By Mary Marvin, Mayor of Bronxville

Dec. 3, 2024: Continuing a desire to accentuate the positive of our village’s so welcoming size and its small and very community oriented police department, the following are profiles of two more of our extraordinary officers.

I continue to focus on the gentlemen and women who are members of the patrol units as these are the folks you might see on a daily basis with the hope that it will further connections to unite our very special Village.

David de Benedetto

I start with our only Vermont born and bred officer, Police Officer Number 31, David de Benedetto. As David said he grew up in “the great state of Vermont” in the small and beautiful town of Woodstock which he characterizes as a place where community is paramount and the people are extremely hard-working.

David grew up enjoying a great outdoor Vermont lifestyle. He is a graduate of our own Iona University and he is married to his “amazing” wife residing in northern Westchester with their two sons, 2 ½ year old Davey Jr. and Rocky who is just five months old. David’s favorite leisure activity is just being outdoors with his family.

The de Benedetto family has a rich history in policing which immediately drew David to his profession. His brother, uncle and cousin are all police officers and another uncle was a lawyer who worked for the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office.

A police officer for 13 years, David started his career in Mount Vernon and then transferred to Bronxville just over 10 years ago. He was drawn to our Village and our police department due to its emphasis on community, which was very reminiscent of his treasured hometown of Woodstock.

In that vein, he said the most enjoyable part about Bronxville policing is seeing the same people and interacting with them as a wonderful day-to-day occurrence. Being able to put a face to a name makes working in a small town a very special gift.

When asked about particularly memorable and fun experiences, he cited being a participant on the zip line during Bronxville High School gym class.

Not surprisingly, his favorite foods in Bronxville include bagels from Park Place, omelets from Lange’s deli and he believes a good cup of coffee from Slave to the Grind cannot be matched. His wife Christina has a preference for bringing the boys down to our iconic diner when naps permit.

When asked to reflect on his career, David said so many experiences bring a smile to his face, but the one thing that matters most is when individuals randomly come up and thank him and other officers for their service, proving that a simple thank you does go a long way.

Jason Kaiser

Our second officer in the spotlight is PO 36 Jason Kaiser. Jason was born and raised and still currently lives in Orange County with his wife and two children.

Unlike Officer de Benedetto’s tradition of a family of police officers, Jason was raised by two parents who were naturally artistic at heart though this was an avocation and not their paid profession.

The exposure to art prompted him to attend art school in Manhattan at the School of Visual Arts, as well as SUNY New Paltz to become an art teacher, but again a little family tug, this time as a result of one of his uncles being a police officer in Rockland County, piqued his interest in law enforcement. Just the thought of helping people while being outdoors meeting community members seemed like the most rewarding of lifestyles.

After passing the police exam, Jason was hired by the Village of Highland Falls just outside of the West Point campus where he met and worked with Bronxville Sergeant Mike Lewis for approximately five years.

After Sergeant Lewis took a job with our PD, he urged Jason to submit his resume because Michael so enjoyed his Bronxville job and the warmth of the Village residents.

Not surprisingly, Officer Kaiser said the best part about working in Bronxville has been the community aspect as he genuinely feels he has gotten to know so many residents and business owners and seeing some of the people on a daily basis makes it truly feel like a second home.

His favorite repast in the Village is any of the homemade pastas at Bacione on Cedar Street.

When he’s not here, he likes to go biking and jogging and spend quality time with his wife and two children.

When asked for a funny reminiscence during his twelve plus years on duty in the Village, his is one that will never be matched!

Early on in his Bronxville career, he saw a skunk by the garbage cans near the library with a McDonald’s McFlurry cup stuck on his head. Fearing that the skunk was going to suffocate, he called for the assistance of Sergeant Anderson to save what is not most people’s favorite creature. After throwing a cardboard box over it, he barely stuck his hand under the box and quickly took the cup off his head only resulting in half a spray by the skunk. He’s pretty sure he did not write up a report! But needless to say, his uniform was odiferous and had to be washed multiple times, but another skunk was saved to roam the friendly streets of Bronxville.

Continuing on the subject of Village safety and community awareness, Chief Satriale wanted me to remind everybody that with this joyous holiday season comes the perpetual “porch pirates” who target unattended packages often left near your front door.

On one of my recent walks in Cedar Knolls, I was privy to a car following at a cautious distance behind a United Parcel truck and quite simply picking up every package the gentleman in brown delivered. I immediately called the Yonkers PD, but by the time they got there, the goods were taken and the culprit long gone.

To prevent this kind of event from happening, the Chief encourages you to track your packages and try to be home on the days they are schedules to arrive and if this is not possible, use a secure delivery location such as an Amazon Locker or a trusted neighbor and always request signature delivery for valuable items. As a year round safety precaution, consider installing a video doorbell or security camera to deter theft. Most importantly report any suspicious occurrence in your neighborhood to our police department at 914-395-0500 immediately and let them decide how to evaluate such activity. In essence, follow the time tested adage, if you see something say something.