[Adopted 7-6-1925 by Ord. No. 3]
[Amended 3-1-1960 by Ord. No. 01-60; 10-18-1971 by Ord. No. 71-24; 12-16-1971 by Ord. No.
71-28; 7-12-1973 by Ord. No. 73-13;9-24-1973 by Ord. No. 73-17; 12-17-1973 by Ord. No. 73-23; 3-24-1975 by Ord. No. 75-6; 2-23-1976 by Ord. No. 76-1; 6-27-1989 by Ord. No. 89-10; 4-24-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-11; 1-24-2006 by Ord. No. 2005-38; 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13]
A.
There shall be in the Borough of Clementon a Police
Department which shall consist of a police force and such other civilian
personnel as the governing body should deem advisable and necessary,
which said positions shall be nominated and appointed by the Mayor
with the advice and consent of Council. The police force shall consist
of one Chief of Police and not more than one Lieutenant, four Sergeants,
10 full-time patrolmen, and three part-time patrolmen. Such employees
shall carry out and obey all orders and instructions of the Chief
of Police or, in his absence, his designee. In the event of an officer
in any of these positions being on leave immediately preceding an
announced retirement or a suspension with intent to dismiss, the governing
body may, for the efficiency of the Department, appoint a replacement
to serve in the vacant position. The governing body may also choose
to leave a position vacant to undertake a review of whether the current
table of organization is still beneficial to the police mission. The
governing body shall have up to one year from the effective date of
retirement or resignation to appoint/promote the replacement in order
to conduct a thorough, fair and competitive search and selection process.
B.
All of the
officers of said Police Department shall hold their offices during
good behavior and efficiency and obedience to the just rules and regulations
as shall be from time to time adopted and promulgated, until such
time as they shall be unable to discharge their duties; provided,
however, that any officer of said department may be removed for the
reasons and in the manner set forth herein.
[Added 6-5-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-10[1]]
C.
The Borough
Council may decrease the force for reasons of economy. In accordance
with N.J.S.A. 40A:14-143, the governing body, if it shall deem it
necessary for reasons of economy, may decrease the number of members
and officers of the Police Department or force or their grades or
ranks. In case of demotion from the higher ranks, the officers or
members to be so demoted shall be in the inverse order of their appointment.
When the service of members or officers is terminated, such termination
shall be in the inverse order of their appointment. Any member or
officer who is demoted or whose service is terminated by reason of
such decrease shall be placed on a special employment list, and in
the case of subsequent promotions, a person so demoted shall be reinstated
to his original rank, and in the case of termination of service and
new appointment, prior consideration shall be given to the person
on said special employment list.
D.
There shall
also be such clerical, secretarial and administrative employees, community
service officers, and school crossing guards as the governing body
shall appoint. Said employees shall not be members of the Police Department
within the meaning of any provision of Chapter 14, Title 40A, of the
Revised Statutes of New Jersey, as amended and supplemented. Such
employees shall carry out and obey all orders and instructions of
the Chief of Police or, in his absence, his designee.
[Added 10-28-1996 by Ord. No. 96-11]
A.
The Mayor and Council are hereby designated as the
appropriate authority pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:14-118.
B.
The Police Department of the Borough shall be under
the control of Council. The Chief of Police shall report to the Mayor
and Council. The Chairman of the Public Safety Committee shall act
as the liaison between the Chief of Police and the Mayor and Council.
[Amended 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13]
[Added 6-5-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-10[1]]
There is hereby adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Clementon for the purpose of adopting a Police Manual and Rules
and Regulations for the Operation, Government and Discipline of the
Police Department of the Borough of Clementon, that certain manual
entitled "Borough of Clementon — Police Manual," two
copies of which manual have been and how are filed in the office of
the Clerk of the Borough of Clementon, and the same is hereby adopted
and incorporated as if fully set forth herein at length, and shall
take effect from the date of this section.
A.
The aforesaid manual, entitled "Borough of Clementon — Police
Manual," when adopted, shall be posted by the Chief of Police within
five days of the adoption of this section in the Municipal Building
on the bulletin board assigned to the Police Department, and a copy
thereof shall be delivered to each and every member of the Department
within five days after the adoption thereof and/or any amendments
or repeals thereof. Each member of the Police Department shall, within
30 days from the delivery thereof, acknowledge that he/she has received
a copy thereof, has read the same and is familiar with the content
thereof.
