Police & Fire
By CAROLYN JONES
December 3, 2025
Princeton, NJ — It’s cold outside, but that’s not the only reason to dread these shorter days. The other is that night driving, which we are doing more of now that the sun sets early, can be tougher as we age.This week, the Princeton Police Department is encouraging older adults, their families, ...
Princeton, NJ – Blackout Wednesday, the night before Thanksgiving when returning college students swarm into Princeton bars to reconnect with old friends, was preceded this year by an implicit warning from Police Chief Matthew Solovay. In his monthly report to Princeton Council on the Monday before ...
Princeton, NJ – For what could be investigative reasons, police sometimes do not release video surveillance images when they first obtain them. But at a certain point, the police make the images widely available and ask the public to weigh in with any possible new information based on the visual ...
Princeton, NJ — There was drama on Nassau Street last week, according to the latest Princeton Police blotter. It involved brazen theft and at least one damaged thumb.On November 15 at 7:34 p.m., patrols responded to a business on Nassau Street for a report of a theft. Three juvenile suspects ...
Princeton, NJ — October’s crash numbers were lower than previous months, but the consequences were scarier. October saw three head-on collisions, each caused by a drunk driver veering into oncoming traffic. In one case, a child was critically injured.In our 12th monthly traffic report below, we ...
Princeton, NJ – It’s always a little difficult to change established traffic patterns – for motorists, bicyclists, and sometimes even pedestrians – so the recently implemented bike lanes and road diet on North Harrison Street near the Princeton Shopping Center have generated their fair share of ...
Princeton, NJ — On Monday, November 3, after months of emails, meetings, and convoluted discussions about the missing crossing guard at Harrison Street and Prospect Avenue, Riverside parents finally learned something new. The Princeton Police Department does have the budget for extra crossing ...
Princeton, NJ – The weekly police blotter from the Princeton Police Department includes a barroom confrontation between two women that sent one of the combatants to the hospital, a DWI that was charged after the driver crashed his car into a house (never a good look), and another inflammatory ...
Princeton, NJ –Another incident – no doubt related to Middle Eastern politics and characterized as a “bias intimidation-harassment” case by Princeton Police – has been reported. On October 27, police were informed of an approximate 2” x 2” sticker placed on a street sign on Houghton Street. The ...
Princeton, NJ — After the publication of the September crash report, TAPinto Princeton received several queries from readers. Is the number of motor vehicle crashes in Princeton increasing? If so, is greater density the cause?They asked because in September of this year, there were 70 crashes in ...
Princeton, NJ – Amid traditional police pageantry, including a color guard and bagpiper, Princeton Council swore in Matthew Solovay as the new chief of police, succeeding Chris Tash, who was in the audience along with the chief who preceded him, Jon Bucchere. Also of note, and presented in the ...
Princeton, NJ – A juvenile passenger in a car traveling north on South Harrison Street, just north of Carnegie Lake on Thursday evening, October 23, was rushed to the hospital in critical condition after the car was struck head on by a southbound car, operated by a driver that Princeton Police ...
Princeton, NJ – Two weeks ago, TAPinto Princeton reported on two break-ins and burglaries of Princeton residences – one on Linwood Circle, the other on Rollingmead — were reported in this week’s Princeton Police blotter. One resulted in the loss of property valued at around $113,000.Last week ...
Princeton, NJ – You may have seen the police camping out around town lately. They weren’t exactly camping out, but they were pitching their tent at the Princeton Shopping Center over the weekend, and then at Nassau Street and University Place on Tuesday, and Washington Road and Ivy Lane on ...
Princeton, NJ — Yet again, a pedestrian was struck in a crosswalk last month, as was a 13-year-old riding her bike through a different crosswalk. In the latter case, police found the biker to be at fault for the crash. In a new-to-us move, a vehicle was punched by an angry cyclist on an e-bike. The ...
Princeton, NJ – Two residential burglaries – one on Linwood Circle, the other on Rollingmead -- were reported in this week’s Princeton Police blotter.On October 1, patrols responded to a residence on Linwood Circle for the report of a residential burglary. The investigation revealed that between ...
Princeton, NJ – Enforcement or education? When it comes to making Princeton’s streets safer, which is the better course of action for Princeton police?Some residents have been debating that question since recent reports of a fairly substantial decrease in speeding tickets issued by police between ...
Princeton, NJ – Especially when you’re dealing with a small sample size, profiling is not a wise practice. But even though reports of rabies cases in Princeton are rare, when we heard that a rabid animal had been located in the area of Vreeland Court, a cul-de-sac off of Farrand Drive, our first ...
Princeton, NJ – The Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve on Mountain Avenue isn’t often the subject of a police report but at around 9 a.m. on Thursday, October 2, Princeton Police sent out an alert to the public: “Mountain Lakes Preserve and the Lake house on Mountain Avenue will be closed until further ...
Princeton, NJ — For most of us, road safety awareness is a dry topic. As we move through town, we’re driving safely (probably), but we’re also wondering what’s for dinner. Unfortunately, the police crash records show what happens when we tune out. An average of 59 motor vehicle collisions occur in ...
Princeton, NJ – It is refreshing to see that the incoming chief, Matthew Solovay, is concerned about traffic safety and not revenue collection. A study several years ago revealed that many people exceed the posted speed limits by 5 to 10 mph, which can be partially attributed to improvements in ...
Princeton, NJ – Earlier this week, on September 21, Walkable Princeton, a pedestrian and bicycling advocacy group, raised a question about the Princeton Police Department’s enforcement of speeding laws in town. Comparing statistics in the most recent police reports to the Mayor and Council with ...
Princeton, NJ – Six more bias intimidation incidents have been reported by Princeton Police – four of them involving anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian politics. Similar incidents began to surface in Princeton in late December, 2023, several months after the October 7 attacks by Hamas terrorists in ...
Princeton, NJ – Another police chief is retiring from the Princeton Police Department after passing his 25th anniversary with the force. Christopher Tash, who was promoted to chief in 2024, following the retirement of Jon Bucchere after he had marked 25 years on the force, has announced his own ...
Princeton, NJ – Trying to thwart biased graffiti, patrolling streets for drunk drivers, investigating credit card fraud and criminal mischief. Crime prevention, as reported in the weekly police blotter reports, is the way many residents know the Princeton police. The department is trying to change ...
Princeton, NJ — August was another tough month for pedestrians, with three being struck by cars while walking in a marked crosswalk. In a dismal echo of the June crash report, another cyclist riding in the designated bike lane on Washington Road was struck by a car turning into Woodlands Way, a ...
Princeton, NJ – Several more instances of anti-Israel/pro-Palestinian graffiti – characterized by police as bias intimidation incidents – have been reported at various locations around town.Princeton police report that August 29 patrols responded to Quarry Park near Spruce Street for the report of ...
A 56-year-old Princeton resident, a medical doctor with an office in East Brunswick, was killed Sunday, August 24, in a boating accident in Barneget Bay. Karl Chen died in the 10 a.m. incident when he and another passenger in his 27-foot boat were thrown overboard after it was rocked by a large ...
Princeton, NJ – Middle Eastern politics once again showed up in Princeton. Police reported two similar incidents of what they termed “bias intimidation -criminal mischief” in the form of graffiti at public parks on Snowden Lane and Mountain Avenue. On August 15, patrols responded to a park on ...
Princeton, NJ – If you get more with honey than with vinegar, then imagine what a kiss could get you. Princeton Police report that on August 5 at around 4:30 p.m. a man was walking on Riverside Drive near Balsam Lane when he was approached by a gray vehicle with an unknown Georgia license plate. He ...