The Hopewell Township Police Department has added two new patrol officers to the police force – Marissa McCallum and Eric Lei.
McCallum and Lei were sworn in by Mayor Courtney Peters-Manning with family and friends in attendance inside the Hopewell Township Municipal Complex on Oct. 21.
“We had well over 100 applicants in our process this go around,” Chief of Police James Rosso said. “Of those applicants we whittled it down to 26 applicants.
“Through rigorous interviews we had and physical fitness assessments we had, and background checks we’d like to present two new officers we’d like to have join our team. They both stood out in all phases we had. We are really looking forward to having them join our team.”
McCallum is from Lawrenceville. She has a background in both corrections and police work.
“She previously served as an officer with The College of New Jersey Police Department and also worked as a corrections officer at FCI Fort Dix,” Rosso said. “Marissa graduated from the Mercer County Police Academy this year with two of our current officers.
“She is currently pursuing an associate’s degree in humanities and social sciences at Mercer County Community College. She is married to her husband Terrod [McCallum]. He is a Lawrence Township police officer, and they have a 13-year-old daughter.”
Eric Lei is from Long Branch and was born in Taipei, Taiwan.
“He moved to the United States in 2006 and became a naturalized citizen in 2014. Eric grew up in Ocean Township and attended Ocean Township High School. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Penn State University,” Rosso said.
“Like Marissa, Eric worked in corrections as well. Eric has been a police officer with the New Jersey Transit police since April 2023 and worked as a corrections officer at the New Jersey State Department of Corrections for three years. We are excited to have Eric join our team.”
