The director of the Department of Public Safety shall be the
Business Administrator until such time as the Mayor appoints a director.
The Department of Public Safety shall consist of three divisions:
[Amended 3-6-2012 by Ord.
No. 2-12]
A.
The Police Department shall consist of a Chief of Police, who shall
be appointed by the Director of the Department of Public Safety, and
shall be the head of the Police Department and not more than one captain,
not more than two lieutenants, not more than six sergeants, and not
more than 24 patrol officers. The officers and members of the Police
Department shall be appointed and designated by the Director of the
Department of Public Safety and shall receive such salary as the Township
Council may determine.
[Amended 6-11-2019 by Ord. No. 12-19; 5-3-2022 by Ord. No. 12-22]
B.
The officers and members of the Police Department shall be appointed
and designated by the Director of the Department of Public Safety
and shall receive such salary as the Township Council may determine.
C.
The Director of the Department of Public Safety shall serve as the
"appropriate authority" as same is defined in N.J.S.A. 40A:14-118,
to whom the Chief of Police shall be directly responsible for the
efficiency and routine day-to-day operations of the Department.
All ordinances and regulations of the Township governing the
operation and duties of the Police Department shall remain in force
and effect, except to the extent that they are inconsistent with the
provisions of this code. In addition thereto, the Police Department
shall:
A.
Preserve the public peace, protect life and property, prevent crime,
detect and arrest offenders against the penal laws and ordinances
effective within the Township, suppress riots, mobs and insurrections,
disperse unlawful or dangerous assemblages, and preserve order at
all elections and public meetings and assemblages.
B.
Administer and enforce laws and ordinances to regulate, direct, control
and restrict the movement of vehicular and pedestrian traffic, and
the use of the streets by vehicles and persons, to protect the safety
and facilitate the convenience of motorists and pedestrians.
C.
Remove or cause to be removed all nuisances in the public streets,
parks and other public places, inspect and observe all places of public
amusement or assemblage and all places of business requiring any state
or municipal license or permit, and report thereon to the appropriate
department.
D.
Provide proper police attendance and protection at fires.
E.
Provide for the attendance of its members in court as necessary for
the prosecution and trial of persons charged with crimes and offenses,
and cooperate fully with the law enforcement and prosecuting authorities
of federal, state, and county governments.
F.
Operate a training program to maintain and improve the police efficiency
of the members of the Department.
G.
Administer and enforce rules and regulations and special emergency
directives issued by the Director of Public Safety for the disposition,
conduct and discipline of the force and its officers and personnel.
[Added by 3-6-2012 by Ord. No. 2-12]
A.
Each officer or member of the Police Department shall be a citizen
of the United States and a resident of the State of New Jersey, be
of good moral character, sound in body and in good health and shall
comply with all eligibility requirements as set forth in the laws
of the State of New Jersey. In addition, every member and officer
shall be a high school graduate.
B.
Probational appointment to the Police Department shall be for a period
of at least one year, and, to qualify for permanent appointment, an
officer must have passed a medical and psychological examination and
have received a qualifying certificate of completion from the Police
Training Commission in accordance with the laws of the State of New
Jersey.
C.
No person shall be appointed an officer or member of the Police Department
who has been convicted of a crime constituting an indictable offense
or one involving moral turpitude or who is not within the age limits
specified by law.
[Added by 3-6-2012 by Ord. No. 2-12]
The members of this Police Department shall hold their offices
and employment during good behavior and efficiency, and no person
shall be removed from office or employment for political reasons,
or for any other cause than incapacity, misconduct or disobedience
of the rules and regulations established for the Department, and then
only on written charges and hearing in accordance with the rules and
regulations of the Department and the laws of the State of New Jersey,
including N.J.S.A. 40A:14-147, provided that, except as otherwise
provided by law, any member of the Department who shall be absent
from duty without just cause for the term of five days continuously
shall, at the expiration of the five days, cease to be a member of
the Police Department, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40A:14-122.
[Added by 3-6-2012 by Ord. No. 2-12; amended 6-13-2017 by Ord. No. 10-17]
A.
