TOMS RIVER, NJ – A Superior Court judge in Ocean County has approved a discovery confidentiality order in the ongoing civil case filed by the Township of Toms River against the Silverton First Aid Squad and its chief, Kevin Geoghegan.
The case was filed by Toms River Township after members of the squad were allegedly stealing fuel from township fuel depots despite not paying and not having an agreement with the township to do so.
The order came weeks after Silverton First Aid asked for a blanket privacy order, but the judge limited the scope of the order only to cover private and protected information, requiring non-disclosure agreements.
The order, submitted jointly by attorneys for both parties, governs how confidential materials and sensitive information will be handled during the discovery phase of the litigation.
It allows either side to designate documents or data as “confidential” if they contain private, proprietary, or otherwise protected information.
Under the order, confidential materials may only be used for purposes directly related to the lawsuit and cannot be disclosed to anyone outside a limited list of approved individuals, including attorneys, experts, court personnel, and certain witnesses. Those with access must sign non-disclosure agreements acknowledging their obligations under the court’s directive.
The case, docketed as OCN-L-2730-24, lists the Township of Toms River as the plaintiff and Silverton First Aid Squad, Inc., Chief Kevin Geoghegan, and unnamed John Doe defendants as parties. Attorneys Suzanne M. Marasco of Hill Wallack LLP represent the defendants, while Donald F. Burke of Brick represents the township.
The civil lawsuit filed by Toms River Township accuses the Silverton First Aid Squad and its president, Kevin Geoghegan, of financial misconduct, claiming the volunteer EMS organization improperly used township fuel and withheld ambulance billing revenue in violation of a shared services agreement.
According to court filings, the township alleges that Silverton EMS withdrew more than 24,000 gallons of fuel — valued at over $72,000 — from municipal pumps without reimbursement beginning around 2021. Officials also claim the squad failed to share insurance billing proceeds as required under a 2019 agreement that called for an 80/20 revenue split with the township. Instead, the lawsuit states, Silverton EMS kept all funds generated from patient transport billing.
The township is seeking more than $2 million in damages, citing breach of contract, misuse of public funds, and official misconduct. Prosecutors claim Geoghegan, who served as both president of the squad and a township employee, knowingly allowed the violations to occur and benefited from the arrangement.
In response, Geoghegan has denied any wrongdoing, describing the lawsuit as “political retaliation” by township officials. He contends that Silverton EMS became financially independent and no longer relied on municipal funding or fuel subsidies.
The dispute has strained relations between the township and the volunteer first aid organization. In mid-2024, Toms River stopped dispatching emergency calls to Silverton EMS amid the ongoing financial conflict, effectively sidelining one of the township’s longstanding volunteer rescue squads.
The lawsuit, filed in Ocean County Superior Court under docket number OCN-L-2730-24, also seeks to revoke the squad’s tax-exempt status and recover triple damages under New Jersey’s public fraud statutes.
Toms River Township is suing Silverton First Aid Squad for more than $2 million, alleging misuse of township fuel and ambulance billing revenue in violation of a shared services agreement.
The confidentiality order will remain in effect through the duration of the case and beyond its conclusion, ensuring that sensitive materials disclosed during discovery are either returned or destroyed once the litigation is resolved.
