NJ hit and run on water leaves 1 dead, 4 injured

[voyager35]

"Neighbors say speeding is a problem" Maybe it's about time the state police come down hard on these yahoos. Every year I see more and more idiots who run by their own rules become boat owners.





N.J. Hit-And-Run On Water Leaves 1 Dead, 4 Injured

http://llnw.image.cbslocal.com/29/2007/09/12/75x56/sloan.jpg Reporting
Christine Sloan (http://wcbstv.com/bios/WCBS.WCBS.TV.9.8583.html)
BRICK TOWNSHIP, N.J. (CBS) ― Police in New Jersey are searching for the driver of a boat after a deadly hit and run on the water that left one person dead and four others injured.

The driver of the boat who plowed into another and then sped away could face vehicular homicide charges.

The tragic hit-and-run boating accident happened at around 1:14 a.m. on the Metedeconk River. Police say Robert Post, who was on a Boston Whaler was killed after being struck in the head by the boat that fled the scene.

"I heard a couple girls screaming, so I didn't get up cause it was dark," neighbor Karen Murchison said. "Then I heard a speed boat pulling out, going really fast."

Post's wife Bonnie and three other friends, including a couple from the Philadelphia area were also injured and rushed to the Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

Investigators say one of the injured called 9-1-1 for help.

A large chunk of the victim's boat was knocked off, which police say was out for a leisurely ride with all of its lights on. Police have not been able to find witnesses to the hit-and-run crash, only people who saw the aftermath.

"I saw one person who walked off the boat and everybody else was taken off by stretcher from there," said neighbor Dr. Eric Lehnes.

"I think it's horrible how anybody could do that and take off," added Jeane Bechtold.

Neighbors say speeding is problem on this river.

"We need barrels and people to be aware that they need to slow down," said Susan Scherler.

Brick Township police are asking the public for help.

Sgt. Julian Castellanos, of the NJ State Police said, "we appeal to that person to please come forward."

[captnemo]

This goes on all the time. Back many years ago, I believe Hovnanian's son died in an accident where reckless boating was involved. Don't remember all the details, but here we are again. We need more enforcement. Thoughts and prayers for the families.

[captnemo]

Police may have found boater involved in fatal crash

by MaryAnn Spoto/The Star-Ledger Tuesday August 05, 2008, 12:05 AM


State Police searching for a hit-and-run boater from an accident that killed an Essex Fells man zeroed in on a damaged 27-foot speed boat found at a Brick Township residence yesterday.
Investigators seized the Imperial speed boat from the home's garage after the owner contacted police through his lawyer, State Police Sgt. Julian Castellanos said.


Authorities did not identify the boat's 29-year-old owner, but a law enforcement source gave his name as Anthony DiGilio.
DiGilio's lawyer, William Cunningham, said his client was out on the ocean with his girlfriend and was returning to the home of a relative along the Metedeconk River when the accident happened after 1 a.m. Sunday.


He hit something but didn't know what he hit, Cunningham said.
"He stopped as a normal boater would do to check his boat," the lawyer said. "He didn't hear anything; he didn't see anything."
Cunningham said DiGilio was alerted by a sensor that his boat was taking on water and returned to the relative's house. He said DiGilio transported the boat to his family's house, because he knew it needed to be repaired.


Cunningham, a former Ocean County assistant prosecutor, said DiGilio's father contacted him after the family learned from a friend that there had been an accident. In 2002, Cunningham helped prosecute Barry Flowers, whose boat killed three fishermen.
Cunningham said DiGilio's boat had its running lights on at the time of Sunday's incident. Asked if his client had been drinking, Cunningham said, "to my knowledge, that's not an issue in the case."


"They are crushed that it's possible the kid hit something and a life was lost," Cunningham said. "They are destroyed, not for themselves but for those families."

No charges have been filed, authorities said, but the case will be referred to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office once State Police complete their investigation.


The speed boat shows signs of damage consistent with a collision, but police were still trying to piece together exactly what happened during the 1:14 a.m. crash on the Metedeconk that killed Robert Post, 49, and injured four others.
"The preliminary evidence indicates both boats were moving at the time of the crash. It is not yet known if both vessels were using the proper nighttime running lights," according to a statement released by the State Police.


Post and his wife, Bonnie, were aboard their 17-foot, single-engine Boston Whaler with a group of friends when it was hit by a larger boat in a small strait between the mainland of Brick Township and Herring Island.


