[NJ] Police Officer Klementovich's standoff: "Tell the police I have a surprise for them..."

Clifton New Jersey Police Officer Richard Klementovich has been charged with 85 counts of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, assault on police officers, and possessing an instrument of crime.

Armed with several high-powered rifles [nearly 2,000 rounds of ammunition]and a bullet-proof vest, an off-duty New Jersey police officer turned a quiet Pennsylvania street into a tense battlefield Sunday, injuring one officer during a 10-hour standoff... Klementovich, 42, barricaded himself in the Doylestown home of his estranged wife and fired several rounds from a rifle at police... He was being held Monday on $1 million bail, with the condition that he undergo a mental-health assessment before being released. "He was having a bad time psychologically," Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler said. "There was some mention that he was on disability at work, and that medication was involved"...  “You’re often dealing with a type A personality that is assertive, aggressive and in denial,” [Larry Glick, of Doylestown, a retired police officer and former executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association] said. “There’s tremendous stress on police officers today… It’s just a very volatile time”...

OFF-DUTY CLIFTON COP BARRICADED IN PA. HOME SHOOTS AT POLICE
The Star-Ledger
By Ryan Hutchins
Published: Sunday, June 17, 2012
[Excerpts] A New Jersey police officer turned a quiet street in suburban Pennsylvania into a tense battlefield today. Clifton police officer Richard Klementovich, 42, barricaded himself in the home of his estranged-wife and fired multiple rounds from a rifle at police, injuring at least one officer. Police vehicles were hit by bullets and petrified neighbors hid in their basement as authorities tried to negotiate a peaceful settlement. But the standoff continues into the night... Klementovich opened fire, striking and disabling two police cruisers... Cpl. William Doucette was injured when shrapnel ricochetted off the curb and struck him in the face... Less than 24 hours before the shooting, Klementovich took to Facebook to post an album of nearly 40 photos from his time in the military... http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/reports_off-duty_nj_cop_barric.html

CLIFTON COP WHO SHOT AT PA. POLICE IS CHARGED WITH MORE THAN 80 COUNTS OF ASSAULT, ATTEMPTED HOMICIDE
The Star-Ledger
By James Queally
Published: Monday, June 18, 2012
[Excerpts] The Clifton police officer charged with using a rifle to keep Pennsylvania police at bay during a 10-hour standoff in Doylestown on Sunday called police himself to report a dispute at the residence, and left a note in the driveway claiming he had more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition, authorities said... He has been charged with multiple counts of criminal attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and assault of a law enforcement officer... Acting Doylestown Twp. Police Chief Dean Logan said Klementovich did not offer a motive... Clifton Police Sgt. Robert Bracken described Klementovich as a decorated officer... Earlier today, retired Clifton police lieutenant Pat Ciser spoke highly of Klementovich, describing him as one of the best cops he ever had the privilege to work with... "I don’t know what went so terribly wrong with his life … I’m just so thankful that the police officers in Pennsylvania were so patient with him and saved his life"... http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/clifton_cop_who_shot_at_pa_pol.html

OFF-DUTY CLIFTON COP SURRENDERS AFTER 10-HOUR STANDOFF IN PA.
The Star-Ledger
By Ryan Hutchins
Published: Monday, June 18, 2012
[Excerpts] Armed with several high-powered rifles and a bullet-proof vest, an off-duty New Jersey police officer turned a quiet Pennsylvania street into a tense battlefield Sunday, injuring one officer during a 10-hour standoff that ended shortly before midnight. Clifton police officer Richard Klementovich, 42, barricaded himself in the Doylestown home of his estranged wife and fired several rounds from a rifle at police... Klementovich was charged this morning with 13 counts of criminal attempted homicide and reckless endangerment, according to Logan. He was arraigned early today on dozens of charges including aggravated assault. Court records don't list an attorney for him. In addition to the weapons, the veteran officer and former soldier had a gas mask and other tactical gear... None of the neighbors could say much about the alleged assailant. It is unclear if he ever lived there or if the home had been solely occupied by his estranged wife... http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/off-duty_clifton_cop_surrrende.html

AUTHORITIES: CLIFTON COP WAS PREPARED TO DIE IN PA. STANDOFF
The Star-Ledger
By James Queally
Published: Monday, June 18, 2012
[Excerpts] Richard Klementovich was apparently making his last stand. Armed with several high-powered rifles and nearly 2,000 rounds of ammunition, the 42-year-old Clifton police officer and Persian Gulf War veteran had every intention of dying Sunday inside the Pennsylvania home of his estranged wife, according to an arrest affidavit released Monday... "I get angry. Angry at this job and law enforcement. And it is them who I will take out my anger on," he wrote in an e-mail to his estranged wife... "They will do the job I couldn’t and take my life ... I hope whomever comes to our house is ready to die tomorrow because I will be"... Bucks County, Pa., District Attorney and a law enforcement source suggested the 14-year veteran of the Clifton force had been stockpiling weapons and planning the shootout for several weeks... Klementovich called Doylestown Township Police to report a "civil dispute" at his estranged wife’s home on Bittersweet Drive, the affidavit said. When police arrived, they discovered a note, written by Klementovich and left in the driveway, saying he was armed with several rifles and 2,000 rounds of ammunition... In the note, Klementovich identified himself as a police officer and wrote he was "ready to die." Seconds later, he opened fire from inside the home... He continued to fire intermittently over the next several hours, according to the affidavit. In all, Klementovich fired more than 100 rounds... Klementovich, who has been out of work for the past two months because of a back injury, showed up at Clifton police headquarters last week. He began giving away items from his locker and was "exhibiting some strange behavior," according to a law enforcement source familiar with the situation. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case publicly. At least two hours into Sunday’s standoff, Klementovich sent a text message to his parents expressing his wishes to die. "Tell the police I have a surprise for them," he wrote in a text message at 4:35 p.m., according to the arrest affidavit. "This is the way I want to die"... http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/authorities_clifton_cop_was_pr.html

