Bradley Beach Police Chief Investigated After He Showed Up 'Drunk'

BRADLEY BEACH, NJ — A spokesman for Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago confirmed the prosecutor is investigating Bradley Beach Police Chief Leonard Guida for an incident that occurred on Nov. 9.

At 10:30 that night, the police chief allegedly showed up drunk to a traffic accident and got physical with a sergeant investigating the crash, according to a report first published on Tap Into Asbury Park.

"The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office conducted an investigation into actions by the Bradley Beach Chief of Police, including an interaction with a sergeant occurring in November 2023," read a statement from the prosecutor.

According to the exclusive Tap Into report, Chief Guida showed up unexpectedly to a traffic accident on Main Street, where the driver was later charged with DWI. The chief was not in uniform and dressed casually, and the sergeant said he was “drunk again," according to the report. The police chief tried to take the sergeant away from the scene to criticize him for wearing a jacket with peeling police lettering.

“Chief, I am on a DWI," said the sergeant. “I am working, I don’t have time to argue about a jacket.” The sergeant also said “Chief, get out of here, or you are going to get locked up! I asked you three times to leave me alone. You are obstructing my DWI.”

An altercation broke out between the police chief and the sergeant. NJ101.5 has photos from the police body cameras and dashboard video, all which were first obtained by Tap Into.

Guida was placed on paid administrative leave in December while he and this incident are being investigated by the prosecutor. He is paid $204,000 a year to be the Bradley Beach Police Chief.

Prosecutor Santiago said his office "forwarded our findings to the borough of Bradley Beach for its review. We fully expect that the actions we have taken, and the additional actions pending in Bradley Beach, will collectively remedy this issue."