NJ Cops | Page 44

44 NEW JERSEY COPS n JULY 2014 How a bill becomes law Mount Arlington EMT Judy Shoudy is fighting to pass a law that will allow permanent roadside memorials for fallen first responders n BY JOSHUA SIGMUND There was palpable tension in Committee Room 12 at the State House Annex in Trenton on June 14 as Judy Shoudy and her supporters prepared to address the New Jersey State Assembly Homeland Security and State Preparedness Committee. But armed with Bill A-410, a measure that establishes a Department of Transportation (DOT) roadside memorial program for fallen police officers, EMS workers and firefighters, Shoudy felt hesitant confidence. “Who could be against it?” she pondered. “But it’s never a sure thing.” For Shoudy, this moment is the culmination of a trying period that began on Oct. 16, 2011, when she wo