The Loss of a Public Servant
Hundreds were saddened by the announcement of the passing of Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik. He was a longtime law enforcement officer with deep ties to Northern New Jersey. Richard fatally shot himself Tuesday afternoon at a very well-known Turkish restaurant in Clifton, NJ, multiple sources confirmed.
Berdnik walked into the bathroom at Toros on Hazel Street, and soon after, multiple people that were in the restaurant heard a gunshot, the sources said. The incident happened just after 3:30pm and by 3:38pm, a call went out over the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office radio system for all units to respond to Toros immediately.
More than a dozen police vehicles were within a block of the incident, including Paterson police, the Sheriff’s Office, Clinton fire, and Clifton police, all with their lights flashing. Most nearby streets were blocked off and there were also two helicopters hovered above the scene, surrounding the restaurant.
Multiple authorities at the scene would not comment and referred all questions to the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office. The owner of Toros refused to speak to any reporters. Former Woodland Park Mayor “Keith Kazmark” said he was stunned by Berdnik’s death. “Rich always had a laid-back demeanor, truly cared about law enforcement, but was kind and caring at the same time,” Kazmark said. “He was so even-tempered. I think that makes this even harder to understand”.
Berdnik, a retired Clifton Police officer, had been the county sheriff since 2011 and on reelection in November 2022 for a fifth three-year term. He was in his mid 60s.
Berdnik’s death came after his department went through a difficult week. Federal authorities on January 17th arrested two sergeants and a sheriff’s officer on charges involving an alleged beating of a pretrial detainee at the Passaic County Jail in January of 2021. Berdnik last Thursday issued a memo saying he would be laying off 29 sheriff’s officers as a result of the shutdown of that same jail.
“I am well aware that there is much confusion and stress during this very difficult time in our agency,” Berdnik’s memo read. “I have done everything in my power to find employment for all affected employees but unfortunately, we must move forward to lay off 29 correctional police officers at this time.”
Background Information on Richard Berdnik:
Berdnik was a graduate of Clifton High School, the New Jersey State Police Academy, the FBI National Academy and the FBI National Executive Institute. Berdnik’s wife, Monica Berdnik, is a pediatric nurse at St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson, and they have four adult children, according to Berdnik’s bio on the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office website. Berdnik was a parishioner and eucharisitc minister at Clifton’s St. Andrew’s Church and a fourth degree member of the Knights of Columbus.
Services:
Visitation for the sheriff was Tuesday, January 31 at the cathedral, at 381 Grand St. in Paterson. Berdnik’s funeral is scheduled for Wednesday, February 1 at 10 a.m. at St. John’s, followed by interment at St. Michael’s.
Here are some quotes and messages embracing the legacy and career of Richard Berdnik:
“We never truly know how people feel inside, what is going on that could tragically impact them. It puts everything in perspective and shows we need to be kind and care about one another even more.” Kazmark added. “We lost a great sheriff and a really good man.”
Clifton Councilman Bill Gibson, a retired Clifton police officer, stated that he was Berdnik’s partner for years. When told of his death, Gibson said, “What? Nooo. He was my partner. We were brothers, for crying out loud. … I got to go.”
“I can’t imagine,” Anzaldi said. “Richie was the salt of the earth, my kind of person. My heart breaks for his family.”
“I affectionately refer to Richard Berdnik as America’s sheriff, because ever since he became our leader here in Passaic County, we had such an outstanding working relationship,” Sayegh said. “He was always offering assistance, and especially recently, with the flooding, he was offering to have rescue vehicles readily available for us. I last saw him yesterday. We swore in eight new police officers … He seemed normal; we exchanged pleasantries.”
We all have our thoughts and prayers for the Berdnik family as they mourn the loss of a great man, father, husband and police sheriff.