B.
The manual herein may from time to time be amended and portions thereof
repealed by resolutions and/or ordinances of the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Clementon as provided by law.
C.
If any clause, sentence, subdivision, paragraph, section or part
of said Police Manual and Rules and Regulations for the Operation,
Government and Discipline of the Police Department of the Borough
of Clementon be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to
be invalid, said judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the
remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause,
sentence, subdivision, paragraph, section or part thereof directly
involved in the controversy in which said judgment shall have been
rendered.
[Added 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13[1]]
A.
There is
hereby established within the Police Department of the Borough of
Clementon a branch or division which shall be known as the “Detective
Division.” Said Division shall consist of such superior officers
and patrolmen who are members of the Borough Police Department as
may be necessary for the efficient operation of the Division.
B.
Members of
the Borough of Clementon Police Department may be assigned to and
reassigned from the Detective Division by the Chief of Police. Assignment
to and reassignment from the Detective Division shall in no way affect
the existing status, title, seniority or rights of such members of
the Police Department so assigned or reassigned, nor shall the creation
of the Detective Division and the assignment of members of the Police
Department thereto constitute the creation of a new office or rank
within the Police Department.
C.
The Detective
Division shall be in charge of all investigative activities of the
Police Department under the direction of the Chief of Police.
D.
The Detective
Division shall be charged with such duties and responsibilities and
shall perform functions as may be prescribed by the Department regulations
enacted by the Mayor and Council.
[Added 10-28-1985 by Ord. No. 85-21]
The Police Department created and established
by New Jersey law and this article shall have, in addition to the
usual powers, duties and obligations, the following authority to:
A.
Preserve the public peace, prevent crime, detect and
arrest offenders against the penal laws and ordinances effective within
the Borough, 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 or regulate,
direct, control and restrict the movement of vehicular and pedestrian
traffic and the use of streets by vehicles and persons and to make
rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the Charter, ordinance
and general law for such purposes.
C.
Remove 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.
D.
Provide proper police attendance and protection at
fires.
E.
Enforce the laws and ordinances in effect within the
Borough and prevent the violation of them by any person; apprehend
and arrest all persons legally charged with the violation of any law
or ordinance.
F.
Provide for the attendance of its police officers
or civilian employees in court as necessary for the prosecution and
trial of persons charged with crimes and other violations of the law
and cooperate fully with the law enforcement and prosecuting authorities
of federal, state and county governments.
G.
Operate a training program to maintain and improve
the police efficiency of the members of the Department.
[Added 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13[1]]
A.
The following
chain of command shall exist within the Police Department:
B.
Each rank/position
shall be subordinate to all higher ranks as illustrated above.
C.
Civilian
employees shall report to their assigned supervisor or his or her
designee, or in his/her absence, the ranking officer on duty.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former § 51-6,
Deputy Chief of Police, added 3-24-1975 by Ord. No. 75-6.
[Added 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13[1]]
Candidates for the position of Chief of Police shall participate
in a promotional procedure administered by the New Jersey Department
of Personnel. The reviewing committee, which shall be made up of the
Chairman of Public Safety Committee, Chairman of Administration Committee,
his/her designee(s) and the current Chief of Police (unless he/she
is involved in pending discipline or litigation with the Borough),
shall consider the following: the candidates’ knowledge of criminal
law and procedure, police science and police administration, leadership
and management ability, general knowledge of Clementon local government
and N.J.S.A. 40A:14-118, the candidates’ poise, alertness, ability
to communicate clearly and effectively, ability to effect good working
and public relations and moral character. To be considered for the
position of Chief of Police, the candidates must be serving the Borough
as Lieutenant or Sergeant and have served in such supervisory ranks
for a minimum of five years.
[Amended 7-12-1973 by Ord. No. 73-13; 2-27-1984 by Ord. No. 84-3; 10-28-1996 by Ord. No.
96-11]
A.
The Chief of Police shall be the head of the Police
Department and shall be responsible to the Mayor and Council as the
appropriate authority, through the Borough Administrator, for the
efficiency and routine day-to-day operations of the Department.
