Bloomfield Police Unions Decry Military Leave Cops for 'Personal Attacks'

In a statement released on Friday, Bloomfield’s PBA and Superior Officers Association characterized the public statements by patrol officers Michael McCracken and Hector Cartagena as “unprofessional.”

McCracken and Cartagena are accused of and falsely claiming time taken off from their police jobs as time spent serving in the military as Air Force reservists. The officers have been suspended without pay since Dec. 4 in advance of hearings about their jobs.

Representatives from the two unions, which are charged with bargaining with officials for police salary and benefits, described the two officers’ statements as personal attacks on their union members.

The statement was signed by PBA President Joe Corio and Vice President Mike Menzel and SOA President Joe Krentz and Vice President Vincent Kerney. The statement notes Kerney’s service in the Marine Corp and says that both the SOA and the PBA “care deeply for and support all military personnel and their families.”

“These accused officers should focus on the charges at hand and stop tarnishing the reputations of their department and their fellow officers,” the statement reads.

In the statement, the union reps said McCracken and Cartagena will be given the opportunity to defend themselves in an official forum. 

“We will not and do not condone individual attacks against our officers and our department,” the statement reads.