Ex-Howell Police Chief Admits Interfering In Affair Investigation

HOWELL, NJ — The former police chief of Howell Township has pleaded guilty to official misconduct after he lied to investigators and tried to conceal a sexual affair he was having with a woman who worked for him.

Andrew J. Kudrick Jr., 50, pled guilty to one count of obstructing the administration of law or other governmental function before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Paul X. Escandon in Freehold on Monday, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced.

Under the plea agreement, Kudrick has agreed to a lifetime ban on public employment and prosecutors will recommend that he be sentenced to a term of non-custodial probation, the length of which will be determined by the court, Platkin's office said. Sentencing is tentatively scheduled for July 19.

Kudrick retired in March 2022 after 29 years on the Howell police force, including seven as its chief, and 32 years of involvement with the department dating back to his participation in the Police Explorer program.

According to documents and statements in the public record, after an incident that transpired at a work-related event, Howell Township opened a formal investigation into the potential existence of a hostile work environment and sexual harassment within the Howell Township Police Department, the attorney general's office said.

During his plea, Kudrick admitted to lying, during an official interview, about the existence of a sexual affair he was involved in with a subordinate employee, the attorney general's office said.

In late March 2022, Kudrick threatened to launch an illegitimate internal affairs investigation into a member of the police department who had knowledge and evidence of the affair in an effort to intimidate the witness from truthfully cooperating during a scheduled interview in the township’s investigation, the attorney general's office said.

Kudrick, who is married and has a child, was indicted on official misconduct charges in April 2023. He had been charged with second-degree official misconduct, as well as false swearing, tampering with public records, tampering with and retaliating against witnesses, and obstructing the administration of law, the state said at the time the charges were announced.

Kudrick was forced to surrender his firearms and have no victim contact when he was indicted, officials said.

The charges arose from an investigation that followed a confrontation between the chief’s wife and suspected mistress during a 2021 retirement party that raised suspicions about the possible existence of the improper relationship, authorities have said. The mistress, in addition to Kudrick's employee, was married to another Howell officer, authorities have said.

Following that incident, the township hired a special labor counsel to conduct an internal investigation, spurred by concerns that the municipal government could be at risk for liability due to the potential existence of a hostile work environment and sexual harassment within the police department.

A captain with the Howell police department who had knowledge and evidence of the affair was slated to be interviewed a second time by the special counsel in late March 2022. The day before that interview, Kudrick threatened the captain, saying he would initiate an illegitimate internal affairs investigation accusing the captain of speaking to the township manager directly without the chief’s approval, authorities have said. The threat was an attempt to intimidate the witness against being truthful in the special labor investigator’s probe, authorities said.

Other charges stem from an official interview Kudrick gave to the special labor counsel, in which he "falsely denied making sexual comments to, or having an intimate relationship with, the subordinate and denied he received explicit photos of her," authorities have said.

But the evidence showed an affair did take place, in violation of the township’s policy against fraternization, prohibiting romantic relationships with subordinates, authorities said.

“Given the imbalance of power between a chief of police and a subordinate, any romantic relationship would be wholly inappropriate, violative of policy, and detrimental to the safety and well-being of the officers and civilians under the chief’s command,” Platkin said when the charges were announced.

“The defendant chose a profession centered around keeping others safe. He rose to the very top of that profession. But the conduct alleged in this complaint suggests that he created an environment within his police department where even the people who worked for him could not feel safe,” he said.

Kudrick was hired in 1993 as a full-time 911 telecommunications operator. He became a patrolman in 1995 and worked as a field training officer for the department for several years, training new officers in how to perform the duties of a law enforcement professional.

He was promoted to sergeant in 2002 and was a first-line supervisor within the uniformed Patrol Division, then became a lieutenant in 2005 and was the training unit supervisor and later commander of the patrol division until 2012. He was promoted to captain in October 2012.

Kudrick was appointed chief in 2015 and in 2019 agreed to a five-year contract that would have ended in 2024.

But he retired abruptly, announcing his departure on March 31, 2022, three months after Kudrick was the subject of a no-confidence vote in December in the midst of a dispute with the Howell Township PBA, which accused him of trying to sabotage the union. Kudrick has never addressed that matter publicly.

The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Attorney General Sherrod Smith and OPIA Corruption Deputy Bureau Chief Andrew Wellbrock, under the supervision of Corruption Bureau Chief Jeff Manis and OPIA Executive Director Drew Skinner.