Crime & Safety

There's a New Top Cop in Town (Sort of): John Ward Officially in as Police Chief

John Ward, effective Sept. 1, is officially the Village's Chief of police; he says he won't be keeping the status quo.

It's official. After serving as the Senior Officer in Charge of the Ridgewood Police Department since July, Capt. John Ward is now the acting chief of police. But the "acting" title will be removed on Sept. 1, as Village Manager Ken Gabbert issued the official appointment papers this past Friday.

Ward, an officer with the RPD for 27 years, was promoted to the rank of Captain in January of 2009, when he took over after Chief John Lipuma took leave after a 25-year career in July.

"I'm very excited," said Ward of the new position. "I look forward to continuing to work with the very talented people of the Department and the Village to provide the kind of service people have come to expect [from the RPD]."

Find out what's happening in Ridgewood-Glen Rockwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Ward has wasted no time in making his own mark; though the job requires much administrative work, Ward has no plans to stay in his office all day.

"You'll see me out there," he said. "I'm hands-on. ... It's important to keep in touch with what the [officers] are doing, and what's going in the community."

Find out what's happening in Ridgewood-Glen Rockwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

He said he's a big advocate of community policing and has recently been in the field issuing summonses.

Beyond his goal of increased outreach to residents and other Village workers, Ward is placing greater emphasis on traffic safety through the implementation of the Engineering Education Enforcement plan. The plan will place plainclothes officers at crosswalks to monitor and enforce the rules, an issue that has seen numerous accidents and a fatality this year alone. The program has successful in neighboring Hawthorne for two years now, Ward said.

If a driver is seen not obeying NJ Statute 39:4-36–which states that the driver of a vehicle must stop and remain stopped for a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked or unmarked crosswalk at an intersection; conversely, no pedestrian is allowed to suddenly walk into the intersection without giving the driver enough time to yield–the driver could receive up to two points on a driver's license, in addition to a $200 fine and more than two weeks of community service.

The campaign is as much about informing the public as it is enforcement, Ward said.

"Drivers may think twice about committing infractions if they know the person about to cross the street could be a cop," Ward said.

In addition to the greater emphasis on traffic safety, the police will also be starting a contiunous improvement program, which he said has been successful in the private sector and should help make the department more efficient in their utilization of resources and enable the police to be better problem solvers as well.

"We can't settle for the status quo," he said.

Police will also be putting a greater emphasis on mapping technology, to help decide where resources are allocated.

According to Village Manager Ken Gabbert, Chief John Ward will receive his current salary, the 2009 rate of $160,623.  The new chief's salary will be approved by the governing body, likely by October. (Former Chief LiPuma had received his 2010 salary increase, which took him to an annual rate of $171,945.)

"When I retire I want to be known as a caring professional who left the place better than I had it," Ward said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.