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MANVILLE: Dispatchers becoming newest borough officers

By Mary Ellen Day, Special Writer
   Manville has hired two new police officers, replacing officers who have retired.
   The two officers were sworn in at Monday night’s Borough Council meeting in front of their fellow officers and families after the mayor and council passed a resolution to hire them with a starting salary of $48,118 each.
   Richard Ozieblo and Christopher Morrison became the newest members of the force. Both men previously were police dispatchers in Manville for the past two and a half years, making them “an excellent fit,” said Chief Mark Peltack, who thanked the mayor and council for allowing the hiring of the two.
   At the Jan. 5 reorganization meeting, Mayor Angelo Corradino said the police department has been working short staffed for the last 10 years. Last year two officers retired, creating a serious staffing problem.
   The mayor congratulated the department’s officers “for being able to pick up the slack during these trying times.”
   He also thanked the officers “for realizing the financial situation of the town” and agreeing to a four-year contract consisting of no increase for 2012 and increases of 1.5, 1 and 2 percent for the next three years.
   Both new officers are 25 years old. Mr. Ozieblo is a Manville resident and a graduate of Manville High School and Kean University. Mr. Morrison graduated from Immaculata High School and Moravian College and is a Middlesex resident.
   When the two became dispatchers, neither had any idea they wanted to become police officers, according to Chief Peltack.
   ”They took the test just like everyone else, and they both came out on top,” he said.
   The officers will attend the Union County Police Academy beginning Jan. 25. They are expected to graduate in June. They will be doing general patrol work after graduation.
   ”We limited the applications to 100 people, and we got the 100,” the chief said. “Both Rich and Chris also tested for the alternate route program through the Somerset County Police Academy, and both came in top of the testing there, too.”
   ”I could not ask for two better candidates,” the chief said. “I know them both personally from the past two and a half years. I know their personalities. I know their work ethics, and they are a great fit for this department. I am proud of both of them.”