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New Jersey Attorney General's Excellence in Policing Initiative
News Policy Documents Investigations Use of Force Comment Portal

New Jersey is home to some of the finest law enforcement officers in the country. In fall 2019, Attorney General Gurbir Grewal issued a comprehensive package of policy initiatives designed to reinforce and clarify the Garden State’s commitment to excellence in policing. These statewide reforms are intended to promote the culture of professionalism, accountability, and transparency that are hallmarks of New Jersey’s best law enforcement agencies. Through Attorney General Grewal’s “Excellence in Policing Initiative,” the state is building a national model for strengthening trust between law enforcement officers and the communities they serve.

 
     
Improving law
enforcement
training
Ensuring independent
investigations of officer-involved shootings
Ensuring the public
release of police use-of-force footage
Overhauling the state’s
Police Training Commission
Creating a more robust
police disciplinary process
Creating systems for
timely disclosure of
impeachment material
Promoting officer resiliency Developing a proposal
for police licensure
Collecting and publishing
statewide data on police
use-of-force
Identifying early warning
signs for at-risk officers
Setting minimum standards
for Civilian Review Boards
 
 

News and Updates
 
 6/15/20 - AG Grewal Issues Statewide Order Requiring Law Enforcement Agencies to Identify Officers Who Commit Serious Disciplinary Violations - Col. Callahan to Release Identities of All State Troopers Subject to Major Discipline over Last Twenty Years
 6/12/20 - AG Grewal Outlines Process for Revising New Jersey’s Use of Force Policy - Initiative to Include Statewide Listening Sessions, Online Public Comment Website
 6/2/20 - Governor Murphy and AG Grewal Announce Continued Progress and New Measures to Strengthen Police-Community Trust
12/4/19 - AG Grewal Announces “Excellence in Policing” Initiative to Promote Professionalism, Accountability, and Transparency in Law Enforcement - Initiative Includes New Statewide Policies Regarding Officer-Involved Shootings, Internal Affairs Investigations, Disclosure of Exculpatory Evidence, and Other Policing Issues
 

"Excellence in Policing" Policy Documents
Attorney General's Excellence in Policing Initiative Summary
Click on image to download
Resources
Excellence in Policing Summary
Excellence in Policing Summary (spanish)
The Independent Prosecutor Directive
Use of Force Portal Training Video
Use of Force Reporting Portal FAQs
Use of Force Reporting Portal Guide
Use of Force Reporting Quick Guide
2020 - AG Guidance on Chokeholds
and Neck Restraints
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Documents
2020-6: LPS Disclosure of Major Discipline
2020-5: Major Discipline Directive
2019-4: Independent Prosecutor Directive
2019-5: Internal Affairs Directive
2020-Internal Affairs Policy & Procedures
2019-6: Statewide Brady-Giglio Directive
2019-7: Municipal Prosecutor Directive
2019-8: OPIA Directive
Letter Regarding Early Warning Systems
Letter Regarding Use-of-Force Portal
Letter to Police Training Commission

Investigations

How New Jersey Conducts Independent Investigations into Police Use-of-Force and Death-in-Custody Incidents

There are few investigations more important—or more challenging—than those involving the use of force by law enforcement officers against civilians. In December 2019, Attorney General Grewal issued AG Directive 2019-4, known as the Independent Prosecutor Directive, to outline clear procedures governing such investigations and to ensure that they are done fully, fairly, and independently of any potential bias.

Broadly speaking, the Directive outlines a ten-step process for conducting independent investigations of use-of-force and death-in-custody incidents in compliance with State law. Although the precise timing will vary depending on the case, the first three steps generally occur simultaneously in the immediate aftermath of the incident, while the remaining steps unfold over the course of the investigation.

 
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