State Police Progress

Transcription

1 New Jersey Department of Law & Public Safety Message from Attorney General John J. Farmer,, Jr. As Attorney General, I take great pride in the progress we have made to date in our effort to make the New Jersey State Police the nation s finest and most diverse statewide law enforcement agency. We have strengthened the State Police as a crime-fighting and crime-prevention entity. We have built important bridges between the State Police and the diverse citizenry it protects. And we have made significant strides in the effort to combat public cynicism and enhance public confidence. To be certain, the job of reform is not finished. But I am convinced we are on the right path. And I believe the most prudent course of action at this point is to continue to give our reforms time to work. The Division of State Police and my office, through the Office of State Police Affairs, remain committed to positive change. We remain committed to encouraging good police work and discouraging improper patrol tactics. We remain committed to demanding accountability at every level. We also continue to promote, on a day-to-day basis, better relations between the State Police and the citizens it protects through vigorous, statewide community policing efforts. And we are making important progress in fulfilling the terms of separate Consent Decrees entered into with the U.S. Justice Department and the NAACP. I want to take this opportunity to personally thank State Police Superintendent Col. Carson J. Dunbar, Jr., Assistant Attorney General Martin Cronin, head of the Office of State Police Affairs, First Assistant Attorney General Paul H. Zoubek and department administrator Thomas J. O Reilly, for their tireless efforts on behalf of State Police reform. Though I have recognized these individuals for their outstanding contributions to the State Police reform process, I would be remiss if I did not mention the hard work and professionalism of many additional people within my office and the State Police. It is only through their consistent commitment that we ve achieved our current progress. It is a new era within the State Police, a time of historic change and important new challenges. I hope you will find this report useful. We hope that it is merely the first report of many that will keep you abreast of the many exciting developments occurring within the State Police. Message from om Colonel Carson J. Dunbar,, Jr. As Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, I am pleased to provide you this status report on the historic changes taking place within the organization. Although much work remains to be done, I believe that over the past two years we have gone a long way toward building a statewide police force that reflects the diverse population it serves and toward creating a culture of accountability from top-to-bottom. We have sent a clear message that disparate treatment of the public in any form will not be tolerated and that, above all else, New Jersey is committed to enforcing the law even-handedly and with compassion. We have implemented new standard operating procedures and adopted training strategies focused on cultural sensitivity and other topics integral to modern police work. We have made an unprecedented investment in technology, information systems that will enable us to evaluate on a regular basis and with great precision how well we are doing in our quest to provide comprehensive police protection while ensuring the equal treatment of all persons under the law. The road to change has not always been smooth. There has been controversy. There has been disagreement. There has been resistance. But there has also been the hard work and the optimism of many committed public servants to sustain us. And there has been the ongoing, cooperative effort of many dedicated people within the clergy, the education community, in positions of civic leadership and among those who advocate on behalf of minorities and women, as well as others. On behalf the State Police, I assure you that we will not waver in our commitment to both protecting the public and preserving individual rights. Summer 2001 Introduction From the recruiting process to training and from highway patrols to personnel supervision, the New Jersey State Police is an agency in the midst of historic change. Consistent with the vision of founder Col. Norman Schwarzkopf that Troopers should always enforce the law impartially and maintain the good opinion of the people the agency has undertaken many key reforms including new standard operating procedures (SOP) for motor vehicle stops and the use of cutting-edge technology to create a comprehensive record of all such encounters. In short, New Jersey is at the cutting edge in addressing what is perhaps one of the most significant social issues facing our nation: the disparate treatment of minorities by police, both real and perceived, and what to do about it. At the same time, new initiatives are either planned or under way to ensure fairness within the State Police on such issues as equal employment opportunity, internal affairs investigations, personnel evaluations and the promotion and discipline of troopers. Background Although the pace and focus of State Police reform was influenced by a number of external factors that began to develop in 1998, the seeds of change were sown internally before then. Beginning in early 1996, for example, the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) undertook a comprehensive study of State Police hiring, staffing, organizational and promotions practices. A respected consulting agency that provides technical assistance to police agencies on management and organizational issues, PERF conducted its study at the request of the State Police and the Office of the Attorney General. Upon completion of its work, PERF called for significant change in State Police staffing policies and procedures. Indeed, the PERF recommendations became a template for many of the reforms now in place or planned concerning the recruitment and hiring of prospective troopers, the evaluation of trooper performance by supervisors and the merit-based promotion of State Police personnel. In addition, the early phase of State Police staffing-related reform saw the beginning of a concurrent, internal evaluation of agency needs fo- continued on page 2

