New Jackson
police officers
begin training
By Joyce Blay
Staff Writer
JACKSON — Five new Jackson police officers were scheduled to begin training on Monday at the Ocean County Police Academy, Lakewood.
Public Safety Director Samuel DePasquale said the hiring of the five officers increases Jackson’s police force to 83 individuals. He also told the Tri-Town News that all five civil service candidates hired for the job would start the five- to six-month training program at a salary of $31,000 each. DePasquale said administrators are still negotiating the salaries at which the new officers would begin their careers after graduating from the police academy.
DePasquale introduced the four men and one woman who have been hired for the positions at the July 28 meeting of the Township Committee. Although all five are Jackson residents, each brings a different background and qualifications to the job.
John Rodriguez, 21, has a bachelor of science degree from The College of New Jersey, Ewing. Rodriguez, whose father was employed in law enforcement, previously worked in finance at Johnson and Johnson before deciding to apply for the job as a police officer.
"I feel this career will prove to be more fulfilling," he told the Tri-Town News before being introduced at the committee meeting.
Campbell Brown, 29, is currently working as a police dispatcher in Lakewood, where he has been employed for the past two years. The move to police officer represents an opportunity to work in a new area of law enforcement, said Brown.
Eric Prosniewski, 33, the oldest of the candidates, said he considers being a police officer to be an honest and satisfying profession.
Cassie Nivison, 23, is the only woman selected for training as a police officer. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in criminal justice from the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Pomona, and is currently employed as a correction officer with the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission. She viewed her new job as a step up in her career.
Alex Crinnian, 21, has an associate’s degree in criminal justice from Ocean County College, Toms River. He said he has spent the past five years as a volunteer auxiliary police officer.
DePasquale said four more police officers will be hired in December for the next academy class. He also said the department would be selecting officers to participate in the Police in Schools grant program by September or October. That program funded the hiring of four new police officers by the township last fall.
According to township manager John Kennedy, the money for hiring the nine new officers (five now; four in December) was allocated in the 2003 budget that was approved earlier this year.