NJ Sheriff Recorded Making Racist Remarks Apologizes, But Won't Resign

UPDATE: New Jersey Sheriff Taped Making Racist Remarks Resigns Amid Uproar

A New Jersey sheriff who was recorded making racist remarks about black people and about the state’s Sikh Attorney General is apologizing, but says he won't resign.

Gov. Phil Murphy and other elected officials called for Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino’s resignation after WNYC obtained a recording on which the sheriff can be heard making remarks about black people, as well as the state’s Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, after Murphy’s inauguration on Jan. 16.

“He talked about the whole thing, the marijuana, sanctuary state… better criminal justice reform,” Saudino said of Murphy’s inauguration speech in the recording. 

“Christ almighty, in other words let the blacks come in, do whatever the f--- they want, smoke their marijuana, do this, do that, and don’t worry about it. You know, we’ll tie the hands of cops,” he reportedly said.

Saudino went on to say that Murphy only appointed Grewal because of “the turban,” WNYC reported.

He also wondered aloud whether Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver was gay "because she's never been married." 

Saudino, who's in his third term as Bergen County sheriff, released a statement Thursday evening acknowledging that he'd made the "insensitive recorded remarks that were made public today." 

"These remarks are not representative of the person that I am and they are in no way consistent with the manner in which I have conducted my life personally and as a law enforcement professional with over 46 years of service to the residents of Bergen County," Saudino said. 

Despite calls for him to resign, Saudino instead said he would be reaching out to community leaders to apologize and repair the damage to the "friendships" he has built with those communities. 

"Going forward I will continue to treat everyone with the respect and dignity that is deserved by all and to be diligent in my duty to protect and defend the rights of all our residents," he said. 

A spokesperson for the sheriff's office said Friday morning that Saudino would not be coming to work and "you won't see him anywhere near the building." But they did not elaborate on whether Saudino would take an extended leave.

Murphy had denounced Saudino's comments as "appalling," adding that "anyone using racist, homophobic and hateful language is unfit for public office."

Grewal and Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco had also called for Saudino's resignation.

"I have now listened to the recording obtained by WNYC. If that's in fact Sheriff Saudino's voice, then he should resign immediately," Grewal said in a statement earlier Thursday. 

"I've got thick skin and I've been called far worse, But the comments about the African-American community are wrong, racist and hurtful," he added. "New Jersey and Bergen County deserve better." 

Tedesco, meanwhile, said he'd worked with Saudino for years and was "shocked and disappointed to hear these comments."

"In the best interest of the public, he should step down," Tedesco said in a statement. 

Assemblyman Gordon Johnson (D-Bergen), who formerly served as Bergen County sheriff, also called for his resignation, saying in a statement, "Sheriff Saudino's racist and bigoted comments are unacceptable and offensive. His hate-filled words are beneath the values we share as a community and they violate the integrity we demand and expect of law enforcement."

Bergen County Democratic Chairman Lou Stellato said "these remarks are both inconsistent with the Democratic values we hold dear and the character of the Michael Saudino I have known. Intolerance and discrimination can never be accepted at any level and he should resign,” Stellato said.

The president of the local police union, Chris Weston, also called on Saudino to resign Friday morning and said the sheriff was "just sorry he got caught."

Because Saudino is an elected official, the governor does not have the power to remove him from office. He would have to resign on his own accord. 

Hackensack resident Danny Wiggers said he knows the sheriff personally and was "totally shocked" to hear his remarks. 

"It was probably an aberration on his part. He's a solid individual, he's been very good to all the communities I know of, and you know, he's human, he probably made a mistake," said Wiggers. 

In 2013, Saudino's Democratic challenger for the sheriff seat, James Mordaga, criticized Saudino for taking home both pension from a Hackensack Police Department job he retired from and salaries from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office and the county Department of Public Safety — a practice called "double-dipping" by critics. 

At the time, Saudino was the highest-paid sheriff in New Jersey. Saudino, however, noted that Mordaga, too, had "double-dipped" before running for sheriff.