Hoboken Police Chief Carmen LaBruno retired last July 1 amid a scandal in which the department’s SWAT team was said to have wasted money and partied with Hooters waitresses on a humanitarian trip to Louisiana.
Now, the city has received test scores for the top three candidates to replace LaBruno, all of whom have some interesting hobbies or service in their past, including producing movies.
Following procedure
When LaBruno retired, the police force had six captains eligible to replace him. Five of them took the necessary state-administered oral exam for the position this past December. The sixth, former City Council President James Fitzsimmons, did not take the test.
After the oral exam is taken, a final score is computed by taking that exam score and adjusting it according to years and type of service. According to state regulations, the city can only choose from the candidates with the three highest final scores.
City officials said last week that the three top candidates will now be subject to interviews, and their past performance and expertise will be considered as well.
Mayor David Roberts said that the city is in a unique situation because a state-appointed monitor, Judy Tripodi, is making many of the city’s financial decisions. Therefore, Roberts said, he will make a decision, but Judy Tripodi must approve it.
Roberts also said he will consult Public Safety Director Bill Bergin, who was appointed in the wake of the SWAT scandal.
Roberts declined to give a time frame for the final choice. The city has not yet conducted interviews with the top three candidates.
From the top
Of the top three scorers, Captain Anthony Falco had the highest final score and has the most years on the force.
In his 37 years of service, Falco has commanded every department in the force. He said that as the demographics of the city change, so must the services provided by the force.
“We have to adapt to certain areas and use different techniques of policing,” Falco said.
He also said that he thinks enforcing small quality-of-life issues – like pooper scooper laws – helps deter more serious criminal activity.
In the same vein, he said enforcing narcotics arrests to the fullest extent may prevent future crime by the same individuals.
“These are the people who break into our homes,” he said. “These poor souls need our help to get help.”
Falco has lived in Hoboken his entire life. His son, daughter, son-in-law, and several other members of his extended family are Hoboken police or fire employees.
Falco has earned a reputation on another front – film. He is a card-carrying member of the Screen Actors Guild, and was compensated for a handful of acting appearances including in the Jack Nicholson film “The Witches of Eastwick.”
He also has co-produced films including “iMurders” in 2008 and “Polycarp” (titled “Kinky Killers” in the U.S.) in 2007.
Falco and ex-Chief LaBruno are both listed among the producers of a 2006 Burt Reynolds film, “Forget About It.”
Falco said the production work was done in Canada, and LaBruno was brought onto the project as a technical advisor. When asked about his relationship with LaBruno, he said the pair went to high school together and worked on the film together. He did not comment further.
Falco became interested in film after serving for years as the department’s liaison to production crews seeking to film in town. He said he has not taken any pay for his production work. He also said it does not interfere with his greater responsibility to the force. In fact, he said, he hasn’t used a sick day at work since 1977.
The interim man
Acting Chief Robert Lisa had the highest “raw” score on the test of all five competitors, but taking into account his seniority and record of service, he came out second.
Lisa, with 31 years on the job, was appointed by the city to take over the force last year after LaBruno resigned.
He said he has already taken some measures to revive the public perception of police in Hoboken.
Lisa said he reinstated a community policing corps and is currently organizing a community survey that will help inform police about the concerns of the residents.
He believes that “training is the backbone of policing,” and said he has brought in more than $9 million dollars in grant money to the force for just that.
Lisa pointed out, as was a common theme among all the candidates, that he wants to take a proactive approach to crime, heading it off before it happens.
He said he has made a point of reaching out to different community groups, and is pushing for a new police website so that the department can better interact with the public.
“I want to get out and hear it all,” Lisa said, “not sit in my office all day.”
He added, “We have to meet with people and change the way we do policing here in Hoboken.”
Lisa resides outside of Hudson County, although he owns a home in Hoboken.
According to state guidelines, police and fire employees are exempt from municipal residency requirements.
The state testing results listed Lisa as a resident, but according to sources, they did so because of procedure. According to state regulations, no military veteran who is a top three scorer may be passed over for a non-veteran. If two or three of the men are veterans, it is only then that a determination on residency would be relevant. In this case, none of the men are veterans, and the residency question just defaulted to “resident” in the state recording process.
Longest tenured captain
Captain Edelmiro Garcia was third in the civil service scoring and has 36 years on the force. Garcia believes that the police force should do better to serve the community.
“I would like to have the department more oriented toward service,” Garcia said, “as compared to [just reacting to] crime scenes and crime waves.”
Intelligence gathering, Garcia said, may be the most important part of staying proactive regarding crime.
“You can curtail the problem,” he said. “The only way to get [intelligence] is good community relations.”
Garcia has lived in town for 54 of his 56 years. He has served on the Hoboken Board of Education. He also has taught DARE programs and coached Little League and Pop Warner football.
Filed suit against the city
Garcia filed a civil rights violation complaint against the city in October for their promotion of Lisa to acting chief over Garcia.
According to the complaint, Garcia is seeking “injunctive relief” and “monetary and punitive damages” for deprivation of his civil rights.
The suit claims the city did not interview any other candidates for the acting chief position and that Garcia was discriminated against “in part because of his race, national origin, and ethnicity.”
Garcia’s lawyer, Louis Zayas, also had handled the case of five officers who had sued former SWAT Team commander Angelo Andriani – a friend of LaBruno – for discrimination.
“He was the most senior [in rank], the most qualified when the decision was made.” – Louis Zayas
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“This is a clear case of race discrimination,” Zayas said. “He was the most senior [in rank], the most qualified when the decision was made.”
It is unknown what effect the case could have on the decision by the mayor and fiscal monitor.
Meanwhile…
When he left, LaBruno was earning upwards of $210,000 per year under his contract. The ex-chief also left with a retirement package that netted him over $350,000, while nine police officers are still facing administrative charges from the SWAT scandal.
Timothy J. Carroll may be reached at tcarroll@hudsonreporter.com.