Summer 2003 Edition  

Fallen Officer Collura Stirs Emotions   By Chris Neidenberg Following the horrific murder of Officer Mary Ann Collura, the Borough Council and police department are reviewing possible proper steps for a fitting and eternal memorial. Resident Mary Boyle said she has the perfect idea, one which will remind her surviving co-workers of the popular patrolwoman every day they walk into work - and inspire future police officers for generations to come. "Name that portion of Parmelee Avenue which passes by the entrance to the police department 'Collura Way,' Boyle suggested during a council meeting, held at Westmoreland School. She was specifically referring to the short part that runs from Bergen Avenue - at the end of the Borough Hall parking lot -southward to River Road. "I knew her," recalled the emotional resident. "She was superior as an officer, and as a person." Boyle also recalled being quite moved by the Easter Sunday candlelight vigil - held right near the proposed memorial. Soon, her idea began to develop. The event drew hundreds of saddened residents, even though it had to be hastily arranged on a major Christian holiday evening. Family members and acquaintances eulogized the fallen officer, and offered prayers. It took place three days after drug dealer Omar Marti of Passaic shot and killed Collura during a foot pursuit, This violent act occurred, ironically, on Holy Thursday in a place things like this are just not supposed to happen: the sacred grounds of Van Riper Ellis Baptist Church off River Road. It all began as a vehicle chase, pursued by Clifton police and involving Marti and some family members, on Route 46 before the chase pushed northward. Clifton Police Officer Steven Farrell was shot with Collura at the church, though, fortunately, only suffered wounds from which he is expected to recover. According to police, Marti then took Collura's patrol car and ran over her as she lay dying on the grass. Marti was later shot and killed in a violent shootout with police - the day of the candlelight vigil - after fleeing near Tampa, Florida. "Everybody (Boyle spoke with) was so happy I was doing this," the resident told the council, regarding the idea. "It was just something I thought I would do." Mayor David L. Ganz thanked Boyle for her thoughts.  "The council requested, after the ugly, ugly murder of Police Officer Collura, that the police chief and the PBA come up with an appropriate memorial," he told Boyle. Yet Ganz stressed that the department needed some space to fully come to terms with the horrific act. "We're waiting for things to cool down," the mayor said. "Four or five days after the incident seemed to be a year in time." Message From the Police Chief   Chief Rodman Marshall announced that a local merchant received a phone call from an unknown person who attempted to solicit money by stating that they are collecting money on behalf of the Mary Ann Collura Fund to obtain new bulletproof vests for members of the Fair Lawn Police Department. No other information was obtained before the caller disconnected.   Please be advised that neither the Borough of Fair Lawn, the Fair Lawn Police Department nor P.B.A. Local #67  solicits funds from residents or local merchants by telephone either for the P.B.A. general fund or the Mary Ann Collura Memorial Scholarship Fund. None of the monies collected for the Mary Ann Collura Scholarship Fund are used to purchase bulletproof vests. Money for the bulletproof vests comes from a grant received by the Fair Lawn Police Department. The only solicitations residents will receive are by mail and bear the copyrighted PBA symbol with the words” PBA Local #67” on it. In addition these mailed solicitations have the return address of P.B.A. Local #67, P.O. Box 67, Fair Lawn, N.J. 07410. Any phone calls received soliciting money for a “Mary Ann Collura Fund” are not authorized by either the Borough of Fair Lawn,the Fair Lawn Police Department or the P.B.A.   P.O. Mary Ann Collura was killed in the line of duty on April 17,2003 after being shot multiple times while coming to the aid of a Clifton, N.J. police officer who had chased a suspected drug dealer into the Borough of Fair Lawn. Her killer was killed three days later in a shoot out with Sheriff’s Deputies in Hernando County Florida. P.B.A. Local #67 which represents Fair Lawn Police Officers has set up a scholarship fund in her memory. This is the only charity in her name authorized by the P.B.A. Those wishing to make donations may mail their contributions to: Mary Ann Collura Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 276, Fair Lawn, N.J. 07410.     