FREEHOLD, N.J. — A former Hillside police officer will spend 17 years in state prison after a jury found he drove under the influence of alcohol and THC before a 2021 crash that killed a Maryland husband and wife in Monmouth County.
John P. McClave III, of Toms River, received consecutive prison terms Friday for the deaths of 40-year-old Angel L. Acevedo Jr. and his wife, 35-year-old Daniela Correia Salles, who were killed when McClave’s pickup truck struck their vehicle near the Garden State Parkway overpass in Tinton Falls.
Ocean County Superior Court Judge David M. Fritch sentenced McClave to 8½ years for each victim. Under New Jersey’s No Early Release Act, he must serve 85% of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole.
A Monmouth County jury convicted McClave on March 12 of two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide following a trial that was moved to Ocean County to avoid a potential conflict within the Monmouth County court system.
Crash Killed Couple at Scene Near Garden State Parkway
The collision happened shortly before 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021, on Asbury Avenue near the Garden State Parkway overpass in Tinton Falls.
According to the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Tinton Falls police officers and members of the Wayside Fire Company arrived to find two heavily damaged vehicles: a 2018 GMC Canyon pickup truck driven by McClave and a 2020 Toyota Corolla driven by Acevedo.
Investigators said Acevedo and Salles suffered severe injuries and were pronounced dead at the scene. McClave sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center.
A joint investigation by the Monmouth County Serious Crash Analysis Response Team, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Fatal Accident Unit, and the Tinton Falls Police Department determined McClave had been driving recklessly while impaired by alcohol and THC at the time of the crash.
Investigators concluded McClave’s truck left the Garden State Parkway lanes without significantly slowing down or changing direction. The vehicle then became airborne after striking an embankment before crashing into the victims’ car.
“The impact that this incident had on our community is a reminder of the danger imposed when driving under the influence of intoxicating substances such as marijuana and alcohol,” Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said in a statement. “Such behavior cannot be accepted or tolerated.”
Key Points
• Former Hillside officer John McClave III received a 17-year prison sentence
• Prosecutors said McClave drove under the influence of alcohol and THC
• Angel Acevedo Jr. and Daniela Correia Salles died at the scene in Tinton Falls
Trial Moved to Ocean County Over Conflict Concerns
The case was transferred from Monmouth County to Ocean County Superior Court on Nov. 13, 2024, because of concerns about a potential conflict of interest involving the Monmouth Judiciary Vicinage.
McClave, who previously served as a police officer in Hillside, was reportedly on his way to work when the crash occurred.
Assistant Prosecutors Joseph Cummings, director of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotics and Criminal Enterprise Investigation Section, and Sarah Mielke of the Special Victims Bureau prosecuted the case.
McClave was represented by defense attorney Anthony Cherry of Eatontown.
The sentencing closes a case that has remained closely watched in Monmouth County because of McClave’s law enforcement background and the severity of the crash that killed two people traveling through Tinton Falls that evening.
McClave remains subject to the terms of New Jersey’s No Early Release Act and must complete most of his sentence before parole consideration.
