A retired Atlantic City Police Officer called into WPG Radio on May 28 to discuss recent boardwalk violence in Ocean City, Wildwood and Atlantic City. Mr. Michael Heath said: Start locking these thugs up. It will not be long before people stop coming to the Ocean City Boardwalk. They’ll stop bringing their families. Thugs will take over. Property values will go down. Stores will shut down. I’m tired of hearing the news say ‘there was a fight on the boardwalk’. No, there wasn’t. There were 15 thugs beating up a young white kid on the boardwalk. No one stepped in to help that poor kid except for a 16 year old girl.
LISTEN Hurley WPG Radio > Retired Atlantic City Police Officer Michael Heath.
Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano told New Jersey 101.5’s Bill Spadea that it was “stupidity at its best” that began Saturday night when two teens grabbed two others and slammed them to the boardwalk as a crowd of about 150 watched.
Wildwood was forced to declare a state of emergency. Their boardwalk was shut down for six hours. Wildwood police couldn’t handle all the 911 calls.
Civil unrest with unruly teens, brutal fights, chaos amplified by social media and no fear of the law enacted by NJ Gov, Phil Murphy.
Retired AC Police Officer Michael Heath: When we grew up as kids, you could walk on the Atlantic City boardwalk. Enjoy yourself with your family. Go shopping. Go on the rides. Have fun and be safe. In the last 30 years, we lost all that.
The police officers are handcuffed by the Murphy administration. Police officers, our men and women, are not able to do their job.
Ocean City. Wildwood. Atlantic City. Criminal behavior at a level we can’t accept.
Now to see this Boardwalk violence happen in Ocean City, it breaks my heart.
Retired AC Police Officer Michael Heath
Wildwood.
Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano said Wildwood will not tolerate unruly, undisciplined, unparented children. We will not stand by while the laws of the state tie the hands of police.”
Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian says ‘this is unacceptable behavior. If you’re not going to behave, you don’t come on our boardwalk.’
Heath: Mayor Gillian, are you kidding me? That’s what’s going to keep the thugs away?
Juveniles know they can get away with it. Stabbing a 16 year old boy on the boardwalk.
Where are the men? Are their men out there anymore? Are you kidding?
Heath: Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian better do something quick otherwise you’re gonna be looking at the Atlantic City Boardwalk in Cape May County.
A more violent society. Certain attorney generals and prosecutors’ prefer to ‘virtue signal’ instead of protecting law-abiding citizens.
Remember the Defund The Police movement. New Jersey no longer prosecuting certain crimes. The violent subset of our society is taking advantage of that.
It’s going to ruin the economy of these shore towns if they don’t do something quickly. It’s making national news. Why do we encourage this kind of lawlessness?
Kirk Conover: You didn’t see this kind of violence at spring break in Florida because Governor Desantis and the sheriff are not taking it. You’d be thrown in jail.
WPG Hurley: Want to go on the boardwalk and not worry about getting stabbed or assaulted in some way?
OC Boardwalk shoplifting, fights, vandalism.
- 8p. curfew on beach
- 11p. curfew for juveniles
- No backpacks on boardwalk after 8p.
Len Desiderio, Mayor of Sea Isle City: ‘We will not let these thugs steal summer from our families, our businesses, and our visiting friends’.
I am selling my condo on Atlantic ave because of the hundreds of teens who spend their weekend evenings under my window until late at night. I need to use my ac to drown out their loud music and screaming.
The police come and get them moving away, but they come back. The police’s hands are tied bc there are no consequences to their bad behaviors.
I have watched a teen selling cans of beer to other teens. I want to hear the ocean when I go to bed, not the screaming and music of children.
Sadly, you will see others moving away.
I have been here 37 years and it has never been this bad since the NJ laws were changed to protect these lawbreakers and keep the police from being able to control this behavior.
Where are the parents?
There are devices that make sounds that adults cannot hear, but that drives the kids nuts. We experienced this with our daughter in Spain, and she had to run past the area where the device was while my wife and I heard nothing.
I don’t know what they are called, but I am sure that a Google search will turn up something.
Put the device outside your condo on a timer to start at 8:30 pm or so during the weekends, and watch the masses scatter.
It is the high-tech version of Ocean City’s predator hawks that keep the seagulls away from the boardwalk.
Is this in ventnor or Atlantic City
Retired Officer Heath, with respect for your career of service and sacrifice, please do not divert the importance of your message with innuendo.
Simple.
1) Charge anyone with a felony for first offense.
2) Hold parents accountable (fines, jail).
3) Change laws to ensure civil order.
4) Monitor, crackdown on social media.
5) Hold local, county and state members accountable (judges, DA, mayor, governor, etc.).
6) Let police officers do their damn job.
If you don’t slam these thugs with the most extreme legal outcome, it will continue.
Kids can hangout, but follow the law and keep it civil.
Interestingly sad.
Are these beach towns going to sadly have a nationwide summer of 2020?
I am optimistic that these beach town mayors and beach town police departments will be taking care of these issues as they very well should for their residents and businesses.
Places like Ocean City and Wildwood have businesses that make the majority of their revenue during these warmer months as we all realize.
One should note that a few years ago, the progressive politicians in New Jersey passed a NJ family law (dealing with juveniles) which I believe handicapped police departments statewide in reference their juvenile interactions.
If I understand it correctly, police in NJ can not even question a juvenile if the juvenile is drinking a beer or smoking marijuana or the police could be sued personally.
In these situations, I believe it would need to be subsequent to a traffic stop or criminal offense for a juvenile to be charged or even allow for a “police station house adjustment” with the juvenile and their parents/guardians.
So police statewide most likely have limited their interactions with juveniles for fear of being sued personally.
With the cell phone video mania everywhere, police nationwide and statewide, and these beach towns during their busier months, are aware of this.
Back in the day, juveniles including myself had our fun, especially in the beach towns.
However, we were respectful and not stupid like many juveniles of today but that is another sad issue…