Police Charge Campers with Assaulting Officers

ERMA — On Sat., Oct. 2 at approximately 12:50 a.m., Lower Township Police Officer William McPherson was dispatched to the Beachcomber Campground for a report of an intoxicated and disorderly subject.
The manager of the campground advised the officer that a guest at the campsite identified as Michael Callahan, 48, of Sportswood, N.J., was being loud and disorderly and using abusive language and that several other campers had complained about Callahan’s actions.
When told about the complaints by the manager, Callahan demanded to know who complained about him and then threatened to kill whoever complained.
The campground then called the Lower Township police to have Callahan removed from the property.
When McPherson approached Callahan, the subject demanded that the officer who was in full uniform at the time, produce identification. Callahan then suddenly attacked the officer punching him several times. Callahan was brought to the ground and arrested by Officer McPherson and Cpl. Edward Dougherty who had arrived for back up.
While handcuffing Callahan, other males at the campsite began yelling at the officers to leave Callahan alone.
Then while escorting Callahan to his patrol vehicle, McPherson was approached by a male subject identified as Carlos E. Leon, 21, of Sayerville, in an aggressive manner and refused verbal commands from the officer to back off.
Leon then began to wrestle with the officer and both the officer and Leon went to the ground where Leon continued to wrestle with the officer.
At that point, Dougherty ran to McPherson’s location and discharged his pepper mace at Leon. However, Leon continued to resist arrest and had to be physically restrained by the officers before being handcuffed.
Callahan was charged with one count of aggravated assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.
Leon was charged with two counts of aggravated assault on police officers, resisting arrest and obstruction of justice. He was lodged in county jail in lieu of $10,000 cash bail set by Lower Township Municipal Court Judge David DeWeese.
Both Lower Township Officers were injured in the incident with McPherson sustaining injuries to his knee, elbow and neck as well as swelling to an eye and a bloody lip. Dougherty sustained a knee injury during the struggle.