SOME SPECULATE KLEMENTOVICH SUFFERING FROM PTSD
phillyBurbs.com
by Theresa Hegel
[Excerpts] Posted on June 18, 2012
Sunday’s 10-hour standoff with an armed, off-duty New Jersey police officer in his estranged-wife’s Doylestown Township home has left many with questions. Some law enforcement professionals are speculating that Clifton, N.J., police Officer Richard Klementovich is suffering post-traumatic stress disorder, which could have triggered the shooting incident on Father’s Day in Doylestown Township. “I’m going to make the professional guess that the officer was suffering some kind of PTSD,” said Bensalem police Sgt. Andrew Aninsman, co-chairman of the Bucks County Crisis Intervention Team... Klementovich, 42, is an Army veteran who has been a Clifton officer for 14 years. He and his wife were reportedly in the midst of a divorce that commenced last fall when Jill Majors filed papers in Bucks County court. Clifton police sources told The Record of Bergen County that Klementovich has been on a four-week leave of absence due to a non-work related physical injury. In an email to his estranged wife... “If you just pull the carpet out from underneath (officers) and their coping mechanisms aren’t working as they should, this is what you’re going to get,” Aninsman said... The difficulty, however, is in getting officers to recognize they have a problem, said Larry Glick, of Doylestown, a retired police officer and former executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association. “You’re often dealing with a type A personality that is assertive, aggressive and in denial,” he said. “There’s tremendous stress on police officers today. … It’s just a very volatile time.” Right now, most police departments have no requirements for regular mental health checkups, he said, but most have a system in place to track employee behavior and raise red flags if an officer begins acting strangely. “The police community is getting better at it, but they have a long way to go to address all the issues,” Glick said. “It’s not anybody’s fault. It’s just the nature of the business”... http://www.phillyburbs.com/my_town/doylestown/some-speculate-klementovich-suffering-from-ptsd/article_34a78227-40d5-5a4e-b102-41e8bc6d54ed.html

'TELL THE POLICE I HAVE A SURPRISE FOR THEM, THIS IS THE WAY I WANT TO DIE'
phillyBurbs.com
By Matt Coughlin
Posted on June 18, 2012
Updated: 1:22 am, Tue Jun 19, 2012.
[Excerpts] A New Jersey police officer who fired at police and barricaded himself inside the Doylestown Township home he formerly shared with his wife and children on Father’s Day blamed his job and steroids for his problems. “I get angry,” Richard Klementovich emailed his estranged wife. “Angry at this job and law enforcement. And it’s them who I will take out my anger on.” Klementovich kept police at bay for 10 hours from inside the home at 25 Bittersweet Drive where his estranged wife and kids still live, firing numerous shots at police from alternating windows, destroying two police vehicles and damaging an armored car. “They will do the job I couldn’t and take my life,” his email goes on, according to court records. “I hope whomever comes to our house is ready to die tomorrow because I will be Jill.” Police said Klementovich was referring to his wife, Jill Major. The two are in the midst of divorce proceedings described as bitter... http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/courier_times_news/tell-the-police-i-have-a-surprise-for-them-this/article_8b03324f-7264-5df1-b3e3-8fb005263843.html

NJ OFFICER IN STANDOFF WITH BUCKS POLICE SUNDAY WANTED TO DIE
The Phildelphia Inquirer
By Bill Reed and Darran Simon
Jun. 19, 2012
[Excerpts] ...[Clifton Police Officer Richard] Klementovich, a 42-year-old Army veteran, ultimately surrendered and was charged with 85 counts of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, assault on police officers, and possessing an instrument of crime. He was being held Monday on $1 million bail, with the condition that he undergo a mental-health assessment before being released. "He was having a bad time psychologically," Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler said. "There was some mention that he was on disability at work, and that medication was involved"... The couple, who has two children, went through a bitter divorce, authorities said, with Klementovich moving out of the two-story brick house on Bittersweet Drive. On Father's Day, he arranged a family get-together elsewhere, but instead returned to the empty house and reported a "civil dispute" to police... http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pennsylvania/20120619_NJ_officer_in_standoff_with_Bucks_police_Sunday_wanted_to_die.html

A COP'S COP FIRES ON HIS OWN IN DOYLESTOWN DRAMA
Philadelphia Daily News
By Jason Nark
Daily News Staff Writer
Mon, Jun. 18, 2012, 3:00 AM
[Excerpts] When Patrick Ciser pictures "police officer" in his head, when he wonders whom he'd want by his side if things ever got hairy out in the field, there's only one man. Richard "Klem" Klementovich. That's why Ciser, a retired lieutenant with the Clifton, N.J., Police Department, was heartsick... "I do know he was having personal problems," Ciser said. "I just hope the brothers in PA are OK. I'm really totally taken aback by this"... http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pennsylvania/20120618_A_cop_s_cop_fires_on_his_own_in_Doylestown_drama.html?ref=more-like-this
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