More than 20 disciplinary actions involving officers at the Atlantic County Justice Facility were disclosed in New Jersey’s annual major discipline report, with suspensions issued for absenteeism, sleeping on duty, neglect of responsibilities, and insubordination.
A large number of Atlantic County corrections officers received suspensions during 2025, according to records released by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office. The disciplinary actions involved repeated attendance violations, officers allegedly sleeping while assigned to posts, failure to complete required duties, and refusals to comply with mandatory overtime orders.
Key Points
• Numerous Atlantic County corrections officers received suspensions exceeding five days during 2025
• Several cases involved repeated unauthorized absences and no-call/no-show incidents
• Other disciplinary actions stemmed from sleeping on duty, neglect of responsibilities, and insubordination related to mandatory overtime orders
The disciplinary actions were reported by the Atlantic County Public Safety Division of Adult Detention as part of New Jersey’s annual major discipline disclosure requirements. The report covers disciplinary actions that became final during 2025.
Attendance violations account for many suspensions
A significant number of disciplinary cases involved officers repeatedly arriving late, calling out without available sick leave, or failing to report for scheduled shifts.
Among the most notable cases was Officer Jermaine Clay Jr., who received multiple suspensions totaling 48 days for repeated attendance violations, including third, fourth, and fifth occurrences of unauthorized absences within a six-month period.
Officer David Hightower also received multiple suspensions tied to attendance violations before ultimately being allowed to resign after a sixth no-call/no-show occurrence within a six-month period.
Additional officers disciplined for repeated attendance violations included Gilberto Aristy, Christopher Fredericks, Donald Griffin, Travis Hoffman, Tracy Kuddar, Luis Martinez, Allen Merlino, Tamara Miller, Brian Pihs, Nicholas Procaccini, and Brian Townsel Jr.
Officers suspended for sleeping on duty
Several officers received suspensions after investigations found they were asleep while assigned to posts.
Clay received an additional 10-day suspension after investigators determined he neglected his responsibilities and was sleeping while assigned to an off-site detail.
Officer Huamani Sebastian Flores received a 10-day suspension under similar circumstances after investigators found he was sleeping while assigned to an off-facility detail.
Officer Nicholas Trabucco received a 15-day suspension after investigators determined he was sleeping while assigned to his post, which was cited as neglect of duty and general laxity.
Mandatory overtime refusals result in discipline
Several officers were disciplined for refusing direct orders to remain on duty for mandatory overtime because staffing levels had fallen below minimum requirements.
Officer William Johnson received suspensions of six and 12 days for separate incidents involving refusal to obey lawful orders from supervisors to remain on duty.
Officer Brian Kinch received similar six-day and 10-day suspensions for repeated refusals to comply with mandatory overtime directives.
Officer Scott Medio accumulated suspensions of six, 10, and 20 days for repeated acts of insubordination involving mandatory overtime orders. One disciplinary action initially sought his removal before a hearing resulted in a 20-day suspension.
Duty performance violations cited
Officer Derrick Butler received a six-day suspension after investigators found he failed to ensure required 30-minute watch tours were conducted and did not properly document activity in a housing unit log. The report states Butler admitted he failed to complete assigned duties while working his post.
The disciplinary actions were disclosed under Attorney General Directive 2021-6, which requires law enforcement agencies throughout New Jersey to publicly report major discipline cases involving suspensions exceeding five days, demotions, and terminations.
