More Trenton, NJ cops suspended for abusing payroll, report says

TRENTON — A new report released by the Trenton Police Department shows that more officers than initially believed abused the payroll system.

Four Trenton cops including three captains and one lieutenant resigned last year after they breached the computer system to adjust their sick and vacation time. Three of them had salaries of around $200,000 before retiring; the fourth made close to $170,000.

Now the department's Major Discipline Report for 2023 reveals three other police officers were suspended for 60 days each. It does not say whether they were suspended with or without pay.

The report said that each of the seven officers "canceled time from the Police Officer Scheduling System resulting in misuse of accrued time."

Trenton Police Director Steve Wilson did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.

More sick time means higher pay

In New Jersey, public workers including police officers get payouts when they retire for unused sick and vacation time.

The more unused time, the bigger the payout.

Gov. Chris Christie spent years pushing to reform what he derided as "boat checks" — an amount that, for many officials, was enough to buy a boat.

Sick leave payouts are now capped at $15,000 thanks to reforms, though several towns have been slower to adopt those reforms. Trenton was not among nine towns that the State Comptroller's Office said failed to stop six-figure payouts.