Cherry Hill Cop Attended Training That Touted Violence, Discrimination: Officials

CHERRY HILL, NJ — A Cherry Hill police officer will receive corrective training after attending a law-enforcement conference that was accused of glorifying unconstitutional tactics and denigrating women and minorities.

Nearly 1,000 officers nationwide — including 240 from New Jersey — attended the 2021 Street Cop Training conference in Atlantic City, according to a scathing report published Dec. 6 by the state comptroller's office. Fifty-four police agencies around New Jersey, including Cherry Hill's, used public funds to send officers to the conference, investigators found.

One Cherry Hill officer attended the conference and will receive "remedial training," according to Police Chief Robert Kempf.

"The teachings at the conference were shameful and indefensible," Kempf said in a statement. "The Cherry Hill Police Department holds its officers to the highest standards of conduct and is committed to providing the highest level of police services to our community in a manner that is moral and ethical and respects civil rights and human dignity."

Investigators confirmed that at least $75,000 in public funds were directly spent by New Jersey entities on attendance at the conference. This number does not include paid time off and/or paid training days relating to officers' attendance.

The attendance costs pale in comparison to potential lawsuits that could arise from excessive force, unlawful searches and seizures, harassment, and discrimination, said Acting State Comptroller Kevin D. Walsh.

Speakers and instructors made more than 100 discriminatory and harassing remarks during the conference, including references to speakers' genitalia, lewd gestures, and demeaning quips about women and minorities, according to investigators. Instructors also glorified violence, promoted the use of unconstitutional policing tactics during traffic stops, and encouraged a militaristic, "warrior" approach to law enforcement, the report says.

• Read more: 240 NJ Officers Completed Controversial Training With Tax Dollars: OSC

None of the attending officers complained about the training, the comptroller's investigation found.

The training was run by Street Cop Training, a private company headquartered in East Windsor. The company has issued an apology for any “inappropriate or offensive language” used at the workshops. However, Street Cop says the comptroller's office is wrong about several of its claims, including the assertion that the training may have been “unconstitutional.”

The alleged use of unconstitutional and discriminatory tactics could topple criminal cases around the state, attorneys told New Jersey Monitor.

Read the comptroller's full report here. See a list of the New Jersey police agencies named in the report here.