NJ AG's control of Paterson police begins to be felt as command duties are shifted

PATERSON — The state takeover of the Paterson Police Department has produced two changes in the department’s command structure, including a shift in job duties for a captain who led nonfatal shooting investigations for the past 15 years.

Capt. Patrick Murray, a 38-year street cop, was moved to the administrative role of chief of staff and executive officer, according to the Police Department’s revised table of organization.

Murray will report directly to New Jersey State Police Maj. Frederick Fife, whom the Attorney General’s Office designated as officer in charge in Paterson until May, when Isa Abbassi, a chief in the New York City Police Department, takes command.

Murray’s longtime second in command in the Ceasefire nonfatal shooting unit, Lt. Anthony Hyatt, was moved up the ladder above captains and deputy chiefs in the organization table and will oversee special investigations.

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The Attorney General’s Office has not announced the moves or provided any explanation for them. Paterson Press obtained a copy of the new command structure from sources. The chart showed no other changes in command duties, leaving in place the captains who had been in charge of such areas as narcotics, patrols and internal affairs.

The attorney general's takeover of the Paterson Police Department followed the March 3 fatal shooting of Najee Seabrooks, a violence intervention specialist with the Paterson Healing Collective.

Multiple members of the Paterson Police Department said city cops believe the Attorney General's Office moved Murray and Hyatt into the new roles because of their track record of experience working with state law enforcement agencies on Paterson investigations.

What’s not clear is whether the new assignments for Murray and Hyatt will continue after Abbassi arrives in Paterson.

Mayor Andre Sayegh could not be reached for comment about the changes. The mayor is traveling this week to Nebraska to learn about a community-oriented police program in Omaha. Besides Sayegh, making the trip to Nebraska are Paterson Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale and Chief Engelbert Ribeiro, who was relieved of command as part of the state takeover.

Lt. Mason Maher, president of the union that represents Paterson’s ranking police officers, said there remain “many questions” about the new command structure.

Maher declined to comment about the recent leadership changes, saying he wanted more clarity on what role Ribeiro would play going forward. Maher has said Ribeiro, who was sworn in as chief about three weeks before the state intervention, was making improvements in the department.

Paterson Black Lives Matter leader Zellie Thomas on Monday expressed his disapproval of the possibility of Murray's playing a bigger role in the city’s department. Thomas last week called for the dissolution of the special investigations division, which Murray had headed, citing the December 2021 fatal police shooting of Thelonious McKnight by a detective from that group.

“This tells me that the attorney general is not listening to what the community wants,” Thomas said. “They’re just doing what they think is best.”

But other activists in Paterson disagreed with Thomas’ comments regarding Murray.

Ernest Rucker, an outspoken critic of the Paterson Police Department, said he has “great faith in Captain Murray.”

“He is A-1,” Rucker said. “He’s always been an exemplary officer, and he works well with the community.”

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Meanwhile, another group has weighed in regarding the state takeover of the Police Department. The Dominican American Political Force of New Jersey said the department needed a “total and complete overhaul.”

“Deep-rooted systemic change is undeniably the only course of action at this present time, not only for the Paterson Police Department but for the entire community,” the group said in a statement. “We know too well the history of the Paterson Police Robbery Squad, the recent and unjustifiable fatal shooting of Najee Seabrooks, and that of Khalif Cooper that left him paralyzed, as well as the lack of information surrounding the disappearance of Felix DeJesus.”

Joe Malinconico is editor of Paterson Press.

Email: editor@patersonpress.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paterson NJ Police Department command structure shifted by state