Princeton Township Police Officer Says 9/11 Changed His Life

Frank Pinelli once had a comfortable job working in sales and marketing in New Brunswick.

On Sept. 11, 2001, everything changed.

“I just remember going into work, sitting there and listening to the horror unfolding and hearing jet planes flying across New Brunswick and into New York,” Pinelli said. “It was such a clear day you could see all the smoke rising up from that direction.”

The next day, he and his wife left for a scheduled vacation on Long Beach Island.

The couple sat on the beach in silence; the only sound an occasional military jet flying overhead.

“I remember at that point, reevaluating what I was doing career-wise,” Pinelli said. “’What am I doing that’s really making a difference?’ I had a house and made a good living, but in the long run, not to detract from my old job, but I was selling scales and digital equipment and it wasn't making a difference in people's lives.”

Pinelli had ties to both law enforcement and to Princeton. His cousin is a Connecticut state trooper and his uncle, Anthony Pinelli, was a former police chief in Princeton Township. The Pinelli family grew up on Leigh Avenue in Princeton.

Pinelli also knew someone who died on 9/11. Family friend Fred Marrone, superintendent of the Port Authority Police Department, died after rushing into one of the burning towers, running up the stairs and helping people escape.  

And suddenly, Pinelli knew his next step in life. 

He returned to school, earned his associate’s degree in criminal justice from Raritan Valley Community College, put himself through the Mercer County Police Academy and accepted a job with the Princeton Township Police Department in 2008.

“The fact that I got an opportunity to work in Princeton, it’s a dream come true to have a chance to give back to the town that gave so much to my family," he said.  

The 36-year-old police officer now lives in Hopewell with his wife and 16-month-old daughter and says his new career path is exactly what he wanted.  

“I'm not saying I’m changing the world, but when you get a few thank yous it makes me think ‘Hey I'm doing things the right way and I know if I continue to do this I'm making a difference.”