Politics & Government

Committee Votes to Keep K-9

Residents, elected officials raise concerns over future costs

The Township Committee voted 3–2 Monday in favor of approving the Barnegat Police Department’s new K-9 unit, an addition to the force that has stirred controversy, prompted protocol discussions and inspired residents to offer thousands of dollars in donations.

Despite promises that the expense of owning and caring for the dog will be covered by drug seizure money and donations, many expressed concerns Monday that taxpayers will end up being saddled with unforeseen K-9 costs.

Bullet, a Belgian Malinois, has been causing a stir in town since he arrived in January. Police Chief Arthur Drexler said at a recent meeting that Patrolman Robert Armstrong paid for and owns the dog himself, amounting to a $6,000 savings for the township.

Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Police also permanently waived an 8 percent stipend normally received by the department’s K-9 officer. Drug seizure money provided $4,000 needed to outfit a police cruiser for the dog, Drexler said, and the unit was expected to pull in enough seizure money to pay for itself. 

And since Mayor Jeffrey Melchiondo put out a call for donations to cover food and vet costs, he said he has collected more than $3,000 in contributions – more than enough to cover the K-9’s expenses this year, he said – plus promises of free care from two veterinarians, and even an offer of free chiropractic sessions for the dog.

Find out what's happening in Barnegat-Manahawkinwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

But some committee members and residents remained unconvinced that the addition of a K-9 to the department was necessary and cost effective, and some bristled at the fact that the dog arrived without the committee’s consent.

“I’m more interested in feeding officers than I am dogs at this time,” said Deputy Mayor Alfonso Cirulli, who ultimately voted against the resolution formally approving the K-9. The township has the option to use county-owned and sheriff-owned dogs, and should continue to opt for those cost-saving measures instead, he said.

If Armstrong and Bullet are called out to assist with searches outside of Armstrong’s regular shift, Cirulli said, that’s “an automatic four hours overtime.” With last year’s police overtime costs rising above $340,000, he said, the township needs to focus on savings. “This is the wrong time to do this,” he said. 

Committeeman Leonard Morano, the other “no” vote, objected to the fact that he and other Committee members weren’t consulted about the unit.

 “Nobody knew about the dog until the dog was riding around,” he said. “The committee is in charge of the police department; the police department is not in charge of the committee. I don’t understand why you people are afraid of the police.” 

Resident Frank Pecci agreed.

“This is wrong,” he said. “The police department doesn’t run this town. You people were voted in. No one else makes the decision.”

Morano also said that by collecting donations to support the dog from Republican business owners in town, Melchiondo had “made it a political thing,” and that there was no guarantee such donations would be offered in years to come.

“This thing will bridge up into another cost where we’ve said, ‘Oh, I wish we didn’t do it,’ ” said resident Jake Taylor.

But Committeeman Al Bille said that while he recognized cost was an issue, he favored keeping the dog.

“I think it’s apparent the residents of Barnegat have voted not only with their voice but with their wallets,” Bille said. Still, he said, he’d like to see annual reports on the cost of the K-9 unit.

Both Bille and Committeeman Martin Lisella voted in favor of retaining the K-9 unit after calling for a promise of such a report, and Melchiondo’s “yes” vote meant the resolution passed. 

Melchiondo said he understood why people were frustrated that the police didn’t come to the committee first for approval of the unit. The department had a K-9 in the past, he said, and considered it a given that they would eventually get another. 

“We’ve since added protocols to address the issue with the police department,” he said, so in the future, “we’ll be informed." 

Resident Joseph Cloke said after the meeting he was unhappy with the committee’s decision, largely because he felt there was a very real possibility for unforeseen overtime costs adding up.

“The township can’t afford to be paying overtime for a dog,” he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here