2 Introduction continued from page 1 cused on the tools of the trade the equipment, technology and other resources needed to enable troopers to most effectively do their jobs. But despite the groundwork for change that had been laid by April of 1998, a tragic event during that month clearly helped to accelerate the process of State Police reform and to set its priorities. On April 23, 1998, during a motor vehicle stop on the New Jersey Turnpike, State Troopers shot at a van occupied by four unarmed men. Three of the men were wounded. In the wake of the shooting, the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General formed a State Police Review Team to conduct a more expansive study of agency practices and procedures than had ever been done before. A particular focus of the initial review was allegations of racial profiling by State Police the targeting of motorists for traffic stops and subsequent investigative activity solely on the basis of their race or ethnicity. Allegations of disparate treatment by State Police had been aired previously in New Jersey, but they intensified after the nationally publicized Turnpike shooting incident. In April 1999, while still pursuing its broader mission of an agency-wide study, the Review Team issued a report concluding that the problem of disparate treatment of minority motorists by troopers along the New Jersey Turnpike was real. Entitled the Interim Report of the State Police Review Team Regarding Allegations of Racial Profiling, the report recommended fundamental change throughout the eighty-year-old State Police organization. The Final Report of the State Police Review Team followed suit in July Several recommendations of the State Police Review Team were ultimately embodied in a Consent Decree entered into between the U.S. Justice Department and the State of New Jersey in December of By that time, however, the State Police had already begun implementing many of the PERF recommendations, as well as other reforms designed to make the State Police a stronger, betterequipped and more diverse police agency. The New Jersey State Police and the Office of State Police Affairs have moved expeditiously to implement these tasks, and, given the complexity of affecting change in complex organizations, have made significant strides in bringing the organization into compliance with the requirements of this decree. New Jersey s acknowledgment of racial profiling as real along with its aggressive efforts to eliminate discriminatory practices and ensure equal treatment of all persons under the law has made the state a national leader on the issue of profiling-related reform. Office of State Police Affairs A key ingredient in the success of reform efforts to date is the Office of State Police Affairs, an entity created in the fall of 1999 to ensure compliance with the State Police Review Team s recommendations. Located within the Office of the Attorney General, the Office of State Police Affairs provides technical assistance and training. It also has an oversight role in the investigation of alleged State Police misconduct. The office also provides general legal counsel to the State Police but does not represent or provide defense for State Police or its personnel. In its effort to help facilitate change, the Office of State Police Affairs has sought out and received input from members of every State Police rank from Trooper to Colonel. The Office has also solicited input from each of the labor unions that represent State Police members for collective bargaining purposes. On the basis of this input, some proposed revisions to State Police operating procedure were scrapped early on in favor of alternate strategies that offered stronger protections for both the public and for State Police members while also promoting the practice of evenhanded law enforcement. The Office of State Police Affairs also played a lead role in negotiating the Consent Decree entered into by the U.S. Justice Department and New Jersey in December of Independent Monitors Report [January 10, 2001] Consent Decree The product of months of negotiation, the Consent Decree identified a variety of tasks required to strengthen State Police policies and procedures and called for completion of those tasks in phases. The underlying philosophy of the Consent Decree is basic: if discriminatory treatment is made difficult to conceal, it will be unlikely to occur. 2 As a result, the decree embodies an anti-profiling approach to highway traffic enforcement and requires Troopers to report detailed information when making a motor vehicle stop. The level of information required escalates when a Trooper elects to use his or her discretion to ask a driver to step out of the vehicle, subject the driver to extensive questioning, consent to a search of the vehicle, submit to frisking, etc. The premise behind such a requirement is that it will reward proper Trooper conduct and, elsewhere, will help supervisors to identify improper use of discretion or patterns of such conduct. To provide an objective source for evaluation of New Jersey s progress in complying with the Consent Decree as well as to assess the quality of its reform effort a U.S. District Court Judge appointed a two-person Independent Monitoring Team. To date, the team has issued a series of quarterly reports praising the substantial progress of State Police reforms. Specifically, the monitors have praised the use of in-car audio and video recording equipment, sophisticated data collection methods and other strategies to create a culture of accountability from top-to-bottom. In addition, they have cited State Police training efforts as state-of-the-art and praised the quality and fairness of the agency s internal misconduct investigations. Of course, there are no shortcuts or quick-fixes. Notwithstanding the success of reform efforts to date, there is still much work to be done. The process of achieving meaningful change in an organization as large, multi-faceted and complex as the State Police is difficult, costly and time-consuming. But despite these realities, there are signs that the effort to fundamentally change the State Police are paying dividends in the form of increased public confidence and broadening support of the new policies and procedures from within the State Police itself. New Jersey remains committed to eliminating the practice of racial profiling and to the equal treatment of all persons under the law.

