A Real Undercover Operation

In Flemington recently, police were called to a neighborhood one night on a report of two men smashing the windows of parked cars. When an officer arrived, he saw men matching the description, but they fled when they saw him. The officer gave chase.

One of the men went into an apartment building and, according to police, "ran into his bedroom, hopped into bed and pulled the blankets over him."

Sure, that’ll work. They’ll never find him there. He should be safe from monsters, too.

The man was taken into custody and charged with criminal mischief, eluding police and hindering his apprehension.

New Jersey Traffic

Morning commuters on Route 80? No, it’s the "Demolition Derby" that is part of the Cumberland County Fair each July. This year’s fair included two Demo Derbies, the second of which was this past Saturday.

Demolition derbies are a dubious but durable activity, having been around generally as long as there have been automobiles. Smoking, steaming cars crashing into one another may seem to be the antithesis of today’s "green" movement, but it has a certain effectiveness in ridding the roads of "clunkers."

It also brings out the latent redneck in all of us. Sometimes a little stupid fun is a good thing.

But in order to have the fun, safety personnel need to be at the ready. To share the workload, in recent years the Cumberland County Fair has had on hand the Seabrook Fire Company, Lower Township EMS, Laurel Lake Fire and Rescue Squad 13, Hopewell-Stow Creek Fire Company, Millville Fire Department, Millville Rescue Squad and Upper Deerfield EMS Squad 34.

Chill Out

For a hot July day, a glimpse of winter.

This letter carrier is shown upholding the unofficial credo of the Postal Service, "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds."

This letter carrier is also carrying pepper spray, the white canister toward the bottom left in this photo, with which postal employees fend off unfriendly dogs.

Pepper Sprays are one of our signature products here at the Badge Company of New Jersey, sold under our Pepper Defense Products brand name. The products are used not only by letter carriers, but by police, corrections officers, and more. Our home page for Pepper Defense Products is here:

http://www.http//pepperdefenseproducts.com

Photo by Mark Hertzberg

4th of July (on the 5th)

When the Independence Day holiday falls on a weekend, as it does this year, typically the holiday is observed on the Friday or the Monday closest to the 4th. This year, Monday, July 5th will be the day on which many communities and most businesses observe the holiday.

At the Badge Company of New Jersey, we are no exception. Our offices will be closed on July 5th, although this is not a luxury afforded to the bulk of our customers – police, fire, and public safety agencies. Theirs is a 24/7 occupation.

This Independence Day weekend you will likely find us at the Lebanon Borough 4th of July parade, the oldest 4th of July parade in New Jersey. At that parade, as at virtually every 4th of July parade across the country, we are afforded an opportunity to salute the men and women who work in the public safety field.

But outside of regular business hours, you can always get in touch with us via e-mail or telephone. The e-mail is always "on" and our telephone system will take messages at any hour of the day or night.

May you have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend.

Definition of a Cop

When Steven Cucciniello, a 20-year veteran of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, was sworn in as the new Chief of Detectives for the office in October of last year, Prosecutor John L. Molinelli read a line from Cucciniello’s original resume from the New York City Police Department, where Cucciniello was a Midtown patrol officer before joining the Prosecutor’s Office in 1989.

"Maintain the peace, uphold the law, issue summonses, make arrests," Molinelli said, reading from Cucciniello’s old resume.

If that does not distill law enforcement down to its fundamentals, nothing does.

Maintain the peace. Uphold the law. Issue summonses. Make arrests. These are the core elements of the job.

This is not to imply that Cucciniello was qualified for his new job solely on his understanding of these basics. He holds a masters degree in criminal justice from Rutgers University, and has a history of success with investigations of narcotics and gangs. These contribute to his being well-suited to his new position.

But still. Have you ever seen such a succinct – and accurate – summation of a cop’s job? Maintain the peace. Uphold the law. Issue summonses. Make arrests.

Police Security Expo

Each June, we set up our display at the Police Security Expo in Atlantic City. We were there for the first one, and this will our 24th consecutive Expo.

This year, the Expo takes place June 22 and 23, and this year, the event organizers included on the official event promotional materials a photo of Badge Company General Manager Bob Marlow showing a badge to a prospect. It’s the photo in the lower right-hand corner of the cover page, shown here.

Anything and everything related to law enforcement supplies and equipment can be seen at this show – but not by just anyone. The show is open to law enforcement professionals, only, not the general public. Show information is available at http://www.police-security.com/.

We will be in booth 322 as always. Stop by and say hello. Check out our badge samples and leather products, and pick up a catalog or two. We'll have some special sale items as well. We look forward to meeting you!

Cops and Confectionaries

A stereotype firmly entrenched in our culture is cops and donuts.

Officers generally do not take insult at this – except when it is intended as an insult, which occurs too often when someone feels aggrieved.

But we were reminded of the stereotype today not because we know of anyone who is aggrieved, and we did not observe a police car at a donut shop. Rather, we were reminded of the stereotype because unbeknownst to us previously, apparently today is National Donut Day. And National Donut Day apparently dates back to 1938, when it was created by the Chicago Salvation Army as a fund-raiser.

Well, speaking of fund-raisers, a number of local police departments across the country have in recent years been promoting "Cops and Donuts" fundraising events, turning the stereotype into a positive force.

Then there is the Cops & Doughnuts shop in Clare, Michigan, pictured above. According to an Associated Press story, this store is owned by nine full-time employees of the Clare police department. The Cops and Doughnuts shop came about when the owners of the 113-year-old City Bakery in Clare were on the verge of closing and the officers stepped up.

Demonstrating some marketing savvy and a sense of humor, the police-owners of the Cops & Doughnuts shop have mugs and T-shirts available bearing the tagline Cops & Doughnuts, 100 Percent Cop-Owned as well as phrases such as You Have the Right to Remain Glazed.

Happy National Donut Day.