A Jersey Shore police chief has been suspended after he reportedly showed up at the scene of an accident intoxicated, got into a scuffle with one of his officers, and later slammed his superior on the hood of a police cruiser. He then told the police chief to leave “before any trouble happens.”
A confrontation between Bradley Beach Police Chief Leonard Guida and Sgt. The Major William incident broke out on the night of Nov. 9, when the police officer walked up to a suspected drunk-driving accident on Main Street and began berating the major about his uniform. Body camera footage captured by TAPintoa local news site.
“Why did you wear a jacket you can’t wear?” Guida asked during the recording. “Take that away. That’s ridiculous. Fortunately, you’re a sergeant.”
The Major took off his jacket and walked back to the wrecked car. But Guida didn’t stop there and called for the Major to come back. When the sergeant ignored him, Guida followed him and grabbed his arm.
“Don’t touch me!” the major yelled, grabbing the chief by the shaking chest and throwing him onto the hood of the police cruiser. “Don’t touch me! Is something wrong? You’ve got me! Get out of here before you get into trouble.”
The man then lifts Guida out of the car and shoves him, the video shows, before his boss mutters that he’s “drunk again.”
Guida began telling other officers to “take him,” but the major responded again by trying to shoo him away.
“Chief, get out of here or you’ll be locked up,” the major said. “Chief, I’m going to be locked up. You’ve got me, I’ve asked you three times to leave me alone. You’re interfering with my DWI… you’ve got me. You. It was insane. It’s on video. I’m not going to argue.”
Guida suspended him on the spot, and after further exchange, the major returned to the station to await censure.
The major has since returned to duty, Tapinto said.
But Guida was suspended from his $174,000-a-year job about a month after the incident and remains on administrative leave from the 18-member department, according to Borough Mayor Larry Fox.
A spokesperson for the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office said the agency investigated Mr. Guida’s conduct and “subsequently forwarded its findings to the Borough of Bradley Beach for review.”
“We fully expect that the actions we have taken to date, and any additional actions pending in Bradley Beach, will collectively resolve this issue,” it said in a statement.
Fox reiterated this in an emailed statement to the Post.
“I received a report from the prosecutor’s office,” he wrote. “As you know, this is a personnel matter and we cannot comment in detail at this time until it is completed. However, we are confident that it will be closed soon.”
Guida did not respond to requests for comment.
