Five Hackensack police officers whom the city found guilty of unlawfully breaking into an apartment building can return to active duty and will retain their most recent ranks, said a judge from the state Office of Administrative Law.

In a 59-page decision released Friday, obtained by NorthJersey.com and the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey, Judge Susana Guerrero disagreed with the city's termination of Justin De La Bruyere, Rocco Duardo, Joseph Gonzales, Mark Gutierrez and Victor Vasquez for charges that included falsifying a police report and unlawful entry into a Prospect Street apartment in 2016.

All five former narcotics officers will retain their most recent ranks and receive back pay and benefits, the decision said. Guerrero's decision went as far as to reverse all of Gonzales' charges, while recommending suspensions of either 90 or 150 days for the other four officers.

"She rejected Hackensack’s call for a termination of these officers," said James Patuto, Gutierrez's attorney. "She found that the officers had done some things wrong, but — I will tell you — a very well-reasoned opinion. She went through all of the evidence. She dissected the evidence. She found that it was not a black-and-white situation that Hackensack has maintained for now 2, 2½ years."

Gurbir Grewal, then the Bergen County prosecutor, decided to dismiss eight separate narcotics cases involving 16 defendants, including a known gang member and others with prior convictions and violent histories, because they were connected to the officers. The dismissals were a result of the city's internal affairs investigation into the five officers and two ranking officers who have since retired. An unknown number of Municipal Court cases were also dismissed.

Grewal, who is now the attorney general, referred questions to a spokesperson for the Attorney General's Office. Through an office spokeswoman, Grewal declined to comment.

Although Friday's decision disputes the officers' terminations, it sustains the bulk of the city's charges against all of the officers, excluding Gonzales.

"Hackensack has not proven by a preponderance of the credible evidence any of the charges," Guerrero wrote about Gonzales.

Charles Sciarra, Duardo's attorney, declined to comment. Calls to City Manager Ted Ehrenburg, Capt. Peter Busciglio, Police Director Jerry Marinelli and Vasquez's attorney were not immediately returned.

Story continues after photo gallery.

The decision is a recommendation to the Civil Service Commission, which, at this juncture, has the final say on the five officers' future. All involved parties have 13 days from Friday to file a written exception with the commission's Division of Appeals and Regulatory Affairs.

By way of its labor attorney Ray Wiss, Hackensack has already made clear that it intends to file such an exception.

"We believe that the remedy is not to bring these officers back," Wiss said. "That works to the detriment of the city and the safety of its residents."

Whether or not any of the attorneys file an exception, the commission also has 45 days from Friday to render a final decision. It remains to be seen when the officers will return to active duty, because Friday's decision will likely lead to a lengthy appeals process.

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“It’s incredibly disappointing to see a judge make this recommendation, which if confirmed would only create more instability and uncertainty at the Hackensack Police Department at a time when it’s finally making real strides away from its troubled past,” Mayor John Labrosse said in a statement. “These officers broke the law and they should face the appropriate consequences for their actions."

Friday's decision comes after a nearly two-year protracted legal battle that started in May 2017, when the five officers, along with two ranking officers who have since retired, were abruptly suspended. The suspensions effectively dismantled the narcotics unit at the time.

Last February, after an internal affairs investigation and upon a hearing officer's recommendation, the city fired the five officers, concluding they entered into apartment C7 at the Sheldon Arms without a warrant and then tried to cover it all up.

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The hearing officer's recommendation had only called for Gonzales to face a six-month suspension, but the city decided to terminate him as well.

The Sheldon Arms visit

The internal affairs investigation and ensuing hearings and litigation were sparked by an anonymous letter sent to Capt. Peter Busciglio. The letter pointed Busciglio to Dec. 8, 2016, when the five officers and former Capt. Vincent Riotto and Lt. Scott Sybel, who both retired before the hearings, visited the Sheldon Arms.

Riotto and Sybel retired with a combined $258,450 in payouts from the city. Busciglio has since been promoted to officer-in-charge, the city's highest ranking officer, because the rank of police chief has not been filled since 2010.

Officers were investigating a tip about drug activity in the area that day, according to the police report from the day of the search prepared by Gutierrez. But when they arrived, officers were told by an anonymous man that a child had been left alone in apartment C7. When no one answered at the third-floor apartment, officers went in through its unlocked front door, Gutierrez wrote. The report did not include the names of all seven officers, as proved in the surveillance video.

But the surveillance video, obtained through a public records request, did not show anyone directing officers to C7. And officers appeared to pick the locks at the entrances to the apartment building and apartment.

During the appeals proceedings in Newark, the officers said they did not break the law with the warrantless search, claiming they had a key and also had reason to believe a child might have been inside an apartment where they suspected a resident was selling weapons.

What's next

Even with the commission's final decision, the process could continue.

Once the commission issues its final decision, that decision then becomes open to appeal with the state appellate division, Wiss said. The city and any of the officers' attorneys can file an appeal with the state.

Provided all the involved attorneys refrain from filing appeals, the officers move on to other proceedings that would determine their trustworthiness, which had been put on hold during the hearings in Newark.

Grewal dismissed the eight narcotics cases because the officers were categorized as "Brady Officers," which means their history of lying would have to be disclosed to defense attorneys in criminal cases.

Once a final decision is made regarding the officers' employment, hearings to determine whether the officers will ultimately receive the "Brady" designation can commence.

"There’s no chance that these officers will be returning, at this juncture, to the force," Wiss said.

Check back for more on this developing story.

Email: torrejon@northjersey.com