According to the state attorney general’s office, a police pursuit involving a stolen vehicle led to a gunfight on the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey, leaving an officer injured and the suspect dead.
The accident happened shortly before midnight on Thursday at Exit 131 in Woodbridge. A man was being pursued by police in a stolen work van when he exited the vehicle and began firing a handgun, striking a Cranford officer in the arm.
“The guy spun out, the Cranford officers pulled up, and the guy basically got out shooting,” said Pat Colligan, president of the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association. The officers returned fire, and the suspect died as a result.”
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The injured cop, whose identity has not been released, was rushed to University Hospital. Colligan described the officer’s injuries as “through-and-through,” with no broken bones, and claimed that the officer was freed after a medical check.
According to police sources, the police pursuit began at the intersection of Centennial and Grant in Cranford, near a busy bar. The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office is investigating the event and stated that a handgun was found near the deceased suspect.
Residents were concerned about the threats that police personnel endure. “The problem is that we live in a very dangerous time,” said Cranford resident Eric Shea. Nothing may be taken for granted.”
Due to an increase in such crimes, the attorney general’s office altered police pursuit procedures in April 2022, permitting pursuits in specified cases such as house burglary and vehicle thefts.
Mike Barry, a veteran Port Authority Police sergeant who now works for the National Police Defense Foundation, underlined the necessity of taking into account several elements during pursuits, such as road conditions, time of day, and population density in the region.
The Cranford Police Department has declined to comment on the event since it is currently being investigated by the Attorney General’s Office. Governor Phil Murphy, who is presently out of state, tweeted his support for law enforcement, saying,
“Our men and women in uniform put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe.” We are hoping for a speedy recovery for the officer.”