3 Like virtually every other aspect of State Police operations, trooper training has undergone significant change in the past two years. Through new training strategies, the acquisition of cutting-edge technology and an enhanced focus on such issues as cultural sensitivity, newly-graduated State Police troopers are among the best-prepared law enforcement officers in the nation. In addition, continued in-service training programs for veteran troopers and those who hold leadership rank is ensuring that, from top-to-bottom, the New Jersey State Police is among the nation s besttrained law enforcement agencies. In training its new trooper recruits for work in today s complex, increasingly more diverse society, the State Police has: Adopted an entirely new, interactive training approach known as the Action Adult-Based Learning Methodology. This format uses roleplaying exercises, virtual training scenarios, student presentations and other state-of-the-art methods in a more individualized approach to policing instruction. Provided comprehensive training in the use of police computer systems and supplied each trooper recruit with a laptop computer. The laptops can be used to obtain quick, accurate police-related information and to enter reports directly into a revamped State Police Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) data-collection system. Significantly reduced, starting in September 2000 with the 119th State Police recruit class, the size of each training class from its previous level of between cadets to fewer than 50 cadets. This change resulted from observation of a successful, more individualized training approach used by the Royal Canadien Mounted Police (RCMP). The RCMP was one of several police agencies observed by New Jersey State Police as the agency shaped its reform strategies. Made significant changes to the State Police Trooper/Coach training program. Trooper coaches work directly with new academy graduates, providing them with an additional period of on-the-job mentoring before they assume independent road duty. The revised Trooper/Coach criteria requires that any trooper seeking to become a Trooper/ Coach complete a five-day course and undergo a comprehensive evaluation of his or her ability to effectively train new troopers. In addition, two trooper coaches are now assigned to each new trooper instead of one. Training Incorporated other training advances such as the use of firearms simulation scenarios, an instructor/recruit mentor program and wireless Internet laptop research supported by a newly appointed Training Academy librarian. Required every trooper to undergo extensive training with regard to what represents a legal search and seizure under the Constitution and what does not. In addition, troopers take part in extensive training and role-playing exercises focused on cultural awareness and sensitivity, human dignity, community policing and community relations. In the area of cultural diversity, trooper recruits receive instruction from representatives of the Anti-Defamation League and other ethnic, cultural and professional organizations. Incorporated a new language course known as Spanish for Law Enforcement Officers. This course provides extensive instruction for both recruits-in-training and troopers on duty. The goal is for troopers to be able to communicate more readily with Spanish-speaking crime and accident victims, potential witnesses, criminal suspects and others. It is encouraging to note that, as part of its ongoing review of State Police reform efforts, the Independent Monitoring Team appointed by the federal courts has observed the new training strategies at work and been favorably impressed. The Independent Monitoring Team has concluded that with regard to training cadets on the avoidance of race or ethnicity as State Police Recruiting Billboard 3 The training provided on [Constitutional law concerning search and seizure and nondiscrimination] by the state is truly state-of-the-art... The training would be a step forward for any law enforcement agency in America concerned with the issue of racial profiling. -- Independent Monitors Report [July 17, 2001] a sole basis for stopping a driver or taking investigative action instructional staff at the State Police Academy consistently go beyond the requirements set down in a Consent Decree between New Jersey and the U.S. Justice Department. The team has also lauded New Jersey s revamped approach to trooper training as one that elicits critical thinking, problem-solving and decision making from the recruits while also emphasizing high quality service and public safety as primary concerns. New Jersey State Police has established the state of the art for ethics and integrity training for large law enforcement agencies the Independent Monitoring Team wrote in one of its quarterly reports on the progress of reform efforts. Through ongoing evaluation and, where necessary, adjustment, State Police will continue to provide state-of-the-art trooper training and to set a high standard of excellence for the preparation of law enforcement officers.