Robert Post died of a head injury. His wife and their three guests were taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune.
Cliff Farren, 45, of St. Davids, Pa., and Karen Kelly 46, of Norcross, Ga., were treated and released. Bonnie Post and Joan Farren remained hospitalized yesterday, said hospital spokesman Rob Cavanaugh. Bonnie Post, 52, was in fair condition, while Farren, 46, was in serious condition.


The friends are all members of the Bay Head Yacht Club and had known each other for many years.
Robert Post, an investment banker, and Bonnie Post, a former member of the Essex Fells School Board, have two sons.
Relatives of the Post family gathered yesterday at their condominium in Point Pleasant Beach on the Bay Head border. One said the family had been advised the other boat had been located but little more.


"It's a tragedy," the man said.
The Posts' Boston Whaler showed the severity of the collision. On Sunday, police displayed the boat, which has a jagged 4-foot hole in the right side of its hull.
The victims were unable to describe the boat that hit them, police said, although one of the victims was able to call 911 to report the accident.


Investigators searched marinas, private docks and marine repair shops around Ocean County for a damaged boat before receiving the call from DiGilio's attorney.

[CharlieTuna]

To me, that story sounds like a complete sham, like he knew he would be caught and wanted to turn himself in because he had no other options. Same problems with boaters up here. There should be stricter enforcement, though I don't know how that would have helped at 1am when this supposedly happened.

[plugcrazy]

Says he didn't realize he hit them, BS coverup. How could you not know? He rushed back to dock the boat because he was probably drunk. I agree with the coverup angle, he was probably incognito, and his girlfriend was about to blab, so he had to fess up. Wasn't there another captain who nailed some fishermen a few years ago, off Cape May, something like that?

[hookset]

Deadly Barnegat Bay crash fuels drive for speed limits

Thursday, August 07, 2008 BY MARYANN SPOTO
Star-Ledger Staff

A long-debated attempt to impose speed limits on the Barnegat Bay and other waterways in New Jersey gained new life yesterday when a state senator suggested restricting night-time boat speed to 10 mph.


The proposal by Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Bergen) is in response to Sunday's death of a 49-year-old Essex Fells man, whose 17-foot Boston Whaler was hit by another boat at the mouth of the Barnegat Bay in Brick Township at 1:14 a.m. The second boat left the scene of the accident, which killed Robert Post and injured his four passengers, including his wife.


Investigators, however, seized the 27-foot Imperial speedboat of 29-year-old Anthony DiGilio of Brick and are examining it to determine whether it was the second vessel in the crash.
Post's wife, Bonnie, was released from Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune yesterday, hospital spokesman Rob Cavanaugh said. The last of the hospitalized survivors, Joan Farren, 46, of Radnor, Pa., remains there in serious condition.


New Jersey State Police have not charged anyone in the incident, which is still under investigation, and have not said that speed or alcohol was a factor. But many in the boating community have said the damage to Post's boat -- a gaping chunk ripped from the starboard side -- indicates the second boat was traveling at excessive speeds, particularly for a night when there was no moonlight.


"I realize efforts to impose speed limits in the past have been controversial and unsuccessful, but I believe there will be sufficient public support now," Sarlo said. "Speeding boats at night on Barnegat Bay, combined with the all-too-frequent floating cocktail parties and unskilled boaters, are recipes for disaster."


In 2003, the state Boat Regulation Commission sought to impose speed limits on portions of the bay and its tributaries but settled on increasing the number of slow-speed, no wake buoys in particular areas after getting heavy pressure from some powerboat groups. A number of recreational boaters and waterfront homeowners complained excessive speed on the bay and its tributaries damaged their boats and jeopardized their safety.


Yesterday, Boat Regulation Commission chairman Roger K. Brown, who favored a speed limit, said he welcomes the legislation.
"I think I've got a lot of public opinion on my side this time," Brown said. "Before, we were talking about noise. Now we're talking about people getting killed and injured. He will get the support of the Boat Regulation Commission."


Dave Patnaude, president of the New Jersey Performance Powerboat Club, said the legislation may be premature because the investigation is not complete.


"Everyone is jumping to conclusions, (saying) 'It was speed, it was alcohol, it was recklessness,'" he said. "Nobody clearly understands or knows why this happened. I'd hate to see something of a knee-jerk reaction happen before the facts are fully known."

[williehookem]

"But many in the boating community have said the damage to Post's boat -- a gaping chunk ripped from the starboard side -- indicates the second boat was traveling at excessive speeds, particularly for a night when there was no moonlight."


I saw the photo's of those boats, there was no way you could say it was not caused by too much speed.