No Charges For Keansburg Officer Who Fatally Shot Chainsaw Wielding Man: AG

Authorities said Wednesday, July 30, that a state grand jury had decided not to charge a Keansburg police officer with a crime for shooting and killing a 46-year-old man brandishing a chainsaw.

Officers show up to check on Willem Roman’s welfare.

According to New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, Keansburg police were asked to do a welfare check at a residence on Seabreeze Way on Monday, May 27, 2024, at 1:07 p.m. Willem Roman had a running chainsaw and multiple other weapons when two officers entered the house, according to Platkin.

According to Platkin, Roman brought the chainsaw to the cops. According to Platkin, Patrolman Tyler Manges shot Roman after Patrolman John Swartz used a taser on him.

According to Platkin, Roman passed away two weeks after being brought to Jersey Shore University Medical Center. According to Platkin, officers later found that Roman was also carrying several knives and a crossbow.

Two police body-worn cameras from the interaction are being made public by the state as part of its inquiry.

N.J.S.A. 52:17B-107(a)(2), a statute passed in 2019, mandates that the Attorney General’s Office look into deaths that happen while a person is in custody or during an interaction with a law enforcement official working in that officer’s official capacity. In order to decide whether the evidence warrants the return of an indictment against the officer or officers involved, it mandates that all such investigations be brought before a grand jury. As mandated by statutes, the grand jury is also briefed on self-defense and other types of legal justification in addition to the elements of the prospective criminal charges, including criminal homicide offenses, that could be prosecuted.