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NEW JERSEY COPS ■ JULY 2014
Special Olympian makes waves
For the Mercer County Sheriff’s Department Local 187, this
year’s National Special Olympics Games held in New Jersey
caused more of a splash than normal. Taking home two gold
and one silver medals out of three swimming events, Special
Olympian Mary Lee Morgante, sister of Sheriff’s Officer Nick
Morgante, brought pride and recognition to herself, her family and all the officers who came out to support this champion.
“She has been involved in Special Olympics for nearly 20
years,” noted Nick Morgante about his 31-year-old sister who
is diagnosed as cognitively impaired. “Since I was a little kid,
she’s always been a phenomenal swimmer. I’ve watched her
compete for years and she’s always stood out. It’s amazing to
see how competitive she is and how much it means to her.”
Nick, who was able to volunteer with Special Olympics for
the first time this year, had the privilege of participating in the
opening ceremonies as well as throughout the medal ceremonies. But nothing could have compared to his highest
honor of presenting Mary Lee with her medal.
“It was just surreal,” he recounted. “To be able to see somebody with a disability overcome challenges and be as successful in swimming as she is, it’s incredible.”
Local 187’s members also dove into the games, partially to
support their hometown heroine.
“Our department was very involved and a lot of guys volunteered and spent the week with the athletes,” Nick
acknowledged. “As impressive as it is to see my sister and
what she’s capable of doing, seeing law enforcement members come and donate their time is one of the most amazing
things.” d
Stratford officer tops the state in drunk driving arrests
The New Jersey Chapter of
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
spent June 11 taking the opportunity to honor many officers
throughout the state who have
excelled in the area of drunk driving enforcement. This year, the
honor for the state’s top drunk
buster was awarded to Stratford
Police Officer Steven Schmidt, a 5year veteran of his small Camden
County agency. During the year
2013, Schmidt removed 104 drunk drivers from our roadways, thus reducing the senseless havoc created by those
individuals who chose to drive drunk in our neighborhoods.
While Patrolman Schmidt’s efforts are clearly remarkable,
he modestly credits his success to his colleagues and supervisors for the guidance and assistance they provide to him in
support of his mission to reduce instances of drunk driving
in his community.
Aside from his road skills, Schmidt stands tall in the courtroom as well. Put up against many of the state’s top DWI
attorneys and defense experts, Patrolman Schmidt boasts a
100-percent trial conviction rate.
“Officer Schmidt’s work ethic and professionalism are second to none,” said Stratford Police Chief Ronald Morello. “His
tenacity and ability to detect drunk drivers is remarkable and
indeed worthy of local and state recognition.”
In addition to his normal patrol shifts, Schmidt was selected to join the Camden County Drunk Driving Task Force.
Since 2009, the Task Force has been deployed along the White
Horse Pike corridor (Route 30). Every weekend, at least two
officers from selected jurisdictions are detailed to work cooperatively to detect and arrest intoxicated drivers. Funding for
this initiative has been provided by the New Jersey Office of
Highway Traffic Safety and the program has yielded huge dividends. Whether it’s actual arrests made or those offenses prevented