Franklin Cop's Blood Alcohol Was Almost 3X The Limit In Fatal Crash: Prosecutor

FRANKLIN, NJ — A Franklin Township Police Officer has been suspended without pay after police say he was driving drunk when he fatally hit a motorcyclist in Warren County, according to an investigation by the Warren County Prosecutor's Office.

Lawrence Stiscia, 26, of Asbury, was criminally charged last week with second-degree death by auto in connection with the crash on Route 31 in Washington Township earlier this year, Warren County Prosecutor's Office said.

He had previously been issued traffic violations for driving while intoxicated and careless driving.

A blood test found Stiscia's blood-alcohol concentration to be 0.201 percent. The legal limit is 0.08 percent.

On March 18 at about 10:15 p.m., Stiscia was driving north on Route 31 in Washington Township when he crashed a motorcycle killing the driver, according to the prosecutor's office.

The motorcycle was on Route 31 and trying to turn onto Asbury Anderson Road when he crashed into the back of the motorcycle, said authorities.

An investigation found Stiscia caused the accident and was intoxicated at the time of the crash, said authorities.

On the death by auto charge, Stiscia faces a potential prison sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Following his first appearance in Warren County Superior Court, Stiscia was released under pretrial supervision.

Franklin Township Police Department was notified of the investigation and the charges. Stiscia has since been suspended without pay.

"We are deeply saddened by this recent unfortunate incident involving our officer, Lawrence Stiscia. We offer our condolences to the victim’s family. Upon learning of the incident, Officer Stiscia was immediately suspended. Today we were notified of the criminal charges. Therefore, he will be suspended immediately without pay. As this is an ongoing and active criminal case and administrative investigation, we cannot comment further," said Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella Maeweather.

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