a physical agility or fitness test. The test will be administered to all applicants who are permitted to proceed in the recruitment process.
(2) 
The test may be administered by the Borough of River Edge Police Department or, at the Borough's option, by an outside testing agency. The test may be comprised of several physical components which may include, but may not be limited to: speed, strength, cardiovascular and muscular endurance, flexibility and power. Each candidate must provide a medical release prior to taking the test. A cut-off score of 70 will be considered passing by the Borough of River Edge Police Department or the outside testing agency. Candidates will be required to score above the cut-off score in order to continue in the recruitment process. The Borough of River Edge Police Department or the outside testing agency will provide the Assessment Center with a ranking of high scores to low scores for all individuals tested. Continuing/Rejection notification will be made by the Police Department to the applicants.
C. 
Assessment center.
(1) 
The Police Chief and a number of police officers, to be selected by the Chief of Police, shall act as an Assessment Center to rank and limit the pool of candidates to be recommended to the Mayor and Council for final interviews and selection.
(2) 
The Assessment Center shall conduct its own interview of the candidates where consideration may be given to: problem-solving aptitude and reasoning ability; appearance, manner and speech; adaptability and judgment; general impressions. All candidates who are interviewed by the Assessment Center will receive the same primary questions. The Assessment Center shall consider the application, written test results, physical agility and/or fitness results, resume, writing sample and interview of all candidates and will create a list of acceptable candidates, in rank order, for further consideration by the Mayor and Council.
(3) 
The Police Department will perform a background investigation on candidates recommended to the Mayor and Council for final interviews and selection. The purpose of the background investigation is to validate the information provided by the candidate and verify the ability or attributes of the candidate to meet the qualifications as previously stated.
D. 
Selection and ranking for list of eligible police officer candidates.
(1) 
Interviews will be conducted by the Mayor and Council to select and rank the candidates. The Borough Administrator and Police Chief will be present, and other superior officers may be present, to assist. The Mayor and Council shall conduct its own interview where consideration may be given to: problem-solving aptitude and reasoning ability; appearance, manner and speech; adaptability and judgment; general impressions. All candidates who are interviewed will receive the same primary questions. The Mayor and Council shall then rank the candidates from high to low, and this list shall constitute the list of eligible candidates for hiring as a probationary police officer.
(2) 
A probationary period of one year shall be served or as stated in the current contract in effect.
(3) 
The Mayor and Council may select an applicant from the list developed. The selection will be made by secret ballot of the governing body. Four out of seven votes will prevail. There will be no veto power.
E. 
After a conditional offer of employment is made, and before the candidate begins his/her employment duties, the candidate may be required to undergo an evaluation, including an oral interview and other clinical testing, made by a licensed psychologist, psychiatrist or professional psychological service organization, designated by the Mayor and Council, which determines that the candidate is free from any emotional or mental condition which might adversely affect the performance of law enforcement duties.
F. 
Medical exam. After a conditional offer of employment is made, and before the candidate begins their employment duties, they shall be required to pass a medical exam. The medical exam will be performed by a physician or a qualified medical provider which the Borough will select and pay for. The medical exam is scored on a pass/fail basis.
G. 
Duration of list. The ranking achieved in any testing period will be valid for 18 months from when the resolution is passed memorializing the list. The Mayor and Council reserve the right to renew the list as often as they desire for a renewal period of up to 12 months.
A. 
Qualifications.
(1) 
All candidates shall meet the qualifications section of this policy and the following:
(a) 
The candidate shall, by the time an appointment is made by the Borough, hold a valid certification from a New Jersey Police Training Commission-approved police academy, with graduation having had occurred within the past three years; or
(b) 
The candidate shall presently be a New Jersey law enforcement officer employed by said agency; or
(c) 
The candidate shall have been employed as a New Jersey law enforcement officer within the past three years.
(2) 
Failure to meet an acceptable or passing grade, score or level as described in other sections herein will end the candidate's consideration in the selection procedure.