[Amended 9-24-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-19]
(1)
Administer and enforce rules and regulations and special
emergency directives for the disposition and discipline of the force
and its officers and personnel.
(2)
Have, exercise and discharge the functions, powers
and duties of the force.
(3)
Prescribe the duties and assignments of all subordinates
and other personnel.
(4)
Delegate such of his authority as he may deem necessary
for the efficient operation of the force to be exercised under this
direction and supervision.
(5)
Report monthly to the appropriate authority in such
form as shall be prescribed by the Mayor and Council on the operation
of the force during the preceding month and make such other reports
as may be requested by the appropriate authority.
B.
The control of the Police Department shall be vested
in the Police Chief, and the discipline of the members of the Department
shall be governed by the rules and regulations of the Borough of Clementon
Police Department. The Chief of Police shall enforce all rules and
regulations of the Borough of Clementon Police Department and any
general and special orders or instructions which he may from time
to time promulgate, provided that such general or special orders or
instructions do not conflict with the rules and regulations, orders
or instructions issued by resolution of the Mayor and Council. He
shall enforce all rules and regulations, orders or instructions, whether
promulgated by him or by the Mayor and Council.
C.
The Chief of Police shall recommend to the Mayor and
Council, from time to time, the purchase of new equipment or the repair
or rearrangement of such old equipment as will increase the efficiency
of the Department. He shall have full charge and control of all the
apparatus and equipment of the Department and its assignment and use
and shall be held responsible for its care, cleanliness and safekeeping.
[Amended 7-12-1973 by Ord. No. 73-13]
A.
No person shall be appointed to membership in said
Police Department who is not a citizen of the United States; who is
not 18 years of age at the time of his appointment; who has ever been
convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude; who cannot understandingly
and intelligently read and write the English language; or who shall
not be of good moral character, sound in body and in good health.
The governing body may also require that an applicant for appointment
to the Police Department shall successfully complete a physical, mental
and psychological examination.
[Amended 1-28-2003 by Ord. No. 2002-33]
B.
Any person hired as a police officer for the Borough
of Clementon with prior years' police experience may receive credit
for purposes of salary increments for the years of prior police service
up to a maximum of six years. This provision shall be retroactive
to January 1, 2002.
[Added 9-24-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-19; amended 7-25-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-15]
C.
The Borough
of Clementon is authorized pursuant to N.J.S.A. 11A:4-1.3 to hire
as an entry-level law enforcement officer a person who has successfully
completed a full Basic Course for Police Officers training course
at a school approved and authorized by the New Jersey Police Training
Commission.
[Added 8-17-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-09]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 51-9, Rules and regulations,
as amended, was repealed 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13.
Members of the Police Department, in addition
to the powers conferred upon them in criminal matters by the general
laws of the State of New Jersey, shall have power and it shall be
their duty to arrest, without warrant, any person by them found violating
any of the penal ordinances of said Borough or any of the laws of
the State of New Jersey, and to take such person before a proper magistrate
or any other person authorized under the law to hear, try and determine
the same, to be dealt with in a manner as if such person has been
arrested upon a warrant thereto duly issued by a magistrate or such
other officer. It shall be their duty to report to the Chief of Police
violations of laws and ordinances coming to their knowledge in any
way. Said members of the Police Department shall have full authority
to serve any and all process to enforce any penalty for the violations
of any law of the Borough and any subpoena or bench warrant issued
in connection therewith.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 51-10, Reprimand; grounds
for suspension, as amended, was repealed 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13.
[Added 11-27-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-13]
The permanent members of the 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 cause other than incapacity, misconduct or disobedience
of just rules and regulations established for the Department, and
then only on written charges and hearing in accordance with law.
[Added 10-28-1996 by Ord. No. 96-11; amended 9-22-1997 by Ord. No. 97-14; 7-27-1999 by Ord. No. 99-6; 12-18-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-13; 6-18-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-07]
All charges brought against members of the Police Department
that may result in a suspension, removal, fine or reduction in rank
shall be reviewed initially at an investigative conference conducted
by the Chief of Police.
A.
If as a
result of the investigative conference the Chief of Police determines
that a minor disciplinary action is appropriate, the Chief shall issue
a preliminary notice of minor disciplinary action ("notice") setting
forth the charges against the individual and the disciplinary action
that may be imposed.
