Civilian Board May Review Police Reaction to Teaneck Prank

The Mayor of Teaneck may reinstitute a civilian review board in response to community complaints over how the township’s police department dealt with a senior prank at the high school that saw 63 students get arrested, NorthJersey.com reported.

According to the report, Mayor Mohammed Hameeduddin faced a crowd of 50 angry residents at a meeting Monday night who claimed that police overreacted to the prank.

The township previously had a similar review board, but it disbanded in 2010 due to budgets cuts and inactivity, the report said.

Parents and teachers at the meeting said the prank was more good-natured fun than an arrestable offense, the report said. While cops said students destroyed furniture and urinated in the hallways, teachers, students, and the school superintendent have denied those claims, reports said.

Hameeduddin said he is still waiting for police reports and surveillance video from the incident to be released, the report said.

Students have claimed that they were mistreated by arresting police, and 24 of those arrested were over 18, and charged as adults with burglary and vandalism, the report said.