Full Notification

A message from Cranbury Township Police Department

As Chief of Police, I am announcing that the Cranbury Township Police Department, together with law enforcement agencies across New Jersey, will participate in the first coordinated, statewide enforcement operation for the Goal Zero campaign on Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday, November 26—an evening commonly known as “Blackout Wednesday” or “Drinksgiving.”

On this date, police departments across the state will deploy enhanced, high-visibility enforcement as we expand a successful local initiative into a unified, statewide traffic-safety effort. This coordinated response supports New Jersey’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe System Approach. To strengthen this operation, additional Cranbury Township Police Officers will be assigned to patrol and address this ongoing public-safety concern.

Goal Zero embodies a clear and uncompromising mission: zero deaths, zero injuries, and zero crashes on New Jersey’s roadways. The night before Thanksgiving historically marks the start of a seasonal rise in impaired driving, making our commitment more important than ever.

This campaign began in response to a heartbreaking tragedy. In January 2024, following a fatal crash on Route 34 in Howell Township that claimed the life of a three-year-old child, Holmdel Police Officer Matt Menosky launched high-visibility enforcement details across Monmouth County during the evening hours. The results were profound: fatal crashes in the county declined from 39 in 2024 to 15 in 2025—a 61% reduction, representing 24 lives saved. While several factors contributed to this decline, Goal Zero played a critical role in directing resources, attention, and a shared sense of responsibility.

As part of this initiative, police departments across New Jersey will conduct high-visibility patrols on roadways identified as high-risk within their communities. Many agencies will utilize state Division of Highway Traffic Safety grant funding for overtime enforcement, while others will assign on-duty officers to ensure a strong, proactive presence.

As we have long emphasized—and will continue to stress as members of the Cranbury Township Police Department, we echo the words of Montville Police Chief Andrew Caggiano, President of NJSACOP, “Goal Zero stands in honor of the life we lost and symbolizes every life we can still save. No family should ever face the pain of losing someone they love to a crash that could have been prevented.”

Chief Giuseppe N. DeChiara
Cranbury Township Police Department
 

Instructions:

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