2 East Windsor Cops 'Terminated' From Force In 2021: Report

EAST WINDSOR, NJ — Two East Windsor police officers were terminated from the force in 2021, according to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General's "Major Discipline" report.

According to the report, "major discipline" is described as officers who were fired, demoted, or suspended for more than five days.

Officer Michael Greco was fired in 2021 “for providing false information to law enforcement officials during an official investigation of an off-duty incident.” Greco also failed to provide “accurate and truthful information” on the incident to this agency, the report said.

Officer Paul Proctor was “terminated” from service “for submitting false information in an official departmental record.”

The attorney general's office released the second major-discipline report a few days ago. The first was released last year and no East Windsor police officer was on the list. Read More: No East Windsor Police Officers Named In NJ 'Discipline' Report

The report by the AG's office names the officers who were fired, demoted in rank or suspended for more than five days. In June last year, then-Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal gave all New Jersey law-enforcement agencies two months to publicly release certain disciplinary info.

The directive came after the New Jersey Supreme Court authorized the public release of such info on a going-forward basis.

In Mercer County, 12 law enforcement agencies reported "no major discipline" for 2021.

Before the New Jersey Supreme Court decision, the Garden State shielded the identities of officers disciplined or fired from the public. But days after then-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd in May 2020, Grewal issued several directives involving police reform.

Actions included expansion of Crisis Intervention Team training, development of a statewide "Use of Force Portal" and updates to the state's use-of-force policy. New Jersey law enforcement is now banned from using chokeholds "except in the very limited situations when deadly force is necessary to address an imminent threat to life."

But Grewal's order to release disciplinary records faced pushback, which turned into a year-long legal battle. The Supreme Court's unanimous ruling found state authorities could identify officers subjected to "major" discipline in the past year and going forward. But police disciplined prior can seek a judge to try and block the public disclosure.

State PBA President Pat Colligan called the Supreme Court's decision "frustrating and disappointing." But Colligan praised a provision that allows officers who agreed to discipline under the assumption that it would remain confidential, to seek a judge's approval to keep the records secret.

"We are pleased that the court recognized that many officers only resolved disciplinary actions because they received specific promises of confidentiality which they relied upon, and that they are entitled to a hearing before release of any information regarding events that may have occurred decades ago," Colligan said. "We continue to be disappointed in the Attorney General's (then Grewal) ongoing refusal to meet with us to discuss fairness within police reform as well as his continuing attacks on law enforcement."

(With reporting from Josh Bakan, Patch Staff)

Thank you for reading. Have a correction or news tip? Email sarah.salvadore@patch.com

Get breaking news alerts on your phone with our app. Download here. Sign up to get Patch emails so you don't miss out on local and statewide news.