Christopher Kiernan, who has been acting chief of the Verona Police Department since January, will be sworn in as the VPD’s full-fledged chief on Thursday, August 2. The ceremony will take place at the Verona municipal building at 6:30 p.m. and the public is invited to attend.
Kiernan is a Verona native and 1987 graduate of Verona High School who joined the Verona Police Department in April 1990. He has worked every VPD shift over the course of his career and many different roles, from officer on the street, to juvenile officer, detective, lieutenant and, after a promotion in July 2016, captain. He has handled scheduling for the department, which now has 30 sworn officers, and has been the coordinator of several large department projects, including the renovation of the dispatch department in 2015.
“It’s an exceptional group of men and women who serve the Verona Police Department and I am honored to represent them,” Kiernan said upon being named acting chief early this year.
Before Kiernan was tipped to be acting chief, the VPD had been led by Capt. Stephen DePoe as the officer in charge after the retirement of former Chief Mitchell Stern. Both DePoe and Kiernan were eligible to apply to be chief, but the final decision depended on the outcome of the examination and certification of New Jersey Civil Service Commission, which happened this month.
If you plan on attending the ceremony, the township is asking you to RSVP to [email protected].
