NJ Officer Investigated For Hateful Ties Was Suspended Without Pay: AG

SOUTH JERSEY — A New Jersey state trooper under investigation for potential ties to white-supremacist movements was suspended without pay, officials told Patch on Thursday.

Jason Dare came under fire last March, when a photo circulated that revealed his neck tattoo with a phrase reminiscent of the Hitler youth movement's slogan. That month, State Police opened an internal investigation into the Cumberland County resident.

• Read more: NJ State Trooper Investigated For Hateful Ties After Tattoo Reveal

Dare was suspended without pay on April 21, a spokesperson for the state attorney general's office told Patch.

The New Jersey Office of the Attorney General (OAG) took over the investigation from State Police, POLITICO reported Wednesday. The OAG confirmed Dare's suspension but declined further comment to Patch outside of a re-issued statement on the matter that Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin made last March. (View the statement below.)

State law shields many law-enforcement suspensions from public record, especially as they happen. In recent years, New Jersey has required law-enforcement agencies to disclose officers subject to "major discipline" — a termination, demotion or suspension of more than five days. But that information typically doesn't become public until the OAG releases an annual report.

Dare, a state trooper since 2004, was reported missing last March in Pennsylvania after leaving a medical facility and never returning. During the search, State Police shared several photos of Dare on social media, including one that revealed a neck tattoo that says "Blood Honor."

He was found days later, but the tattoo revelation prompted speculation into Dare's potential connections to hateful movements.

"Blood & Honour" was a slogan for the Hitler youth movement, later becoming the name of a "shadowy international coalition of racist skinhead gangs," according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Dare also has tattoos of an iron cross and a pitbull — similar to the symbol of a Pennsylvania white-supremacist group — according to POLITICO.

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND EXTREMIST MOVEMENTS

The links between hate groups and some members of U.S. law enforcement have generated attention in recent years. The FBI privately raised concerns in 2006 about growing concerns of white supremacists "infiltrating law enforcement." The heavily redacted documents on the matter became public in 2020, The Intercept reported.

In September 2021, a data leak from DDOSecrets showed more than 38,000 names on the membership rolls of the Oath Keepers — a far-right militia accused of playing a key role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. The rolls included current and former law enforcement.

In New Jersey, 12 members of law enforcement, two military personnel and one elected official were on the Oath Keepers' rolls, according to analysis from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

• Read more: Oath Keepers In NJ Include 12 In Law Enforcement, 1 Politician: Report

The ADL didn't reveal their names. The organization also clarified that some people in the Oath Keepers database have disavowed the group since signing up, while others may have joined because they were sold a watered-down version of the group's agenda.

At the time of the leak, New Jersey had no law prohibiting law enforcement or public officials from joining the Oath Keepers or similar groups that have been labeled extremist. But the state passed a law in July 2022 that addresses the matter.

• Read more: New NJ Police Training Law Will Root Out 'Bad Actors,' Supporters Say

The new law establishes a uniform, statewide system for licensing officers, joining 46 states that had done the same. The bipartisan measure will allow the state Police Training Commission to decertify officers for several reasons, including active membership "of a group or organization that advocates for, espouses, or promotes the overthrow of a local, state, or federal government or discrimination or violence against or hatred" against protected classes under New Jersey's anti-discrimination laws.

STATEMENTS FROM NJ LEADERSHIP

Platkin and Col. Patrick Callahan, the superintendent of State Police, provided statements last March after the investigation into Dare began.

Callahan said the following:

"I am aware of the concerns regarding tattoos identified on Detective I Jason Dare's body and there is currently an internal investigation into the matter. I understand the importance of transparency and trust between law enforcement and the community, which is why we have enlisted the assistance of our law enforcement partners to conduct a thorough investigation. There is no room for hate, prejudicial rhetoric, or divisive behavior in our organization, an organization that was built on our core values of honor, duty, and fidelity.We live and work in a very diverse state and our law enforcement community should reflect that as well. We want the communities we serve to be our partners and I stand united with them as well as the troopers and other law enforcement professionals who work tirelessly to dedicate themselves to strengthening these relationships. Detective I Dare has been a trooper with the New Jersey State Police since 2004 and is currently on administrative leave."

Platkin's statement:

"While I cannot comment on a matter that is currently under investigation, I can say – in no uncertain terms – that there is no place for hate in the New Jersey State Police or within the ranks of the 38,000 sworn law enforcement officers in New Jersey. Not only do we stand with the diverse residents of our state, but we stand with the countless members of our law enforcement community who are striving to build trust in each and every neighborhood.

As police licensure takes shape in New Jersey, we will ensure that the requirements provide the public with the assurance of professionalism, qualification, and accountability for all law enforcement officers. To be clear, it would be a violation of the new police licensure law to be an active member of a group that advocates for discrimination based on classes protected by the Law Against Discrimination.

Our Troopers and our law enforcement officers throughout the state take an oath to protect and serve. Law enforcement’s ability to deliver upon that oath is dependent on the trust of the community we serve. When members of law enforcement espouse hate or discrimination, it destroys the trust we work so hard to build and nurture, and it jeopardizes the safety of our residents and officers. We remain committed to upholding the laws and policies that demonstrate our dedication to building trust with the communities we serve."