South Jersey rest station shooting involving state police and U.S. Marshals under investigation

The New Jersey Attorney General’s office is investigating the shooting of a civilian “in the presence of law enforcement” at a rest station in Pedricktown, Salem County, on Tuesday.

A man was shot around 1:45 p.m. at the Clara Barton Service Area, located along the New Jersey Turnpike.

Members of the New Jersey State Police and the United States Marshals Service were involved, according to a brief statement.

No details were provided on who shot the man or what his current condition is.

A spokesperson for the attorney general declined to answer follow up questions.

The office’s Integrity Bureau is conducting reviewing the shooting, the statement said. Signed in 2019, a directive outlines the state’s process for investigating cases of “police use-of-force or in-custody death.”

According to the directive, independent investigators are required to conduct witness interviews, collect forensic evidence, and review any available video and audio recordings of use-of-force incidents.

In fatal incidents, the directive requires evidence be presented before a grand jury, which chooses whether to recommend criminal indictment.

That process played out in February when a grand jury recommended no indictment be filed against the Hillsborough police officer who fatally shot 43-year-old Patrick Chin in 2021 during a welfare check.

Several New Jersey grand jury investigations from 2021 and 2022 also ended without indictments.

In January, however, the directive led to a grand jury recommending the misconduct indictment of a Trenton police officer who pepper-sprayed Joseph Ahr Sr.

The 64-year old died of respiratory failure nearly three weeks after the 2020 incident, and the death was ruled a homicide.