There may also be appointed not more than eight Class I and eight
Class II and eight Class III special law enforcement officers in accordance
with N.J.S.A. 40A:14-146.8 et seq. Such special law enforcement officers
shall meet the qualifications set forth in N.J.S.A. 40A:14-146.10
and be trained in accordance with the standards of the Police Training
Commission. Such special law enforcement officers shall be under the
instructions of the Chief of Police, be subject to such rules and
regulations as applicable to the Police Department, and shall be appointed
for a term not exceeding one year, but may be appointed, reappointed
or employed as the occasion demands. The Chief of Police may authorize
special law enforcement officers when on duty to exercise the same
powers and authority as regular members of the Police Department,
subject to the certification and training requirements of N.J.S.A.
40A:14-146.11, including the carrying of firearms and the power of
arrest. Such special law enforcement officers shall not be members
of the Police Department. Their powers, rights and duties shall immediately
cease and terminate at the expiration of the term for which they were
appointed.
B.
There shall be three classifications of special officers. The Police
Training Commission shall prescribe by rule or regulation the training
standards to be established for each classification. The classifications
shall be based on the duties to be performed by the special law enforcement
officer, as follows:
(1)
Class I. Officers of this class shall be authorized to perform routine
traffic detail, spectator control and similar duties. Class I officers
shall have the power to issue summonses for disorderly persons and
petty disorderly persons offenses, violations of Township ordinances
and violations of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes. The use of a firearm
by an officer of this class shall be strictly prohibited. No Class
I officer shall be assigned any duties which may require the carrying
or use of a firearm.
(2)
Class II. Officers of this class shall be authorized to exercise
full powers and duties similar to those of a permanent, regularly
appointed full-time police officer. The use of a firearm by an officer
of this class may be authorized only after the officer has been fully
certified as successfully completing training as prescribed by the
Police Training Commission.
(3)
Class
III.
(a)
Officers
of this class shall be authorized to exercise full powers and duties
similar to those of a permanent, regularly appointed full-time police
officer while providing security at a public or nonpublic school or
a county college on the school or college premises during hours when
the public or nonpublic school or county college is normally in session
or when it is occupied by public or nonpublic school or county college
students or their teachers or professors. While on duty in the jurisdiction
of employment, an officer may respond to offenses or emergencies off
school or college grounds if they occur in the officer's presence
while traveling to a school facility or county college, but an officer
shall not otherwise be dispatched or dedicated to any assignment off
school or college property.
(b)
The
use of a firearm by an officer of this class shall be authorized pursuant
to the provisions of Subsection b of Section 7 of P.L. 1985, c. 439
(N.J.S.A. 40A:14-146.14). An officer of this class shall not be authorized
to carry a firearm while off duty unless the officer complies with
the requirements set forth in Subsection l of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-6, authorizing
a retired law enforcement officer to carry a handgun.
[Added by 3-6-2012 by Ord. No. 2-12]
The Director of the Department of Public Safety shall prescribe
rules and regulations respecting the Department.
The Fire Department shall consist of members of the volunteer
Fire Department of the Township which shall include the First Aid
Squad.
The Fire Chief shall be the chief executive officer of the Fire
Department. He shall be elected annually from among the members of
the Fire Department.
The Fire Department shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the
control, fighting and extinguishing of any conflagration which occurs
within Township limits, and shall have such other duties and authority
as shall be vested in the Fire Department by general law or by ordinance.
The Fire Department shall promulgate such rules and regulations and
conduct its operations in a manner consistent with state law and Township
ordinances subject to the approval of the director of the Department
of Public Safety.
The head of the Division of Fire Inspection and Prevention shall
be the Fire Marshal. He shall be appointed by the Mayor, with the
advice and consent of the Council, for a term of one year. The Fire
Marshal shall have those powers and duties as set forth in the fire
prevention code of the Township.
Within the Department of Public Safety, there shall exist the
position of Police and Fire Surgeon. The appointment shall be made
by the Director of the Department of Public Safety. The Police and
Fire Surgeon shall perform those duties prescribed and required by
local ordinance and by general law. The Police and Fire Surgeon shall
also be the Township Physician.
