The Maplewood Police Department was recognized at the May 1 Township Committee meeting for being accredited by the State Association of Police Chiefs.
MAPLEWOOD, NJ — The Maplewood Township Committee discussed reorganizing the Maplewood Police Department at its May 1 meeting, approving a motion to draft an ordinance that would add the position of deputy chief to the department, replacing one of the five lieutenant positions currently in place. The ordinance is scheduled to be heard on first reading at the May 15 committee meeting.
“This is actually something that we’ve been discussing for several months, including back during our budget hearings at the beginning of the year,” Committeeman Greg Lembrich, who chairs the Maplewood Public Safety Committee, said at the meeting. “It’s now the appropriate time — as we talk about the budget — to talk about what we’d like to do for these changes for the table of organization in the police department.”
According to Lembrich, Police Chief Jimmy DeVaul had proposed the addition of a deputy chief in place of one of the lieutenants in the department.
“The deputy chief would be the liaison to the new Community Board, he or she would be in charge of the budget for the department and would take the lead on a number of operational matters,” Lembrich said. According to the township, the Community Board will comprise community members who will review police regulations and research best practices, offering their advice on ways to improve the department. “There would remain two captains under the chief and the deputy chief. One would be the patrol captain, who would be in charge of administration and overseeing the accreditation process. The other captain would be taking the lead on professional standards and training.”
DeVaul was at the meeting to explain why he thinks Maplewood would benefit from having a deputy police chief.
“I wanted to change the command structure within the department, I wanted to make it more efficient,” DeVaul said at the meeting. “I feel it would improve the relations of the department.”
Committeewoman Nancy Adams asked how the deputy chief would be appointed — if they would be hired by DeVaul or if they would be chosen by the Township Committee. DeVaul said the deputy chief would be chosen in a manner similar to how he was chosen as chief. Any officer with the rank of lieutenant or higher is eligible to apply for the deputy chief job, and the committee will then narrow the candidates down and appoint one for the position.
DeVaul also said that the deputy chief would be represented by the PBA, but the position would not use the union for negotiation purposes, the same as the chief position.
According to Sonia Alves-Viveiros, Maplewood’s business administrator, the addition of a deputy chief to the police department will add approximately $20,000 to the department’s annual budget. Because the 2018 budget has not yet been approved, the change can be added before the committee votes on the budget at the May 15 meeting.
“I believe it will provide clarity in the rank and command structure that I think has been necessary for many, many years,” DeVaul said. “I believe that these changes will benefit the township, the residents and the officers and I believe it’s a change that is necessary.”
Earlier in the meeting, the police department was recognized for being accredited by the New Jersey State Association of Police Chiefs. The process, which takes three years, requires the department to go through a series of observations and programs by the state to adopt policies that better the department and the community it serves.
According to State Association of Police Chiefs accreditation manager Harry Delgado, out of the 550 law enforcement agencies in New Jersey, only approximately 200 meet the eligibility requirements to then receive accreditation.
“It lies in the adoption of standards and best practices — not just state best practices but national best practices,” Delgado said at the meeting. “Accreditation is a progressive and time-proven way of helping law enforcement agencies calculate and improve their performances.”
Delgado said the MPD’s accreditation is beneficial to both the department and the Maplewood community. Accredited law enforcement agencies have fewer liability claims, can better defend against lawsuits and have evidence of leadership.
“Governments can be more confident in the agency’s ability to meet the community’s needs,” Delgado said. “An accredited agency embodies community policing. It creates a forum in which police and citizens work together to control challenges, and confronts law enforcement to provide clear direction about community expectations.”
DeVaul said that when he became acting police chief in August 2017, completing the accreditation process was one of his goals for the department. He thanked his staff members for their work throughout the process.
“It was very important to me, especially at this time, to recognize the importance of the accreditation program and the standards within that,” he said. “To make sure that the public understood the police department was going to be following the policies that we set forth.”
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