2006 Media Releases:

CAMDEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE
JAMES P. LYNCH, ACTING CAMDEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR
MEDIA INFORMATION

September 13, 2006

Acting Camden County Prosecutor James P. Lynch, New Jersey Acting Attorney General Anne Milgram and Charles Rogovin, Chairman of the Attorney General’s Commission on Camden’s Public Safety, today announced the release of the Commission’s report, which outlines findings regarding the operation and organization of the Camden Police Department and recommendations for enhancements.

The Commission, also known as the “Blue Ribbon Panel,” was formed in January 2005 by then-Attorney General Peter C. Harvey. It is made up of Camden City residents along with experts in the field of policing.

“The report offers a series of recommendations we firmly believe can make the Camden Police Department a model of policing excellence, which the fine men and women of the department and the good people of the city need and deserve,” said Commission Chairman Rogovin, Professor Emeritus at the Temple University School of Law in Philadelphia. “The key component is a true partnership between the officers and the people of the city to work together to identify areas of concern and use problem-solving techniques to address them.

“This was not an academic exercise,” Rogovin added. “This is a real case study and an articulation of a vision for the Police Department of the City of Camden.”

“The reforms recommended by the Commission should lead to more effective law enforcement in the City of Camden and to greater cooperation between the police and the community,” Acting Attorney General Anne Milgram stated.

“I offer my thanks and congratulations to members of the Commission for their time and efforts in analyzing police department operations and organization and for producing a concise report that contains specific recommendations for making the Camden Police Department the best crime-fighting organization it can possibly be,” Acting Prosecutor Lynch said.

Taking the lead role in implementing the recommendations will be Arturo Venegas Jr., former longtime Chief of Police in Sacramento, Calif., who was appointed Aug. 1, 2006, to lead the Camden Police Department under the authority of the Attorney General.

“I have been impressed by the men and women of the department,” Venegas said. “They are hungry for change and committed to improvement. One of the main recommendations is for ongoing and consistent training for street level officers as well as commanders and supervisors. Through education and personal development, we will identify, develop and promote high quality leaders and supervisors who can help take the department to the next level.”

The recommendations include:

* Establish District Collaborative Councils as the basis for strong collaboration with residents and the business community in Camden’s neighborhoods and ensure that police commanders and
supervisors are actively involved in problem-solving and strategy development with the Councils.

* Create a full-time civilian Police Director position to be responsible for (a) setting department-wide policy, (b) issuing the rules and regulations that govern the department, (c) establishing the table of organization, and (d) making all decisions concerning the hiring, firing, and promotion
of Department personnel.

* Enact the legislative changes required to allow the Mayor to select a police chief from a larger pool of qualified applicants.

* Leave the position of police chief unfilled until existing leadership resources in the department are more fully developed and the legislative change recommended above is in place.

* Require all field officers to successfully complete training in problem-solving police techniques and the problem-solving process.

* Reorganize and strengthen the CompStat process (data-based resource and operations planning) to allow for performance management of the Department’s crime-reduction efforts.

* Adopt fixed-shift scheduling and abandon the current practice of rotating officers weekly from day shift to swing shift to overnight shift. Schedule personnel so that the number of officers on duty at any given time of the day corresponds to the level of crime occurrence. Fixed-shift scheduling will improve the Department’s responsiveness to the city’s needs and improve the health and safety of its members.

Click here to download the full report (pdf file - 839 KB)