UPDATE: Ocean Gate Honors Cop Killed By Drunk Driver On The Anniversary Of His Death

Ocean Gate Police Officer Jay Marles had volunteered to work the early morning Thanksgiving drunk driving enforcement shift five years ago.

It would turn out to be the the young patrolman’s last night of service to this tiny borough on the Toms River. When his shift was up, Marles got into his Jeep and headed north on the Garden State Parkway on his way home.

He never made it. At 3:20 a.m., Marles’ vehicle was rear-ended by a BMW driven by a drunk, drug-addled Erick Uzcategui of Manchester. The force of the impact pushed the Jeep across traffic lanes, off the roadway and into some woods, where it burst into flames.

Borough officials lowered the flag to half staff outside police headquarters at 3:20 a.m., the time Jay Marles died, Mayor Paul J. Kennedy said.

“Such a sad, sad day,” Mayor Paul J. Kennedy said. ”It was a real tough time, especially with it being Thanksgiving. One that I will personally never forget and will always strive to keep Jay’s memory alive. He was the first police officer that I was involved in interviewing and hiring.”

Uzcategui had a blood alcohol level almost twice the legal limit. He told police he had five vodka drinks and used cocaine at a Seaside Heights motel before the accident. The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office later charged him with vehicular manslaughter and drunken driving.

Ocean Gate has never forgotten Jay Marles and probably never will.

The borough’s website still has his picture prominently featured on the main page. The borough named a street after him several years ago. And this spring, the non-profit group Where Angels Play and Ocean Gate came together to build a playground in his memory.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the entire Marles family,” read a post on the police department’s Facebook