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Ex-NJSP Sgt. Marc Dennis, 51, of Waretown, also must forfeit his pension and cannot be publicly employed in New Jersey ever again, state Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said.
Dennis shouldn’t have had the identification card in his possession after being relieved of his authority during the suspension, Platkin said.
The 17-year department veteran not only held onto it, the attorney general said: Dennis used the ID at least nine times during stops in the Monmouth and Ocean county towns of Marlboro, Toms River, Berkeley Township and Lakehurst – and elsewhere – between September 2016 and April 2018.
Each time he claimed to be an active member of the NJSP, Platkin said.
Dennis had gotten the card in January 2016 after reporting that he’d lost his wallet, Platkin said.
He was suspended in September of that year for “failing to follow State Police procedures while claiming otherwise in official records and certifications,” the attorney general said.
He surrendered his service weapon, equipment and other items but pocketed the identification card, Platkin said.
Dennis has become notorious as the law enforcer who torpedoed 20,000 or so DWI convictions in Monmouth County for improperly calibrating breath-test machines.
His job was to calibrate the machines used to secure DWI convictions, but he skipped a critical step that ensures they’re in proper working order. That forced authorities to invalidate tens of thousands of the tests from Asbury Park, Long Branch and Marlboro.
Among those testifying at his recent trial was a Toms River police officer who told jurors that Dennis had been arrogant, rude and condescending after he stopped him for running a stop sign at Raymond Avenue and Route 9 in a Dodge Durango.
He even laughed when he presented the ID, the officer testified.
What the officer, and others, didn’t know at the time was that Dennis had been suspended from the NJSP.
Out of professional courtesy, Dennis got off with a warning each time, prosecutors said.
Jurors in Freehold convicted Dennis of official misconduct, a pattern of official misconduct and theft by unlawful taking in May 2022.
Family members and other loved ones begged Superior Court Judge Lourdes Lucas for leniency at sentencing. Assistant Attorney General Anthony Picione, meanwhile, argued for seven years behind bars (Dennis actually could’ve gotten 10 under state sentencing guidelines).
For his part, Dennis said he was sorry and that there’s “no chance I will stray again.” He begged for a second chance, promising the judge: “I won’t let you down.”
Lucas then sentenced Dennis to five years in state prison without parole.
"These charges here arise out of a violation of the public trust,'' the judge said. "The nature of these crimes show a complete disregard for the law.''
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