*Press
Release* Date: January 20, 2009
Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office
On January 12, 2009, at 11:14 p.m., two officers from the
South Brunswick Police Department shot and killed 23 year old Jacob Olson. The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office has
jurisdiction in police involved shooting cases that result in a fatality, and
as a matter of policy, no law enforcement officer but the County Prosecutor or
his designee is permitted to comment regarding the details of the cases. Having an independent agency (such as the
Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office) conduct the investigation and disseminate
information assures an impartial and fair review of the incident to determine
whether the officers acted in accordance with the law.
The
purpose of this press release is to provide additional information about the
shooting.
On
January 13, 2009, an autopsy was performed on Jacob Olson by Middlesex
The
officers involved in the shooting have 14 and 2 years of law enforcement
experience respectively (all with the South Brunswick Police Department). Both officers have been placed on
administrative leave which is standard procedure when an officer is involved in
a shooting. In addition, all officers
involved in shooting incidents are required to attend a confidential debriefing
with a department approved medical professional within 48 hours following the
incident. The return to work of the two
officers involved in this shooting will be based on a review of the examining
doctor’s evaluation report and the results of the investigation.
No
conclusions or determinations about this incident will be made until all of the
following investigative tasks are completed:
1. Scene analysis;
2. Interview of all witnesses with relevant information;
3. Interview of both officers involved in
the shooting;
4. Ballistics analysis;
5. Review of autopsy results;
6. Toxicology analysis;
7. Review of videotape from police car;
8. Review of all police audio transmissions
regarding this incident;
9. Review of any and all other pertinent
information.
The
identity of both officers involved in the shooting and additional details
regarding the autopsy findings will not be disclosed until certain
investigative tasks are completed. It is
anticipated that this information will be released next week.
Any questions about this press
release should be directed to
Assistant Prosecutor Nicholas F. Sewitch
at (732) 331-3389