Federal grant allows Bayonne and Jersey City to hire 24 new police officers

July 17, 2012, 8:18 AM
By Michaelangelo Conte/The Jersey Journal

Bayonne and Jersey City will be putting a total of 24 new cops on the beat courtesy of the federal government.

The Bayonne Police Department will hire nine new officers and Jersey City will hire 15 new cops with their shares of a $9.4 million federal grant.

Bayonne will receive $1,125,000 and Jersey City will receive $1,875,000 through the Department of Justice?s Community Oriented Policing Services program, officials announced June 25. Statewide, the $9.4 million will pay for 60 new police officers, officials said.

?I?m grateful for any help we can get during a tough fiscal time,? Jersey City Police Chief Tom Comey said. ?Right now we are just going to increase patrols because that?s where we think we have the biggest impact.?

For the first time, all new police officers hired with the funds must be military veterans with at least 180 days of active service since Sept. 11, 2001, officials said.

?This will allow our military veterans to transition back to civilian life. Just as they have served our country proudly, this will allow them to serve their respective communities,? Acting Bayonne Police Chief Ralph Scianni said.

Across the country, the program has put more than 120,000 police officers on the beat since 1995. New Jersey has received more than $400 million since the program?s inception, funding more than 5,000 officers, officials said.

?The COPS hiring program helps ensure that our police departments have the officers they need to keep our communities safe,? said Rep. Albio Sires, D-West New York.

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