4 Recruitment and Promotion Acting on the philosophy that new standard operating procedures and state-of-the-art technology are only as effective as the people who use them, the State Police has committed itself to an aggressive recruiting strategy and the adoption of a clearly defined, more specifically merit-based system of promoting personnel. In the past two years, State Police recruiters have worked closely with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Black Ministers Council of New Jersey, the Anti-Defamation League, leaders of the Hispanic and Asian communities and representatives of women s groups, as well as colleges, the U.S. Armed Forces, local law enforcement and others to encourage qualified individuals from all backgrounds to apply to become troopers. These recruiting efforts have had a significant impact. Through a variety of successful recruiting strategies, the State Police expects to have added approximately 500 new troopers by June 2002 troopers recruited, selected and trained via all-new processes. Encouragingly, minorities and women Members of the monitoring team were unanimously impressed with the commitment, focus, energy and professionalism with which the State Police and the Office of State Police Affairs applied themselves and their organizations to implementation of the changes... Their commitment to doing the job right is exceptional. -- Independent Monitors Report [October 6, 2000] continue to apply to the State Police in greater numbers than ever before. And more minorities and women are successfully completing their training and graduating to become troopers. In an effort to enhance recruitment efforts and create a stronger, more diverse State Police force from top to bottom the agency has: Significantly increased the size of its Recruiting Bureau staff, utilizing as many as 24 recruiters at peak times, and created a tollfree recruiting information phone line at: NJSP-877. Conducted aggressive outreach efforts from New Jersey to California through which State Police recruiting staff has visited high schools, colleges and universities as well as job fairs, military career forums, civic events and conferences, many of them focused on issues vital to women and minorities. Spent in excess of $1 million since 1999 on advertising designed to attract qualified candidates and create widespread awareness of the agency s recruitment message that: Our Careers Suit All Kinds of People. Much of this advertising has been done via major electronic and print media outlets and through use of billboards and bus placards. However, advertising through Internet job sites and media that primarily serve college students, women and minorities has also been a vital component. Entered into a Consent Decree with the NAACP that reflects a commitment to strong educational standards, a merit-based approach to the evaluation of all candidates and to achieving more diversity within the ranks of the State Police. Approved in February 2000, the Consent Decree was founded on the concept of ensuring a level playing field but did not include any hiring quotas. The agreement did, however, provide for an expansion of the State Police entrance eligibility criteria. Under the agreement with NAACP, all State Police candidates must now have a minimum of 60 college credit hours during which they maintained at least a C average and two years or more of military, law enforcement or satisfactory employment experience. The adoption of satisfactory employment experience represents a significant broadening of the potential State Police recruitment pool. Under the Consent Decree, a proposed requirement that all prospective troopers have a four-year college degree, which was never actually applied in recruiting a class, was set aside. It can be employed in the future if and when State Police demonstrates an ability to consistently recruit a diverse pool of qualified applicants who hold four-year degrees. The Consent Decree with the NAACP also called for use of a new State Police applicant test to replace the decade-old Law Enforcement Candidate Record. Created the New Jersey State Police Scholars Program at Rutgers University- Newark. The only partnership of its kind in the nation, the program unites a statewide 4 Brochure for the New Jersey State Police Rutgers Cadet Scholars Program policing agency with one of the nation s most diverse university campuses. The program will provide paid internships and stipends of up to $5,000 to undergraduate Rutgers- Newark students who wish to pursue a career with the State Police. In the interest of having in place the most clearly articulated and even-handed promotions system possible, the State Police has, among other initiatives: Increased diversity within the State Police leadership ranks, increasing minority representation among captains and, for the first time ever, promoting two women to the rank of captain. For the first time in State Police history, developed and administered a uniform promotional test based on knowledge of State Police standard operating procedures. While there is much more to be done, the results of these recruiting and promotions reforms have been encouraging. The promotions process is being refined and, through the continued development of a

