Thursday, November 17, 2011
The new hires will bring the force level from 54 to 56
- POLICE & FIRE
- Zak Koeske
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Thursday, November 17, 2011
Two new police officers will join the Fair Lawn Police Department next week, Chief Erik Rose said. Juan Rodriguez and Luke Hintzen will be sworn in as Fair Lawn police officers at Tuesday's council meeting and begin their duties either Tuesday or Wednesday morning next week. Both men worked previously for the Paterson Police Department. The hires will bring the police force levels to 56, although Rose said the effective number will be 55 temporarily until a replacement for an officer who retired earlier this month is found. As recently as late 2009, the Fair Lawn Police Department had 64 officers, but layoffs and retirements have reduced the staff in recent years. A state police study that used staffing data from late 2009, found that Fair…
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
According to the Uniform Crime Report released last week by the Attorney General, index crimes hit a decade-low in Fair Lawn in 2010
- POLICE & FIRE
- Zak Koeske
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Wednesday, November 16, 2011
News that Fair Lawn experienced a decade-low rate of index crime in 2010 may serve as confirmation to residents who already feel safe in town. Just like data from the same report showing that burglaries and domestic violence cases rose significantly in 2010 may give credence to residents who already perceive Fair Lawn to be a more dangerous place than in the past. The same set of raw numbers, when crunched, may end up yielding entirely different conclusions based on who’s doing the interpreting. It’s all about the personal perceptions and biases that residents bring into the situation, Fair Lawn Police Chief Erik Rose said. Statistics are helpful, he said, as long as you recognize the inherent variations from year to year. “Years when …
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Cristina Cutrone issued a statement Wednesday clarifying some of her comments at Sunday's candidate forum
- OPINION
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Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Following comments made about the police department by Democratic candidate Cristina Cutrone at Sunday's candidate forum, PBA president David Boone wrote a strongly worded letter to the editor. On Wednesday, Cutrone wrote her own letter to clear the air and clarify her position: "Our Fair Lawn Police Department does an outstanding job keeping our families safe and secure. Our officers have done an admirable job filling in for three officers who have been out on medical leave for the past year. Their commitment to our community should be applauded. There are arguments on both sides of the issue on whether or not we should hire more officers to reduce overtime. As a council member I will have to weigh the cost to taxpayers of hiring …
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
For a second straight year, Drug Abuse Resistance Education, or DARE, will not be taught in Fair Lawn Schools.
Due to a dearth of police staffing, the DARE program will not be taught at Fair Lawn schools for the second straight year. DARE, which stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education, is a global initiative that sends police officers into schools to teach kids first-hand the dangers of drugs and alcohol. DARE had been a mainstay of a Fair Lawn education for 20 years before the program was eliminated last year because of an understaffed police force that couldn’t afford to both teach the program and maintain classic law enforcement duties, Chief Erik Rose said. “The decision to eliminate DARE was one of the most difficult I’ve ever made,” he said. “But we must focus on core police services…I can’t sit and say we’ll have DARE but no police to …
Deleted because of harassment
7:14 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
I'm happy they hired at least two more officers, but I will be happier when the lack of leadership and those that do not provide it have retired out of the department. There is a significant problem when any PD is eating it's own, having to be sued into acting responsively to complaints from within and constantly losing those suits because they have merit yet the leadership emerges unscathed from… more ›