By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Already looking ahead to next summer, Sea Isle City Mayor Leonard Desiderio demanded Tuesday that the state Legislature should change “crippling laws” that restrict police in dealing with rowdy teenagers and young adults during the tourism season.
Desiderio, as he has done repeatedly in the past, criticized the state for newly enacted laws that he says have hampered police officers from doing their job while trying to prevent teenagers from getting out of hand.
“This past summer I reported on the city’s concerns with crippling laws at the state level that must be amended in order to restore some balance to the ability of law enforcement to handle problems with disorderly conduct that have occurred too often – specifically as it pertains to juveniles and young adults,” Desiderio said during a City Council meeting Tuesday.
He urged the Legislature to give police the power to issue citations or detain teens or young adults who break the law by drinking alcohol or using drugs in public places.
He is also asking state lawmakers to allow municipalities to enact local ordinances to “protect the public.”
“While I remain hopeful that we will impel our state legislators to deal with this issue, I’m also working in conjunction with many of our local mayors to raise the level of urgency of this matter, so we have tools in place in advance of the next summer season,” Desiderio said.
He also said that he is mentioning all of this now “because this issue can’t be left on the back burner.”
“Before we know it, we’ll be facing another summer with the same problems and the same constraints,” he said.
As part of the campaign to change the existing laws, Desiderio met Monday with state Sen. Michael Testa and fellow Cape May County mayors Patrick Rosenello of North Wildwood, Martin Pagliughi of Avalon and Tim Donohue of Middle Township.
Desiderio also serves as a Cape May County commissioner. He and other elected officials and police chiefs at the Jersey Shore have complained for two summers in a row that rowdy teens have little to fear now of being arrested, which has emboldened them to commit crimes such as theft, vandalism and underage public drinking.
State laws enacted last year as part of Gov. Phil Murphy’s juvenile justice reforms put restrictions on police on how far they can go in their interactions with teens. Instead of placing juveniles under arrest or taking them into custody, officers are required to give them “curbside warnings” for minor crimes such as underage drinking or marijuana possession.
Under the reforms, police officers may be arrested themselves if they go beyond those warnings and violate a juvenile’s civil rights.
Former New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, who was a key part of Murphy’s juvenile justice reforms, said in 2020 that the state hoped to limit the interactions between police and teenagers to divert young people away from the criminal justice system.
Desiderio, though, wants “to swing the pendulum back” in the police’s favor. In August, he indicated that Sea Isle’s strategy for responding to disruptive teens will be unveiled by the end of the year.
“I made it clear that this administration is committed to taking all necessary measures to hold those who would do harm to people or property accountable for their actions,” he said Tuesday during the Council meeting.
In the meantime, Desiderio is calling on the public to support the city’s efforts to have the state Legislature enact tougher laws for juvenile crime “and make it clear to them – enough is enough.”
“As I said this past summer, I won’t give up the fight in Trenton, and I’ll do everything possible to level the playing field in favor of those who abide by the law and in favor of all the citizens of Sea Isle City – our residents and visitors alike – who simply want to enjoy their life in peace,” he said.
