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Michael Patterson, 29, of Bayonne first the victim for an unspecified offense on the New Jersey Turnpike on Jan. 28, 2020, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.
After letting her go with a warning, Paterson “conducted a second, unwarranted stop of her vehicle a few minutes later when she exited the Turnpike at Exit 11….in order to make unwanted advances on the woman,” Grewal said.
Patterson “put the victim in fear by following her to her home in his patrol vehicle,” the attorney general said.
He also “disabled the Digital In-Vehicle Recorder (DIVR) in his vehicle to prevent his conduct from being recorded during this second stop,” Grewal said.
“The New Jersey State Police maintain the highest standards of conduct for their state troopers, standards which the vast majority uphold as faithful and honorable guardians of the public,” the attorney general said. “This indictment reflects our resolve to hold officers accountable if they betray the public’s trust with this type of conduct.”
NJSP Supt. Col. Patrick J. Callahan said Patterson's behavior “stands in stark contrast to the core values of the New Jersey State Police and is a betrayal to the public and to the entire law enforcement community.”
The colonel said it also shows the effectiveness of a "robust system of checks and balances that is designed to not only hold its members accountable, but to serve as a tool to provide training and counseling through early intervention.”
A Piscataway native, Patterson was the starting center fielder for the New Jersey City University baseball team in 2012 and 2013.
He made international headlines three years ago when he pulled over a man who turned out to be a retired police officer who delivered him when Patterson was born in 1991.
The state Office of Public Integrity and Accountability originally charged him last June following an initial investigation by the NJSP Office of Professional Standards and follow-up by the OPIA’s Corruption Bureau.
The grand jury indictment echoes the charges of official misconduct, stalking and tampering with public records, Grewal said.
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