Captain Mike Frazee in his office in May. He has not moved into the chief’s office. (Photo by Brian Donohue. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD AND BRIAN DONOHUE
When Red Bank Police Chief Darren McConnell announced his retirement, Mayor Billy Portman announced Captain Mike Frazee would be the next chief, with the process taking “a couple of weeks.”
That “couple of weeks” is now fifty-two and counting.
Last week, Frazee marked a full year heading the department with all the responsibilities and everything but the rank of chief of police. Oh, and the actual office. He still has not moved into the chief’s office, sticking to his smaller digs in the detective bureau out of deference to the guy who still holds the title.
Frazee, left, with Councilman David Cassidy, center, and state Senator Vin Gopal last October, and below, on the scene of shooting in July, 2023. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
“Although I would love to move in, I’m saving that move as something to look forward after I’m sworn in,” he said.
He’s not the only one finding it all slightly awkward.
“One of the council people asked me, ‘do we call you acting chief?'” Frazee said in a recent interview with redbankgreen. “I said, ‘call me Mike.’ I’m not one of those people who demands to be called by rank.”
Indeed, the handoff was expected – by the public, at least – to be just weeks away, once McConnell’s pending retirement from the post he held for a decade became effective.
“As soon as we are able, Captain Frazee will be the next police chief here in Red Bank,” Portman said in July, 2023.
But then things blew up.
McConnell’s retirement was put on hold by a complaint filed with the state attorney general’s office by Police Benevolent Local 39 accusing him of engaging in “numerous inappropriate and questionable sexual relationships with the significant others” of department personnel, as well as other alleged ethical lapses. McConnell said at the time pension rules prohibited him from retiring with a complaint pending.
Then, in March, the AG’s Special Investigation Unit issued a bombshell report calling for McConnell to be “terminated and not continue in any capacity” with the borough. It outlined a litany of alleged wrongdoing investigators had substantiated, including burying internal affairs investigations into his then girlfriend (later turned wife), an officer on the force.
McConnell was placed on administrative leave shortly before the report became public. Borough officials announced an “intention to discipline” McConnell but have never directly stated whether they moved to terminate him or take other action in response to the report. Closed-door administrative hearings into the case have begun, officials said.
“The process has started and..there are proceedings scheduled to take place to work towards a resolution,” Borough Manager Jim Gant said in an email to redbankgreen.
Until the case is resolved, Frazee has been running the department as de facto chief. He shrugs off a question about whether he’s frustrated over the situation.
“Nothing has ever come easy to me, so it seems like it’s a process,” he said. ” I look at this and like, “Hey, you know what it is what it is.”
As the almost-chief, he at least recently began earning an almost-chief like salary.
After showering him with praise the for job he’s doing, Gant and the borough council recently approved a $20,000-a-year stipend on top of his regular $166,327 captain’s salary to reflect his additional duties leading the department.
It’s still a bit short of the $198,312 regular chief’s salary. And because McConnell continues to be paid while he’s on administrative leave, it leaves the borough in the position of paying two chiefs for the services of one.
For Frazee, 52, the wait delays the culmination of a local-kid-done-good story. He grew up on North Bridge Avenue, joined the department as a dispatcher in 1994, and became a patrol officer two years later. He was elevated to lieutenant in 2014 after stints in the patrol and detective units, and was promoted to captain in July, 2017.
In a recent interview, he described a series of small changes to shifts and assignments he’s made since taking the helm and new programs he’s looking to launch.
They include reviving bicycle patrols, which were discontinued amid a rash or robberies that prompted the previous leadership to move resources to an anti crime task force. He’s also planning an educational campaign for seniors to combat a rising wave of fraud and internet crime.
But without the full title and official promotion, there’s still the sense that he is, in his words “filling shoes.”
“I’ve made some small changes in the department,” he said. “I didn’t wanna overstep my bounds.”
If you value the news coverage provided by redbankgreen, please become a financial supporter for as little as $1 per month. Click here to set your own level of monthly or annual contribution.
