RED BANK: WOMAN FLEES STOP, CRASHES CAR
An Atlantic Highlands motorist was injured after she fled an attempted stop by Little Silver police and crashed into a tree in Red Bank early Christmas morning, police said.
WHAT’S FOR LUNCH? A TASTE OF NEW ENGLAND
A fried shrimp platter with coleslaw and crispy french fries. The corn chowder, below, was filled with bits of crab. (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
Casting its net a bit beyond the usual limits of the Greater Red Bank Green, PieHole finds lots of fresh fish choices at the Navesink Fishery in Navesink.
With 40-plus years of fishmongering and cooking, 20 of which have been spent at this restaurant, owner Ruddy Field is serious about bringing his customers simple cuisine from briny depths and fresh water lakes. Landlubbers need not apply.
COPS: BODY FOUND, BOAT DRIVER WAS DRUNK
The command center in front of the mansion at 36 Northover Place in Middletown, where the victims of the boating accident came ashore, as seen at about 5 a.m. Sunday. (Click to enlarge)
An Atlantic Highlands man was charged with drunk driving in the Navesink River accident that killed the lone passenger of the boat he was operating and sent all five occupants of a second boat into the water Saturday night, State Police said Sunday morning.
The body of the victim, which had been missing after the 11:30 p.m. crash, was recovered from the river almost nine hours later, after being spotted by a State Police helicopter between Middletown and Fair Haven, said Sergeant Brian Polite.
An eyewitness gave redbankgreen a different account of the body’s recovery.
The name of the victim has not been released pending notification of next of kin, he said. [Update, 2:50 p.m.: NJ.com reports the victim was Christopher Plant, 50, from Keansburg.]
IN RED BANK, AN INSTANT FAMILY ADDITION
Jeff and Donna Clapp with their adopted son, Cristopher, outside their home on Rector Place. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
Jeff and Donna Clapp decided long ago they would never have children. The couple, who’ve been married 17 years, were busy with their careers, loved traveling and enjoyed life alone in their first-floor apartment in Red Bank.
But that all changed last year, when the Clapps fell hard for a long-haired boy who Donna Clapp says shares “spiritual DNA” with them.
Before they knew it, the couple were signing paperwork to officially adopt a son a 17-year-old on the edge of legal independence, making for a story that summons a Hollywood script a la The Blind Side.
Today, there would a be a hole in this unexpected family if that boy weren’t around telling jokes or playing video games in his bedroom.
“I can’t imagine what things would be without him,” Jeff Clapp, 42, said.
FULL OF VODKA, COVERED IN BLOOD
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
Drugs and alcohol dominate the Middletown police blotter this week, which includes at least two drunken driving arrests in which the drivers are alleged to have had open bottles of liquor in their cars and several arrests for possession of illegal meds and marijuana.
The reports from Middletown Detective Sergeant Steve Dollinger appear unedited below.
GUN WAVER AMONG M’TOWN ARRESTEES
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
One man was arrested for waving a gun and threatening to use it, another was arrested for stealing from a food store and two were cuffed after a fight on Middletown Avenue.
They’re all part of this week’s crime roundup provided by Middletown police.
M’TOWN POLICE MAKE 5 WEEKEND ARRESTS
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
Middletown police made five arrests over the weekend, with incidents including two failed burglary attempts and somebody allegedly trying to lift candy, socks and lawn care products from a food store.
Two others were picked up on active arrest warrants, police said.