NJ police department on life support to get help from nearby shore towns

🔴 Official requests immediate help for West Wildwood

🔴 The Shore town police department only has 4 full-time officers

🔴 Report recommends disbanding the department

WEST WILDWOOD — The top prosecutor in Cape May County is asking shore towns to pull together as this borough faces a significant shortage of police officers to keep the community safe.

Only four full-time police officers serve the community of West Wildwood, a small shore town of 540 people.

The West Wildwood Police Department has lost half of its staff since 2023. It was taken over by the Cape May County Prosecutor's Office in January 2024.

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Crisis at the West Wildwood Police Department

Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland calls it a "manpower crisis." And it's put the police department's future in question.

West Wildwood should consider disbanding its police department, according to a recent report from the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.

The report found the department is lacking in several critical areas, such as a disorganized system for keeping evidence and a complete lack of leadership — the chief of police is on leave until her retirement in two years.

Police need to pull together in the Wildwoods

Prosecutor Sutherland said the staffing shortage is making it harder for police to keep West Wildwood safe.

On Wednesday, he said that the other police departments for the municipalities that make up the Wildwoods, including Wildwood, North Wildwood, and Wildwood Crest, have agreed to share officers and other resources with West Wildwood.

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“Public safety must always remain our top priority. We are working collaboratively to ensure that the residents of West Wildwood receive the protection and service they deserve,” Sutherland said.

However, it's a short-term solution. The borough must still decide if it's practical to maintain its police department.

West Wildwood residents demand to have their own police department

West Wildwood residents are desperately fighting to keep the police department they've had.

Dozens of locals attended Friday's commissioners meeting at the municipal complex, crowding it to the point that it had to be moved to a larger venue across the street, 6abc reported.

Residents suggested that the borough should pay officers more and have new officers sign longer contracts so they stick around.

The Board of Commissioners has not yet decided whether or not it will disband the police department.

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