One Lyndhurst police officer was elevated to the rank of sergeant while four others were elevated to the rank of detective, by Public Safety Commissioner and Mayor Robert B. Giangeruso and Chief Richard L. Jarvis Jr. in a ceremony at Town Hall on Oct. 16.
Promoted were:
• Officer William Kapp to the rank of sergeant. Sgt. Kapp joined the Lyndhurst Police Department in January 2009. In December 2018, he was assigned to the detective bureau before being promoted to the rank of detective in October of 2019. Sgt. Kapp will be assigned as a patrol squad supervisor. Additionally, Sgt. Kapp serves as an investigator with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office’s Arson Task Force and is a drug-recognition expert.
• Officer Joseph White to the rank of detective. Det. White joined the Lyndhurst PD in July 2014. Prior to his promotion, he served as a patrol officer before being assigned to the School Resource Officer Division in January of this year. Det. White will remain in the SRO Division, serving as a juvenile investigator. Additionally, Det. White is a certified SRO, a crash investigator, a LEAD instructor and an internal-affairs investigator.
• Officer Michael Giangeruso to the rank of detective. Det. Giangeruso joined the Lyndhurst PD in July 2014. Prior to his promotion, he served as a patrol officer. Det. Giangeruso will be assigned to the Criminal Investigations Division. Additionally, Det. Giangeruso serves as a field-training officer, a computer-terminal agency coordinator and is a member of the department’s Crisis Negotiation Team.
• Officer Matthew Giunta to the rank of detective. Det. Giunta joined the Lyndhurst PD in July 2014. Prior to his promotion, he served as a patrol officer. Det. Giunta will be assigned the Criminal Investigations Division. Additionally, Det. Giunta serves as a field-training officer, an armorer, a tactical baton instructor and he is a member of the department’s Emergency Response Team.
• Steve Batista to the rank of detective. Det. Batista joined the Lyndhurst Police Department in January 2015. Prior to his promotion, he served as a patrol officer. Det. Batista will be assigned to the Criminal Investigations Division. Additionally, Det. Batista serves as a member of the department’s Emergency Response Team and he is a ballistic shield instructor. He is currently the President of Lyndhurst Police Benevolent Association Local No. 202. Prior to joining the Lyndhurst PD, Det. Batista served nine years of active duty with the United States Marine Corps followed by nine more years with the Marine Corps reserves.
“The Lyndhurst Police Department is pleased to announce the promotion of these officers,” Jarvis said. “Their hard work and desire to advance reflects not only their commitment to the Lyndhurst Police Department and our mission, but their commitment to serving our community.”
Giangeruso agreed.
“Each one of these officers has consistently demonstrated professionalism and commitment during the course of their careers,” Giangeruso said. “I look forward to their continued service to our township.”
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.