Man Who Fell Off Cliff Loses Battle To Sue Monmouth County

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — A Middletown man who fell off a cliff in Hartshorne Woods in 2019 lost his battle to sue Monmouth County for the serious injuries he sustained in the fall, because the court system said he did not file his lawsuit quickly enough.

A New Jersey state appeals court released this decision last Thursday on James Prudenciano's case.

Prudenciano said on the evening of Oct. 14, 2019, he was hiking with a friend on the Rock Point Trail in Hartshorne Woods, which is a park owned and operated by Monmouth County.

As it became dark, Prudenciano, then 28, said he and his companion became lost. The two then fell approximately 20 feet off a cliff into a shallow river. He was wearing an Apple Watch that included a fall detection feature.

The watch placed a 911 call with the pair's location immediately after it detected the rapid descent and impact.

"I just remember hearing, '911, what's your emergency?' and my Apple Watch started talking to me," he told ABC 7 at the time.

Emergency responders located the two men and took them to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where Prudenciano was diagnosed with a concussion and even a broken back, as he had multiple compression fractures to his spine. He was sent home after treatment but remained bedridden for the next three months, with his mother having to care for him daily, according to his lawsuit.

Within days of the fall, news outlets began contacting his mother to interview her son about how he was saved by Apple Watch's fall detection feature.

In the week after the fall, Prudenciano was interviewed by News 12 New Jersey and "Inside Edition." Prudenciano said he accepted $1,000 from News 12 to do the interview and, at its request, the interview was done at Hartshorne Woods Park on Oct. 20, six days after his fall. There, he met a reporter, and the interview included a short clip of him and the reporter walking on a path near the parking area, all while Prudenciano was wearing a back brace.

On Feb. 21, 2020 (130 days after the fall), Prudenciano sent Monmouth County a notice-of-claim letter informing the county of his intent to sue. This was after the 90 days that are required in New Jersey courts to file a tort claims lawsuit, but Prudenciano argued he had been bedridden for months, without internet access, and that he had been unable to do the research to find a lawyer.

Prudenciano formally filed his lawsuit against Monmouth County on Aug. 25, 2020.

However, lawyers for Monmouth County argued his lawsuit should be dismissed because he filed it too late.

A judge previously sided with Monmouth County, pointing out that Prudenciano gave TV interviews the week after his fall, which showed him walking around the park. On Thursday, a state appeals judge agreed with their decision.

Hartshorne Woods is hundreds of acres wide and is a very dense forest. Hikers have fallen there or fallen down cliffs in the past: In May 2021, Middletown and Sea Bright firefighters had to rescue another hiker who became trapped on a very steep, 100-foot steep trail leading down to the Navesink River. Read that story, with photos of the rescue: Injured Hiker Rescued From Monmouth County Park

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