End of Watch: Lacey PD Chief Paprota announces retirement

With three years at the top of Lacey Township's police department behind him, Chief David Paprota begins preparing for his August 1 retirement.

The Lacey Township native revealed his decision in an earnest and detailed message on the Lacey PD web and Facebook pages. He plans to relinquish his spot as township Emergency Management Coordinator on June 1, and spend the ensuing two months until retirement training his successor.

Paprota, born and raised in the township, has lived in Lacey for 38 years, where he and his spouse have raised three boys - David, 20; Dillon, 18; and Tyler, 12. He says he's looking forward to cheering from the stands this fall, while Dillon takes to the gridiron for Bucknell University.

An alumnus of Lacey Township High School and holder of a Doctorate in Education from Seton Hall University, Paprota became the first in his family to embark on a career in law enforcement, becoming a special officer in Beach Haven at age 19. He graduated first overall in the Ocean County Police Academy's Basic Class Number 54, also capturing the High Marksmanship Award.

After a stint with Tinton Falls police, he returned to Lacey in 1992, rising to the position of Captain, then winning appointment to succeed the retiring William Nally in early 2013.

Paprota attended Seton Hall University, where he earned a Doctorate in Education, a post-graduate Educational Specialist degree, a Master's in Supervision and Administration, and a Baccalaureate in Criminal Justice.

He also graduated the West Point Command and Leadership Program, earned accreditation as a Certified Public Manager at Fairleigh Dickinson University, won a spot in the National Honor Society and holds a membership in Mensa. He has several published works to his credit, including police training manuals.

Among his many accomplishments is the establishment of the Holtz Learning Centers, a professional development training concern for law enforcement, which he also served as Vice-President from 200 through 2012. After retirement, Paprota plans to return to training law enforcement hopefuls for Critical Concepts & Strategies, L.L.C.

Paprota entered the post amid considerable debate over the merits of a police chief versus those of a public safety director. He substantiates his value through Lacey's crime database.

Thefts and burglaries, which he cites as Lacey's leading offenses, experienced significant drops in figures that Paprota cites - 43 burglaries reported in 2015 against a high-water mark of 119 in 2012, 64-percent decrease; and a 51-percent reduction in thefts, from 684 in 2010 to 334 in 2015.

Paprota also describes a heroin turnabout in the township, noting a decrease in reported overdoses of more than 20 percent and a reduction in related deaths of more than 30 percent since 2012, at a time when increases prevail statewide and nationally.

He said that Lacey officers recognized drug interdiction as the "core of the issue," and that they won't ease up on enforcement of possession and distribution laws.

Interested in strengthening community-police relations, Paprota formed the nonprofit Lacey Municipal Police Foundaion in 2014, enabling the force to build programs beyond the scope of the department's budget. He says that he'll continue on as its chairman.

As Lacey's Emergency Management Coordinator since July 1, 2015, Paprota formulated an organizational table of officers and volunteers that includes a coordinator, deputy coordinator, operations officer, radiological officer and two assistants, communications staff, public information officer, social media coordinators, and general staff assistants.

Under his watch, the Emergency Management team has obtained five-ton, military-surplus high-water transport vehicles to aid in evacuations, along with specialized communication equipment for mobile command posts.