Paterson seeing surge in police applicants before deadline. Here's why
PATERSON — The number of people who signed up to take the test to become Paterson police officers surged since the beginning of April, after the state extended the deadline for city applicants, officials said.
The Paterson Police Department had fewer than 50 applicants prior to the original deadline, but now it has 170 people interested in joining the force, officials said.
Authorities attributed the increase to community outreach efforts at the Center City Mall along with recruiting visits to local colleges.
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The deadline for registering to take the civil service test to become a Paterson officer is Monday, officials said.
“I’ve been encouraging people to sign up,” said activist Corey Teague. “I tell them, ‘If you want to see change, you’ve got to be the change you want to see.’”
Teague had been a longtime critic of the police who now serves on the department’s citizen advisory council, created after the state took control of the law enforcement agency last spring.
For many years, community leaders say there has been a perception in the city that the police department is staffed with too many people who live outside Paterson — individuals who establish a local address for the application process and then move away.
Officers don't reflect makeup of city population
As a result, activists have complained that the cultural composition of the police department doesn’t match Paterson’s demographics. That was evident in February 2023, the last time that Paterson police released data on the racial makeup of officers.
That report said 54% of the police department was Hispanic, 35% was white, and 11% was Black. But census numbers at that time showed 63% of Paterson’s population was Hispanic, 8% was white, and 25% was Black.
Teague said city residents have seemed more inclined to join the police department since the state takeover.
Sgt. Quaema McElveen, a member of the police department’s community affairs division, has been part of the outreach effort to register new applicants. McElveen, a Paterson officer since 2005, said she relies on authenticity in talking to people about applying for the job.
“This is a career you have to love,” the sergeant said.
McElveen, who grew up in Paterson’s 4th Ward, said she believes city residents have embraced “the reforms taking place.”
“You can’t go backward, you’ve got to go forward,” she said.
It’s not clear exactly when the state will conduct the civil service test for the current group of applicants, officials said.
The test produces a hiring list of people who passed and Paterson then starts with those who attained the highest scores in screening potential new recruits.
Paterson has about 400 police officers. The state years ago set the maximum number of officers for the city at 439. But as part of the state takeover, officials are reviewing whether that number should be increased.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paterson NJ seeing surge in police applicants before deadline
