Kids & Family

West Deptford Police Officer Honored for Scholastic Efforts

Det. Cpl. Richard Henry earned the top overall average at the county police academy leadership and supervision school.

A West Deptford police officer who earned the top overall average in his Gloucester County Police Academy class was acknowledged formally by the township committee on November 7.

West Deptford Detective Corporal Richard Henry was the top performer in his Police Leadership and Supervision School at the academy—no small feat, said William Perna of the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office.

“It is not an easy school," Perna told the audience at the committee meeting. "It is very, very intense.”

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The two-week training provided by the county academy is the only professional development course of its kind in the state, Perna said, and is worth six undergraduate credits through Fairleigh Dickinson University.

“One of the reasons the school is a success is because I get some of the top law enforcement people in the field," Perna told West Deptford residents in attendance.

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"Your Chief [Samuel DiSimone] and Deputy Chief [Sean McKenna] are instructors…always top-rated.”

McKenna and DiSimone “do whatever they can to get people into training,” Henry said, adding that DiSimone and McKenna would walk a beat themselves if it meant clearing an officer’s schedule to attend classes. 

“They’ve all attended [the school] as well,” Henry said. “They’re big guys as far as lead by example.”

Henry, whose father is a retired police chief, said the opportunity to undergo additional training is an important part of professional development.

“You always want to move as far as you can in the ranks,” he said.


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