Asarco pit death leads to prison time for atv rider

TOMS RIVER, N.J. – A Howell Township man has been sentenced to three years in state prison after pleading guilty to strict liability vehicular homicide and endangering the welfare of a child in connection with a deadly 2020 utility terrain vehicle (UTV) crash in Manchester Township that claimed the life of a passenger, prosecutors said.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that 48-year-old Stephen McGuire was sentenced on January 9 by Superior Court Judge David M. Fritch to concurrent three-year terms in New Jersey State Prison. McGuire entered guilty pleas to both charges in November.

Authorities said the crash occurred on December 12, 2020, around 8:30 p.m., when Manchester Township police responded to the Heritage Minerals Mine property on Route 70, also known as ASARCO, for reports of a submerged vehicle. Investigators learned that McGuire had been operating a UTV carrying 62-year-old James Grover of Howell and three minors when the vehicle entered a lake and overturned in about 25 feet of water. Grover was found still strapped to the UTV’s safety harness and was pronounced dead at the scene despite rescue efforts.

Blood tests taken after the crash revealed McGuire had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.127, well above the state’s legal limit of 0.08. He was arrested weeks later without incident at his home and later released under New Jersey’s bail reform guidelines.

Prosecutor Billhimer said the sentence followed consultations with Grover’s family, who supported a resolution that reflected forgiveness and allowed them to begin healing.

A Howell Township man was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty in a 2020 drunken UTV crash in Manchester Township that killed passenger James Grover.

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