July 25, 2024
TRENTON – The Attorney General’s Office today released footage from two police body-worn cameras related to the death of a Mercer County man during a police encounter on March 8, 2024, in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. The decedent has been previously identified as Vincent Correa, 44, of Hamilton.
The fatal police-involved shooting is under investigation by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA). The recordings are being released pursuant to policies established by the Attorney General’s Office in 2019 that are designed to promote the fair, impartial, and transparent investigation of fatal police encounters. Investigators previously met Mr. Correa’s family to provide them an opportunity to review the recordings before they were publicly released.
According to the preliminary investigation, uniformed officers of the Hamilton Township Police Department responded to a residence on Orchard Avenue in Hamilton at approximately 10:07 p.m., in response to a 911 call concerning a domestic dispute. During the encounter, Mr. Correa exchanged gunfire with Hamilton Township Police Officers Derek Fiabane and Paul Piromalli. Officer Fiabane and Mr. Correa were both shot. Officers and emergency medical personnel rendered first aid to Mr. Correa, who was pronounced deceased at the scene at 10:38 p.m. A rifle and a handgun were recovered from Mr. Correa’s person. The injured officer was transported to a hospital with non-fatal injuries and has since been released.
The recordings are posted online: https://njoag.box.com/s/2zmknje5ot132bpeq0gh23p47i7ohtuj
The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at this time.
N.J.S.A. 52:17B-107(a)(2) requires the Attorney General’s Office to conduct investigations of deaths that occur during encounters with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody. It requires that all such investigations be presented to a grand jury to determine if the evidence supports the return of an indictment against the officer or officers involved.
Further information about how fatal police encounters are investigated in New Jersey under the Independent Prosecutor Directive is posted here: Independent Prosecutor Directive
