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RED BANK: MCPO WEIGHS IN ON PBA CLAIM

Chief Darren McConnell speaking at an event in 2021. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topicThe Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office amended its policy on internal-affairs investigations into matters involving relatives of local police chiefs in February, the agency told redbankgreen Monday.

But the changes were “not formulated as a reaction to any one specific matter,” the MCPO said in a statement that appeared to contradict an assertion made last week by Red Bank’s police union about borough police Chief Darren McConnell.

McConnell said the statement bares “another misrepresentation of the facts by the PBA.”

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RED BANK: McCONNELL REBUTS ALLEGATIONS

red bank darren mcconnellChief Darren McConnell at the police station in 2020. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topicRed Bank police Chief Darren McConnell acknowledged Saturday that he’d had a relationship with a former “significant other” of a department employee “years ago,” but none since.

The admission came two days after the police union accused McConnell of engaging in “numerous inappropriate and questionable sexual relationships with the significant others'” of department personnel, as well as alleged ethical lapses that led to “no confidence” vote by local members last month.

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RED BANK: PBA BLASTS McCONNELL’S ‘ETHICS’

PBA president Mike Zadlock, at table, addressing the council while the union’s executive committee members stood. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

[See CLARIFICATION below]

By JOHN T. WARD

hot topicRed Bank’s police union accused Chief Darren McConnell of “numerous inappropriate and questionable sexual relationships” with employees and other alleged ethical lapses Thursday night.

The allegations, aired during a council meeting, came a month after a previously undisclosed “no confidence” vote by Police Benevolent Local 39, and almost two weeks after McConnell had been expected to retire.

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RED BANK: COPS + KIDS + COPTER = FUN


Always fun and mind-blowing for kids, Red Bank’s annual National Night Out Against Crime once again featured a visit by a military helicopter to Count Basie Park Tuesday night.

The police-sponsored festival featured free food, games, music and community information, organized this year by Patrolman Milton Gray IV. But once again, the New Jersey National Guard Black Hawk copter stole the show, giving kids an opportunity to explore the aircraft inside and out.

Check out redbankgreen‘s photos, below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

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RED BANK: COUNCIL WRAPS UP 2021

The council meeting was the final one scheduled for 2021. (Screenshot from Zoom. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

The Red Bank council’s final regular meeting of 2021 included a new police contract, a plan to recombine workshop and regular sessions, a new used Tesla, and praise for a departing colleague.

Here’s an overview.

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RED BANK: COPTER STARS AT NIGHT OUT

Hundreds of Red Bank residents turned out for the annual police-sponsored National Night Out Against Crime festival at Count Basie Park Tuesday night.

In addition to free food and games, this years’s edition featured the dramatic arrival of a New Jersey National Guard Black Hawk helicopter, which kids of all ages swarmed over.

The stop was the second of the night on the Greater Red Bank Green for the Lakehurst-based chopper, following an appearance at Little Silver’s National Night Out at Markham Fields.

Check out the photos below. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)

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RED BANK: COUNCIL SAYS ‘BYE-BYE, 2018’

red bank nj councilman mark taylor cole At his last meeting as a councilman, Mark Taylor posed with his infant son, Cole, as his wife, Ashley, took their photo. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

By JOHN T. WARD

The Red Bank council wrapped up 2018 last week with swan songs for two one-term members of the governing body, one of whom was the youngest ever elected in the borough’s history.

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RED BANK: HUNDREDS PEDAL OFF IN UNITY

rb unity 050915 1rb unity 050915 2Hundreds of cyclists from police departments across New Jersey headed down a misty Broad Street in Red Bank on the first leg of the annual Police Unity Tour Saturday morning. The contingent included 10 current and retired Red Bank police officers.

The ride, to Washington, D.C., honors law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.

While his fellow riders got a royal sendoff from the Red Bank Volunteer Fire Department, one rider, at right above, pulled over to fix a flat tire just minutes into the ride. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)rb unity 050915 3

RED BANK: STREET FAIR SHINES AGAIN

Sunday was a day of sunglasses, leashes, and bibs in downtown Red Bank for the annual late-summer edition of Street Fair, a fundraiser for the volunteer fire department and the local PBA. Every nook and niche, it seemed, was taken up by hungry fairgoers. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

RED BANK: GIRL’S WISH IS TO ENABLE OTHERS

kasey kennedy 060314Eight-year-old Kasey Kennedy, a student at St. James School in Red Bank, with the members of the Red Bank Catholic Making Wishes Club – plus her little brother, Colin. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

RBC Carnival 2104As a child with a life-threatening blood vessel disorder, Kasey Kennedy found herself with a decision to make four years ago. The Make A Wish Foundation was offering to fulfill whatever wish she might have.

But having spent a lot of time in hospitals with other kids, Kasey decided she want to help make their wishes come true, rather than her own.

Why, when she could have indulged in her own fantasies? “Because I met friends in the hospital,” she told redbankgreen.

