HIGHTSTOWN: Borough hires civilian police director from Lacey Township

By Jen Samuel, Managing Editor
HIGHTSTOWN – James K. Le Tellier, of Lacey Township, will take the helm Tuesday morning as the borough’s first civilian police director.
   The Hightstown Police Department has 10 sworn officers.
   Borough Council voted 6-0 to approve a resolution to hire Mr. Le Tellier, granting him a three-year contract, at Monday night’s council meeting.
   His salary is set for $75,000 annually for 2012 and 2013; the contract calls for a three percent increase in 2014.
   Mr. Le Tellier replaces acting police director Sgt. Frank Gendron, who began serving Hightstown in that capacity on Sept. 1.
  Concurrently on Sept. 1, former Chief of Police James Eufemia retired from the Police Department,  only days after Hurricane Irene devastated the borough with unprecedented floodwaters.
   Prior to leaving office, Mr. Eufemia was paid $175,000 annually, as previously reported in the Herald.
 However, an August move by the Borough Council to create the civilian police director position eliminated the role of police chief in Hightstown.
   Now, a civilian with extensive law enforcement experience will oversee the Hightstown Police Department. He will report directly to the Borough of Hightstown.
   Prior to retiring in 2005, Mr. Le Tellier served as a lieutenant and division commander for the Lacey Township Police Department.
   Further, he holds a master’s degree in administrative science from Fairleigh Dickinson University.  He earned a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice from Thomas Edison State College. Mr. Le Tellier is also a graduate of the West Point Command and Leadership Program.
   Mr. Le Tellier is the first person to permanently fill the borough’s relatively new police director position. The Borough Council approved the position with a 3-2 vote on Aug. 15.
   The early stages of the hiring process began soon thereafter with more than 50 applicants applying to the position.
   In the end, it was Mr. Le Tellier who won out.
   "She’s happy for me,” Mr. Le Tellier said of his wife on Monday night.
    For more, pick up Friday’s edition of the Herald.