Joey Fields at a ceremony marking his promotion to police sergeant in 2014. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
A retired Red Bank police officer who’s a product of borough schools will be returning to work as a school resource officer, following action by the council last week.
In other RBPD news, the ranks of retired officers is slated to grow by two.
Red Bank police dashcam video from the June 3 incident on East Bergen Place. (Red Bank Police Department video. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s police chief has asked the Monmouth County prosecutor to review an incident involving Councilman Michael Ballard earlier this month.
The incident, which Ballard reported as it occurred outside his home during a council meeting on Zoom, led to his wife, Rose Sestito, briefly in handcuffs for allegedly interfering with a police investigation, though no charges were filed.
Borough resident Karla Ortega, left, translated remarks by Lieutenant Juan Sardo into Spanish as Councilwoman Kate Triggiano, right, looked on at last week’s council meeting. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
By JOHN T. WARD
In what may be a first in New Jersey, Red Bank police will be able to draw on a team of local volunteers to help them bridge language divides in dealing with the public.
A new program championed by first-term Councilwoman Kate Triggiano will make volunteer interpreters available to help police in their normal duties as well as at community events, she said.
The ‘Awaken Community’ march through downtown Red Bank culminated with a brief rally at Riverside Gardens Park. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Several hundred marchers took to the streets of downtown Red Bank hoping to preserve rights for immigrants that others don’t believe they are entitled to.
Chanting “Up, up with education, down, down with deportation,” waving American flags and carrying banners that read “Immigrants built this nation,” participants gathered around the Christmas tree at Riverside Gardens Park, where they heard an expression of moral support from the borough police department.
Newly sworn Red Bank police Captain Mike Frazee receives congratulations from Administrator Stanley Sickels Wednesday night, when the borough council promoted five officers and hired a new patrolman.
Click ‘read more’ for photos from the packed-room swearing-in ceremonies.
Melanie Safka Shekeryk, better known to radio listeners of a certain age as the Woodstock-era singer ‘Melanie,’ visited Red Bank Regional for induction into the school’s Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame Friday morning. Melanie – seen at center in the photo above and at right with school newspaper staffers Cecilia Gunderson and Amy Cavallo – graduated from the pre-RBR Red Bank High School in 1964.
A self-proclaimed square-peg teenager who has previously described her time at RBHS as “miserable,” the singer found herself surrounded by fan-dads and other admirers as she ate a breakfast prepared by RBR’s culinary arts students. “It’s wonderful what schools have now for kids,” she said. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
Melanie Safka Shekeryk, above, and Red Bank police Sergeant Juan Sardo are headed into the RBR Hall of Fame. (Photo from melaniesafka.com. Click to enlarge)
Folk singer Melanie, who won radio fame for her Woodstock-era hits “Brand New Key,” “Beautiful People” and “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain),” is among the next batch of inductees into Red Bank Regional’s Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame next week.
A graduate of the pre-RBR era Red Bank High in 1964, Melanie – also known as Melanie Safka Shekeryk – is slated to attend the April 24 induction ceremony, according to a school spokeswoman.
Newly elevated Captain Mike Clay, left, and Lieutenant Errico Vescio chat before being sworn to their new ranks Wednesday night. Below, Michael Frazee reciting the oath of lieutenant. Clay’s been on the squad since 1986; Vescio joined in 1999, and Frazee in 1996. Both Vescio and Frazee are Red Bank natives. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Red Bank’s police department completed a “once-in-a-lifetime” makeover Wednesday night with a host of promotions and a pair of new hires.
A new captain – former Lieutenant Mike Clay – four new lieutenants and six new sergeants were sworn to their ranks at a packed borough council meeting. Chief Darren McConnell, who’s held his post for just three months, said the promotions were aimed at putting the future leadership of the department in place.
But the mass elevation also may signal the beginning of the end of a long tradition in American policing: homegrown cops.