N.J. Governor to Address Sharp Jump in Traffic Deaths in Major Speech
The New York Times
Gov. Philip D. Murphy will unveil priorities for his last year in office during his State of the State address on Tuesday.
With a year left in office, Gov. Philip D. Murphy of New Jersey is expected to outline his final priorities on Tuesday during his seventh State of the State address before a joint session of the Legislature in Trenton.
Mr. Murphy, a two-term Democrat, said on Monday that his to-do list remained long, and he indicated that it included an effort to address the alarming increase in roadway fatalities that have occurred in New Jersey during his second term.
Traffic fatalities nationwide have been declining. In New Jersey, however, they spiked by roughly 14 percent last year.
The increase coincided with a drastic reduction in traffic enforcement by State Police troopers, who in July 2023 began writing far fewer tickets for speeding, drunken driving, cellphone use and other violations.
The reduced enforcement began a week after the state’s attorney general, Matthew J. Platkin, released a report critical of the performance of the State Police, New Jersey’s largest policing agency. Mr. Platkin has appointed Preet Bharara, a prominent former federal prosecutor in Manhattan, to lead a criminal investigation of the slowdown.
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