Rising Car Thefts Prompt Action By Bridgewater Council

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — The increasing number of car burglaries in the Somerset Hills area, including in Bridgewater, has prompted Township officials and police to take action.

Mayor Matthew Moench gave a presentation to the Council on Thursday night about a Disorderly Conduct ordinance that would essentially beef up the township's laws and help Bridgewater Police combat crime.

Bridgewater has been working with local municipalities, including Bernards, Bernardsville, Far Hills, Peapack-Gladstone, and Bedminster, to address the common issue of car thefts and related crimes.

Moench noted that many towns have passed similar ordinances to give them an extra tool and some additional enforcement power when it comes to not just car theft directly but loitering on a property for the purpose of stealing a car.

In March, Bernards Township passed a "Resident Protection" ordinance that includes language that would make it illegal and a violation of the ordinance to:

• pull on a motor vehicle or home door handles
• possess electronic devices to determine if an electric key is inside a motor vehicle
• enter any house, apartment, garage or structure that the person done not own

"It's an additional tool that we have that can go alongside state statues that already exist. It provides us a little additional leeway in terms of how we charge or getting in front of issues," said Moench. "This is another tool in the toolbox to combat [car thefts]. It is not a silver bullet to solve the problem but it's an additional tool."

Moench added that by passing this new ordinance it would also serve as a message to the public and to people who are coming into the community with not the greatest intent in mind "that we will take these things seriously."

At the end of April, multiple vehicles in Bridgewater Township and Raritan Borough were broken into and ransacked prompting police to send out a warning.

"This is a very important issue. This goes to people's safety. You know cars being stolen, mudrooms being broken into to then steal the key fob to then steal the car. The catalytic converters - this is certainly a severe quality of life concern," said Councilman Michael Kirsh.

Council President Timothy Ring said that the criminals are also using devices to detect and locate if you have a key fob in your home and also use devices to duplicate the key fob signals.

"They are getting smarter and we have to try to stay one step ahead of them," said Ring.

The new ordinance is expected to be introduced at the Council's next meeting on June 6.

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