Jersey City officials swore in 17 new police officers at a ceremony inside City Hall Council Chambers.
Over 70 percent of the graduates represent various minority populations.
When Mayor Fulop took office in 2013, 769 officers covered the entire city.
667 new officers have been hired since, increasing the JCPD to one of the largest police departments in decades. According to the city, minorities now make up nearly 75 percent of all officers department-wide.
“We’re not only growing the department in size, but we’re also recruiting quality candidates from within the community that best reflects Jersey City’s diversity,” said Mayor Steven Fulop. “I want to thank our newest officers for their perseverance through months of difficult training and for remaining committed to maintaining public safety throughout Jersey City for the rest of their careers. I have complete confidence the officers sworn in today will be tremendous assets to further build upon our overall commitment to the safety and quality of life for our entire community.”
The added officers will increase police presence and walking patrols, community outreach, crime deterrence, and diversity recruitment initiatives, according to the city.
“Our diversity recruitment efforts have already proven to be immensely helpful when our officers are responding to people’s homes for emergencies, for establishing community relations, and for residents’ overall quality of life,” said Public Safety Director James Shea. “We recognize there is still plenty of more work that needs to be done to combat crime, and these are the types of initiatives that are leading us in the right direction.”
The next class is scheduled to start the police academy in July with 38 new recruits.
