Linden, N.J. Police Officer Charged With Distributing Marijuana

LINDEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A Linden, New Jersey police sergeant was charged Thursday with distributing marijuana, prosecutors said.

Officer William F. Turbett III, 30, was charged with fourth-degree distribution of marijuana, as well as possession of marijuana, according to the Union County Prosecutor's office.

Sayreville police and the Prosecutor's Office's Guns, Gangs, Drugs, and Violent Crimes Task Force executed a search warrant on Turbett's Sayreville home Wednesday and found a small amount of marijuana, prosecutors said.

Turbett's girlfriend – Nicolette Hendrickson, 22, of Sayreville, was arrested along with Turbett and was charged with possession of marijuana. Both were released on recognizance bonds, prosecutors said.

Turbett had been suspended from the department without pay for an unrelated, unspecified matter when the charges were issued, prosecutors said.

If convicted, Turbett could get anything from probation to 18 months in prison.