Boro police department applies for four grants
Grants will fund programs to enforce the law and to educate
BY DANIEL HOWLEY Staff Writer

EATONTOWN - The Eatontown Police Department has applied for $30,316 in state grants to step up the town's motor vehicle enforcement.

The borough applied to the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety for four grants to fund officer training and salaries for various programs in the police department, according to Ocean Township Traffic Safety Officer Troy Fowlkes.

The grants include a $4,000 grant for the Click-It or Ticket Campaign, a $9,600 Aggressive Driving Enforcement grant, a $4,580 grant for the Pedestrian Safety Project, and a $12,136.60 Expedited EMS Response to Vehicle Crash grant.

The department is applying for the grants to help enforce motor vehicle and pedestrian safety in the borough, Eatontown Business Administrator George Jackson said.

The borough applies for the safety grants annually to help fund programs that enable the police department to better target motor vehicle and pedestrian violations within the borough, according Jackson.

Fowlkes said that the department is expected to find out if they will be awarded the funds in the fall.

"[The] Click-It or Ticket program will target people who aren't wearing seat belts," Fowlkes said.

"We have a pedestrian safety program where we look for people who are crossing at a red light or not walking across the street in a crosswalk, as well as vehicles that stop at a cross walk at a red light," Fowlkes said.

While officers will issue summonses for pedestrian violations, Jackson explained that officers will also occasionally stop an offender in order to inform them and educate them about the consequences that a violation carries.

"The officers don't necessarily issue a summons for someone crossing improperly," Jackson said.

"Part of the reason isn't just to enforce, but to educate," he said, adding, "It's not just a negative thing."

The department also applied for a grant that will allow officers to target aggressive driving.

"We target motorists driving in an aggressive matter, which could mean speeding, [failure to use] a turn signal, running a red light or following too closely," Fowlkes said.

"Every moving violation is covered under aggressive driving," he added.

The police department is also seeking funding that will allow the department to train officers to act as EMTs, according to Fowlkes.

Under the Expedited EMS Response to Vehicle Crash program, one of five officers from each of the four squads in the patrol department will be enrolled in a threemonth training program that will permit the officers to become certified EMTs, Jackson said.

The $12,136.60 EMS grant will cover the cost of educating the four officers and the cost of overtime for the other officers in the squads that will have to work extra hours to make up for the loss of their squad members.