Trenton NAACP demands police director’s resignation following federal report on unconstitutional behavior by officers

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Trenton’s NAACP branch is demanding the immediate termination or resignation of the city’s police director, Steve Wilson, after a federal report found Trenton’s police department routinely engages in unconstitutional misconduct, including the excess use of force when making unlawful stops, searches and arrests.

The 45-page report released last week by the United States Justice Department concluded officers “frequently grab, tackle, and punch people who show little resistance to orders or pose no threat.”

“We can’t wait for the new Trump administration, who has promised complete police immunity to come in and simply sweep this investigation under the rug,” said Austin Edwards, president of the NAACP Trenton Branch.

Edwards said the NAACP is also demanding a police oversight committee be established, with the support of city officials.

“We’re calling for Trenton’s own community review board, run specifically by members of the community,” he said. “We demand a board responsible not to any political figures or police interests, but responsible only to ensure that the police are indeed working to protect and serve us.”

Mayor Reed Gusciora said before deciding whether to create a civilian review board, it’s important to digest the report’s contents and have follow-up meetings with federal investigators. But in the meantime, he says real change is already underway.

“The internal affairs department has been since reformed, we’ve disbanded the police units that were overzealous,” Gusciora said.

He said he agrees with the report’s findings that more supervision and adequate in-person training of police, not just online training, are needed to ensure discrimination does not take place.

Monday’s news conference was hosted outside the Trenton Police headquarters and included several residents who shared stories of police brutality by Trenton police.

William Tobron Jr. said he was driving home one night when a police car with flashing lights tried to get past him. He said children were playing in the street, so he could not immediately pull over. When he finally did, officers gave him multiple tickets and assaulted him.

“I got maced, I got restrained, no Miranda rights, no nothing,” he said. “[Officers said], ‘Just take him to the hospital, wash his face with some milk, bring him here [police headquarters] and sit him in a cell.’”

“These officers don’t have a clue who they’re dealing with in this city, they just run up on people and do what they feel like doing,” Tobron Jr. said.

Eddie Shelton, another city resident, said police attacked him during an apparent case of mistaken identity.

“I had a police [officer] beating on me in my bed, he had me pinned down,” Shelton said. “They dragged me down here with my underclothes on and locked me up.”

Shelton said he was never charged. “They thought I was a suspect for someone else,” he said.

Gusciora said these incidents and others are very troubling, and more information must be gathered to determine which specific officers are involved.

“We want our citizens to have confidence that the police will be there when they need them, and they won’t be overzealous and violate civil rights,” he said.

In a statement Monday, the Trenton Police Department said policies and procedures are being reviewed to ensure that officers conduct themselves in a manner that respects the constitutional rights of the public and that officers are held accountable for their actions.

Maati Sekmet Ra, co-founder of the Trenton Anti-Violence Coalition, said she was not surprised by the report.

“Police have historically brutalized, harassed and now it’s proven that they’re violating the civil rights of folks who live in Trenton,” she told WHYY News.

Edwards said the NAACP Trenton Branch wants to raise awareness about its findings.

“We’re calling on all of those 2025 gubernatorial candidates to answer simply for us: What are you going to do about the Trenton problem?” he said.

Greg Zeff, legal redress chairman for New Jersey’s NAACP, said for the federal government to issue a report saying there is a pattern involving the Trenton Police Department violating people’s constitutional rights is “astounding,” and his organization plans to hold a training session to teach police about the legal rights that all citizens have.

“Everybody here has a fear of the police because they [officers] don’t know what our rights are,” he said. “We still have to respect them, we still have to do what they tell us to do, but it’s time for them to step aside and let us help them. Let us teach them what being a good police officer really means.”

Trenton Police says it’s working with and receiving training from the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office to address issues with searches and seizures as they arise.

Monday’s statement goes on to say the police are committed to allowing Trentonians to live their lives without fear of crime or other threats to their safety, while respecting people’s rights.