Crime & Safety
Christie Orders Flags At Half Staff For Bergen County Officer Killed in Crash
Waldwick Police Officer Christopher Goodell will be honored throughout the state on the day of his funeral.
Governor Chris Christie has ordered all state flags to be flown at half staff Tuesday in honor of Christopher Goodell, the police officer struck and killed by a tractor-trailer while sitting in his patrol car running radar scans on Route 17 early Thursday morning.
"Officer Goodell's dedication to serving his nation and community makes it appropriate and fitting for the State of New Jersey to recognize his life, mourn his passing, and remember his family as they grieve their tragic loss," Christie said in a statement on Friday.
All state building flags will be lowered Tuesday, on the day of Officer Goodell's funeral mass at St. Luke's Church in Ho-Ho-Kus at 11 a.m. The funeral will follow a viewing Monday night from 2 to 9 p.m., also at St. Luke's, according to the Borough of Waldwick.
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Goodell, 32, was a Marine veteran who served for eight years before he became a Waldwick police officer. He served Waldwick for the last five years, and had also been engaged to be married.
"Chris will be greatly missed by all for his love and dedication to his home [of] Waldwick," read a statement on the borough's website. "You will never be forgotten for the good deeds you have done for the residents of Waldwick."
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The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office has charged the driver of the truck, 28-year-old Ryon Cumberbatch of New York, with second-degree vehicular homicide after the accident investigation determined that there was no evidence of the driver attempting to brake before he hit Goodell's unmarked and unlit car on the shoulder of Route 17 at approximately 1:30am. Prosecutor John L. Molinelli stated that it appeared Cumberbatch had "made no effort to stop" before hitting the officer's vehicle. Cumberbatch was consequently arrested and released after he met his bail terms and is scheduled to appear in Bergen County Central Municipal Court on Monday morning.
Read more here: http://ridgewood.patch.com/groups/police-and-fire/p/update-officer-struck-and-killed-on-route-17-was...
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