Updated: Jun 5
By Barbara A. Preston | June 3, 2025
(*Updated on June 4, 2025 with correction.) (Link to Montgomery Township Committee special statement added on June 5).
The Montgomery Township Police Department website recruiting page states, "Join Our Family. Build Your Career. We'll Have Your Back."
However, two Montgomery police officers and a GOP candidate questioned Township Committee members about a lack of support at the May 28 meeting. PBA president Sal Intili, along with half of the union, had also attended the Township Committee meeting on May 15. They voiced their concerns "over the lack of support from the committee members throughout [their] contract negotiations."
"Montgomery Township officials have failed to show any interest in providing your local officers with a fair contract," Intili said. The department is losing talented officers to neighboring police departments that pay better. He also expressed disappointment that he and his colleagues have been working without a contract for six months now."
Read Special Statement >>Montgomery Township Committee Expresses Support for Police, While Keeping an Eye on Property Taxes
Montgomery Police Officer Sal Intili, president of the Montgomery Township PBA Local 355.
(Still from Montgomery Recruiting Video)
Officer Intili said, "I've yet to hear anything from the appropriate authority regarding our concerns with our contract, recruitment, and retention problems. I would think that those who claim to be our champion or to support us would reach out to come to an understanding.
"We've had officers transferred to departments with similar geographics and demographics as ours — except those departments pay a competitive wage," he said, citing Bernards Township, South Brunswick, and Edison to name a few. "We also have had officers apply to Hillsborough and Bridgewater from 2020 to 2024"
"Bound Brook and Manville have top salaries that are $15,000 to $30,000 higher than ours," Intili said.
While neighboring police departments have settled fair contracts with their township committees, Montgomery Township is at a crossroads, he added. "I foresee more of our officers applying elsewhere if this contract is to fall short on where it needs to be."
Officer Colleen Murphy left the Montgomery Township PD to join the South Brunswick PD. Here she is on Instagram as the guest reader at a kindergarten class in South Brunswick.
Kendall Bohannon (left) was appointed as a patrol officer in Bernards Township on May 24, 2021 at an annual salary of $49,992. Bohannon had started her career with the Montgomery PD in 2019. Officer Colleen Murphy (right) left Montgomery for South Brunswick. Both were beloved members of the Montgomery PD.
(Photo by Barbara A. Preston)
Officer Intili asked the Montgomery Township Committee members to heed his call, in order to retain quality police officers.
"I know for a fact that members of this union are closely watching how this contract pans out. It would not surprise me if we lose more officers, if we do not get a competitive wage.
"I will never blame my fellow Union members for transferring to another department to make a fair wage to support their families. I will put the blame on the Township [Committee], that recognizes that we have a recruitment and retention problem, but fails to act.
"The residents of this town should also hold the Township Committee responsible for allowing highly trained, quality officers to leave, only to be replaced by younger inexperienced officers, that will eventually become highly trained, but they will potentially leave themselves."
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Montgomery Police Sgt. John Colucci, the former PBA president, also spoke to Township Committee during the public comment session on May 28 regarding the challenges faced by the police union during the current contract negotiations.
The Problem: The Montgomery PBA has been without a fair contract for an extended period, leading to officers leaving for other departments that offer better wages. This trend reflects a shift in police careers, where officers are no longer staying with one department their entire career, similar to how professional athletes now chase better financial opportunities.
2020 Negotiations: Montgomery police previously worked without a contract for 1.5 years (from March 2020 to August 3, 2021.) Colucci said at the Township committee meeting that a seemingly fair deal was struck between the township and the union, aiming to bring Montgomery PD wages closer to neighboring departments. When the contract was to be signed in March [unclear whether in 2020 or 2021] the Township Committee, unexpectedly pulled out of the deal, a move Colucci described as "regressive negotiating" and illegal. However, he notes that PERC (Public Employment Relations Commission) cannot compel a municipality to sign a contract, even with a signed agreement, meaning there were no repercussions for the town.
Broken Promises: The union was told in 2020 that not everything could be fixed in one contract, with a promise to pick up where they left off in the next negotiation. Colucci said his mistake was in trusting these words as a younger president.
Diminishing Hope and Morale: Members initially found hope in the prospect of the next contract, believing promises would be kept and things would be settled quickly. However, this hope and morale are now diminishing.
Call to Action: Colucci emphasizes that actions, not just words, motivate officers. He urges the current leadership to show the support their members deserve, as all members are watching closely.
Montgomery Police Sgt. John Colucci (right) with his wife Refika Colucci, who is a Somerset County Sheriff’s Officer, and their son.
(Photo from Instagram)
In essence, Sgt. Colucci outlines a history of frustrating and disappointing contract negotiations, highlighting a breach of trust by the township, and advocating for the current leadership to demonstrate tangible support for the police officers.
Montgomery Township Committee GOP Candidate Chris Venis spoke during the public comment session at May 28 in support of the police department and first responders.
