Meet Tawana Moody, the first Black woman to lead the Jersey City Police Department
Updated Feb 19, 2021;
Posted Feb 19, 2021
Jersey City Police Director Tawana Moody on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021. (Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal)
Facebook Share
Depending on where she is, Tawana Moody may go by one of several names.
Within the Jersey City Police Department, she is Director Moody, the leader of the police force. At Seeds of Greatness Fellowship, the South Orange church where she is an ordained minister, she is known as “Minister T.” In conversation, she sometimes refers to herself in the third person, as just Tawana.
Hudson Reporter
Jersey City Police Department to be led by civilian director
City says civilian control will improve accountability and community relations ×
Police Director Tawana Moody will be the first civilian to lead the Jersey City Police Department.
Mayor Steven Fulop and Public Safety Director James Shea announced a new direction for the Jersey City Police Department, appointing a civilian as recently retired Police Chief Michael Kelly’s replacement.
After working in the JCPD for 16 years, Police Director Tawana Moody will expand her current role to oversee all operational functions of the police department effective immediately.
According to the city, with Moody at the helm, the “complete civilian oversight” will improve accountability, transparency, and community relations.
Hudson County View
Jersey City Police Director Tawana Moody. Facebook photo.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“We’ve been working on major structural changes over the years, and establishing civilian oversight creates more lines of accountability and solvency, which will ultimately lead to better results for residents and officers with decreased crime, better accountability, and more transparency,” Mayor Steven Fulop said in a statement.
“When a civilian files a complaint to Internal Affairs, no one is aware of the results or if disciplinary actions are warranted. Public perspective is just as valuable as police perspective, and I believe this latest step we’re taking will strengthen police/community relations.”
Police Director Tawana Moody, a civilian, takes over atop the Jersey City Police Department
Updated Feb 02, 2021;
Facebook Share
Jersey City Police Director Tawana Moody is taking over all police department operations in the wake of Chief Michael Kelly’s recent retirement, bringing the city’s police force under the leadership and oversight of a civilian, Mayor Steve Fulop said Tuesday.
Fulop said appointing a civilian to oversee the department will improve police accountability, transparency, and community relations. The move also expands civilian access to Internal Affairs investigations, including resident complains of potential police wrongdoing, he said.
“Public perspective is just as valuable as police perspective, and I believe this latest step we’re taking will strengthen police/community relations,” Fulop said.