FREEHOLD – An officer with 27 years on the force admitted to illegally getting personal information from a database to give to a third party.
Lt. John Todd, 58, pleaded guilty to third-degree Computer Theft, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey said.
On February 23, Todd asked a police dispatcher for personal information on someone in the Criminal Justice Information System, a database that exists strictly for law-enforcement purposes. Todd then passed that information along to someone who was not a member of law enforcement.
Todd will permanently forfeit public employment in New Jersey, pay fines up to almost $1,000, and will be on probation. He also must apply to enroll in New Jersey’s Pretrial Intervention Program (PTI), which provides first-time offenders with opportunities for alternatives to traditional prosecution. If he hadn’t taken the plea deal, he faced up to five years in prison and a much higher fine.
“Regardless of rank, there is no place within law enforcement for conduct such as this,” Acting Prosecutor Linskey said. “The vast majority of officers countywide routinely serve the public with integrity and honor, risking their own lives on the job every single day. Actions such as those of Lt. Todd unfortunately make the work they do all the more challenging, particularly when it comes to gaining and maintaining the trust and respect of the citizens who depend on them.”
“The Freehold Township Police Department is committed to our residents and the integrity of all interactions between my officers and the public we serve. We fully support the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and their efforts adjudicating a difficult situation in which one of my officers violated the law,” Freehold Township Police Chief George K. Baumann added. “This breach of trust is an isolated incident, and does not define us or distract us from our primary goal of serving the residents and visitors of our community.”
Sentencing in the case has been scheduled for November 18.
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