A Jersey City police sergeant has been charged with assault by auto after an investigation into a summer incident where he hit a man with his car, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Officers who abuse their power and break the law will be held accountable for their actions,” Suarez said in a statement.
“The Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor will continue to vigorously investigate and root out police misconduct and wrongdoing.”
On January 12, 2018, the Internal Affairs Unit of Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office arrested Jersey City Police Sgt. John Ransom for his involvement in an incident in Audubon Park in Jersey City that occurred in August, Suarez said in a news release today.
A complaint summons has been issued charging Ransom with assault by auto and causing serious bodily injury, authorities said.
Ransom is the 10th Jersey City police officer to be charged by the prosecutor’s office in the past 18 months, while former Police Chief Philip Zacche was the 10th cop to become ensnared in a federal probe into no-show off-duty jobs.
Ransom is scheduled to make his first appearance on this charge at 10:00 a.m. on February 2, 2018, in CJP Court located in the Hudson County Administration Building at 595 Newark Ave. in Jersey City.
Shortly after 7 p.m. on Sunday, August 6, 2017, Jersey City police officers were investigating an incident involving suspected controlled dangerous substances.
They attempted to stop a suspect, later identified as Shiron Cooper, who fled the scene and ran into Audubon Park.
Ransom followed the suspect in his patrol car and then allegedly struck Cooper twice while driving his vehicle and the incident was recorded with surveillance cameras.
Cooper sustained abrasions, contusions, and lacerations to his torso and head, as well as a
fracture to his face. He was transported by Emergency Medical Services to Jersey City Medical Center to receive treatment for his injuries, officials said.
Cooper was arrested and later pleaded guilty to possession of CDS charges.
As a result, he was sentenced to two years of probation on September 29, 2017.
