Hackensack Police Department: 125 Years

[Editor]

From Heritage to Horizons (1976):

Police Department

The early history of the Hackensack Police Department is not known, there being no records available prior to 1900. The beginnings of the Department are here related by retired Sergeant Herman Barr (deceased) and through the assistance of Ms. Mary Otchy of the Johnson Free Public Library Staff, the late Mrs. Josephine Coogan, City Clerk of Hackensack, and the Library Staff of The Record.

The Hackensack Police Department came into being on February 21, 1888, when the Hackensack Improvement Commission introduced "An Act to Provide for the Establishment of a Police Force". An actual "Ordinance to Establish and Regulate a Police Department in the Village of Hackensack" was not adopted until August, 1900.

The beginnings of the Police Department as related by Sergeant Barr were spartan. The early law officers, two in number, "Bucky" Banta and George Earle, shared the enforcement responsibilities of the Village. They worked for $50 per month with no days off. They supplied their own uniforms, guns, equipment and other necessary items. The two men operated out of borrowed space in the Fire House at 24 Mercer Street.

The patrol function was a simple matter, if one of the officers took the area north of the Susquehanna Railroad tracks, the other took the area south. It is not known how the selection of the area was made or if the selection was made by tossing a coin. These men were the bastions of law and order in the Village until 1896, when George Earle retired and "Bucky" Banta died.

About this time, Cornelius Van Blarcom, Michael Breen, Martin O'Shea and Albert Rick were appointed to the Police Department. Two years later, Sergeant Barr was appointed. According to the record furnished by Sergeant Barr before his death, there still was no Chief of Police, but Cornelius Van Blarcom was in charge and shared the patrol duties. The work load of the Department also increased about this time, the Village then having four patrol posts instead of only two, although equipment was still lacking. Sergeant Barr remembered that the police officers used wheelbarrows, stone bosts or any other conveyance they could borrow or commandeer to bring drunks and any other persons under arrest to the Police Station. Persons arrested could not be held as there was no facility for keeping prisoners.

According to Sergeant Barr, a short time later, a man whose first name he could not recall, but whose last name was Schrieber and who worked for R.C Macy Company as a teamster was appointed as Sergeant and placed in charge of the Department. Barr's recollection is that Schrieber served only one year as head of the Department, but during his leadership the force was increased with the appointments of Charles Graber and Thomas Smith.

When Sergeant Schrieber left the Department, Irving Waltermire (or Waltermeyer both spellings appear in the old records) was appointed in charge and became the first Chief of Police. Chief Waltermeyer moved police headquarters to the basement of the Union League Club at the corner of Main and Morris Streets at the Green. About 1905 Jacob Dunn became Waltermeyer's successor as Chief of Police and police headquarters was again moved, this time to what is now the Garden State National Bank at Main and Mercer Streets, this move occurring about 1908.

Again during the tenure of Chief Dunn, the police headquarters was moved this time to Ricardo's Warehouse at what is now approximately 19 Mercer Street. This was an advantageous move for the Police Department, as now horses could be borrowed if the need to use the Patrol Wagon arose. The Police Department stayed at Ricardo's Warehouse until 1918, when it was moved across the street where it originally started in the Fire House at 24 Mercer Street. Now, however, it was officially the police headquarters and facilities for the functions of the Police Department were installed. Here the Police Department made its home and continued to grow until 40 years later in 1958 it moved into the new modern headquarters at 225 State Street.

In 88 years of law enforcement in the City of Hackensack, the Department expanded from two ill-equipped, untrained constables into the new 107-man computer assisted, modernly equipped and technically trained law enforcement agency. The present Chief, Anthony Iurato, is assisted in upholding the law by six divisions in the Police Department: Detective, Youth, Narcotics, Traffic, Criminal Identification and Patrol.

[Editor]

Hackensack Police Department celebrates 125 years of service
Friday February 22, 2013, 1:57 PM
BY  JENNIFER VAZQUEZ
NEWS EDITOR
Hackensack Chronicle

The city's police department celebrated its 125 years in existence on Feb. 21.

This achievement was touched upon during the Feb. 19 council meeting, when a resolution was passed, essentially, congratulating the department.

"The Hackensack Police Department is hereby congratulated as it celebrates this milestone and also commended for its outstanding dedication to our community," the resolution reads.

The Hackensack Police Department has undergone quite a few changes, according to the resolution. A department that started off with "two ill-equipped, untrained constables," has since turned "into a one hundred and twelve member department."

According to a book published by the City of Hackensack to celebrate the city's 300th anniversary, "The City of Hackensack: Three Centuries of Prosperity 1693-1993", New Jersey began to form police and fire departments after 1871, "the year the state Legislature passed a law permitting local governments to organize these services. Hackensack's first police department formed in 1896."

The department during this time operated out of borrowed space from various locations until 1958, when it moved to the "newly constructed headquarters" at 225 State St., where it is currently located, Hackensack Mayor Michael Melfi said during the council meeting.

Though the department has been in existence for more than a century, recent controversial incidents, over the past couple of years, have brought it to the forefront when its former police chief, Charles "Ken" Zisa, was charged and convicted of insurance fraud and official misconduct in 2012.

According to Councilman John Labrosse, the police department is entering a new phase.

"There was a tumultuous time for the police department," Labrosse said. "In a kind of way, this anniversary is like a new chapter for the department."

Moving past Zisa, the city temporarily got rid of its police chief position, deciding to implement a police director instead. This would allow the individual in this post to oversee the day-to-day activities of the department and make sure that all rules and regulations are met. The city council and newly-appointed Police Director Michael Mordaga are hopeful the city's police agency can be transformed to its previous glory.

Mordaga's public service career started in Hackensack, a department that, according to him, has a long tradition of professionalism.

"For 125 years we always had a professional department," Mordaga said. "This is an ongoing tradition of ours. Over the past couple of years our ship began to stray, but we are back on course and back to bringing the department to what it has been known for."

"We are very hopeful that the worse is behind for [the police department]," Labrosse said. "Mordaga has been doing a great job since he came on board [as director]."

According to Melfi, the department will, undoubtedly, continue to serve the people in the community for years to come.

"I want to congratulate the Hackensack Police Department on their anniversary and wish them another 125 years."

Email: vazquez@northjersey.com