A lawsuit filed by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) had questioned North Bergen's hiring process, preventing any promotions until the suit was settled five years ago.
But even after the town agreed to also look at candidates both Jersey City and East Orange, none of the officers who were promoted reached the rank of deputy chief.
When Police Chief William Galvin was tabbed to replace long-time Chief Angelo Busacco in May of 2005, one of the first things he wanted to do was to promote a fellow officer to the rank of deputy chief.
Long-time captain Robert Farley received that honor a year ago, but only on a provisional basis, until North Bergen could properly advertise and administer the New Jersey State Department of Personnel certified promotional test for the rank of deputy chief.
When the results of that test became official earlier this year, long-time veterans and captains David Ricigliano and Gary Richmond placed the highest among those eligible to take the test.
On Wednesday, Ricigliano and Richmond were both sworn in as deputy police chiefs, while Farley announced that he will retire at the end of the month, after 35 years on the job, 18 of them as commander of the department's detective bureau.
Two deputies
Instead of just promoting one of the two to replace Farley, the township decided to elevate both men who scored high on the promotional test.
"I spoke to everyone about it, and Mayor [Nicholas] Sacco and the commissioners were all on board," Galvin said. "Chris [Pianese, the township administrator] said that there was money in the budget available to promote both, so we did. It shows that there are nothing but positive things going on between the administration and the department. It also shows that a patrolman can rise through the ranks and hold the highest positions in the department."
Like Galvin, both Ricigliano and Richmond worked their way through the rank and file, from patrolman all the way to superior officer.
Ricigliano, a native of Union City, has resided in North Bergen since 1978, when he got married to his wife, Florence. Soon after, he joined the North Bergen Police Department, having just celebrated his 25th anniversary on the department in January. He became a sergeant in 1988, a lieutenant in 1997 and a captain in 2003.
"It's great that the position opened up again," Ricigliano said. "I'm grateful that it opened up and I was able to be considered. I never thought that I would see the day where I would be deputy chief, because the position was never filled."
Ricigliano has handled a multitude of duties since he became a superior officer almost 20 years ago. He has been the commander of the training division since 1988, instructing recruits on the proper usage of firearms, like the pistol, the shotgun, and the assault weapon.
Ricigliano was also named as a liaison to the Hudson County Rapid Deployment Force, a countywide police organization that is called to duty in emergency situations. He is also a member of the FBI's Terrorism Task Force.
Ricigliano also has an interesting sidelight - as a writer. He's been a contributing editor to New Jersey Cops magazine, having been published more than 75 times. He has also written for Guns & Weapons and for Law Enforcement magazine.
Ricigliano, now 52, and his wife have two daughters, Grace, 21, and Megan, 17.
"I'm in the twilight of my career, so this is the best thing to ever happen to me," Ricigliano said. "It was a lot of hard work and studying, but I was able to reach my goal. It's very rewarding. It's going to be a new challenge, and I've never been one to back down to a challenge. I look forward to the additional work and responsibility."
Richmond is a lifelong North Bergen resident and graduate of North Bergen High School. He turned 44 last Monday, two days before he took the oath as deputy chief.
"It was a nice birthday present," he said.
Richmond also worked his way through the ranks in his 22 years on the department. He was named sergeant in 1993, lieutenant in 1999 and captain two years ago.
"I always tried to strive to do my best in whatever role I had in the department," said Richmond, who has been the commander of the department's Traffic Division for the last decade. "It was always a goal to reach the highest rank possible. But since deputy chief really wasn't in existence, I thought I was going to retire as a captain. It's where we all thought we would peak. Chief Galvin was kind enough to reopen the position and I looked forward to taking the test."
Richmond is married to wife Pam and is the father of three children, Kyle (16), Victoria (3) and Gary, Jr. (2). He is also a long-time head coach in the North Bergen Recreation Youth Football League.
"I'm looking forward to conquering new challenges," Richmond said. "It's a major accomplishment for me. I felt I accomplished something each time I moved up a rank, but the prestige of this rank is pretty substantial. I can't even explain the feeling. It's pretty awesome."
Fields of expertise
Both new deputy chiefs figure that they will continue with their expertise in their respective fields - Ricigliano with training and weaponry, Richmond with traffic, especially at a time in the township when traffic is at a major concern.
"We're pretty much experts in our fields, so I think it will remain that way," Ricigliano said. "We've also been in supervisory positions for a long time, so I don't think we'll have any problem working together. We're both proven leaders."
"It's going to take the pressure off me, having two excellent leaders as deputy chiefs," Galvin said. "It's a fantastic opportunity to spread the department out a little. It really gives our other officers incentive that they could also rise through the ranks and achieve the highest ranks possible."
Saying goodbye
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Farley retires after being the longest serving officer in the department in terms of years served.
For Galvin, it was a sad and joyous announcement all wrapped into one.
"There's always mixed emotions," Galvin said. "I worked closely with Deputy Chief Farley for many years. He was like a mentor to me. We're good friends and we've become like family over the years. I couldn't ask for a better deputy chief than him. But I've also worked well with Dave and Gary. They're both excellent police officers and are deserving of the promotion."
Jim Hague can be reached via e-mail at either OGSMAR@aol.com or jhague@hudsonreporter.com
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