Paramus officials are firing back at a longtime police officer who claims favoritism and nepotism cost him repeated promotions, denying his allegations and asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit.
The Borough of Paramus, Police Chief Robert Guidetti, and the Paramus Police Department filed their 16-page answer in response to Michael Boccher Sr.’s lawsuit in Bergen County Superior Court on Wednesday, Aug. 19. In their answer (attached at the bottom of this news article), the defendants denied most of Officer Michael Boccher Sr.’s allegations and argued the decision not to promote him was neither “arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable.”
Boccher, of Parsippany, remains an active member of the Paramus Police Department. He has worked for Paramus since 2004 and sued the borough, department, and Guidetti in May after being passed over for promotion to sergeant in 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026. His lawsuit alleges he was repeatedly passed over despite his seniority and strong annual evaluations. Boccher also claims the department relied on a subjective promotion process that favored friends and family associates of department leadership rather than seniority and merit. He alleges the process violated state law and Paramus municipal code, along with the New Jersey Civil Rights Act and New Jersey Law Against Discrimination…