|
East
Orange, NJ – Governor Jon S. Corzine
and Attorney General Anne Milgram today
announced the appointment of East Orange
Police Director Jose Cordero as New Jersey’s
first statewide director of gangs, guns
and violent crime.
The
position is part of Governor Jon S. Corzine’s
anti-crime strategy for safe streets and
neighborhoods, which was unveiled in October.
Cordero will head the coordinating council
overseeing implementation of the law enforcement
portion of the Governor’s three part
strategy to combat violent crime and gangs,
which also includes prevention and reentry
programs.
As
director, Cordero will also collaborate
with law enforcement agencies throughout
the state and assess the strategies put
into place to investigate and prosecute
gang and gun crimes.
“Mr.
Cordero’s success in implementing
intelligence-led policing tactics in East
Orange speaks volumes of his leadership
and makes him an excellent fit for this
position.” Governor Corzine said.
“I’m eager to work closely with
him on implementing the law enforcement
component of the state’s anti-crime
strategy.’’
Cordero,
51, has been serving as the police director
in East Orange since July 2004. In East
Orange, he put in place innovative policing
methods to better combat crime by emphasizing
the collection and analysis of intelligence
data to target criminal activity. He is
scheduled to leave East Orange and begin
his new assignment with the state in early
January.
Under
Cordero’s watch, the violent crime
rate in East Orange dropped 56 percent,
decreasing from 16.2 per 1,000 residents
in 2004 to 10.6 per 1,000 residents in 2006,
according to the state’s annual Uniform
Crime Reports.
“I
am proud of Police Director Jose Cordero’s
extraordinary record of achievement during
his tenure at the helm of the East Orange
Police department,’’ East Orange
Mayor Robert L. Bowser said. “His
innovative approach to law enforcement has
fostered a model that has produced dramatic
public safety gains and has transformed
public perception. Today, our City is a
much safer place to live, work, play and
worship.’’
“Attorney
General Milgram and Governor Corzine are
to be congratulated for recognizing what
we already know about Director Cordero and
his extraordinary capabilities,’’
the Mayor added.
“I
have seen the police operations in East
Orange first hand and the results are outstanding,”
Attorney General Milgram said. “The
adoption of data-driven, technologically-supported,
intelligence-led policing can and should
serve as a model for police departments
throughout our state. But more important,
Joe Cordero is an incredibly talented police
officer and leader who understands that
people need to feel safe on the streets
of New Jersey.’’
Cordero
was a member of the New York City Police
Department for 21 years, retiring with the
rank of inspector. He was the first citywide
gang coordinator for the New York City Police
Department, developing the department’s
anti-gang strategy. He also served as the
police chief in Newton, Massachusetts.
“I
am pleased and honored to have been selected
as New Jersey’s first Statewide Director
of Gangs, Guns and Violent Crime,’’
Cordero said. “I am looking forward
to the challenge and to working with New
Jersey’s law enforcement community,
municipalities across the state, and the
people of New Jersey to implement the governor’s
vision for a safer New Jersey. We will work
diligently to devise and implement well-conceived
and coordinated law enforcement strategies
to effectively deal with the growing criminal
street gang menace and to reduce violent
crimes across NJ.’’
Since
his appointment as police director in East
Orange, Cordero merged cutting edge technologies
with intelligence-led and real-time policing
strategies to achieve increased productivity
and reduced overall crime by 56 percent
in three years. In addition, during the
first eleven months of 2007, overall crime
declined another 29 percent.
Cordero
began his police career with the New York
City Police Department in 1981, earning
promotions to sergeant in 1984, lieutenant
in 1989, and captain in 1992. He was named
a deputy inspector in 1995 and an inspector
in 1996. He served as the commanding officer
in precincts in the Bronx and Manhattan.
He also commanded the department’s
recruitment unit and advocate’s office.
He served as the Crime Strategies Inspector
for Queens South in New York City with responsibility
of overseeing the design and implementation
of anti-crime strategies for more than 2,000
police officers operating in eight police
precincts serving nearly one million residents.
During his tenure, the borough attained
the largest crime reduction of any patrol
borough in New York City.
After
leaving the NYPD in 2002, Cordero was appointed
chief of police in Newton, Massachusetts.
During his term, overall crime in Newton
dropped below 1,000 total yearly crimes
for the first time in over 30 years, capturing
a “Safest City in America” award
for two straight years, according to an
annual survey by the Morgan-Quitno research
firm, which was recently acquired by CQ
Press.
Cordero
has lectured at national and international
security forums, and colleges and universities
on a wide-variety of public safety and management
topics. He actively assists other law enforcement
agencies in such areas as gang suppression,
CompStat-driven management principles, and
crime reduction strategies.
Cordero is a summa cum laude graduate of
the New York Institute of Technology. He
was honorably discharged from the US Army
National Guard in 1994, retiring with the
rank of Major after serving 21 years.
Cordero
is a member of the International Association
of Chiefs of Police, Massachusetts Chiefs
of Police, and the American Society for
Industrial Security.
#
# #
|