"They put their lives on the line every day to ensure our safety," Venis said. "I've had the chance to personally meet a few of our police officers. I may or may not have been speeding, but it was okay. They were courteous and professional, which is the expectation that is set by the chief [Silvio Bet] and their superior officers."
"As the son of a police officer," Venis said, "I know what it's like to see those we love, put themselves in danger."
Chris Venis, a GOP candidate for Montgomery Township Committee.
(Screen shot from May 28 Township Committee video.)
"While chief of staff of the Department of Corrections, the Department of 10,000 employees, 30,000 inmates, and a $1 billion budget, I've seen the worst ... Prior to sending these individuals to the prison system, a police officer has to have contact with them, which is an extremely dangerous situation.
"As we sit in our suburban houses on the hill, with 2.3 kids, a dog, enjoying our weekly yoga classes and our mocha soy lattes, the police are out there protecting us 24 hours a day. No questions asked.
"Today, I fear not everyone has the back for our police officers. We hear defund the police. Police are bad. Now I hear our officers are in danger — short the number of officers that are needed, and still without a contract. You all seem like very nice people, but there's a significant lack of experience in leadership on this township committee right now. Real leaders take responsibility. If you can't do the job, it's okay. It's a difficult job sometimes. But get out of the way and let someone else do the job. If you don't, the voters will replace you with somebody with real experience."
"To our first responders: We're here, we support you, and help’s on the way," Venis concluded.
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Deputy Mayor Vince Barragan, who is running for re-election to Township Committee, was absent during the public comment session of the May 28 meeting, but he did join the meeting later. He had previously emailed his comments on this issue to The Montgomery News, and they appear in this related article >>PBA Asks Deputy Mayor, and Township Committee, to Support the Police. (posted online on May 24, 2025.)
Committeeman Dennis Ahn responded to the Montgomery Police Department concerns, noting that Township Committee brought back the role of chief-of-police. Previously, there was a public safety director of police.
"We continue to build the culture. We will always make sure that we [give] our PBA first priority because you do keep us safe and that's very, very important to us. We greatly appreciate all the PBA, all the police officers, first responders, and everybody that takes care of us that keeps us safe while we're sleeping. Hopefully we can move forward and you know, everybody will be happy once the negotiations are over."
Committeewoman Patricia Taylor contributed that she is a law enforcement wife, as well as an attorney and experienced labor relations mediator and negotiator.
"I'm certainly very aware of what our police officers do and what they bring," she said. "I'm not the lead negotiator, I'm not part of the negotiations, but I'm certainly aware of the issues. I want to express that we do value our police officers and that we will negotiate in due course and fairly."
Montgomery Police recruits in 2022. From left: Joelle Bridgewater, Carolyn LaRue, Chief Silvio Bet, Kyle Matthew Chin, and Craig Merkle. Not included in the picture: Officer Michael Contreras.
Former Mayor Devra Keenan spoke in support of the police during the public comment session at the May 28 meeting. She recalled the last time the PBA contract was negotiated in 2020. Keenan was a township committee member at the time.
"As somebody with a background as an executive in HR, I was close to the negotiations at that time, and Sgt. Colucci is absolutely correct. That [2020] contract was considered a step in the right direction.
"At the time, our entry and mid level officers were at the lowest end of the pay range for the county and surrounding municipalities. Additionally, the hiring practices at the time were to recruit an officer [only] when another retired or left... I think over 50% of the officers were retirement eligible.
"So working with the then captains, we adjusted to a class hiring model that opened up the candidate pool, helped with our goal of having a more representative police department, and by that, I mean representing the community in terms of more women officers, persons of colors, etc."
At this point, the 3-minute public comment chime went off, and barely finished chiming before Mayor Neena Singh announced, "Your time is up."
Keenan replied, "I know, give me a second, I'm wrapping it up."
Singh again said to Keenan, "Ma'am, your three minutes are up."
Keenan finished her statement, saying: "The goal at the time was to reevaluate the compensation and the structure. It's currently a really wonky two scale system, and to make sure our officers were paid in the top third of the county and surrounding municipalities. I hope that you take that into account when you negotiate this next contract, we have excellent officers, and we need to keep them."
Keenan received a round of applause from the audience.
Read related story >> Montgomery Township Mayor Keenan Swears in 5 New Police Officers, The new hires will add diversity to the Montgomery police force.
Mayor Singh's response to the public comments regarding the police issues were:
"We do understand we have excellent officers," she said. "And, we do have a meeting with the PBA on [May 30]. So that's when the conversation will happen."
Here is a link to the online video of the meeting >> Montgomery Township Committee May 28,2025 meeting
* Correction: In a previous version of this story, The Montgomery News misinterpreted a comment about "regressive negotiating" made at a public meeting by former PBA president John Colucci. It seemed Colucci was referring to the current contract negotiations. He was, in fact, referring to the previous contract signed in 2021. Neena Singh was not mayor at that time. The Montgomery News regrets the error.
