New Paramus police chief ready to build leaders, protect community
After working with seven Paramus police chiefs throughout his career, Robert Guidetti is finally ready to take the lead himself.
“They gave me a department that was a well-oiled machine,” Guidetti said. “Each chief since I’ve been here has already had the building blocks from the chief before him to continue to build on.”
Guidetti, a lifelong Paramus resident with 36 years of experience as an officer, was sworn in as police chief on Tuesday outside of Borough Hall. The Borough Council unanimously approved his promotion, which includes a $223,957 salary, at its Tuesday night meeting after the ceremony.
The 58-year old takes over the position from Kenneth Ehrenberg, who led the department of about 105 officers for 10 years before retiring at the end of May.
During the celebration, which included speeches from local and county officials and a performance by the Police Pipes and Drums band of Bergen County, one of Guidetti’s daughters handed him a personalized gift: a Paramus sports jersey that read “Guidetti 12” on the back to commemorate becoming the borough’s 12th police chief.
Mayor Chris DiPiazza said Guidetti’s appointment as police chief not only reflects his personal achievements but also “signifies the trust and confidence that our community has in Chief Guidetti.”
“Together we will face the challenges ahead and leave Paramus and the department better off than it is today,” DiPiazza said during the ceremony.
Honored for a daring rescue
Guidetti said he had known since he was a kid that he wanted to join law enforcement. He started his career as a special police officer in North Wildwood in 1984 and joined the Paramus Police Department as a patrolman three years later.
He was later assigned to the Bergen County Carjack Task Force in 1993 in a plainclothes assignment. In 1998, he received the Medal of Honor from the Italian American Police Society and the Silver Star Honor Award from the American Police Hall of Fame for saving the life of a fellow officer.
The incident occurred a year earlier while Guidetti was patrolling around the Garden State Plaza mall. He received a call that a Bergen County sheriff's detective was in trouble, driving on nearby Route 4 with a jammed accelerator and no brakes.
Guidetti quickly drove through traffic, found the detective and guided his own vehicle in front of the runaway car, which was going about 25 miles per hour, he remembered. The future Paramus chief hit the brakes and used his own car to stop his fellow officer's. It wasn't until he exited his vehicle that he noticed the detective's was engulfed in flames.
Guidetti told an ABC7 Eyewitness News reporter at the time that he didn't "feel like a hero, but was happy things worked out the way they did."
He rose to other positions over the years, becoming a detective, coordinator of the Criminal Intelligence Unit, detective sergeant of an anti-crime squad, an undercover officer for the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office Narcotics Task Force, detective lieutenant of the borough’s Criminal Investigation Bureau, captain and finally deputy chief. He’s served as deputy since 2013.
New chief's vision
Guidetti said his top priorities for the department will include recruiting new officers, cultivating leaders within the younger members of the department and reestablishing an officer wellness program.
“I need healthier officers in mind and body, especially nowadays. With a lot that’s going on, our officers are under heavy stress,” he said.
New leaders in the police force need to learn to be ready for anything, Guidetti said, adding that preparing for tomorrow begins today.
“They need to study and acquire skills for every kind of situation,” he said. “When you are young, you don’t realize that a lot of the time. Being an older leader, I’m trying to stress to them that their education will carry them only so far; it’s more of their experience on the street.”
The department tries to plan for new hires to account for upcoming retirements to balance things out, Guidetti said. He mentioned that during the pandemic, it was difficult to find a pool of interviewees wanting to be police officers.
“We would always like to grow, since our community grows every day,” he said.
Challenges in Paramus
With Paramus being a shopping mecca for the region, with its various malls, Guidetti recognized the importance of officers keeping an eye out for theft. There has also been an uptick in residential burglaries and high-end car theft within the last year, he said.
“Not everyone is coming to shop. Some are coming to shoplift,” Guidetti said. “Our thefts will always be there, and that’s why we try to keep our law enforcement officers at maximum.”
He said the Police Department has “always had a tradition of excellence” that he hopes to continue while “protecting the Paramus community.”
Stephanie Noda is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: noda@northjersey.com
Twitter: @snoda11
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paramus NJ Police Department swears in Chief Robert Guidetti
