HELMETTA, N.J. (AP) — A central New Jersey police officer who was videotaped making disparaging comments about President Barack Obama and the Constitution has resigned.
Part-time Officer Richard Recine was called to the Helmetta town hall Monday because resident Steve Wronko was seen videotaping inside. Wronko insisted he had a constitutional right to make the recording.
On the tape shortly after the two-minute mark, the officer says Obama has “decimated” the Constitution and “if he doesn’t follow the Constitution, we don’t have to.”
Recine told Bridgewater’s Courier News on Thursday it was a “stupid statement” and he was being sarcastic.
The 59-year-old Recine is a Democrat. He earned an hourly wage while collecting a $79,000 pension after retiring from the Franklin Police Department in 2006.
