Collingswood Police Announce Promotions for DeRitis, Rydzewski, Carey

The Collingswood police department announced Friday the promotions of three of its officers, which will be formalized at the October 7 meeting of the borough commissioners.

Detective Sergeant Guy DeRitis, a 25-year man, will be promoted to Lieutenant, the first time that rank has been filled within the department since the retirement of Glenn Prince in 2012.

Sergeant Richard Lunt will assume DeRitis' role within the Collingswood detective bureau.

Additionally, Patrolman Kevin Carey and Patrolman Steven Rydzewski, who also serves on the Collingswood Board of Education, both will be promoted to Sergeant.

Police Chief Richard Sarlo described the advancements in rank as filling staffing vacancies within the department that had been brought on by retirement.

“These men are each are well deserving of the positions," Sarlo said in a statement released by the borough. "I welcome them each in their new roles.”

“We thank all our officers for their hard work and their willingness to help us adapt to the operational changes every town faces,” said Collingswood Mayor James Maley in the same statement.

Career longevity has been a topic of conversation in the borough in the past few years, with possible layoffs and demotions on the table as recently as 2011, when both sides eventually ironed out the terms of a new labor deal that avoided them.

In January, the borough and the police department settled on a new, three-year contract.

Then, in May, Collingswood swore in two new officers, Kenneth Jacoby and Samuel Rocco, and posted in June an announcement to hire another.