State Employee Kills Herself In Paramus Office: Cops

PARAMUS, NJ — A state employee died after shooting herself at her office of the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency Monday morning, police said.

Police responded to a call at 9:45 a.m. and discovered a 57-year-old woman shot herself with a handgun inside of her office, said Police Chief Kenneth Ehrenberg.

Paramus EMS personnel immediately took the woman, who was in "grave condition" to Hackensack University Medical Center, Ehrenberg said. The woman later died at the hospital, he said.

Paramus Police detectives, personnel from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, and investigators from the state DCPP are investigating the incident.

Christine Norbut, DCPP commissioner, issued a statement Monday afternoon regarding the death, calling the employee who died "dedicated."

"Law enforcement and agency leadership are on the scene supporting employees who are dealing with this crisis," Norbut said. "We are offering counseling and other supports to assist employees in processing this tragedy. We are cooperating fully with law enforcement to determine the circumstances around this tragedy.

Emergency protocols have been enacted to route calls from the DCPP's Bergen Central office to other offices in the area, Norbut said.

"We are still learning what happened, and at this time, we would defer to law enforcement for any additional information that can be shared," Norbut said.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com

Patch file photo by Daniel Hubbard