Bribery, DWI, Use Of Force: See NJ Police Misconduct Cases In 2022

NEW JERSEY - Betting with inmates, bribery, submitting a fake doctor's note to extend a workers' compensation claim and fatally striking a pedestrian while under the influence of alcohol: these are just a few reasons some 84 New Jersey law enforcement officers across the state were terminated last year, according to a new report from the state.

The new figures come as part of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office third-ever Major Discipline Report, which lists details for hundreds of police officers in the state who were suspended for more than five days, demoted or terminated. This year’s report covers the period from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2022, which saw 404 major discipline cases in 2022, up from 384 last year.

The most frequent offenses in 2022 were related to attendance, including lateness and call-outs too close to the start of a shift, state officials said; descriptions mentioning a use of force-related violation made up about four percent of all major disciplinary actions reported for 2022.

“By embracing greater transparency, the vast majority of New Jersey’s law enforcement officers who serve with honor, professionalism, and courage, are better able to carry out their duties more effectively and safely in service to the people of our state,” Attorney General Matt Platkin said in a statement.

Only charges resulting in final sanctions or plea agreements are listed in the report; pending cases are not included in the data, Platkin said.

The officers with the most major disciplines in the 2022 report were John Gillen of Camden County Corrections and Detective Essence Henry of the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, both with six listed major disciplines each. Gillen’s suspended charges included abuse of sick leave and chronic lateness; Henry’s were truthfulness, neglect of duty, ethics and standards and conduct, among others, according to the report.

“During the course of an internal investigation, and subsequent disciplinary hearing, Detective Henry displayed a lack of candor and was found to be untruthful in her statements to internal affairs investigators and while testifying in her hearing and under oath,” the report reads. “Detective Henry also provided untruthful statements to a uniformed police officer when she was the subject of a motor vehicle stop while operating an agency vehicle after hours and without authorization.”

The department with the most major disciplines in 2022 was Camden County Corrections, with 30 total major disciplines listed. In that time period, one demotion (Sergeant Renee Little) and one termination (Officer Christopher Jones) was issued for an "inappropriate relationship" with a subordinate and excessive use of force, respectively.

The first Major Discipline Report, issued in 2021, came in response to a state supreme court decision authorizing the public release of certain police disciplinary data. Another directive, which came in November 2022, expanded the list of infractions that would be considered under “major discipline” to include, among other things: discriminatory conduct, filing a false report and intentionally performing an improper search. The directive expansion also required that the annual report include synopses providing detail for readers to understand the “full scenario” that resulted in the major discipline action. The first year of the expanded data will be released in 2024, covering 2023 major disciplines.

You can view the full 2022 data dashboard here.