VERONA-CEDAR GROVE

Cedar Grove parent requests special-needs registry

Joshua Jongsma
NorthJersey
Cedar Grove resident Kenneth Horwitz speaks to the Township Council on June 12, 2017.

For Cedar Grove resident Kenneth Horwitz, his greatest fear involves emergency services needing to respond to his home.

That fear comes not just from whatever incident necessitated the call, but to how his daughter would react. To alleviate that concern, Horwitz asked the Township Council to consider adopting a special-needs registry with the Police Department so they can be prepared for residents such as his daughter. 

“My wife and I discussed it,” Horwitz said during a Monday, June 12, Township Council meeting. “We thought it was a wonderful idea. My daughter has special needs. She’s classified as non-verbal even though she talks, but she could not carry on a conversation with you, while she can with me. 

“One of our greatest fears is that for some reason emergency services would have to enter our house because we’re incapacitated.”

The local father said he would want the emergency personnel to have the knowledge that his daughter and other people may need to be approached differently.

Clifton police launched a special-needs registry in March while Montclair started its own in April. The "Take Me Home" registry in Montclair is designed for residents with special needs and developmental disabilities such as autism, who might be at a higher risk for wandering off and getting lost, so that police have access to personal information should they encounter someone who has difficulty speaking or identifying themselves.

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Horwitz said the topic came to mind for him again when a home across the street from his was recently burglarized. 

“It just so happened they were not home, so no one was injured,” Horwitz said. “It very well could have been my house.”

Members of the Township Council expressed support for the idea during Monday’s meeting.

“…I think it’s a fantastic idea,” Councilmember Joseph Cicala said. “I think the council should listen to what [Horwitz] has to say and give it due consideration.”

Mayor Peter Tanella also said he thought it was a great idea. 

Township Manager Tom Tucci suggested he will do a report on a potential special-needs registry in Cedar Grove to present to the council to give them more information. 

In Clifton and Montclair, residents can fill out questionnaires and provide police with information such as the registrant’s height, weight, medical conditions, and other information useful to first-responders, and include a home address, emergency contacts and a recent photo.

“I see it as a voluntary program, but I think it’s a great program,” observed Horwitz, “that will support the families and give them some security that the person entering the home would know what they’re stepping into, but it would also support police, fire, ambulance as well.

Email: jongsma@northjersey.com