1 dead in possible police chase in East Orange – NBC New York

One person was killed in a police chase in a New Jersey neighborhood. Investigators are currently looking into what might have happened.

The accident happened around 1 p.m. Tuesday on Park Avenue in East Orange, officials said. One person is believed to have died in a hit-and-run accident. An employee at a nearby school said the school was locked down for two hours. He later saw two wrecked cars, one of which struck the side of a parked ambulance where the airbag had deployed.

It was not known which police agency was involved in the pursuit, nor was it clear which car was being pursued. It was also unclear whether the driver who struck the pedestrian had been arrested.

The Essex County District Attorney’s Office was on scene, but the Attorney General’s Office confirmed it is investigating the case locally. Typically, the Attorney General’s Office only gets involved in a civilian death if it is somehow connected to police activity.

Neither the prosecutor’s office nor the attorney general’s office released information about the crash or the deceased person.

A neighbor asked what role the police pursuit might have played in the accident.

“My children live here and go to school here,” the neighbor said. “Why are you chasing these cars and killing these innocent people? Now someone has lost their life here on Park Avenue.”

The investigation is ongoing.