New Officers Join The Parsippany Police Department

PARSIPPANY, NJ — Four new police officers have officially graduated from the Morris County Public Safety Training Academy's Basic Police Class, marking their official welcome onto the Parsippany Police Department.

The officers were initially sworn into the police force earlier this year during a ceremony conducted by Mayor James Barberio. The hiring of the new police officers was unanimously approved when the council passed a resolution in January authorizing their hire during the town council meeting.

Ptl. Robert Seifert, Ptl. James Brennan, Ptl. Antonio Piccininni and Ptl. Christopher Yi all officially graduated from the training academy's 100th basic police class last week and began their field training assignments this week.

"The Parsippany Police Department is one of the fundamental fabrics of our community. Hiring new police officers is essential to maintain public safety. I wish the officers the best of luck throughout their careers in Parsippany," Barberio said.

The Parsippany Police Department has been described as understaffed due to a hiring freeze imposed by the previous administration, which has reduced the town to 81 deployable officers from more than 100 five years ago.

The 2023-24 municipal budget, which was adopted last month, includes funds for five more police officers.

Although there was much disagreement between council members surrounding the township budget, Barberio emphasized during the budget hearings that the proposal addressed public safety by adding more police officers to the force.

All council members agreed with the increased funding toward the police department, but Councilman Justin Musella proposed approving budget cuts in other areas as a compromise.

The budget was eventually approved 4-1, with Musella casting the lone dissenting vote. The vote followed two public budget hearings since the budget was introduced on April 18.

The adopted 2023 budget calls for a 2.57 percent overall tax increase, equating to an additional $100 per year per homeowner based on the town's average home valuation of $313,000.

The Parsippany Police Department has a chain of command that includes a Chief of Police, Deputy Chief of Police, Captains, Lieutenants, Sergeants, Detectives, Patrol Officers, Class II and III (part-time) Special Law Enforcement Officers (SLEOs), Public Safety Telecommunicators (dispatchers) and civilian personnel.