North Jersey Police Officer From Toms River Was Drunk That Killed MD Couple: Prosecutor

FREEHOLD, NJ — A Union County police officer who lives in Toms River has been charged with two counts of vehicular homicide in a fatal October crash in Tinton Falls where authorities say he was intoxicated, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office said Friday.

John P. McClave III, 34, of Toms River, who is a member of the Hillside Police Department, is charged with two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide in the Oct. 9, 2021, crash that killed a married couple from Baltimore, Prosecutor Lori Linskey said.

Angel L. Acevedo Jr., 40, and his wife, Daniela Correia Salles, 35, sustained multiple severe injuries and were both pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, which happened shortly before 7:30 p.m. on Asbury Avenue in Tinton Falls, Linskey said.

McClave was on his way to work, driving a 2018 GMC Canyon pickup truck, when he drifted off the Garden State Parkway in the area of the Parkway overpass near Asbury Avenue and hit the 2020 Toyota Corolla driven by Acevedo, authorities said.

Investigators determined McClave’s truck did not change direction or slow down significantly after it left the Parkway lanes, causing it to become airborne when it hit an embankment before hitting the car occupied by the victims, she said.

McClave was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center with serious but not life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

An investigation by the multi-jurisdictional Monmouth County Serious Crash Analysis Response Team (SCART), the MCPO Fatal Accident Unit, and the Tinton Falls Police Department determined McClave was driving his vehicle recklessly while under the influence of intoxicating substances at the time of the collision, authorities said.

McClave was additionally issued summonses for reckless driving, failure to maintain lanes, failure to wear a seatbelt, and having an open container of alcohol in a vehicle, Linskey said.

The Prosecutor’s Office is filing a motion to have McClave detained pending the resolution of this case, Linskey said.

"This officer’s actions on the night of the collision far crossed the line separating passive negligence from active criminality, and as a result, a married couple have lost their lives," she said. "We hope today’s announcement brings their loved ones some semblance of solace in knowing that the first steps have been taken towards achieving justice."

Anyone with information about this matter is still urged to contact Prosecutor's Office Detective Kristian DeVito toll-free at 1-800-533-7443 or Tinton Falls Police Department Patrolman David Ebert at 732-542-4422.

If convicted, McClave faces up to 10 years in state prison, with 85 percent of the term to be served before the possibility of parole for each count under the state's No Early Release Act.

This case is being prosecuted by Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Meghan Doyle. McClave is represented by Timothy Smith, Esq., with an office in Fairfield.

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