Cops Revive Driver Near Branch Brook Park After Alleged Overdose

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Essex County sheriff’s officers smashed a driver’s window and revived him with naloxone and oxygen after a suspected drug overdose near Branch Brook Park last week, authorities said.

According to the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, patrol officers came across a 2018 Chevrolet Suburban SUV stopped at the Clifton Avenue exit to the park around 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 31.

When the officers went to investigate, they found Lionel Davis, 58, of Charlotte, North Carolina “unconscious and unresponsive” behind the wheel. On the center console of the vehicle, police found 10 heroin-filled envelopes stamped “SAVAGE” in red ink, authorities said.

“Two weeks ago, similarly marked heroin were confiscated from a Newark suspect in a series of raids by sheriff’s officers in the city’s North Ward,” the sheriff’s office stated.

After finding Davis, the officers used a hammer to break the car’s windows. They removed him from the vehicle and administered naloxone and oxygen to revive him.

Emergency responders transported Davis to St. Michael’s Hospital, where he is expected to recover, police said.

Authorities charged Davis with driving under the influence of narcotics and possession of CDS and possession of CDS in a motor vehicle.

• See related article: Hoboken Police Use Naloxone To Save 7 Lives In 2 Weeks

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