Newark Man Charged In Wrong-Way Crash That Killed Corrections Officer
NEWARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A Newark man has been charged in connection to a wrong-way crash that killed a corrections officer.
Dashawn Walton, 24, is facing first degree aggravated manslaughter charges.
The Essex County prosecutor's office says around 2:30 a.m. on Aug. 24, a Hillside police officer tried to pull Walton over, but Walton sped off.
The officer pursued Walton, who ended up driving the wrong way down a one-way street into Newark.
According to the prosecutor's office, Walton crashed into a Ford Mustang driven by 49-year-old Omar Martin, a corrections officer at Newark's Northern State Prison.
Martin's vehicle was pushed into a utility pole, pinning him inside. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The prosecutor's office says Walton has also been charged with eluding, vehicular homicide and causing a death while in a motor vehicle collision while driving without a license.
The New Jersey attorney general's Shooting Response Task Force is investigating the crash since law enforcement was involved.
According to police pursuit policy in New Jersey, officers are allowed to pursue into a different jurisdiction as long as they notify authorities there. They are supposed to terminate a pursuit if there is a clear and unreasonable danger to the police officer or the public.
