Gloucester County Sheriff, Undersheriff Among State's "Double-Dippers"

Gloucester County Sheriff Carmel Morina is among 80 percent of sheriffs in the state who are “double dippers,” meaning they collect state pensions after retiring from their previous positions in law enforcement in addition to their sheriff’s salary, according to New Jersey Watchdog.

Undersheriff Andre Bay is listed on New Jersey Watchdog’s list of 29 “double dipping” undersheriffs.

They are among a total of 46 top cops who make a total of $8.3 million a year between their salaries and pensions.

Morina collects a total of $191,907, including a $63,360 pension in addition to a $128,547 salary, according to the report. Morina is the ninth highest-paid sheriff on the list. Morina has been Gloucester County Sheriff since 2007, and is a former Greenwich Township Police Chief.

Bay collects $180,663, with $87,060 of that coming in pension money and a salary of $93,603, according to the report. He previously worked in the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office.

Collecting both a pension and a salary is not illegal in New Jersey because loopholes in the system allow for officers to retire young and collect a pension and return to public service, according to the report.

Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-11) and Sen. Steven Oroho (R-24) are co-sponsoring legislation that would suspend pension payments to retirees who return to public service. The bill was introduced in 2011, but has not yet made it out of committee, according to the report.