The police force in New Jersey’s third largest city is now under direct state control.
On Monday, Attorney General Matt Platkin announced that his office would assume control of the Paterson Police Department in the wake of a small avalanche of scandals; New York City Police Department (NYPD) Chief of Strategic Initiatives Isa Abbassi will formally take over a “Officer-in-Charge” effective in May. Until then, the AG’s staff is directly in charge of day-to-day operations.
“Due to a number of events and concerns relating to the Paterson Police Department, there is a crisis of confidence in law enforcement in the City of Paterson,” said Attorney General Platkin. “People throughout Paterson deserve a public safety system that protects and serves all members of its community, just as the members of the Paterson Police Department deserve adequate resources, support, and innovation from their leadership. Chief Abbassi is an experienced, proven leader who has built community trust and achieved excellence through his innovation at the highest levels of law enforcement in this country”
“I am grateful for his service and I look forward to working with him to ensure public safety in Paterson,” continued Platkin. “I am committed to restoring public confidence in the Paterson Police Department, which includes providing the officers on the force the support, resources, supervision, and training they need to be an exemplary police department.”
It’s unclear why the AG finally decided to act, but the decision comes mere weeks after the shooting death of a crisis intervention worker during a five-hour police standoff. Perhaps tellingly, Monday’s press release also included news of a policy changes pertaining to police situations in which someone is barricaded in a small space.
“This announcement will not quell the strife in the City of Paterson overnight,” Platkin added. “It will not immediately restore public confidence that the police are committed to providing every resident of Paterson with fair, just, and effective public safety. Nor will it address the concerns of officers asked to do a hard and dangerous job in a community that—after years of fiscal challenges and a revolving door of police leadership—has lost faith in its police department, making the jobs of those officers even more difficult. Rather, the actions taken by my office today represent a pledge to the residents and officers of Paterson that the State of New Jersey is committed to the safety and success of the entire Paterson Community. Exercising control over the police department and bringing in nationally recognized police leadership for the department is the first step of a process towards a safer and more just City of Paterson.”
