The Passaic County Sheriff’s Office somehow managed to avoid the myriad problems that plagued the Paterson Police Department during the past six years.
In that time, 12 Paterson cops were convicted or charged with various crimes while several dozen other officers were involved in disputed police shootings and assaults, cases that prompted social justice activists to accuse Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes of allowing misconduct to continue unabated.
Eventually, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office intervened in dramatic fashion last March by seizing control of the Paterson Police Department.
Through all that, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik and his department seemed unscathed, running a jail, providing courthouse security and conducting investigations and patrols with minimal public criticism and controversy.
But everything changed in a span of seven days.
A January storm consumed the Passaic County Sheriff's Office
The storm started with the FBI's arrests of three corrections officers at the Passaic County Jail on Jan. 17. That was followed the next day with the announcement of impending officer layoffs, and it all culminated in Berdnik’s stunning apparent death by suicide on Jan. 23, when he reportedly shot himself in the bathroom of a popular Clifton restaurant where he had dined countless times before.
Political friends and law enforcement colleagues are still searching for an explanation for what could have driven a man who stood as a pillar of the community for more than four decades to take his own life, just minutes after smiling for a photo with the restaurant’s owner.
Meanwhile, questions loom about the future of the Sheriff’s Office, involving issues that go beyond the perplexing personal tragedy of Berdnik’s death:
Layoffs at the Passaic County Jail
First, there are the looming 29 layoffs, a result of the planned demolition of the jail that stood like a fortress in downtown Paterson for more than half a century. In a cost-cutting move, Passaic County has already started sending its prisoners to the jail in Bergen County.
Berdnik before his death was working with officials in Essex County to try to get officers losing their jobs hired at the jail there. John Welsh, president of the union that represents the sheriff’s correctional officers, wondered if officials would reconsider the job cuts in the aftermath of Berdnik’s suicide.
“With this tragedy that just occurred, I’m worried about my members who are about to lose their jobs,” Welsh said. “I hope it doesn’t set some sort of precedent. But sometimes you have copycats.”
Brian Higgins, theformer Bergen County police chief who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan, noted the high rate of suicides among police. He said it would be important for the Sheriff's Office to make counseling available to its officers, but he also said the decision on whether to make such sessions optional or mandatory is a tough one.
“If you make it voluntary, a lot of people are not going to participate,” the former chief said. “But if you force people, their walls go right up.”
County officials have not said whether Berdnik’s death will affect the layoff plan.
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The FBI's case is another cloud
The other cloud over the department is the FBI case.The complaint against the three jail guards accused of assaulting a pretrial detainee in 2021 — Sgts. Jose Gonzalez, 45, and Donald Vinales, 38, and Officer Lorenzo Bowden, 39—said four other unnamed officers played roles in the incident.
Federal authorities identified the others as Officer-1, who they said was splashed with urine by the prisoner later beaten by guards; Officer-2 and Officer-4, who allegedly witnessed the beating but didn’t intervene; and Officer-3, who is accused of agreeing with Officer-2, Officer-4 and the three arrested guards to “keep their mouths shut” about what happened.
The United States Attorney’s Office has not said whether it plans to file charges against any of the unnamed sheriff’s officers.
People in the Sheriff’s Office acknowledged that the FBI case is an important issue. But they said the allegations are not a monumental problem that would hamstring the department for the long term.
“We’re cops. We’ll get through it,” said Welsh.
Bill Maer, the longtime spokesman for the Passaic sheriff’s office, said the department assisted the FBI in the probe.
“Although it’s unfortunate and disappointing, it does not define or take away from the great work the department does,” Maer said. “It should not diminish the public’s view of the department.”
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'All kinds of questions'
The recent case echoes problems highlighted more than a decade ago, when county officials agreed to allow monitoring and other interventions at the jail to settle an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit about inhumane and unconstitutional conditions.
“There’s been all kinds of questions about inhumane conditions at the jail for many years,” said Jason Williams, an associate professor of justice studies at Montclair State University and a member of Black Lives Matter. “But most people wouldn’t know that, because we don’t hear much about it.”
Williams said Berdnik’s own community outreach efforts helped boost his department’s image.
“The sheriff worked very hard to gain the trust of the residents,” Williams said. “He gave off this sense of authenticity. He was a breath of fresh air. The next person is going to have big shoes to fill.”
Gary Giardina, the top-ranking undersheriff and the former Clifton police chief, took the oath of office as acting sheriff on Wednesday. A special election for the final year of Berdnik’s term will be held in November. Until then, state law allows Gov. Phil Murphy to appoint someone for the interim role.
MicahRasmussen, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University, said the FBI investigation and impending layoffs put the sheriff’s department in a “pivotal position."
“This is not a good time for them to be rudderless,” Rasmussen said. “They need strong leadership."
Tyler Jones, a spokesman for Murphy, declined to comment when asked whether the governor planned to appoint someone.
Maer said Giardina acted quickly in the aftermath of Berdnik’s death to keep the sheriff’s office running as smooth as possible under the circ*mstances. Giardina immediately met with the department’s executive staff and then attended every roll call of the rank-and-file officers.
“He has the ability to lead the department not just today, but into the future,” Maer said. “He will make sure the department continues to serve the residents of Passaic County.”
Higgins said he worked with Giardina when the two of them were police chiefs. Higgins called Giardina a strong choice to fill the job for the next 10 months, saying his experience will bring the Sheriff's Office the stability it needs right now.
“They don’t need to look for someone else,” Higgins said.
Joe Malinconico is editor of Paterson Press. Email: editor@patersonpress.com
