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MEETING NOTICES: Board Of Directors: The next meeting is at the call of the President. Regular Business Meeting: The next Regular Business Meeting is on Wednesday January 7, 2004, at the SOMERVILLE ELKS CLUB, ROUTE 28 (Union Avenue), BRIDGEWATER, NJ. beginning at 10:00 AM. Please note the change in the meeting place. ELECTION RESULTS: The following were elected for a two-year term. President, Anthony Parenti; First Vice President, William Cicchetti; Secretary, Cecil Solaguren; Treasurer, Ed Spinks; Financial Secretary, Gary Stramaglia. Region 1: Vincent DeRinzo, V.P. - Timothy Franco R.R. Region 2: Joe Pallitto, V.P - Colm McAuley R.R. Region 3: Jim Durkin V.P., William Sullivan R.R. Region 4: Michael Brunson V.P., *R.R (Vacant). Region 5: Richard Maxwell V.P., Dave Bedrosian R.R. Region 6: Mark Wilson V.P., Steve Branco R.R. Region 7: Peter Crook V.P., John Kline R.R. NJSP: William Wade V.P., Frank Zmigrodski R.R. *Due to a departmental transfer Region 4 Representative Mike Grasso announced his resignation at the December 2003 meeting. Accordingly, Lt. Carl Hokanson, Roselle Park Police, is being appointed to fill the vacancy and complete the term. Carl is a long time member of the Association and currently is Vice President of the Union County Traffic Officers Association. On behalf the Board of Officers I would like to thank all members who came to the meeting and voted for the candidates. We also express our appreciation to Chief Robert Verry and Sgt. John Bartlinski for seeking office. ADVANCED TRAFFIC ENGINEERING FOR POLICE OFFICERS COURSE: Offered at Rutgers Cook College Campus on Thursday evenings beginning January 22 and ending April 1, 2004. This course is for those who completed the Traffic Engineering for Police Officers Basic Course. Topics include construction plan reading, traffic generation issues for new developments, general geometric design criteria, intersection and roadway capacity analysis, speed studies, crash analysis & summaries, general traffic flow characteristics, and the impact of the aging population on highway safety. The instructors are Bill Anderson, former NJDOT Manager of the Bureau of Traffic Engineering & Safety, and Dave Martin, Supervising Engineer, Bureau of Transportation & Investigation, NJDOT. Fee is $589.00, half of which may be reimbursed by your local AAA Club. Contact Rutgers at 732/932-3640 for registration details. Limited seating - first come first served basis. MEETING CANCELLATIONS: We try not to cancel business meetings but sometimes the weatherman does not cooperate. If we cancel a meeting due to bad weather or otherwise, the cancellation notice will be on the police network by 0600 on the date of the meeting. RADAR TUNING FORKS: Weights and Measures will test Radar tuning forks for departments A through M at the February 4, 2004 meeting. Departments N through Z will be tested at the March 3, 2004 meeting. The cost is $5.00 per fork is payable to NJ Division of Weights and Measures. If we must cancel either tuning fork testing meeting, testing will be done at the following meeting. Details will be in the newsletter. MEMBERSHIP DUES FOR 2004 NOW DUE: The yearly dues for department membership is $35.00. We do not bill individual members, the department is the billing entity. Bills for dues are included in this newsletter. Please process your voucher, purchase order, write the check, or use whatever means necessary to pay the dues. Dues collection is not an easy task and the sooner we get it over with the better. Thank you. As of December 8, 2003, there were 645 fatalities recorded on NJ roads compared to 632 during the same period in 2002, AN INCREASE OF 13 BODIES.
During this period, there were 348-driver deaths, 148-passengers, 114-pedestrians, 26-motorcycle drivers, 01 Motorcycle passenger, and 8-pedacyclist. There were 645 fatalities in 591 crashes. ADULT CROSSING GUARDS: NJ statutes require that School Crossing Guards be re-appointed every year. LEGISLATIVE STUFF: A3881 Wisniewski /Impreveduto, Requires school crossing guard to use stop sign and increases penalty for failure to yield right-of-way in crosswalk patrolled by school crossing guard or in school zone. A3885 Wisniewski, Requires certain dumpsters be marked by reflective tape. A3908 Van Drew, Requires permanent handicapped person identification cards and parking placards to be renewed every five years. A3940 Stender, Limits hours of service of drivers of commercial motor vehicles engaged in intrastate transportation of construction materials or equipment. S2823 Sweeney, Permits expanded use of farm vehicles. ALCOHOL BREATH TEST APPROVED: Superior Court Judge Francis J. Orlando Jr. ruled that results from the 7110 MKIII-C are scientifically sound. This decision clears the way to start training police officers on the new blood-alcohol test that is far more accurate than the Breathalyzer test. The Alcotest test requires a continuous breath sample that lasts at least 4.5 seconds and contains 1.5 liters of air-about 20 times the amount Breathalyzer 900 needed. This breath sample requirement was the major reason why 99 of the 358 people tested in a trial period in 2001 and 2002 were charged with refusing to take the breath test. Consequently Judge Orlando ruled that the device must be improved to eliminate that problem. In the meantime, no one who breathes at least a half-liter into the machine may be charged with refusing to take the test. TRANSIT ON PATROL (TOP) - COMMUNITY SERVICE PROGRAM: On Tuesday, November 25, 2003, NJ Transit Executive Director, George Warrington and NJ Transit Police Chief, Joseph Bober, re-launched NJ Transit's statewide community service program - Transit On Patrol (TOP) at the Orange Train Station. Originally launched in 1992, the program benefits communities served by NJ Transit buses. The Corporation's fleet of 1,985 buses are equipped with two-way radios, which puts the bus operators in a unique position to report incidents that may require emergency response. After the events of September 11, 2001, the need for increased security has prompted the re-launch of this vital program. The new Transit On Patrol logo was unveiled during the re-launch event and will now be placed on NJ Transit buses throughout the system. NJ Transit Police - Central Communications Center 24/7: 1-800-242-0236 or 973-378-6565 WE SALUTE OUR FIGHTING MEN AND WOMEN |