Juvenile charged with attempted murder for stabbing 15-year-old on Ocean City boardwalk
OCEAN CITY, N.J. (CBS) -- A juvenile suspect accused of stabbing a teenager on the Ocean City, New Jersey, boardwalk over Memorial Day weekend is now in custody and charged with attempted murder.
The Cape May County Prosecutors Office said Wednesday that investigators used witness interviews and surveillance video to help identify the underage suspect, who was arrested Tuesday, June 4 in Pleasantville, New Jersey.
The prosecutor's office said along with first-degree attempted murder, the suspect is being charged with aggravated assault and weapons violations.
On Sunday, May 26, the Ocean City Police Department said a 15-year-old was stabbed on the 1000 block of the boardwalk Saturday night after a fight broke out between a group of kids.
The teenager was taken to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City, where prosecutors said Wednesday he was treated for lacerations and a stab wound to his abdomen.
Videos of a fight involving a group of young people and of crowds frantically running off the boardwalk started circulating online following the incident Saturday night. One mother told CBS News Philadelphia "all these kids started running, literally trampling over older adults, kids — it didn't matter, just going right through everybody."
Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian released a statement after the incident, where he acknowledged the city has seen more issues involving bad behavior by young people over the holiday weekend in recent years.
"I understand the impact that this behavior has on all of our residents, guests and business owners, and I want to assure everybody that Ocean City will not tolerate it," Gillian said.
Gillian said an 11 p.m. curfew and beach backpack ban will remain in effect for the city.
New Jersey State Policemen's Benevolent Association President Peter Andreyev also said "more needs to be done to allow police to protect our communities" following the stabbing in Ocean City and an equally chaotic weekend in Wildwood, where city officials and police issued a state of emergency after being inundated with calls related to large groups of young adults and kids.
"There needs to be real consequences for violent, drunken, and dangerous behavior for both juveniles and adults," Andreyev wrote on X.
Following the unrest in both Wildwood and Ocean City, Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland reiterated that "bad decisions and bad actions" will be met with legal action this summer.