New South Brunswick Police Officers a Sign of Employment Woes in New Jersey

At a time when police officer layoffs have become commonplace throughout a state in the midst of widespread budgetary woes, the South Brunswick Police Department added four new officers earlier this month.

The additions were rare and still leave the township department well below its staffing level of two years ago.

The new officers, two of which were victims of urban police layoffs, say they are thankful for the opportunity, especially with competition for the handful of open jobs being so stiff.

New South Brunswick Officer Jamal Benbow, 36, was one of 125 Paterson police officers laid off in April. The Hackensack resident served with the Paterson police since November 2009.

"I now drive about two hours to and from work each day, but I certainly don't mind the drive after having been out of work for six months," Benbow said. 

Two of the four new South Brunswick officers, including Benbow, are victims of urban police downsizing. Former Trenton Police Officer Michael Ngo, of Hamilton, served in Trenton from March 2007 to September 2011. Ngo served on the Violent Crimes Task Force in Trenton, which focused on problem neighborhoods.

With hundreds of veteran officers now looking for work after a year that saw so many cities decrease their police manpower, Benbow said it's a difficult task to regain employment.

"I was one of 125 officers who were laid off in Paterson and it's hard. I'm not sure how the other guys are doing," he said. "It's unfortunate for the other officers, but I was lucky to end up here. In South Brunswick, there's better technology. There are some super officers and the residents are really friendly. I'm just really happy to be here."

The four new replacement officers in South Brunswick brings the department's total up to 74 officers, which is down from 82 officers in 2009, according to police spokesman Sgt. Jim Ryan.

The other new officers are rookies who also faced fierce competition for the open positions after graduating from police academy. 

Timothy Hoover, 23, is a South Brunswick resident who graduated from South Brunswick High School in 2006 and graduated from the Union County Police Academy in 2010. Hoover joins another new officer, Ricardo Moreira, 27, of Monroe, who graduated from the Cape May Police Academy in January 2011.

"My stress level has certainly decreased after this because I'm no longer searching for a job," Moreira said. "It took a long time finding a job, so I'm glad it's finally over."

Moreira said the task of finding employment as a police officer has increased in difficulty with more candidates competing for fewer positions.

"It's certainly more challenging to find a job compared to a couple of years ago," he said. "But life is full of challenges we have to overcome. We just have to try and make clear that we're one step above everyone else who's applying for the same job."

For the South Brunswick Police Department, the new officers provide a welcome increase to their numbers and some added experience coming from the veterans who served in two high crime areas.

"We added two experienced city police officers with glowing recommendations and spotless records," said Chief Raymond Hayducka. "We stole experienced police officers, so Trenton and Paterson's loss is our gain and we're happy to have them."