TRENTON --During the years the New Jersey State Police struggled with racial profiling, activists asked if troopers could properly police themselves. Today, a new state office tasked with monitoring the division since the end of federal oversight said they can. The office’s first report said the State Police continues to meet all of the standards set under the consent...
New Jersey State Police troopers graduating on June 24, 2009.
TRENTON --During the years the New Jersey State Police struggled with racial profiling, activists asked if troopers could properly police themselves. Today, a new state office tasked with monitoring the division since the end of federal oversight said they can.
The office’s first report said the State Police continues to meet all of the standards set under the consent decree designed to end profiling, which was dissolved eight months ago.
• Judge terminates decade-long federal oversight of N.J. State Police
• Judge terminates decade-long federal oversight of N.J. State Police
“This report demonstrates that, as an organization, the State Police continues to embrace historic change and serve as a national model in such areas as training, supervision and trooper accountability,” said Attorney General Paula Dow. “However, despite the fact that State Police efforts to address the issue of profiling have been recognized as successful, we are duty-bound to remain vigilant.”
In 1999 the State Police entered a federal consent decree designed to eliminate racial profiling. Last year, the Legislature created a new office under the attorney general, the Office of Law Enforcement Professional Standards, to continue monitoring the division after federal oversight ended last September.
The report said State Police supervisors found errors in 111 motor vehicle stops they reviewed. An additional 21 errors — out of 383 stops — were later found by monitors. Because supervisors were catching most of the problems, monitors said the division is properly policing itself.
“I want to commend our uniformed troopers and their supervisors for practicing the highest levels of professionalism,” said State Police Supt. Rick Fuentes. “We look forward to building on our hard earned reputation as the ‘gold standard’ of best police practices and procedures.”
Seven of the errors not caught by supervisors involved failures to report searches. Others included troopers frisking motorists or searching cars for insufficient reasons.
Monitors reviewed 34 stops where force was used, and they said only once was it excessive. They referred the case to internal affairs after a county prosecutor said the incident did not require criminal charges. The monitors criticized the State Police for not reporting the problem earlier.
“The seriousness of this missed error mars an otherwise strong review,” read the report, which did not provide details on what happened.
Monitors also found one incident where a trooper improperly used a search dog, but said supervisors already addressed the problem.
Videos were reviewed from 283 stops, and monitors found audio or visual problems in 15 percent of them. They said the VHS recorders are “by any measure ancient technology.” Officials hope that is corrected when the State Police install new digital recorders in patrol cars this year.