“And under these circumstances, I cannot deliver on my duty to protect the people of Paterson and to keep officers safe who are sworn to protect them. And that cannot continue,” he said. “So something has to change, and it will change starting now.”

Platkin named Isa Abbassi, a veteran of the New York Police Department, as Paterson police’s officer in charge beginning in May; until then, State Police Maj. Fred Fife will oversee the department.

In addition to controlling the daily operations of the department, Platkin said his office will revise its statewide use-of-force policy to include protocols for barricaded individuals; convene a working group to to study policy recommendations for relationships between law enforcement and violence intervention programs; and bring the state’s relatively new Arrive Together program to the city. That program pairs mental health professionals with law enforcement for calls concerning mental and behavioral health crises.

In the March 3 shooting of Seabrooks — himself a member of the Paterson Healing Collective, a violence intervention group — police would not allow his colleagues into the home to try de-escalating the situation.

Police had been called to a home he was at for an “individual in distress,” according to the Attorney General’s office. Seabrooks, who had knives and a “pocket rocket” gun, was said to have been hallucinating and barricaded himself in the bathroom, the office said. Officers used “less lethal force” on Seabrooks over a nearly five-hour standoff, but they shot him after he lunged toward them with a knife in his hand, the office said.

Advocates for criminal justice reform called for swift action from the state and from federal authorities, saying the city police had a problematic history before shooting Seabrooks that includes allegations and lawsuits involving excessive force.

“The Attorney General’s action is a necessary first step toward justice, but there is still a need for accountability for the past harms and violence committed by the Paterson police department,” the New Jersey Violence Intervention and Prevention Coalition said in a statement.

The group called for all Paterson police leadership to be removed, for the city to be “compelled” to invest in a “non-carceral response team” and for full transparency from the state as it moves forward. The Paterson Healing Collective, saying it appreciates the state’s actions and looks forward to working with the Attorney General’s office, also called for the officers involved in the shooting to be fired.

“The culture and practice of this rogue police department has gone unchecked and we need these people held accountable,” the group said in a statement.

Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh, who has pushed back against outside intervention of the city’s police force, said Platkin assured him the state will provide additional resources to the department. Given that, he said, “we look forward to working with the Attorney General’s office once again” and the city is “eager” to review the office’s plan and “build upon the reforms that we have already implemented.”

Challenges that lay ahead

It’s rare for the state to take over local law enforcement. The most recent notable instance — though slightly different — was a decade ago, when the city of Camden disbanded its police force and started a new one under the county. That was largely considered a success story, with homicides down and an improved relationship between police and the community.

The state is taking control of a department in one of the state’s poorest and most violent cities. Platkin acknowledged the dual challenges he is now ultimately putting on his shoulders: to try rebuilding a “fragile trust” between city residents and the police while also providing resources and training to officers whose jobs have become increasingly difficult and dangerous after years of financial challenges and leadership changes.

“Those two goals go hand in hand: community trust and public safety,” Platkin said. “There is no safety without that trust.”

Abbassi, the incoming leader of the department, has had a similarly difficult task in the past. Following the death of Eric Garner at the hands of police in 2014, Abbassi was named to help rebuilding community relationships with the police on Staten Island, which Platkin said led to reforms and “enhanced” safety. He was awarded the NYPD’s most prestigious command recognition, the Unit Citation, for crime and violence reduction on Staten Island in 2019, Platkin said.

Abbassi served with the NYPD since 1997. Over his career, he had 21 allegations against him filed with the city’s Civilian Complaint Review Board, according to a ProPublica database. Nearly all of the allegations were listed as “exonerated” or “unsubstantiated,” but two allegations, of abuse of authority, were substantiated, according to the database.

The Attorney General’s office declined to comment on Abbassi’s record, but said it “is confident that Chief Abbassi will bring integrity and professionalism to his leadership of the Paterson Police Department.”

Gov. Phil Murphy applauded Platkin’s “bold” actions.

“In Paterson, it has unfortunately become clear that there is a deep lack of trust between the police and the community they serve. This not only harms public safety, but it also makes it more difficult and dangerous for law enforcement officers to do their jobs,” he said in a statement.

“I am confident that the Attorney General’s actions will ensure needed reform and give police officers in Paterson the resources, support, and training they need to effectively build trust and serve their community.”