5 more objective, merit-based approach, is inspiring greater confidence both from the public and within State Police ranks. There is greater diversity within the higher ranks, and greater diversity is being achieved throughout the State Police organization, as evidenced by the fact that nearly a quarter of the successful graduates from the past five State Police recruit training classes have been minorities. On May 15, 2001, the 122nd State Police recruit training class, with nearly 50 percent of its members either minority or female, became the most diverse graduating class in agency history. Two weeks later, the 123rd State Police recruit training class, with more than 30 percent of its members either minority or female, completed its commencement exercises. Overall, nearly 28 percent of the successful graduates of the 119th-through-123rd recruit training classes are minority or female. The demographic breakdown of those five recruit training classes is as follows: 120 white males, 10 African-American males, 24 Hispanic males, two Asian males, one American Indian male, seven white females, one African-American female and one Hispanic female. Agency-wide, minority representation now stands at nearly 15 percent. The State Police remains committed to sound personnel recruiting and promotions practices. These practices are strengthening the organization and helping it evolve into one of the nation s most diverse law enforcement agencies, one that accurately reflects the richly diverse population it protects. Nearly 28 percent of the successful graduates of the 119th-through-123rd recruit training classes are minority or female. Enhanced Accountability & Responsiveness As part of the historic change now taking shape, new measures have been put in place to create a culture of accountability throughout the State Police one that both inspires public confidence and enables the organization to effectively pursue its mission. Through sophisticated information technology, the creation of new avenues for interaction such as an ombudsman, and the restructuring of existing resources, the State Police is providing a higher level of accountability and responsiveness to the citizens of New Jersey than ever before. At the same time, the State Police is employing new strategies for the supervision of personnel, the swift and thorough resolution of internal misconduct investigations and the handling of internal Equal Employment Opportunity/ Affirmative Action (EEO/AA) issues. Here are some highlights of this ongoing change: Office of Professional Standards A flagship of the State Police internal restructuring effort, the Office of Professional Standards (OPS) was created in January 2000 and replaces the old Internal Affairs Bureau. The OPS reports directly to the Superintendent of State Police. New leadership within the OPS Internal Investigation Unit, along with revised policies and procedures, have enhanced the caliber of State Police investigations into alleged trooper misconduct. However, in an effort to bolster public confidence by taking less time to complete such investigations and, in the process, more readily identify troopers in need of additional training or discipline the State Police has made a substantial commitment of new resources to the OPS. There are now 27 State Police detectives assigned to OPS for the purpose of receiving, investigating and resolving misconduct allegations. That represents a near-quadrupling of the number of detectives assigned to internal misconduct investigations three years ago. In addition, 10 more State Police detectives have been temporarily assigned to the OPS to help reduce a backlog of internal misconduct cases. In another initiative designed to speed up the internal investigations process, approximately 150 misconduct cases are being assigned to investigators outside the OPS. The OPS will have oversight of these investigations, however, and they will be subject to monitoring by the Office of the Attorney General. As part of its review to ensure compliance with a Consent Decree with the U.S. Justice Department, a court-appointed Independent Monitoring Team has repeatedly praised the OPS for the thoroughness and fairness of its internal misconduct investigations. However, the monitors have also called on State Police to more swiftly resolve such investigations. Semi-Annual Release of Key Data Twice each year, the State Police makes public information broken down by race and ethnicity on the number of motor vehicle stops and resulting 5 continued on page 6 Compliment/ Complaint Card

6 Accountability continued from page 5 enforcement actions taken by personnel assigned to the five State Police Troops. Also issued with the same semi-annual report is data on the number of criminal arrests and patrolrelated arrests made for the categories of drugs, weapons and driving under the influence. The same report contains statistics on the number of trooper misconduct complaints initiated both by the public and within the State Police. Mobile Video Recorders Every State Police patrol car is now equipped with an electronic video/audio recording system that activates automatically when a trooper turns on his or her overhead lights. This technology is a vital tool in ensuring public accountability and protecting troopers. Through these recording systems, there is an available record of everything that is said and done by both the trooper and the driver, as well as any occupants of the car, during a highway stop and any subsequent