(1)
If
the individual charged disputes the discipline, he or she may request
a hearing before a member of the Public Safety Committee or such other
person or persons designated by the Public Safety Committee in accordance
with due process of law. The request for hearing must be submitted
to the Public Safety Committee or its designee, in writing, within
five days after the individual charged is served with the preliminary
notice of minor disciplinary action. If a request for hearing is filed
within the time limit set forth herein, the hearing shall be conducted
within 30 days of the date of the preliminary notice of minor disciplinary
action. The Public Safety Committee or its designee and the individual
charged may consent to an adjournment to a later date. The individual
charged may be represented by a union representative or attorney at
the hearing. Within 20 days of the hearing provided in this section,
the Public Safety Committee member or his/her designee shall issue
either:
(a)
A final notice of minor disciplinary action consistent with the Chief's
original determination on the charges filed;
(b)
A modified final notice of minor disciplinary action if the dispute
warrants such modifications; or
(c)
A written notice rescinding the preliminary notice of minor disciplinary
action.
(2)
If
no request is made within this time or such additional time as agreed
to by the Public Safety Committee or its designee, the hearing shall
be deemed waived by the individual charged and the Chief shall issue
a final notice of minor disciplinary action consistent with the Chief's
determination on the charges filed.
B.
If as a
result of the investigative conference the Chief of Police determines
that a major disciplinary action is appropriate, the Chief shall issue
a preliminary notice of disciplinary action setting forth the charges
against the individual and the disciplinary action that may be imposed.
The individual charged may request a hearing before the governing
body. The request for hearing must be filed with the Borough Clerk,
in writing, within five days after the individual charged is served
with a copy of the preliminary notice of disciplinary action pursuant
to N.J.A.C. 4A:2-2.5(c). If no request is made within this time or
such additional time as agreed by the governing body, the hearing
shall be deemed waived by the individual charged and the Chief shall
issue a final notice of disciplinary action consistent with the Chief's
determination on the charges filed. If a request for hearing is filed
within the time limit set forth herein, the hearing shall be conducted
within 30 days of the date the preliminary notice of disciplinary
action pursuant to N.J.S.A. 11A:2-13. The governing body and the individual
charged may consent to an adjournment to a later date.
C.
The hearing
shall be conducted by the Borough Council or such other person or
persons designated by the Borough Council in accordance with due process
of law, and it shall examine whether or not there has been a violation
of any ordinance, rule, regulation, order or resolution of the governing
body or Police Department. The Borough Council may appoint a special
prosecutor to represent the Chief of Police/Police Department. The
individual charged may be represented by an attorney at the hearing.
The Borough Council or such other person or persons designated by
the Borough Council may impose penalties as it deems appropriate as
may be warranted by the character of the offense.
D.
Within 20 days of the hearing provided in Subsection B, the Borough Council or such other person or persons designated by the Borough Council shall make a final disposition of the charges against the individual and shall furnish the individual with a written notice setting forth its findings and the discipline imposed against the individual.
[Added 10-28-1996 by Ord. No. 96-11; amended 9-22-1997 by Ord. No. 97-14]
A.
If the Borough Council or such other person or persons
designated by the Borough Council decides to impose "minor disciplinary
action," defined as a suspension of five days or less, a fine in an
amount equal to five days' pay or less or a demotion of five days
or less, the Borough Council shall issue a notice of minor disciplinary
action which shall not be appealable; provided, however, that the
suspension or fine of an individual for five days or less shall be
appealable if an individual's aggregate number of days suspended or
fined in any one calendar year is 15 days or more. Where an individual
receives more than three suspensions or fines of five or less days
in a calendar year, the last suspension or fine is appealable.
[Amended 7-27-1999 by Ord. No. 99-6]
B.
If, as a result of the hearing, the Borough Council
or such other person or persons designated by the Borough Council
determines that the individual is to be removed, demoted or receive
a suspension greater than five days or a fine in excess of an amount
equal to five days' pay, the Borough Council shall issue a final notice
of disciplinary action setting forth its findings and the discipline
imposed. The individual shall have a right to appeal this decision
to the Merit System Board.
[Amended 7-27-1999 by Ord. No. 99-6]
