One Kearny man who was caught with an inordinate amount of pot on him and who was driving without a driver’s license is a fortunate man — he lives in New Jersey. Why is he fortunate you may ask? Well, despite facing a plethora of criminal and motor-vehicle charges — 18 combined in total — once police processed the man, despite having warrants out of several municipal courts, he was back on the streets the same day.
But he was issued new court dates in addition to the ones he’ll have in Kearny and Hudson County.
On June 6, Kearny units got a call about drug sale taking place in a silver Lexus. Before they could respond to the scene, police fielded a second similar call — and the Lex had crashed. Sgt. John Donovan and Patrolman Lawrence Latka and Cort Montanino arrived on Quincy Avenue, where the Lexus had caused a three-car accident.
When officers made contact with the driver, he sized them up, then sprinted off. After all, isn’t that what most suspects do these days anyway? Then, after, the suspect ran into residential yards on Quincy Avenue, at which point Officer Montanino was able to tackle him. The two wrestled for a period of time until the suspect was subdued and handcuffed. Unfortunately, however, Officer Montanino sustained a head injury during the incident. (Fortunately, after being treated in hospital, Montanino was released and is expected to be back to work soon, if not already.)
Raymond E. Collins Jr., 27 of Trenton, was arrested. He declined medical attention and was taken to KPD HQ.
Earlier, during the foot pursuit, Collins had thrown a black bag containing 25 bags of suspected marijuana, repackaged for distribution (this is still illegal in New Jersey unless done so by a legal dispensary). Collins’s license was also found to be suspended and the Lexus he was driving was found to have no inspection, improperly displayed license plates, and worst of all … no insurance (this, of course, is bad news for the other car owners.)
Collins reportedly displayed signs of impairment, but refused to submit breath samples at headquarters, as required by law. Officers also learned that warrants were outstanding for Collins’s arrest, issued by various courts.
Collins was charged with obstructing the administration of law, resisting arrest, endangering another person, possession w/the intent to distribute, possession of drug paraphernalia, DWI, refusal to submit breath samples, abandonment of an MV, no liability insurance on a vehicle, driving on a suspended license, failure to return a suspended license, failure to report an accident, improper display of registration, leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage, failure to have a vehicle inspection, obstruction of a windshield for vision, careless driving and reckless driving.
And, as you’ve no doubt, by now, surmised, Collins was then released from police custody to a family member, having been issued new court dates to Woodbridge, East Windsor, Hudson County Superior and Kearny municipal courts.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.