enforcement action. In its most recent quarterly report, the court-appointed Independent Monitoring Team reviewed 441 tapes recorded by MVR equipment and found problematic conduct by troopers in six instances. These six cases involved four minority motorists and two non-minority drivers. In each case, the improper conduct involved either excessive questioning or unprofessional questioning. And in each case, State Police supervisors had already identified the improper conduct and taken action ranging from the initiation of an internal misconduct investigation to counseling and/or the issuance of a written job performance notice. The Independent Monitoring Team praised State Police supervisors for this effective response to the six episodes of improper trooper conduct. Increased Supervision Through the redeployment of personnel, State Police has increased the number of sergeant-level supervisors who patrol New Jersey s roadways and, where necessary, assist troopers or advise them on the issue of consent searches. In addition, the agency is adding more than 100 staff sergeant positions to further enhance its supervisory efforts. These additional layers of Technology echnology/f /Facilities acilities/e /Equipment In an effort to build the best-equipped and most accountable statewide law enforcement agency in the nation, the New Jersey State Police continues to invest millions of dollars in cuttingedge technology and new facilities. Approximately 60 percent of the Department of Law and Public Safety s overall budget resources are spent on the State Police. Much of this money about $40 million has been used to acquire sophisticated, on-board recording equipment for patrol cars, data collection systems and information processing technology. This investment is providing the State Police with an unprecedented ability to document, analyze, understand and, where necessary, modify the conduct of its personnel. Through the use of such technology, State Police supervisors can better identify or anticipate potentially problematic enforcement activity and more readily detect improper conduct by individual troopers. Likewise, the new technology enables State Police supervisors to more readily recog- supervision are designed to protect road troopers and instill greater confidence in the motoring public, particularly regarding the issue of consent searches. Under new State Police policy, all troopers will be The monitors noted that New Jersey has established the state of the art for ethics and integrity training for large law enforcement agencies... All sworn ranks are being trained, with command staff and managers receiving experiential and cognitive training from a consultant who has set the standard for ethics training in law enforcement. -- Independent Monitors Report [January 10, 2001] required to seek approval from a supervising sergeant either a road supervisor or a staff sergeant assigned to one of the State Police stations before asking permission to search a motorist s car. Consolidation of State Police EEO/AA Staff In order to enhance its ability to process and investigate complaints, the State Police Equal Employment Opportunity/ Affirmative Action (EEO/AA) staff has been relocated from State Police Division Headquarters and placed within the Department of Law and Public Safety s EEO/ AA Office at Hughes Justice Complex in 6 nize and reinforce the use of proper policing procedures, resolve internal misconduct investigations in a more timely fashion and reward praiseworthy trooper conduct. The State Police has also invested in new infrastructure and facilities to help the organization do its job more efficiently and provide more accountability. Here are some highlights of this historic, technology-based metamorphosis: Computer-Assisted Dispatch (CAD) The CAD system is a sophisticated, statewide computer network that monitors State Police patrol resources along with police, emergency and incident response operations. Via the CAD system, dispatchers at each of five State Police regional dispatch centers throughout New Jersey are able to access a visual display of all dispatched events, events awaiting dispatch, the status and location of all State Police patrol cars handling specific incidents and the status and location of every patrol on duty. These displays, coupled with timer Trenton. The Department of Law and Public Safety s EEO/AA investigative and support staff has expanded during the past year and it is believed that State Police EEO/AA functions will benefit from being consolidated under one roof with the remainder of Law and Public Safety s EEO/AA staff. Public feedback in writing, by phone or the Internet Citizens who wish to relay a complaint or compliment about the State Police now have a variety of options for doing so. They can call the toll-free State Police complaint/compliment telephone number at Citizens can also contact the Office of Professional Standards directly by calling (609) Those with access to the Internet can also deliver feedback by logging on to the New Jersey State Police Internet Home Page at An easy-to-read complaint/ compliment form is also available at any State Police station, at State Police Division Headquarters in West Trenton and at other public locations. The form is available in both English or Spanish, as are written instructions on the procedure for filing a written complaint or compliment.

