Dozens of New Jersey Law Enforcement officials from various agencies and leaders of faith based groups gathered today in the New Jersey State Police Headquarters in Trenton, NJ, to discuss safety, cultural sensitivity, community relations, and more.

This vital annual conference has been coordinated by NJ State Police Chaplain Rabbi Abe Friedman, for more than ten years, and is intended to strengthen the dialog between community leaders of various religious groups and law enforcement in order to collaborate and continue to work together in a proactive manner and discuss pertinent and relative issues.

This meeting provided the venue and opportunity for open communication and relationship building prior to an incident. The meeting also allowed these two vital groups to get reacquainted, interact, and discuss any concerns in advance of the hectic and busy summer season and beyond, which can potentially avoid any issues that may arise in the future.

During the 2-month vacation season, tens of thousands of Jewish residents from New York and New Jersey travel up to the Catskills and other vacation spots, which evidently results in the interaction between the various agencies in one way or another.

“Bringing together law enforcement and members of various communities is vital to mitigating situations that may be remedied through continual communication between everyone involved,” an official says. “This meeting provides the venue and opportunity for open communication to allow law enforcement leaders and community leaders to become familiar with each other prior to an incident.”

Among those in attendance at the event were the New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, representatives from the NJ State Police, FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, the TSA, Customs and Border Patrol, US Marshals, Ocean County Prosecutors Office, Police Chiefs, Sheriffs, and other Chaplains, and community leaders.