Crime & Safety
Police Officer Cleared of Wrongdoing in Accident That Killed 10-Year-Old
Franklin Township Patrolman Nicholas Locilento's actions will be subject to administrative review.

The Franklin Township Police Officer involved in a fatal accident that resulted in the death of a 10-year-old boy last month has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the incident, the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office announced on Friday.
Franklin Township Patrolman Nicholas Locilento was responding to a call at the time of the accident. His actions will be subject to administrative review, and the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office will undertake a review to see if revisions should be made in non-emergent police responses are needed, the Prosecutor’s Office announced Friday afternoon.
Notably, the prosecutor will review whether emergency warning equipment should be activated when an officer is exceeding the speed limit.
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Locilento was responding to a call for an unruly juvenile when he hit 10-year-old Matthew McCloskey while McCloskey was crossing Route 47 around 7 p.m. Dec. 28, 2014. McCloskey was pronounced dead at the scene.
An autopsy revealed that McCloskey died of multiple injuries.
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The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be accidental.
McCloskey’s parents have been notified of the results of the investigation.
Locilento, 23, was going 74 mph, but didn’t have his emergency warning lights on because the incident he was responding to was classified as a non-emergency call requiring an immediate response to prevent incidents from escalating into situations that may require a higher level of police response.
Police are not required to activate emergency warning lights when responding to this type of call.
The posted speed limit was 50 mph. Locilento was one of three officers responding to the call. He has been on administrative leave since the accident while the investigation was conducted.
The investigation determined Locilento was not under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs at the time of the accident.
There was also no evidence he was using his cellphone, was sleep deprived or was otherwise distracted at the time of the accident.
All these are contributing factors to determining if someone was engaging in reckless driving. It was determined Locilento was not.
As for his rate of speed, New Jersey law recognizes that police officers in the performance of their duties may need to exceed posted speed limits as long as they exercise due caution and not recklessly disregard the safety of others.
He as well as the rest of the Franklin Township Police Department cooperated completely with the investigation.
McCloskey was one of three boys engaged in a foot race at the time of the accident. He was racing a 12-year-old and a 9-year-old to their home, down Elmer Street onto the other side of Delsea Drive.
The oldest child ran across the street safely and yelled that a car was coming.
McCloskey ran into the road, turned toward the car and was hit by Locilento, who was traveling north.
Locilento applied his brakes but was unable to avoid hitting McCloskey.
Locilento immediately exited his vehicle and rendered emergency aid to the child, but the injuries proved fatal.
Locilento was taken to an area hospital as a precautionary measure.
The investigation determined that Locilento was responding to a call for assistance travelling on a dark stretch of wet roadway when he was suddenly confronted with a young boy running into his path of travel.
There was no crosswalk or traffic control device near where this accident occurred.
Based upon the applicable law, the conduct of Locilento was not criminal in nature, according to the Prosecutor’s Office.
“It cannot be concluded that Patrolman Locilento consciously disregarded a known risk,” the Prosecutor’s Office said in a release. “It was not reasonable for him to foresee that he would encounter a young boy running in the roadway where this accident occurred. The investigation reveals that this was a tragic accident and not the result of criminal wrongdoing.”
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