7 functions that monitor how long it has been since an incident or patrol s status has been updated, help in coordinating patrol activity and ensuring that the availability of individual units is not overlooked. The CAD system is also used in collecting and retrieving data that each trooper is required to record for every motor vehicle stop and for related activity. Motor Vehicle Stop Form In cases where a trooper calls for a stopped motorist to exit his or her car, in cases where drivers are frisked or searched, or in cases where a consent to search is requested, troopers are also required to fill out a detailed Motor Vehicle Stop Form (MVSR). The form contains information on whether the driver and any occupants were asked to get out of their vehicle, whether they were frisked and whether consent to search was requested and granted. The form also requires details on whether a trooper called in a drugdetection canine, whether a non-consensual search was done, whether the trooper found and/or seized any contraband, whether the trooper was required to use force, whether the driver and/or occupants were arrested and, if so, on what specific charges. Many troopers are now equipped with laptop computers, which they use for a variety of purposes, including the entry of motor vehicle stop information into the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system from their patrol cars. Ultimately, every trooper will be equipped with a laptop. Management Awareness Personnel Performance System (MAPPS) The information recorded from each traffic stop, as well as any data recorded after a trooper conducts a search or other investigative activity, is designed to feed another important part of the State Police information network known as the Management Awareness Personnel Performance System (MAPPS). Targeted to be fully operational by early 2002, the system has been created to al- low for maintenance and retrieval of data required to supervise and manage State Police personnel. Put simply, MAPPS is a method of addressing trooper performance issues. The system enables State Police supervisors to isolate and evaluate the patrol and enforcement activities of individual troopers, individual stations, specific patrol shifts, etc. MAPPS enhances the ability of supervisors to identify performance issues - both positive and negative. It is also the final, major element required to put State Police in full compliance with a Consent Decree negotiated with the U.S. Justice Department. Future State Police Technology Center at Hamilton 7 Documenting Motor Vehicle Stops The following information for motor vehicle stops is collected by State Police s Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system: The name and identification of the trooper who initiated the stop. The names and badge numbers of any other troopers who actively participated in the stop. The license number and state of the stopped vehicle. The gender and race or ethnicity of the driver and his date of birth, if known. The time at which the stop commenced and when it ended. Information on any summons or warning issued and the category of violation. In addition, a Motor Vehicle Stop Form (MVSR) must be filled out when a trooper elects to initiate further investigative or enforcement activity after making a motor vehicle stop. Troopers must include information on whether: The driver and/or occupants were asked to exit the vehicle. The driver and/or occupants were frisked. Consent to search was requested and granted. A drug-detection canine was deployed and, if so, the result. A non-consensual search was done and whether any contraband was seized. The driver and/or vehicle occupants were subjected to force and, if so, the nature of that force. The driver and/or occupants were arrested and, if so, on what charges. Information from the MVSR form is entered in the State Police s computerized Records Management System. Both CAD and MVSR information are reported publicly in the division s twice-yearly release of aggregate data required under the Consent Decree with the Department of Justice. Technology Center/Troop C Headquarters - The State Police broke ground in Hamilton Township earlier this year for a new Technology Complex. Here, the Forensic Sciences Bureau will employ state-of-the-art equipment to conduct DNA testing and other forensic procedures while the Records and Identification Section will employ the latest fingerprint technology. State Police is now able to provide state-ofthe-art identification technology through the Automated Fingerprint Information System. This live scan system electronically transmits fingerprints to a central data bank at Division Headquarters in West Trenton, where the impressions are scanned, searched and verified. The results are then transmitted back to the originating police agency for immediate identification. This technology allows law enforcement officers to obtain a positive identification of criminal suspects in a matter of minutes and to search latent prints that have been collected as well. Scheduled for future construction in Hamilton is a new Troop C Headquarters and Communications Center. This facility will be home to the State Police Computer Aided Dispatch system. It will also provide space for the Departments of Transportation and Environmental Protection to conduct their dispatch operations in order to better serve the public in emergency situations. Over the past two years, the State Police has also invested millions of dollars in new equipment including radar detectors, blood-alcohol level detection units, portable radios, helmets and other safety and investigative equipment. In keeping with this effort to update equipment, State Police patrol cars that have been used for 100,000 miles or more of road duty have been taken out of service and a new policy enacted that requires the replacement of marked cars every three years. All patrol cars are also newly equipped with high-visibility pursuit lights and new radios in addition to secure partitions separating the trooper from persons being transported in the rear seating area. This multi-million-dollar investment in new-and-improved resources is designed to ensure that, at a time when they are being asked to rededicate themselves to the highest standards of professionalism, troopers have the equipment they need to perform their duties as safely and effectively as possible. Through its commitment to providing the best available equipment and training, the State Police continues to serve as a leader in the use of technology and as a valuable source of crime-fighting and technical assistance to other police agencies.