Collura's death impacts police throughout New Jersey The April shooting death of Police Officer Mary Ann Collura has reverberated far beyond Fair Lawn's boundaries, in touching police departments all over New Jersey and beyond A grateful Councilman Allan Caan is reporting that the borough has been besieged with notes of condolence, invitations to attend memorials planned outside of Fair Lawn on Collura's behalf, and fundraising ideas honoring a cause - or causes - in her memory. The local McDonald's on Broadway already conducted one fundraiser shortly after Collura's vicious killing. The police fraternity always comes together when one of its own falls in the course of protecting the public. Its depth of concern and support was already shown during the funeral, held at St. Anne's Roman Catholic Church. Hundreds of law enforcement agents, from New Jersey and other states, attended the solemn ceremonies. Immediately after, a convoy of at least 250 flashing police vehicles of all colors and types followed the local department east along Route 4 to the George Washington Cemetery in Paramus. There, Fair Lawn's first female officer was laid to rest. In the weeks since, such moral support has been sustained. During recent council meetings, members have been trying to decide where they should send delegates in remembering Collura. Quite a number of events have either been held, or are on the drawing board. One occasion occurred in Fair Lawn, during a recent council meeting. There, a gracious Detective David Boone, PBA president and the police department's chaplain, thanked representatives of various police and emergency units, in and outside Fair Lawn, for immediately rallying to the emotionally-drained local department's aid as the events transpired. Police agencies, primarily in Bergen and Passaic counties, soon mobilized moments after the words, "officer down," reached headquarters. A massive manhunt ensued, and the Passaic County Sheriff's Department focused its efforts in Paterson, where Marti ditched Collura's vehicle. The trail eventually led to the city of Passaic, and to the arrests of four of Marti's relatives for their support roles which led to the shootings. The manhunt for Marti ultimately expanded far into upstate New York. Police believe Marti first fled to the Binghamton, area, where he met up with a fifth relative, and then quickly headed south to Florida. A desperate Marti was ultimately killed in a violent shootout with law enforcement agents from Hernando and Sumter counties, near Tampa. The fifth relative was also arrested and charged. During the recent council meeting, Boone noted that the pall cast by Collura's death still hangs over the department well over a month after her killing. Yet the detective added that the massive outpouring of support from others has provided grieving co-workers some solace. "Obviously, we went through the worst experience I've ever encountered in my entire police career," observed the veteran officer, surrounded by his colleagues. "I don't think I've even grasped it yet. "As I said, we didn't just lose one of our own," Boone remarked. "The entire town lost one of its own." That night, Boone and the council presented honors to representatives from various communities and agencies, including Paramus, for their work in helping Fair Lawn. Additionally, Boone said the immediate support of Acting Borough Manager Joanne Kwasniewski and the council made a big difference in helping department employees cope. He singled out Sgt. James Sheehan, a Paramus officer and a Fair Lawn resident, for immediately responding and staying at police headquarters during an extended period in providing moral and psychological support. Sheehan's helping hand came as borough officers faced the difficult challenge of keeping the focus on their own jobs, shortly after learning of Collura's stunning death, "We were never put through this before, and hopefully, we will never go through this again," he told the audience. "But I can't thank them (the different law enforcement agencies enough) for bringing everyone together, and for bringing to a close a case involving one of our own, Mary Ann Collura." Events cited by Caan include: May 17 - A fundraiser at the local McDonald's, which donated a certain percentage of its gross receipts that day to a special scholarship fund. May 21 - An event at the Bergen County Police and Fire Academy in Mahwah, where Collura's name was added to a wall honoring fallen police officers. June 24 - A Borough Council meeting, moved to the Fair Lawn Senior Citizens Center, formally honoring all those who played a role in responding to the crime and conducting the investigation. June 25 - The New Jersey Police Chiefs Association, at a "Valor Awards" event, presentating honors in memory of the fallen officer. July 23 - A private ceremony will be held in Little Ferry by a state fraternal police organization, the Honor Legion. It will feature a presentation on Collura. The group has invited those Florida officers, who finally cornered a desperate Marti before his death.   Note:  Mr. Neidenberg is a talented local writer looking for a job.  If you have a job tip for him, send an e- mail to cn07055@aol.com