Councilwoman Blasts City's Messaging After Gunshots In Hoboken Cause Lockdowns

Find out what's happening in Hobokenfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Over the years, the administration of Mayor Ravi Bhalla has been criticized for decisions about Nixle, which some say is used for political items and not often enough for public safety messages. READ MORE: Delayed Nixle For Lockdowns Riles Residents

Two years ago, the city was similarly criticized for failing to send out a timely Nixle alert when reports surfaced of a man with a gun, and the Stevens Institute of Technology announced it would shelter in place.

Police later said the man only had a BB gun, but residents were still frustrated.

At the time, none of the mayor’s allies on the City Council criticized City Hall publicly.

This week, Councilwoman Jabbour posted detailed criticism of the city, saying she didn’t understand why Nixle wasn’t used.

‘City Should Have Used Nixle’

“I do not understand why City of Hoboken did not send a Nixle alert today when every school and most day cares in Hoboken went into lockdown,” Jabbour wrote on social media at 3:47 p.m. Thursday. “The city should have used Nixle as a tool to let people know what was going on, without relying on social media updates.”

She added, “If we can Nixle possible snow storms, we should Nixle shootings — whether or not it is considered imminent danger. Part of keeping our community safe is sharing the information we have – and that was not done today.”

Jabbour was asked if she had raised the issue during the other incidents and why she felt compelled to speak out now.

On Saturday, she explained, “On Thursday, I reached out to the Mayor’s Office/Communications about the lack of a Nixle alert. Their response was ‘No, we are not. There is no known threat to the public so there was not an immediate need to do so.’ “

“I expressed my strong disagreement with this decision and shared that multiple schools and day cares were in lockdowns, which parents were hearing about via Facebook groups and social media – and I felt that substantiated the need to send a Nixle,” she said. “Not all parents are on social media – if the city was willing to post this info on Facebook and HPD was posting Twitter/X updates, why not a Nixle?”

“Their response was ‘we can agree to disagree.’ I raised a concern about the lack of a Nixle alert in the past as well, but did not do so publicly.”

Reports have also said that in the past two months, many users left X when the terms of service changed.

Jabbour and at least three other council members are expected to announce a run for mayor next year. The other three have been publicly critical of Bhalla on various issues.

Council Committee Will Address It

On Thursday night, Councilman Paul Presinzano told Patch the council’s Public Safety Subcommittee will meet with the director of public safety (Ken Ferrante) “to discuss communication protocols.”

“We understand community concerns and will discuss ways to strengthen the approach after a full debrief,” he said.

After the 2022 incident, Ferrante had said the city and emergency services would review how the alerts would be handled in the future.

At the time, Presinzano, who was not in office, addressed the matter at a council meeting, then posted on social media, “I asked for Nixle Emergency Alert system to be used properly. Incident on Hudson St was time to use Nixle. When the City asked why it was late getting info out their answer was amateur. Our Administration needs to get its head out of the sand.”

On Thursday, he said, “The administration and HPD make those decisions on communication. The suspect was apprehended quickly and situation was under control. I am a believer in more communication when possible on public safety issues/situations.”

In another incident in 2022, the Hoboken police said they had received calls from concerned residents after a man was found dead at Church Square Park that morning. That morning, law enforcement officials set up a tarp while kids and parents were walking to school.

The city did not release a Nixle alert about the situation, but later released a Nixle message alert notifying residents about a survey to rename the “Sinatra Idol” contest.

City Responds

Late on Friday, the city’s public safety spokesperson, Marci Rubin, responded, “The City of Hoboken distributes police and crime related information via Nixle when there is a known threat to the public, and as guided and recommended by the Hoboken Police Department (HPD). In this case, HPD determined after a short time there was no active threat to the public and therefore a decision was made to not issue a Nixle alert. The City and the Public Safety Department released as much information as possible, as quickly as possible, on social media platforms as guided by HPD, to remain as transparent as possible without spreading unnecessary concern.”

“City Administration remains in contact with the Police Department and will continue to take the lead of Police Chief Steven Aguiar and his highly qualified team when it comes to how to best communicate this incident, and all other police matters to members of the public.”

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

Click Here: Portugal football tracksuit