8 Each day, the State Police strives to improve and protect the quality of life for all New Jerseyans through work that is often directly in the public eye and, in other cases, unfolds quietly behind the scenes. The State Police patrols New Jersey s heavily traveled state roads and waterways, investigates organized crime, combats illegal drug and weapons traffic, responds to incidents involving explosives and other potential hazards and, through the efforts of highly trained personnel, accomplishes countless other public-safety-related tasks. As envisioned on its creation in 1921, the primary mission of the New Jersey State Police was to prevent crime and pursue and apprehend offenders. Eighty years later, that anti-crime focus coupled with around-the-clock patrols designed to ensure the safety of motorists traversing New Jersey s vast system of toll roads and state highways remains the agency s life blood. But modern realities continue to require expansion of the State Police mission. Today, other aspects of daily State Police life include policing the Internet to deter pedophiles, scam artists and other cyber criminals, helping to locate missing and exploited children, working with neighborhood leaders and young people to reduce crime through community policing, reducing dangerous truck traffic, protecting residents, particularly in urban areas, from youth gang activity while stressing positive alternatives and discouraging underage drinking and the use of so-called club drugs by teenagers. As part of a pilot program involving the New Jersey Turnpike, the State Police has also deployed road troopers trained and equipped to respond to all manner of medical emergencies from heart attacks and diabetes-related symptoms to epileptic seizures and premature birthing deliveries. These activities are all vital to protecting public safety and upholding the rule of law. But the State Police mission does not end there. The State Police is also committed to setting the standard for other law enforcement agencies throughout New Jersey by ensuring that its patrol, investigation and enforcement efforts are always even-handed and do not violate the privacy and other rights of the public. Conclusion In addition, the State Police respects its obligation to reflect, within both the rankand-file membership and throughout its leadership, the diverse society it serves. To emphasize its commitment to meeting these obligations and to provide a reminder to all of its 3,700 sworn and civilian employees the State Police has clarified its formal statement of core values to include a commitment to enforce the law constitutionally and with compassion. All of the reforms already in place or in some phase of development are designed to ensure that, as the State Police works daily to serve and protect the public, its policies, practices and most importantly its people reflect this high standard. Working with the U.S. Justice Department, the NAACP, the New Jersey Black Ministers Council, the Anti-Defamation League, community leaders throughout the state and others, the State Police has achieved important progress to date. A series of evaluation reports by a courtappointed Independent Monitoring Team have described State Police training reforms as state of the art and praised 1 the organization for setting a course for substantive reform rather than a quick fix. The U.S. Justice Department has included some of the same strategies now being employed by State Police within a report on recommended model or best practices for policing agencies throughout the nation. And through vigorous, targeted recruiting efforts, more minorities and women are seeking careers with the State Police and successfully completing their State Police training than ever before. But despite the encouraging progress to date, much work remains to be done. The momentum behind State Police recruiting efforts must be maintained, so that minorities and women continue to feel welcome and that a large and diverse pool of qualified trooper candidates is available. State Police internal misconduct investigations, praised by the Independent Monitoring Team for their fairness and thoroughness, must be completed in a more timely fashion. Additional efforts are ongoing to address evidence that, in some instances, minority motorists continue to be asked for consent to search more often and questioned more extensively than white motorists. The process of making the State Police the best-equipped, finest-trained, most accountable and above all most even-handed law enforcement agency in the nation remains a work-in-progress. However, there is evidence that the work is yielding significant and historic results. New Jersey remains committed to building the strongest and most diverse statewide police agency in the country, one that will ensure equal treatment of all persons under the law and provide a model for 21st Century law enforcement. [the monitors cite a] trooper who not only met the letter and spirit of the consent decree and established New Jersey State Police procedures, but far exceeded these... His traffic stops including those in which he engaged in actions of interest to the decree... were exemplary, and could serve as the source of training videos, not only for the New Jersey State Police, but for all police agencies in the United States. Independent Monitors Report [July 17, 2001] For More Information New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, NJPublic PublicSafety Safety.com Department of Law and Public Safety 8