Man Dies In Police-Involved Shooting In Newark On New Year's Day

NEWARK, NJ — A 39-year-old man died after a police-involved shooting in Newark on New Year’s Day. It was the first time a local officer fired a weapon in the line of duty in more than a year, according to authorities.

The fatal shooting took place just after midnight near South 11th Street and Woodland Avenue, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office said.

A 39-year-old man sustained fatal injuries in the shooting. His name wasn’t released in an initial statement from the attorney general’s office, who said:

“An investigation is being conducted pursuant to a law enacted in January 2019, P.L.2019, c.1, which requires that the Attorney General’s Office conduct investigations of a person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody.”

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka released a statement about the shooting on Friday:

“Just a few minutes into the New Year, some of our plainclothes Newark police officers arrived at a scene where shots were being fired and an officer fired one round, fatally striking someone. The Attorney General’s office is leading an investigation and the officer is on administrative leave while the investigation is underway. Two firearms were also recovered and at least one arrest was made. If anyone has any information or videos of what happened, please come forward and contact the Attorney General’s office at 609-292-4925 or 609-984-5828.”

The week prior to the shooting, the Newark Public Safety Department said “not a single shot was fired” by a Newark police officer in 2020.

“Our officers have embraced deescalation training and are actively employing this resource when engaging with the community,” Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said.

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