How much money will Paterson Police Department get under attorney general's takeover?

PATERSON — City officials are asking for millions of dollars in additional state aid to cover possible expenses stemming from New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin’s takeover of the Paterson Police Department.

Paterson’s March 30 application for state transitional aid said the city was seeking $5 million in extra funding just for the attorney general’s intervention, funding that would be separate from a request for $25 million to cover normal municipal government operations.

City Hall officials said the $5 million on the application was basically a made-up number designed to stake Paterson’s claim to extra money, not based on any accounting of needs and costs.

In announcing the takeover four weeks ago in the aftermath of the fatal police shooting of community activist Najee Seabrooks, Platkin said the state would be providing added resources to the city’s law enforcement operations. But Platkin did not quantify that promise.

Paterson police supporters took Platkin’s talk of additional resources as a hopeful sign that the state would improve the department. But social justice advocates have said the state ought to be cutting spending on the city Police Department, not increasing it.

Paterson Press on Monday sent the Attorney General's Office questions about the budget for its Paterson Police Department intervention. But the statement issued by the office late Friday afternoon in response to those questions contained no numbers.

“There is no overnight fix for the deep-seated issues between police and the community in Paterson, and we intend to stay in place until they are resolved,” said the attorney general’s statement. “The process of analyzing needs and resources within the department is currently underway, but it will take some time before that process is complete.”

The office said the state would provide support “to correct many of the deficiencies in technology, equipment, training, and investigative resources.” The state also said it will continue paying the salaries of lawyers and law enforcement officials from the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety assigned to the Paterson Police Department.

But the Attorney General's Office said Paterson will be responsible for funding the Police Department’s operational budget and the salaries of its employees.

The man whom Platkin picked to take command in Paterson, Isa Abbassi, was still working as a chief in the New York City Police Department when the attorney general made his announcement in late March. Abbassi won’t begin his stint in Paterson until an unspecified date in May, state officials said. During the interim, Platkin put New Jersey State Police Maj. Frederick Fife in charge.

Mason Maher, president of the union that represents Paterson’s ranking police officers, said he and Policemen's Benevolent Association President Alex Cruz met with Abbassi through Zoom on Thursday.

“He told us some positive things,” Maher said, declining to reveal details of the conversation.

“It’s all still in the early stages,” Maher said. “We’re hopeful, and we expect the attorney general is going to keep his word,” the union president added, referring to extra money for the department.

Paterson Press also asked Mayor Andre Sayegh about the state’s plans for funding the Police Department. Fife also did not provide any specific numbers.

“Our administration has been in close communication with Major Fife and Deputy Attorney General Joe Walsh regarding the allocation of state resources to the city of Paterson and its police department,” read the statement issued by Sayegh’s staff. “We look forward to reviewing future details.”

Abbassi would be a state employee, the mayor said, when asked what the new officer in charge’s salary would be. The Attorney General's Office has not yet revealed Abbassi’s salary.

Councilman Luiz Velez said he hoped the state would allocate extra money to the Police Department for training, equipment, salaries and community relations. The councilman said many people have asserted that the department is too short-staffed.

“Everybody knows we don’t have enough officers, and that has a domino effect on the quality of life,” Velez said.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: How much money will Paterson police get under state takeover?