Ocean Gate Honors Memory of Officer Jason Marles

Jason Marles was the kind of police officer who went above and beyond what he was required to do — over and over again.

“He would come here even when it was not his shift to see the kids in Christmas shows,” said Frank Vanalesti, superintendent of the Ocean Gate School District.

“Some might say he was a problem-solver,” Ocean Gate Chief of Police Reece Fisher said. “I considered him a problem soother. He would take the time to sit down with people and talk about their issues. Not just the reason for the call, but life as well.

“He had those values and those qualities that enabled him to connect with people on a different level,” Fisher said.

It is those qualities that will be celebrated at 7 p.m., Friday when a candlelight vigil is held at the Ocean Gate Police Station in memory of Marles, on the one-year of the Point Beach resident.

“How fast a year goes,” Fisher said. “It doesn’t seem like it’s been a year.”

It was last Thanksgiving morning that Marles, 32, who was returning to his Point Pleasant Beach home after working a drunken driving detail, was killed when the Jeep he was driving was rear-ended on the Garden State Parkway near the Toms River toll plaza. The driver of the BMW SUV that rear-ended him, Erick Uzcategui of Manchester, was allegeldy drunk at the time of the accident. Uzcategui, 32, , to which he has pleaded not guilty.

A blood sample taken from Uzcategui after the crash revealed his blood-alcohol level was almost twice the legal limit of .08, Assistant Ocean County Prosecutor Steven N. Cucci has said. Cucci said Uzcategui admitted to police that he had five vodka drinks and used cocaine at a motel in Seaside Heights.

“Up on the Parkway is where I spent most of my Thanksgiving,” Fisher said. “There are still memories of that early morning.”

But there are memories, too, of the connection Marles had with the community, Fisher said, a connection unlike that of many officers.

“With the children he was a police officer who was very approachable for the kids,” Fisher said.

“Jay was very visible,” Vanalesti said, noting that the first time they met, Marles gave the superintendent his cell phone number and told him to call him at any time.

“And I did,” Vanalesti said. “He was here on a consistent basis, whenever we needed him.”

Such as the time a pit bull got loose and was standing in the street, barking at children who were trying to make their way home down Arverne after school.

“Most of our school is walkers,” Vanalesti said, “and this dog was right in the street along the main route home. “Jay was on the corner at Arverne and Ocean Gate Drive and he went up to the dog and said, ‘Get back in there,’ and the dog went running back inside its fence.

“We have so many stories about what he did for the community,” Vanalesti said.

“Jay brought a certain energy to work with him,” Fisher said, “and for a while afterward, there was an eerie quiet in headquarters. There was a noticeable void in the structure here.”

But as time has passed, the spirit of what Marles represented — that ability to connect with the community — has bonded the community and its officers even more closely.

“It has created an initiative with the officers to make that connection,” Fisher said, “to get involved with programs in the community. There’s a renewed interest in the officers to participate with the community.”

It also sparked an effort among the pupils of Ocean Gate Elementary to see to it that Marles was memorialized by the town. In October, Vanalesti said, a group of students presented a proposal to the Borough Council requesting the town honor him.

“The students were learning about how decisions are made for the community,” Vanalesti said, and the idea turned into a homework project, with the students researching ideas that included naming a park in his honor and having a statue erected, including everything from the costs to how quickly the honor could be accomplished. In the end, the council settled on naming a street in his honor.

“It was doable and inexpensive, and now the children can look up and see it every time they are at the school,” Vanalesti said after the sign was unveiled on Tuesday at the corner of West Arverne and Navesink avenues, right across from the school, before a group that included Marles’ father and sister and his friends.

Fisher expects the vigil — which attracted hundreds last year — will attract at least that many this year, if not more.

“The wounds and pains are still there,” Fisher said. “This is a reminder of how fragile life can be, how quickly things can change, not just for his family but for his friends as well.”

“These events bring us back to that day,” Fisher said. “It makes us remember, but I think it’s important to remember Jay not for how he died, but how he lived.”

If you go:

Parking is likely to be at a premium on Friday night. Fisher said the municipal building parking lot will be restricted, and Ocean Gate Drive will be closed to vehicles from West Barnegat Avenue to Cape May Avenue beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Benefit soccer game Saturday:

In addition to the vigil, Marles will be remembered at the second annual Central Regional Alumni Soccer game, set for Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Eastern Boulevard soccer complex in Berkeley.

Marles, who left behind two children — Taryn, 6, and Landon, 5 — was a Central Regional graduate who was one of the few freshmen ever to start on the varsity soccer team. His teammates and friends from the soccer community held a benefit game last year, with all the donations going to a college fund for his children. All of the players wore T-shirts emblazoned with Marles' uniform number, 18.

All the players donate $20 each to participate in the game, and spectators are encouraged to donate as well. All of the money goes to the children's college fund.

The game is open to the public.