Q & A

"Mike Strada"

1. Why are you choosing to run for this position and ; what do you think qualifies you to hold it?

I have attached my bio below which outlines my qualifications.

Sussex County Sheriff Mike Strada, who has been involved in public service all his life, is serving his third three-year term as Sussex County Sheriff.

After graduating high school in 1987, Sheriff Strada enlisted in the military and served for four years as a sergeant with the 82nd Airborne Division out of Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. He is a veteran of Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm and served in both Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

While in the military, he was an explosives expert and assigned to a Parachute Infantry Regiment. During his military career, he was awarded the Southwest Asia Service Medal with two bronze stars, Kuwait Liberation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Parachutist Badge and the Army Achievement Medal.

After being honorably discharged from the military, Sheriff Strada went on to pursue a career in law enforcement and graduated from the Morris County Firefighters and Police Training Academy in 1993. He began his law enforcement career with the Morris County Sheriff’s Office.

In 1995, Sheriff Strada joined the Mt. Olive Township Police Department and was assigned to the Patrol Division where he served for ten years. In 2005, he moved up to the Investigations Division where he served as a detective for the duration of his tenure with Mt. Olive. Over the course of his career with Mt. Olive, Strada was the recipient of numerous departmental awards including the Morris County 200 Club 2001 Valor Award, three lifesaving awards, four honorable service awards, three meritorious service awards, an educational achievement award and a military service award.

Sheriff Strada has an associate’s degree in criminal justice, a bachelor’s degree in administrative science from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a master’s degree, also from Fairleigh Dickinson, in administration. Law enforcement certifications and training include FBI Police Supervision and Management, Northeast Counterdrug Training Center: Leadership and Mastering Performance Management, Supervision Principles, Police Supervision, and Organizational Leadership. In addition to being a graduate of both the FBI National Academy and the Executive Leadership Program at the National Sheriffs’ Institute (NSI), he is also a certified field training officer and police academy instructor. Sheriff Strada served as President of the Sheriffs’ Association of New Jersey and is a member of the Newton VFW, Life Member of the National Rifle Association, Branchville American Legion, New Jersey Italian American Police Officers Association, New Jersey Fraternal Order of Police, and Sussex County Chiefs of Police Association. Sheriff Strada resides with his wife and three children in Hampton Township.

2. If elected, what will your major goals be and how do you plan to implement that into policy?

I have always run on two core principles. Keeping Sussex County safe and doing so as efficiently as possible. I have always left no stone unturned in reference to cost savings and I have enhanced the services that we provide to the residents of Sussex County as your Sheriff. Shortly after taking office, the biggest expense in our jail was medical care and prescription drugs for inmates. I made sure that contracts were in place with the local hospitals with set rates so that we didn’t incur large medical bills. I also switched all the inmates from brand name prescriptions to generic prescriptions and have saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by making that change.

Since I started as your Sheriff, we have implemented many new programs to better protect the citizens of our county and our tax dollars. For example, I started a Home Detention Program shortly after I became Sheriff in 2011. The Home Detention Program is for low level, non- violent offenders, most with medical issues. These individuals are monitored by wearing an electronic GPS tracked ankle bracelet. When an inmate becomes incarcerated in the Sussex County jail, we, the taxpayers are responsible for their healthcare. If we have someone that comes into our facility with major medical issues and they fit the strict criteria of the Home Detention Program, rather than pay for their medical care, we ask the judge to allow them to be monitored on a bracelet so that the taxpayers don’t absorb their medical care expenses. This program alone has enabled us to save millions of dollars since its inception. As the Sussex County Emergency Management Coordinator, I have overseen the activation of the Emergency Operations Center during many local emergencies such as Hurricanes Irene and Sandy as well as Tropical Storm Lee and other weather related events. I have worked in conjunction with the New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management, our local first responders, local OEM Coordinators, Jersey Central Power and Light, the Red Cross and department heads within the County. We have activated and staffed both warming centers and overnight shelters within the County when necessary.

3. If elected, how would you maintain your relationship with your constituents while balancing the demanding schedule that the position entails?

We have 32 senior citizen organizations in our county. We make it a priority to work with county Senior Services and meet with all of these organizations on a regular basis. We meet regularly and talk about concerns that the seniors may have relating to safety in their lives. Some of the presentation topics include emergency preparedness, active shooter-civilian response, fire safety and internet/telephone scams.

Under my direction, the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office was the first law enforcement agency in the state to implement a Senior Wristband Program in 2014. At no cost to the taxpayers and funded by private donations, we distribute soft latex wristbands to our senior population with an individual identification number assigned to the senior citizen. Our participating senior citizens provide us with their name, address, contact information as well as doctor information and emergency contacts. Should the senior be unable to communicate, the first responders in the County are able to call our Communications Center to help identify the senior who may be in need of assistance. This, in conjunction with our Senior ID program means that seniors are kept safer when they go out into the community.

In addition to our senior community, we have two dedicated officers that do community relations work on weekend shifts by attending community days within the municipalities, we do child safety seat events as well as fingerprinting children when requested.

Our officers teach LEAD (Law Enforcement Against Drugs) in 10 Sussex County schools. In collaboration with the New Jersey State Police we also conduct lockdown drills in our county schools that are policed by the New Jersey State Police. Several of our officers have completed training with the New Jersey State Police in responding to an active shooter We continue to have officers assigned to our county narcotics task force to assist in the opioid crisis that has affected our County. All of our officers on the road as well as within our County Courthouse have the ability to administer Narcan. We work with the Center for Prevention and Counseling by allowing counselors specifically dedicated to opioid abuse to have the ability to counsel inmates that are requesting assistance. Moving forward, I plan to continue to protect our senior population, help combat the drug epidemic and protect our children.

3. If elected, what do you foresee as being your biggest challenges within the position and; how do you plan to overcome those challenges?

One of the biggest challenges that I face is operating the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office while staying in budget. I am always mindful of keeping my expenses low and looking at ways to save money by utilizing available grants as I have done in the past. I want to continue to provide the high level of services that the citizens of Sussex County deserve.

4. Is there anything else you would like to tell us or ensure is conveyed on the Sparta High School informational website?

I encourage high school students to go on to college and/or the military. The Sussex County Sheriff’s Office, as well as other local law enforcement agencies, are governed by New Jersey Civil Service. I would encourage you to take the civil service exam. You can find more information on this exam by going to https://www.state.nj.us/csc/seekers/jobs/announcements/