As Kyle Brown made his way through the West Windsor-Plainsboro school system, he encountered Don Edwards, a West Windsor police officer who served as the juvenile detective and D.A.R.E. officer.
As a student, Brown looked up to Edwards, and now as a West Windsor police officer himself, he hopes to follow in his footsteps. Brown, who was sworn in as a police officer in December, will actually take Edwards’ spot on the force, although there is no longer an official school resource officer position in the department. Edwards retired in September after 25 years on the force — 18 of which were spent as the juvenile detective.
“I remember seeing him there [at school] one day, and I said, ‘Maybe one day that could be me,’ and it worked out that way,” Brown said.
Obtaining a spot on the West Windsor police force is no small endeavor, even for a longtime West Windsor resident. Brown, now 27, was born in Trenton and moved to the township when he was in first grade because his mother, who works for the state Department of Youth and Family Services, wanted to get him into a good school system.
He attended Maurice Hawk and then Upper Elementary School (now known as the Millstone River School). He was a member of the last class to graduate from West Windsor-Plainsboro High School in 2000, before it became High School South. Even in high school, Brown excelled. He was named Most Valuable Player in 1998 and 1999 for the boys’ basketball team. While in high school, Brown and his mother moved to Plainsboro.
After WW-P, he began school at the College of New Jersey, where he earned a degree in communication. Brown knew he wanted to be a police officer. “The job itself is enticing,” he said. “You’re able to give back, help people out. That was something I wanted to do, especially in the town I grew up in. It’s like living the dream.”
Brown applied to the West Windsor Police Department when it had openings after four of its tenured officers announced they were retiring. He took the test and came in for an interview, but another officer was selected for the job.
“We didn’t decide to initially select him,” Chief Joe Pica said. Brown did not give up, though. He put himself through the Mercer County Police Academy through the alternate route program. Pica happened to be attending the graduation ceremony for another incoming officer, where he encountered Brown again.
Pica said he saw that Brown had earned the physical fitness award and was so impressed that decided to call him a week later. “I had somebody retire, and he had taken our test and had done quite well,” he said. “He is one of our locals, he knows the neighbors, and he knows the school system.”
“We like to give preference to people who grew up locally,” Pica added. “They have a genuine interest in the community. When you hire people from outside of the community, they have to learn to be interested in the community.”
Brown echoes the sentiment. “When I was seeking employment, this type of job is so competitive that you pretty much take any town that will hire you,” he said. But “when the opportunity came up to work in West Windsor, it was a dream job and a dream location. I’m familiar with the area. That’s a leg up. I pretty much know all the main roads and streets in the town.”
Brown began his employment with the township on September 1, and so far has had a little more than four months on the job. During that time “I learned that anything can happen at any time,” he said. “Just in my brief tenure here, I’ve seen a lot of stuff happen.”
One of those unique experiences came on Christmas Day, when he was among the group of officers who responded to a call about a woman giving birth on the side of the road on Route 1. Brown was among the officers who helped divert traffic so that paramedics and other police officers could assist the new mother in safely delivering her new baby boy (see police reports, page TK).
“You go from one extreme to another extreme at the drop of a dime — helping someone who needs medical attention and the criminal element. That’s a challenge, and you need to be able to adjust rapidly.”
So far, Brown has been out on patrol around town, but he said he hopes to eventually get his foot in the door to be able to work with the schools more, similar to Edwards.
“Eventually, once I learn the job a little more, I would love to transition over to the Detective Bureau. The department offers a lot of room for upper movement. I plan on working hard, and I’m going to go wherever I can.”
