Two Atlantic County corrections officers have been indicted for manslaughter in the 2019 death of an inmate in their custody.
Tornblom, who is the only corrections officer charged still working at the jail, was also indicted for aggravated assault.
He, along with Jenigen, now-retired Lt. Jesse Swartzentruver, and five Hamilton Township officers also face indictments for official misconduct in the case.
Mario Terruso Jr., 41, was pronounced dead at 2:19 the morning after his Sept. 15, 2019, arrest for trespassing.
But he lost consciousness hours earlier on the ground inside the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
Eight segments totaling about two hours 20 minutes of video from the arrest and inside the jail was released by the Attorney General’s Office on April 23, 2021, as part of policies established in 2019 to make such investigations more transparent.
“I just watched my child be murdered,” Linda Terruso told BreakingAC shortly after the videos were made public. “I’m sick.”
Terruso was arrested by Hamilton Township police responding to a trespassing call just after 1 p.m. Sept. 15, 2019.
Nearly five hours later, he was on the ground of the Atlantic County Justice Facility restrained, bleeding and unresponsive, video from a body-worn camera shows.
Hamilton Township Sgts. Michael Schnurr and Nicole Nelson, along with Officers Servando Pahang, Cory Silvio and William Howze were charged with misconduct for their decision to drop Terruso at the jail instead of transporting him to a hospital for treatment of medical and behavioral symptoms observed during his arrest, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in announcing the indictments Monday.
“Mario Terruso was in desperate need of medical help," Platkin said. "He pleaded for that assistance, but he never got the help he so desperately needed.
“In New Jersey, our police officers show compassion and provide help to people dealing with problems and distress on a daily basis, dutifully and often quietly doing the work that makes theirs such a noble profession," he added. "But for Mr. Terruso, those sworn to protect him are the very people alleged to have abused him in his time of need – leading the grand jury to determine that two of the officers involved are criminally responsible for his death.”
It was Terruso's call for help that brought officers to the place where he was arrested, his mother previouisly told BreakingAC.
“Mario called them because someone was after him and he was scared for his life,” the grieving mom said.
It was not immediately clear which officers are which in the videos that were previously released.
But what they show is Terruso Jr. arriving at the jail around 2 p.m., with a Hamilton Township officer giving the handcuffed suspect water.
Hours later, Terruso is seen with his tongue out hacking as he is led out of a holding area by officers at about 6:49 p.m.
He continues the grunting as he is put on a chair and two nurses approach. One tries to put a thermometer in his mouth, but he turns away, as the hacking continues.
At one point, he goes to the ground with officers over him.
The angle of the camera provides little more than some blurry images and a shot of the floor.
“Relax,” one corrections officer says. “Relax, Dude.”
Another yells several times for Terruso to stop.
“Stop right now,” the officer yells. “Stop (expletive) resisting.”
The officer then calls for a spit hood as Terruso is facedown on the ground.
“He’s fully restrained, but I need a spit hood,” the officer says, noting that Terruso is bleeding.
Blood can be seen on his head and the floor.
With Terruso on the ground cuffed at his hands and feet, with a belly chain, at least six officers work to put him into a “wrap,” which straps an inmate in.
By about 6:57 p.m., Terruso is quiet.
As the officers sit him up, one instructs the others.
“Now at this point, he’s stopped resisting, which is good,” he says. “So we’re going to slow things down now.”
They then start to remove the belly chains.
Someone is told to check for a pulse.
Then, at 7:02 p.m., it’s apparent there is no pulse.
“Get this off,” one of the officers yells.
He starts compressions, counting as he yells.
“We need everything,” he yells. “Get medical. Get everything. We have no pulse.”
An investigation by the Attorney General’s Office of Public Integrity and Accountability, or OPIA, found the Hamilton Township officers allegedly opted against getting medical help for the victim, instead bringing him to the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
“The municipal police officers who Mr. Terruso initially encountered brushed aside department policy, and the victim’s medical needs to avoid being inconvenienced,” OPIA Executive Director Thomas Eicher said. “They improperly and unlawfully passed the buck to the county correctional system. It was there where Mr. Terruso was forcibly restrained and punched by those who should have been getting him the medical care he so desperately needed.”
The death in custody was investigated by OPIA and presented to the grand jury in accordance with Directive 2019-4, the “Independent Prosecutor Directive,” issued in 2019. In July 2021, OPIA issued standard operating procedures to ensure these grand jury presentations are conducted in a neutral, objective manner, and with appropriate transparency regarding the process, consistent with the Independent Prosecutor Directive.
The investigation of this officer-involved death included interviews of witnesses, collection of forensic evidence, review of video footage, and autopsy results from the medical examiner. After hearing testimony and evidence from the investigation, the grand jury concluded its deliberations on Monday, April 24, 2023, and voted “true bill,” determining that criminal charges against the officers were warranted.
According to the investigation, Mr. Terruso was detained by officers from the Hamilton Township Police Department in Atlantic County shortly after 1 p.m. Sept. 15, 2019, after police responded to a report of an individual trespassing at a residence.
A homeowner called 911 and told dispatchers that a man, later identified as Mr. Terruso, allegedly entered his unlocked home and was behaving erratically, picking up a knife and claiming people had been shooting at him, which was untrue. The homeowner declined to press charges, but officers took Mr. Terruso into custody because of an outstanding child support warrant.
The investigation found that while Mr. Terruso was handcuffed in a police vehicle, officers concluded he was exhibiting signs of narcotic use, paranoia and hallucinations, for which he needed a medical and mental health evaluation. Mr. Terruso himself stated that he had been throwing up and asked to go to the hospital. Hamilton Police policy dictates that, if an arrestee is sick or injured incidental to arrest or prior to arrest and needs medical attention, officers are responsible for taking the arrestee to a medical facility or requesting medical assistance at the scene.
The involved members of the Atlantic County Division of Adult Detention have been indicted on the following offenses: Tornblom and Jenigen were each charged with second-degree manslaughter and second-degree official misconduct. Tornblom is facing an additional second-degree official misconduct count, as well as one count of third-degree aggravated assault. Swartzentruver has been charged with second-degree official misconduct.
The members of the Hamilton Township Police Department involved in this death in custody have been indicted as follows: Schnurr, Nelson, Pahang, and Silvio have been charged by indictment with two counts each of second-degree official misconduct and conspiracy to commit official misconduct. Howze was charged with one count of second-degree conspiracy to commit official misconduct.
Each second-degree count could carry a five- to 10-year prison term with a $150,000 fine upon conviction. Official misconduct in the second degree carries a statutory mandatory minimum, five-year period of parole ineligibility. If they are convicted and sentenced to prison on the manslaughter charge, Tornblom and Jenigen would have to serve 85 percent of the sentence, during which they would be ineligible for parole. Third-degree crimes can carry a prison sentence of three to five years and a $15,000 fine.
A conflicts check was conducted pursuant to the Independent Prosecutor Directive and no actual or potential conflict of interest was found involving any individual assigned to the investigation. Prior to presentation to the grand jury, the investigation was reviewed by OPIA Executive Director Thomas Eicher in accordance with the policies and procedures established for these presentations in the standard operating procedures.
