Englewood Cliffs mayor orders police department to stop stigma-free campaign

Deena Yellin | NorthJersey

Show Caption Hide Caption Englewood Cliffs PD launches Stigma-Free campaign against the mayor's wishes Police Department launches campaign, despite the wishes of the mayor.

When the Englewood Cliffs Police Department launched a stigma-free campaign in early July, the town became the 70th and final Bergen County municipality to join the movement that was formed to support people with mental illness.

Englewood Cliffs was the last holdout amid a countywide effort to become stigma-free, due in large part to Mayor Mario Kranjac's opposition.

But now, on the heels of the police department announcement, Kranjac has ordered police to tear down the stigma-free posters at their headquarters and halt the campaign.

"The governing body, and not the Englewood Cliffs Police Department, govern and obligate Englewood Cliffs," Kranjac told a reporter this week. "As of today, the governing body has not acted on the matter. The Englewood Cliffs Police Department works for us and is not autonomous — they forget that."

Police officials expressed disappointment.

"We were all gung-ho to do this and then we got orders from the mayor to stop," said Police Chief Michael Cioffi, who was appointed by the previous mayor and has had a rocky relationship with Kranjac.

"My guys and myself are all for it [the campaign]. We really believe in it. We deal with mental health issues every day. But now we're not allowed to do it."

Capt. Brian Murphy said, "Basically our hands are tied. ... We are ordered to cease and desist."

The police had planned informative programs for local teens and adults about tolerance for the mentally ill and the importance of seeking help, he said.

Lt. James Tracy said Kranjac came into the headquarters and tried tearing down the signs. "He said, 'you don't run this town, I run it,' " Tracy recalled.

"I don't understand this," Tracy said. "There's nothing bad about it."

The conflict over the stigma-free designation did not arise in a vacuum: Cioffi and Kranjac have a contentious history that includes litigation. Cioffi has filed several lawsuits against Kranjac and the borough, which are pending. Kranjac suspended the chief for 30 days and brought misconduct charges against the chief to the prosecutor's office. Most recently, the mayor and council suspended the chief for several days.

Cioffi said his officers felt compelled to do something because they do a lot of training related to mental health and deal with many people who suffer from mental health issues.

"When you take these classes and deal with these people all the time, you want to keep your arms open and let people know you are there to help them," he said.

The stigma-free concept has spread around New Jersey and the country. Towns, colleges, schools and hospitals have all gone stigma-free. And, in Englewood Cliffs, the department created its own proclamation, which was signed by the police chief.

"We want people to know they can come to us and we are here to help," said Cioffi.

Kranjac has been approached by council members and residents about the stigma-free initiative but he has repeatedly rejected the idea.

When Councilwoman Gloria Oh attempted to pass a stigma-free resolution at the July 11 council meeting, a shouting match ensued.

Kranjac called the resolution "too vague" and snapped at Oh, who had written the resolution. "You have to act as a leader of the borough, not as a puppet of others," he said.

He added that not all mental illness should be de-stigmatized. "If you are a pedophile or sexual deviant that all comes into that group," he said. "We can't willy nilly throw our support behind a group that doesn't have a defined goal."

Afterward, Oh told a reporter that "it's time for Mayor Kranjac to see beyond politics and personal agenda and support this national movement embraced by each of the other municipalities in Bergen County."