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RED BANK COPS BIKE DOWNPOUR FOR CHIEF

mccarthy ride 050814 2mccarthy ride 050814 1Despite teeming rain and slick roads, dozens of cyclists, including numerous police officers, headed out on a 26-mile ride in memory of late Red Bank Police Chief Steve McCarthy Thursday morning. McCarthy died last September of anaplastic thyroid cancer. He was 50 years old.

The ride followed a brief ceremony at borough hall, and was accompanied by numerous emergency vehicles flashing their lights as the riders took Tower Hill in Red Bank and headed to Brielle.

The event was held  one day before the the annual Police Unity Tour, in which cops bike to Washington, D.C. in honor of law enforcement officials who have died in the line of duty. (Photos by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

 

 

RED BANK COPS TO RIDE FOR LATE CHIEF

s-mccarthyPolice Chief Steve McCarthy in 2010. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi. Click to enlarge)

donegoodlogoMembers of the Red Bank Police Benevolent Association plan a memorial bike ride this week for the late Chief Steve McCarthy, who died last September.

Thursday’s 25-mile ride to Brielle, expected to include between 50 and 70 officers and civilians, falls one day before the annual Police Unity Tour, in which cops bike to Washington, D.C. in honor of law enforcement officials who have died in the line of duty.

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RED BANK: STREET FAIR BUSTLES

The spring edition of the Red Bank Street Fair drew hundreds of visitors downtown on a warm and sunny afternoon Sunday. The event was a fundraiser for the Police Benevolent Association and the Red Bank Volunteer Fire Department. (Photos by Peter Lindner. Click to enlarge)

RED BANK TO RAZE HOUSE AT BOROUGH HALL

106 monmouth 012314Red Bank officials said Wednesday that they’re soliciting bids to demolish a former home at 106 Monmouth Street, which sits at the edge of the municipal complex.

Owned by the borough since the late 1990s, the house has been used for record storage and as an unofficial gym for police officers, but is no longer needed by the town and has fallen into such disrepair that it’s not worth rehabilitating, said Mayor Pasquale Menna. The demolition will create extra parking spaces, he said.

Historian Randy Gabrielan has a 1953 photo of 90 Monmouth, then an auto dealership and office building, with the house visible in the distance, in one of his books available online. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)

RED BANK: CRAFTS FAIR DRAWS THOUSANDS

Red Bank debuted a spring version of its annual September Street Fair on Sunday in bright sunshine and cool weather, and thousands of visitors turned out to peruse crafts and taste the food. Proceeds benefitted the borough Police Benevolent Association, which plans to donate some to the Red Bank branch of the Boys and Girls Club of Monmouth County, said Patrolman Jorge Torres.

RUMSON TO APPEAL ARBITRATION AWARD

rumson-pdRumson’s police union and the borough council have been at an impasse since December, 2006. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

For nearly four years, Rumson officials and its police union have been at loggerheads on a new contract. Earlier this week, a state arbitrator delivered a decision that has the council shocked and disappointed.

The governing body will appeal the decision given by arbitrator James Mastriani, said Mayor John Ekdahl. The terms Mastriani proposed, he said, create a “privileged class” of employees.

The award calls for 3.5-,  3.5- and 3.25-percent pay increases retroactive to when the union’s contract expired at the end of 2006. For 2010, officers would get increases of 3 percent, and 2.75-percent next year if Mastriani’s award holds up.

But given the state’s economic turmoil — plus a pending 2-percent tax cap — Ekdahl finds the terms of the police contract unfair to the borough and its taxpayers.

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ST. NICK MAKES AN EARLY ARRIVAL

rb-santaRed Bank Patrolman Mike Zadlock, er, Santa Claus, made a visit to the Jackson house Monday night to drop off toys as part of the police department’s toy drive. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi)

By DUSTIN RACIOPPI

He ditched the reindeer and sleigh for a convoy of lights-flashing cruisers. And instead of wiggling down the chimney in the middle of the night, he simply knocked on doors just after dark.

Nevertheless, Santa Claus did what Santa Claus does best when he made an early visit to some select Red Bank families Monday when he showed up with a sack of toys and other gifts with his pals from the borough police department in the annual Policemen’s Benevolent Association toy drive.

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POLICE PACT: SIX PERCENT OVER TWO YEARS

rbpd-patchA tentative contract with the collective bargaining unit representing Red Bank police calls for three-percent pay raises this year and next, borough officials said Tuesday night.

The terms of the proposed pact were  approved by the borough council in a brief public session following an extended one behind closed doors.

The contract now goes back to Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local 39 for approval, after which the council would vote on it.

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PBA: DON’T BE FOOLED

pba-consumer-warning-copy2Red Bank’s Police Benevolent Association, trying to raise money for its charitable efforts, is warning residents of a lookalike, or soundalike, effort.

In a sternly worded notice (at right; click to enlarge) and accompanying letter to borough residents, PBA Local 39 president Robert Campanella  tells residents that any “PBA” phone solicitations they might get aren’t coming from them.

“The Red Bank PBA does not now, and has never solicited donations via the telephone,” Campanella says in his letter.

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