Drunk New Jersey Teens Spray-Painted Swastikas All Over Town
Two drunk New Jersey teens spray-painted their town with swastikas – but they won’t be charged with a “bias crime,” NJ.com reported.
A civilian called 911 on the morning of August 9th to report people drinking and spray-painting near the Hensyn Village apartment complex in Mount Olive, New Jersey, NJ.com reported. A 16 year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl near the complex were subsequently arrested for underage possession and consumption of alcohol and criminal mischief, according to a police report.
A police officer recounted seeing empty beer cans and a bottle of vodka in a nearby parking lot and found swastikas on cars, buildings, flags and signs around the complex.
But police aren’t considering “bias crime” charges.
“Although some of the spray paint depicted swastikas and derogatory words, there is no indication that a specific group or individual was a target,” they said in a statement. “The investigation determined that the vandalism did not meet the Attorney General’s guidelines for a bias crime.”
A third individual, a 20 year-old woman, was also found intoxicated near Hensyn Village. She was arrested for underage possession and consumption of alcohol.
Just last month, worshippers at a New Jersey synagogue were attacked leaving services with water guns, and earlier this summer swastikas were discovered at a New Jersey school.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30