Middletown State Trooper Will Be Honored At Thursday's Blue Mass

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — A retired New Jersey state trooper who lived in Middletown, and who died three years ago of a 9/11-related cancer, will be honored Thursday at the Catholic Archdiocese of Newark's Blue Mass.

Lt. Peter Bruncati died in 2023, at the age of 66. He died of a 9/11-related cancer after he was assigned to help with search-and-recovery efforts of bodies at the World Trade Center after the attacks.

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He developed a cancer, unspecified, after that, which was determined to be linked to the 9/11 ash and dust, according to his profile on the Officer Down memorial page.

Bruncati grew up in Hazlet, and in 1994 he settled in Middletown, where he lived until his death. He and his wife raised their two children, a son and a daughter, in Middletown. Bruncati worked as a New Jersey state trooper until his retirement in 2010 and always said becoming a state trooper was "the best decision of his life," according to his obituary.

"The troopers he worked with were extremely important to him and were still his good friends to this day," read his obituary. He was also an avid golfer/member at Sun Eagles in Tinton Falls.

Bruncati passed away peacefully at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, surrounded by his family.

The Blue Mass is a tradition that pays tribute to all New Jersey law enforcement personnel, especially those that have died in the past year.

This year, the mass in particular will honor four law enforcement officers who died of 9/11-related illnesses after responding to the World Trade Center attacks. William Casey, a Farmingdale resident and a retired State Police sergeant, will also be honored. He also died of a 9/11-related cancer.

Both Bruncati and Casey grew up in Hazlet.

The Archdiocese of Newark will hold the Blue Mass at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark. This year's mass also marks the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

Honored this year will be: Lt. Peter Bruncati, New Jersey State Police; Sgt. 1st Class William A. Casey, New Jersey State Police; Sgt. 1st Class Steven Tiboni, New Jersey State Police; Sgt. Lee E. Hendrickson, New Jersey State Police; Detective John Patrick, Springfield Police Department; Detective Fritz Magny, Newark Police Department; Officer Robert Banas, Customs and Border Protection; Lt. Thomas "T.J." Malanka, Secaucus Police Department; Officer Matthew Kirvin, Secaucus Police Department; Officer Johnny Mack, Jersey City Police Department; and Officer Joseph Giordano, Bayonne Police Department.