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NEW JERSEY COPS ■ JULY 2014
Off duty is never truly off duty for Local 100 officer
On Dec. 2, 2013, 21-year-old Taquan Ward decided to rob
three friends as they walked to their vehicles from an Elizabeth nightclub. One of those men was off-duty South Plainfield Local 100 Police Officer Ahmad Stuckey.
Officer Stuckey, with experience from Newark Police and
South Plainfield Police, acted quickly to identify himself and
to prevent what was to happen next. An exchange of gunfire
took place that left the officer with 11 holes throughout his
body.
Officer Stuckey is still currently rehabbing his injuries that
included a substantial injury to his support hand. Speaking to
him a short time after the incident, he was ready to put the
uniform back on and go to work. “Being a cop is in my blood,”
he testified.
Everyone at the South Plainfield Police Department, especially Officer Stuckey, would like to thank Officer Timmy Hart
and the Elizabeth Police Department for their quick response
and providing security at the hospital. South Plainfield Local
100 appreciates the efforts and hard work of the EPD and the
Union County Prosecutor’s Office in keeping Taquan Ward off
of the streets.
Ward was recently indicted on several charges, including
first-degree attempted murder. d