Howell Officer, Others Injured In Crash Responding To Overdose, Chief Says

HOWELL, NJ -- The heroin epidemic is putting first responders at increasing risk of serious injury, an issue that needs to be address, Howell Police Chief Andrew Kudrick said Tuesday, in the wake of a car accident that injured a Howell police officer Monday.

Patrolwoman Heather Scherbinski and another patrol unit and a first aid unit were headed south on Route 547 about 6:30 p.m. Monday responding to a 9-1-1 call for a man who was not breathing when Scherbinski collided with another southbound vehicle that was turning left into a driveway as Scherbinski was passing, he said.

The officer’s vehicle left the road and hit a fence and tree, Kudrick said.

Scherbinski and the people in the other vehicle -- Kudrick did not specify how many -- all were taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune for treatment. Scherbinski suffered a broken hand and was treated and released; the injuries to the people in the other car were not considered life-threatening, Kudrick said.

The overdose victim, a 28-year-old man, was found in the bathroom surrounded by paraphernalia associated with heroin use, the chief said, and was revived when Patrolman Richard Robertiello administered Narcan.

The man was taken to CentraState Medical Center, Freehold Township, by Howell First-Aid, Kudrick said.

Kudrick, in a Facebook post on the police department’s Facebook page, expressed frustration with the fact that one of his officers and the occupants of the other car were injured while responding to the overdose:

“He (the man who overdosed) doesn’t have a fractured hand or any other injuries like the others do. Most likely, he won’t miss work like the others. Hopefully, this is a hard lesson learned for him and he stops this behavior.

“In New Jersey, the Overdose Prevention Act prohibits law enforcement from charging someone in such a case as they are considered immune from criminal prosecution. This even applies if a police officer, emergency responder or innocent person gets injured as a result of their illegal conduct.”

“Conversely, if another person commits a crime ... (such as) burglary ... and during the course of that crime a law-abiding person gets injured, the criminal faces enhanced charges to the offense they committed. They are responsible for the injuries caused to another by their illegal conduct.

“It’s only a matter of time before a police officer or another innocent person gets seriously injured and/or killed responding to an overdose,” Kudrick said.

“Prior to this heroin epidemic, CPR calls were infrequent. Nowadays, it’s all too frequent,” Kudrick said, adding that his department “and our community partners are committed to a continual proactive approach in addressing this problem.”

(Photos of Patrolwoman Heather Scherbinski‘s patrol car after Monday night’s crash, via Howell Township Police 911 Communications)