TRENTON — The Attorney General’s Office is investigating a death in police custody that occurred on February 12, 2024, following an incident in Knowlton, Warren County, New Jersey. The identity of the decedent, an adult male, is not being released at this time.

According to the preliminary investigation, members of the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) responded to a call received at about 8 p.m. February 12 that an individual had been shot at a residence on Columbia Street in Knowlton, and that shots were still being fired. One female victim was found at the residence with gunshot wounds and was later pronounced deceased.

Responding troopers took a man into custody at about 8:30 p.m. While in police custody, the individual became unresponsive. NJSP troopers performed lifesaving efforts and emergency medical personnel responded to the scene. The man was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital — Pocono (Mount Pocono Regional) in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, where he was pronounced deceased at approximately 8:57 p.m. The cause and manner of death are currently under investigation.

N.J.S.A. 52:17B-107(a)(2) requires the Attorney General’s Office to conduct investigations of a person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody. It requires that all such investigations be presented to a state grand jury to determine if the evidence supports the return of an indictment against the officer or officers involved.

The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at this time.

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