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Reader says RHS principal put a great deal of personal sweat equity into the success of that “nineteen minutes hate” session on the front lawn of the school last year

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The RHS principal put a great deal of personal sweat equity into the numerical success of that “nineteen minutes hate” session on the front lawn of the school last year. As the event was transpiring, he was milling about with the assembled journalists and videographers, childishly urging them to report the fake news “official number”, i.e., that fully 1,000 students refused to take instruction and skipped out on class en masse to bash the second amendment right to keep and bear arms.

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Bergen County Prosecutor Announces the Formation of the Bergen County Safe Schools Task Force

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may 23,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Hackensack NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announces the formation of the Bergen County Safe Schools Task Force. The Task Force will take a multi-disciplinary approach to the issue of school safety, with the primary focus on developing best practices for prevention and response to potential school shooting situations.

According to Acting Prosecutor Calo, “The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office (“BCPO”) and all of Bergen County Law Enforcement place the highest priority on the safety of our children, our schools, and school personnel.” He also noted that the BCPO has been at the forefront of the effort to ensure the safety of our schools and communities. For example, in 2013, the BCPO introduced a School Security Initiative comprised of officers from various Bergen County municipal police agencies. To further this effort, the BCPO sponsored training by Texas A & M University Engineering Extension Service (“TEEX”). As a result of that training, 56 police officers and 41 school security professionals were certified to conduct risk and vulnerability school assessments. Since then, Bergen County has coordinated the security assessments of 165 public and 56 private schools. The BCPO has also partnered with Bergen County municipal law enforcement agencies, the New Jersey Department of Education, and the New Jersey State Police to conduct unannounced visits to local schools to monitor and provide technical assistance for the enhancement of their lock-down procedures. To date, these unannounced visits have involved 66 schools from 42 school districts.

In 2017, the BCPO totally overhauled Bergen County law enforcement’s active shooter policy and training curriculum. Together with Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino and the Bergen County Police Chiefs Association, the BCPO trained every police officer in Bergen County in these new response protocols. Additionally, the BCPO, in conjunction with the Bergen County Sheriff’s Department, instituted the Regional SWAT Team’s mobile patrol, which puts specially trained and equipped officers on routine patrol throughout Bergen County for a more rapid and effective response to emergency situations, such as active shooter calls.

In addition to law enforcement’s efforts, many Bergen County school, mental health, and private sector professionals have been hard at work to address the dangers presented by active shooter situations. It is the goal of this newly formed task force to bring all of these professionals together under one umbrella to identify and implement best practices to address this problem in Bergen County.

The Acting Prosecutor has appointed Senior Assistant Prosecutor Martin Delaney, the Prosecutorial Chief of Investigations, as Executive Director of the Task Force. Assistant Prosecutor Delaney, who oversees all of the BCPO’s specialized prosecutions, has deep experience in crime prevention and response and serves as Legal Advisor to the Regional SWAT Team. Other members of the Task Force are drawn from the law enforcement, educational, mental health and business communities. These members and their affiliations are as follows: Chief Robert Anzilotti, Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office; James J. Tedesco III, Bergen County Executive; Michael Saudino, Bergen County Sheriff; Park Ridge Police Chief Joseph J. Madden, President of the Bergen County Police Chiefs Association; Joseph Zarra, Interim Executive Bergen County Superintendent of Schools; Joseph Masciandaro, President/CEO of CarePlus New Jersey; Harrington Park School Superintendent Adam Fried, Ed.D., President of the Bergen County Association of School Administrators; Saddle River Police Department Sergeant Timothy Gerity, President of the New Jersey Association of School Resource Officers; Jonathan Miller, Bergen County Association of School Security Professionals; Julien Neals, Esq., Bergen County Counsel and Acting Bergen County Administrator; Mary Amoroso, Bergen County Freeholder Pro Tempore; Matt Zames, former Chief Operating Officer of JP Morgan Chase and board member of Tomahawk Strategic Solutions; Agent William Stallone, Risk Mitigation Planner/Critical Infrastructure Coordinator, Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.

The Acting Prosecutor stated with reference to the Task Force members, “These busy professionals have committed themselves to study and advise our school districts on best practices to prevent school violence and to keep our children safe. Part of that effort is identifying dangerous individuals and situations and addressing them before they turn into tragedies. The Task Force will also advise on the best law enforcement responses to violent situations.”
The Task Force is charged with making its initial recommendations by October 2018. However, the Acting Prosecutor emphasized that he envisions the Task Force as an ongoing endeavor to provide ever increasing safety to our schools and children.