Tinton Falls swears in special law-enforcement officer and launches police chaplains program

Tinton Falls officials on May 6 administered oaths to Tyler Doprinsky as a special law-enforcement officer and to four volunteer police chaplains, marking the start of a chaplains program the department said it has developed over several years.

"He's born and raised in Tinton Falls...he set a goal to become a Tinton Falls police officer," said a program administrator who introduced Tyler and described his participation in a junior police academy and enrollment in a law-and-public-safety program at his high school. The administrator also noted Doprinsky is a volunteer firefighter at Wayside Fire Company.

Chiefs and program leaders described the chaplains as an additional tool for the department. "These chaplains will be on call ... for the community as well as for our police department," a speaker said, adding they would assist at calls where a family might need a chaplain and support officers themselves.

The four chaplains — identified in the record as Pastor Justin, Pastor Danica, Pastor Janet and Father Brian — were sworn in and told the council they would perform duties "to the best of [their] ability." The ceremony included the customary oaths to support the constitutions of the United States and the State of New Jersey.

Council members and attendees congratulated the new officers and chaplains; there was no council vote recorded for the program during the meeting, and no ordinance or contract references were presented in the transcript.