Jersey City Police Officer Charged With DWI, Say Hoboken Police

HOBOKEN, NJ — A Jersey City police officer was charged in Hoboken on Thursday with driving while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle on a closed public roadway, according to information from the Hoboken police.

The police said that Hugh McDonnell, 36, was arrested on Thursday at 12:30 p.m.

Police said that at 11:36 a.m., Sgt. Steven Kranz, while working a traffic detail at a construction zone, observed a white Toyota drive through a closed street.

Police said the street was closed off to southbound traffic at Sixth and Jefferson streets.

Police said that the driver of the car allegedly "drove through and over the cones, dragging cones as he drove on the closed street. Sgt. Kranz gave verbal and visual commands for the car to stop."

Police said that Kranz approached the operator of the vehicle, who was identified as Hugh McDonnell, 36, of Jersey City.

The police said in an email, "Through their interaction, Sgt. Kranz believed the operator was intoxicated. McDonnell was put through a field sobriety test. McDonnell failed the test and was placed under arrest for Driving While Intoxicated."

Police said that McDonnell provided breath samples and the results showed that his blood alcohol content was above the legal limit.

McDonnell received two motor vehicle summons, one for DWI and one for operating a motor vehicle on a closed public roadway.

A report from last summer stated that a man with the same name had joined the Jersey City police. When asked whether McDonnell is a Jersey City police officer, the Hoboken police confirmed.

Defendants are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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