Ortley Beach Fight Among 600 Police Calls In Toms River Over July 4th

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Authorities had to disperse several large groups of people over the July 4 holiday weekend in Toms River, resulting in several arrests, as the holiday brought a number of teens and young adults to the beach, police said.

That included a large fight outside Barnacle Bill's Amusements on Route 35 north in Ortley Beach, according to call records from the Ocean County Sheriff's Office. That was among nearly 2,000 calls countywide that the sheriff's office responded to over the holiday, records show.

Toms River police did not provide specifics on the Barnacle Bill's fight, which happened about 10 p.m. Sunday, but said it was among more than 600 calls across the township over the weekend.

"Throughout the 4th of July holiday weekend we had a number of juveniles and young adults converge on the beach area of our town," Jillian Messina, media relations specialist for the Toms River Police Department.

"Most of them were frequenting local businesses and engaging in lawful activities, however there were some large groups that formed and several individuals from within those groups created a number of issues, resulting in several arrests," Messina said. "These groups were addressed immediately and were dealt with by patrol officers."

News 12 reported two officers were assaulted during the Barnacle Bill's fight.

In total, Toms River police answered 628 calls over the holiday weekend, including 195 in the beach sections of the township, amounting to 30 percent of the town's police calls.

Of the 628 calls, 34 specifically related to juveniles, Messina said, and 24 of those were in the beach communities.

There were 75 calls to police about disorderly conduct, 11 of which were in the beach communities, and there were 108 calls about fireworks, with three of those in the beach communities, she said.

"Please keep in mind that these numbers below were 'reported' incidents and do not reflect every encounter the officers had throughout their shifts," she said.