A New Jersey police sergeant was allegedly driving under the influence during a wrong-way crash that killed one person this month.
Keith Gunther, 42, a sergeant with the East Hanover Police Department, was charged on Tuesday with second-degree vehicular homicide and third-degree assault, according to a press release from the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. He was also issued a summons for driving while intoxicated on October 15.
Around 11 p.m. that night, Gunther, who was off-duty at the time, was driving south on Route 23 North when his Ford F-150 drifted across the centerline and then collided head-on with a Toyota Camry traveling in the northbound lane. Gunther “exhibited signs of being under the influence” following the crash in Riverdale, the prosecutor’s office said.
The driver of the Camry — whose name has not been released — was taken to St. Joseph’s University Medical Center with injuries that were not life-threatening, while a passenger in the vehicle was pronounced dead on the scene, according to authorities. He was later identified as as 55-year-old Hamid Shabuddin, of Paterson, the Bergen County Record reported.
Gunther was taken into custody at the scene, but has since been released and is under pretrial monitoring, according to authorities. He was also ordered to surrender his driver’s license and passport and must refrain from excessive use of alcohol.
Gunther’s attorney, Robert Scrivo, told NJ.com his client is a “man of great service,” who previously served overseas with the National Guard. He also been member of the East Hanover Police Department for 17 years.
He’s due to return to Morris County Superior Court on Dec. 9 for a pre-indictment conference.