BPD's Kevin O'Connell: "Officer of the Year" for Crime Prevention

When Bloomfield Police Officer Kevin O’Connell won the Officer of the Year Award from the Essex County Crime Prevention Officers Association, it was a well-deserved recognition for 26 years of dedicated service to the community.  But when Patch recently visited O’Connell at the police precinct, he preferred to talk about his work, rather than his award.

“I have thirteen years doing crime prevention and child safety,” he said. “I’m big on child safety. That’s one of the most rewarding things I do.”

O’Connell is involved in all aspects of child safety, from mentoring at-risk kids to helping children in domestic violence situations.  One of his specialties is giving young drivers safety talks, as he did this week at Bloomfield High School.

“The majority of accidents with young drivers occur because of excessive speed, inexperience of the driver and not wearing seatbelts,” he said.  “That baffles me.  Their generation has grown up with seatbelts.”

In his many years on the force, O’Connell has tirelessly advocated for seatbelt safety.  He has even, he said, installed infant car seats for parents-to-be on the way to the hospital.  Still, he has seen his fair share of horrific accidents featuring young drivers or children who aren’t properly belted.

“You see these car crashes – the kids who are wearing seatbelts are ok, and the ones who aren’t get thrown out of the car,” he said, shaking his head.  “In 1987 we got a call about a car accident.  When I got there I saw a baby bottle on the ground and blood on the dashboard.  The baby wound up being severely brain damaged.  Because he wasn’t properly restrained, he was the only one who got hurt.  I’ll always remember that.”

Another frequent cause of tragedies, especially with young drivers, is texting or cell phone use while behind the wheel.

“About two months ago there was a girl from Utah, driving her car.  Her last text was, ‘I don’t believe how unsafe this is.’  Fifteen seconds later she hit the back of an oil tanker at 80 mph.”

O’Connell said these accidents are particularly disturbing because they are 100 per cent preventable. 

“This stuff will stick with you,” he says. “I love kids.  I want to keep them safe.  Especially new drivers.  If I can prevent kids dying in a car crash, I feel very happy.”

Educating the public on preventable crime is, of course, what O’Connell does best, and why he was given the award.  He is only too happy to list some of the ways people can guard against becoming a crime statistic.

“There is what we call a “triangle of crime”: desire, ability and opportunity,” he explains. “The only thing we can control is opportunity.  Lock your door  -- it’s a simple thing.  Don’t leave your car running or you’re asking for trouble.  Don’t leave a GPS or an I-Phone out.  If you go out and want to show your jewelry off—you can’t flash your stuff.  You have to be aware of your surroundings.”

O’Connell says a vast proportion of crime these days is driven by greed, often spurred by the desire for technology.

“The biggest crime that’s going on involves technology.  Violent crime is going down but theft is going through the roof.”  

In general, O’Connell advises people to take a cautious approach in all aspects of their lives.  “With the senior citizen scams, it drives me nuts.  Like the grandparents’ scam.  It usually comes out of Canada.  [The perpetrator will] call random houses and if they hear an elderly voice they’ll say ‘this is your grandson’ and tell some sob story.  [The grandparent will] send thousands of dollars through Western Union.  I’ve known cases here.  Some people are too embarrassed to admit it.” 

O’Connell can often be seen throughout the community, giving talks and helping as needed with crime prevention.  Another area of expertise is his commitment to helping domestic violence victims and their children.

Every year he goes to Bloomfield High School to speak to students at Leonore Imhoff’s Law and Safety class about domestic violence.  In charge of the BPD’s domestic violence team since 2,000, O’Connell says helping victims and their families has been one of the most important things he has done on the Bloomfield police force.   

“Before, the victims weren’t getting as much information as they needed,” he said.  “But they’ve come a long way toward treating the victims the right way.  I feel like we can do a lot of good.” 

Still, he admits, “On the patrol side, you can see the worst side of people.  There’s nothing worse than going on a domestic violence call on a holiday.”

O’Connell noted that the Bloomfield with knowledge of restraining orders and safety plans for victims.  “It’s all confidential.  We have a room downstairs for victims and their children.  [Later] We refer them to Babyland in Newark, Essex County Safehouse Legal Services, like the .  We help them understand what will happen in court.  It’s a good service.”

After 26 years serving the Bloomfield community, O’Connell says he will probably retire in October (“I’m 92% sure.”)  He said the award came “just at the right time, as I was going out,” and he very much appreciates the honor of winning the award and being nominated by Police Chief Goul and Captain James Decker.

“I’ve got mixed emotions [about retirement,]” he said.  A survivor of prostate cancer in 2005, O’Connell said he looks forward to traveling around the country and visiting Civil War battlefields when he retires.  Or he may return to the Bloomfield Police department as needed, he said, as “Special Law Enforcement Officer Class 2.”  The SLEO program hires retired officers to provide armed security in the municipal court, allowing for more active-duty officers on the street.  

And of course there are still the kids.  O’Connell says he would like to stay connected to children in the community, such as volunteering at Essex County cerebral palsy events, as he has done for years (“those kids are so special to me,”) or reading to children in schools, as he recently did during “Read Across America Week.” 

“They don’t care what you read to them,” he admitted, laughing.  “They just want to see your gun and your handcuffs.”