By Michael Nunes
It’s been 90 years since a seven-man police force began patrolling the streets of Lawrence Township, and this year the much larger Lawrence police department is celebrating its 90th anniversary of continuing service to the community.
To commemorate the occasion, the department most recently held a picnic in June for retired police officers and their families, and has several other celebratory plans in the works.
After 90 years, much has changed during the department’s history and the service that it has given the township over the years.
The township had actually been in the protection of multiple law enforcement bodies before the Lawrence Township police department came into existence. In 1867, the Lawrence Vigilant Society was created to help solve criminal activity in the area.
Paramount at that time was the horse thievery, which was so prevalent during the post-Civil War era that the town had to create its own special law enforcement body to keep the peace.
After a population explosion in the 1920s, the town began to need its own police force. Over the course of the decade, houses and suburbs began to spring up in the once rural area.
In 1920, Lawrence Township had a population of 3,686. Ten years later, it jumped to 6,293.
“The population growth must have been one of the big factors in establishing the police department,” said township historian Dennis Waters.
The construction of a trolley line between Trenton and Princeton also helped to transform the town into a suburb of Trenton, Waters said.
The department was created on Feb. 23, 1924 under the leadership of Police Chief Leland Hopkins. Hopkins was paid a salary of $2,000 a year for his services, and 6 fellow officers at the time had to be on call for 24 hours a day.
Over the years, the Lawrence police force has had to change along with the town they protect.
During a housing boom in the 1950s, Lawrence’s landscape had changed from expansive farmland and open fields into sprawling suburbs.
With the increase in housing, there was a need for more police officers and better supplies to improve service for the expanding township. After starting with a lone motorcycle and horses to patrol the beat, the department now had multiple police cars to safeguard the people.
Like the town they protected, the police department also had to change.
“There was a feeling that the police department should be more representative of the community,” recounted former Chief of Police Nicholas Loveless.
Loveless was the fourth chief in the department’s history. A World War II veteran, Loveless was a tail gunner on a B-25 aircraft. When the war ended, he still wanted to find a way to serve his community. Loveless wasn’t alone, as at that time, the ranks of the police force were filled with veterans back from World War II and Korea.
Despite being reluctant to join at first, he passed his exams with flying colors. Starting as a patroller, he quickly rose through the ranks of lieutenant and captain. In 1987 he took over as chief from the retiring William F. Seabridge.
During his time at the department, he witnessed several key changes in the makeup of the force. It was during these years that the department began to allow African-Americans to join the force. And it was Loveless himself who hired the department’s first female police officer, Sharon Micinski.
Since retiring in 1990, Loveless opines for the life he once had.
“I enjoyed police work,” he said. “You meet new people all the time and I never regretted becoming a police officer.”
In a move to document the history of the department, he wrote several articles in the tricentennial edition of the Pictorial History of Lawrence Township.
On the technology front, the department has been helped by popular policing tools such as criminal databases. But even with all the new technological advances, old fashion police work is still a constant.
“It’s similar to the old days,” said Lt. Joseph Amodio about police work in the present versus the past, “the changes have occurred on the technology side.”
With the help of the Criminal Justice Information Terminal and computerized records, officers are able to solve cases quickly and identify suspects with greater ease.
Even with this new technology, police officer still have to do the same ground work they have been doing for years, such as patrolling the beat and interviewing suspects.
Amodio joined the department in 1995 after working as a construction worker.
“Something was calling me, and it’s been a great ride so far,” he recounted about his decision to join.
His 19 years have been marked with interesting cases. One that stands out was an arrest that he made on a robbery suspect, who attempted to elude police by wearing a dress. The case itself won Amodio an award he now proudly displays on his office wall.
At the Lawrence Police Department, there is a strong sense of community amongst the officers.
“The day to day camaraderie and being able to share experience with the younger officer,” said acting Chief Mark Ubry about this favorite part of being an officer.
“Everyone looks out for each other and we make sure everyone gets home safe,” Amodio said.
According to their 2013 records, the Lawrence Police Department has a force of 55 active duty officers.
“We are fortunate to have many individuals within the police department, from the chief of police to the patrol officer,” Loveless wrote in his article on the history of the department.
“The government and the people of Lawrence can be rightfully proud.”
The next opportunity to celebrate the police department’s 90th anniversary is Oct. 6, when the department is set to hand out special baseball cards with pictures of the officers at Lawrence Township’s Community Day. The department has also designed special caps with the 90th anniversary logo to hand out during the event.
Retired Lawrence Township police officers are recognized at the department’s 90th anniversary picnic. Pictured are Officer Salvator Pastorella, Det. Sharon Micinski, Sgt. Thomas Machedea, Sgt. William Eggart Jr., Sgt. Fredrick A. Doldy Jr., Officer Michael C. Micinski, Sgt. Gary Schenck, Officer Mark L. Boyd and Chief Daniel Posluszny.,
