Marc Kovar
Executive Vice President
Words matter:
Attack on one is an attack on all
Words matter and, as we all experience every day, respect for law
enforcement is important at every level. Unfortunately, just a few
weeks ago, the top law enforcement official in the state was ridi-
culed and demeaned for his religion on a popular New Jersey radio
station.
Of course I am referring to New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir
Grewal and the references to him made by radio hosts at New Jersey
101.5 as “turban man.”
Grewal is the country’s first Sikh attorney general, and he wears
a turban and beard as an observance of his religion. He previously
served as the Bergen County Prosecutor and was Governor Mur-
phy’s selection to become attorney general upon taking office in
January.
In our experience working with General Grewal – first in Bergen
County and later as the state’s top law enforcement official – he has
been a strong advocate for everyone in law enforcement. As attor-
ney general, he represents each of us in the same way that each of
our members represent those they serve, whether on the job or not.
That’s why it was so unfortunate to hear him referred to as “tur-
ban man” and “the guy with the turban” on a live broadcast in July.
The fact is that any effort to denigrate any member of law enforce-
ment is something that simply cannot be tolerated.
It was great to see such immediate and strong reaction through-
out the state to these remarks, including from Governor Murphy
and station management, which disciplined the hosts who made
the remark with a 10-day suspension.
The remorse shown by those radio hosts was also a positive dis-
course for moving forward. Needless to say, if t he roles were re-
versed, any one of us law enforcement officers would have lost their
jobs – guaranteed.
The fact is that this unfortunate situation shed light on a number
of different issues that are important to our members. The first is
that we must all stand together because any attack on any member
of law enforcement, whether the attorney general or someone with
two weeks on the job, is an attack on all of us. It cannot be toler-
ated. Secondly was the speed and efficiency with which so many
came out to say this incident would not be tolerated. And the third
was the tremendous grace that Attorney General Grewal displayed,
which also helped to defuse a potentially much more volatile situ-
ation.
General Grewal’s reaction to this personal attack recalled
what happened to our NJ State PBA President Pat Colligan, when
then-Governor Christie called him a “pension pig” during the New
Hampshire Primary in 2016 as part of his failed presidential cam-
paign. At the time, Pat also showed tremendous grace and compo-
sure while being attacked on the national stage and, at the same
time, kept his eye on the ultimate goal of making sure our mem-
bers’ pensions would be there for them when they retired. As a re-
sult of Pat’s unflappable nature and willingness to focus on what is
most important, legislation that will put our pensions under our
own control and take them away from the politics that have hurt
our members so often in the past was finally signed into law by
Governor Murphy, after years of hard work and effort.
The fact is that words matter, and the impact of those with access
to the bully pulpit matters for the larger public perception. If we set
a course, maintain focus and stand for one another regardless of
circumstance, we will see the positive result, not just legislatively
but also on a more practical level on the streets we have all chosen
to protect.
In closing, on behalf of President Colligan and the entire NJ State
PBA, we send our thoughts and prayers to the family of Officer
Adam Jobbers-Miller of the Fort Myers, Florida Police Department,
who succumbed to a gunshot wound sustained on July 21 after re-
sponding to an assault and larceny call at a gas station. Adam grew
up in Wayne and many of our members knew him and his father,
who served in town as a first responder.
Please enjoy the remaining summer weeks and, most important-
ly, stay safe. d
NJ COP SHOT – ALERT
$20,000 REWARD
Offered for information on the shooting of two Camden detectives
The NJ Cop Shot program has posted a reward of $20,000 lead-
ing to the arrest and conviction of the suspects responsible for
the shooting of two Camden Police Department detectives on the
evening of Aug. 7.
The detectives, who were in plain clothes at the time, were
ambushed and shot while at a red light in an unmarked car. The
detectives were rushed to an area hospital with injuries being re-
ported as not life threatening.
“We consider an attack on any law enforcement officer in New
Jersey, regardless of union affiliation, an attack on one of our own,”
7
NEW JERSEY COPS
■ AUGUST 2018
New Jersey State PBA President Pat Colligan said. “We want these
dangerous criminals brought to justice as quickly as possible,
and we are confident that this reward will help. Our thoughts and
prayers are with both detectives as they recover from this assault.”
The NJ State PBA is asking anyone with information to call De-
tective Caffarelli of the Camden Police Department at 856-757-
7042.
NJ Cop Shot is a program run by the New Jersey State PBA. All
information provided is anonymous and confidential. d