(3) 
Written test. The Mayor and Council may decide to hold a written examination conducted by an outside testing agency appointed by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of River Edge. All candidates for promotion to the rank of Police Officer as the first initial step must successfully complete the written examination and meet the cut-off score established by the Mayor and Council.
(4) 
The examination used for selection will be designed by an outside testing agency, which will score the tests. The candidates' identity shall be concealed. Each candidate will be given an envelope containing a numbered card. They will sign the card and use the number to identify the examination paper. The signed cards will be put back into the envelopes and sealed. They will be retained by the Borough in a secure manner.
(5) 
The outside testing agency will receive tests, which will be identified only by number, and will report all scores.
(6) 
The Mayor and Council shall accept and consider any number of the highest ranking scores, as may be necessary in their determination, above the passing score of 70. Only after the highest scores to be considered have been determined will the identification of candidates be released to the Mayor and Council.
(7) 
Candidates below the highest scores considered by the Mayor and Council will not be permitted to continue with the recruitment process unless the Mayor and Council decide that it is necessary to consider additional candidates from the above list. Continuing/Rejection notification will be made by the Police Department to the applicants.
(8) 
Any applicant who meets the above qualifications, and who is also a veteran as defined in N.J.S.A. 11A:51b, shall receive a bonus of two points added to his/her written test score, to be added to the score reported by the outside testing agency. Any candidate who is a resident of the Borough of River Edge shall receive a bonus of two points added to his/her written test score, to be added to the score reported by the outside testing agency.
B. 
Assessment Center.
(1) 
The Police Chief and a number of police officers, to be selected by the Chief of Police, shall act as an Assessment Center to rank and limit the pool of candidates to be recommended to the Mayor and Council for final interviews and selection.
(2) 
The Assessment Center shall conduct its own interview of the candidates where consideration may be given to: problem-solving aptitude and reasoning ability; appearance, manner, and speech; adaptability and judgment; general impressions. All candidates who are interviewed by the Assessment Center will receive the same primary questions. The Assessment Center shall consider the application, written test results, physical agility and/or fitness results, resume, writing sample and interview of all candidates and will create a list of acceptable candidates, in rank order, for further consideration by the Mayor and Council.
(3) 
The Police Department will perform a background investigation on candidates recommended to the Mayor and Council for final interviews and selection. The purpose of the background investigation is to validate the information provided by the candidate and verify the ability or attributes of the candidate to meet the qualifications as stated above.
C. 
Selection and ranking for a list of eligible police officer candidates.
(1) 
Interviews will be conducted by the Mayor and Council to select and rank the candidates. The Borough Administrator and Police Chief will be present, and other superior officers may be present, to assist. The Mayor and Council shall conduct its own interview where consideration may be given to: problem-solving aptitude and reasoning ability; appearance, manner and speech; adaptability and judgment; general impressions. All candidates who are interviewed will receive the same primary questions. The Mayor and Council shall then rank the candidates from high to low, and this list shall constitute the list of eligible candidates for hiring as a probationary officer.
(2) 
A probationary period of one year shall be served, or as stated in the current contract in effect.
(3) 
The Mayor and Council may select an applicant from the list developed. The selection will be made by secret ballot of the governing body. Four out of seven votes will prevail. There will be no veto power.
D. 
After a conditional offer of employment is made, and before the candidate begins his/her employment duties, the candidate may be required to undergo an evaluation, including an oral interview and other clinical testing, made by a licensed psychologist, psychiatrist or professional psychological service organization, designated by the Mayor and Council, which determines that the candidate is free from any emotional or mental condition which might adversely affect the performance of law enforcement duties.
E. 
Medical exam. After a conditional offer of employment is made and before the candidate begins his/her employment duties, the candidate may be required to pass a medical exam. The medical exam will be performed by a physician or a qualified medical provider whom the Borough will select and pay for. The medical exam is scored on a pass/fail basis.
F. 
Duration of the list. The ranking of candidates achieved in any testing period will be valid for 18 months from when the resolution is passed memorializing the list. The Mayor and Council reserve the right to renew the list as often as they desire for a renewal period of up to 12 months.