Grand jury declines charges against West Deptford officer in fatal 2025 crash
Martinez was killed in the crash, and a rear-seat passenger suffered a fractured leg.
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A state grand jury has declined to file criminal charges against a West Deptford police officer following a fatal crash that killed a Lindenwold man during a police encounter in November 2025, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office announced Monday.
The grand jury voted “no bill” on June 1 after reviewing evidence related to the Nov. 9, 2025, crash that resulted in the death of Jose M. Martinez, 42, of Lindenwold. The investigation was conducted by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability and presented to the grand jury under state law requiring independent reviews of deaths that occur during encounters with law enforcement.
According to investigators, West Deptford Patrolman Conor Goggin was driving a marked police vehicle and activated his emergency lights at about 6 p.m. in an attempt to stop a vehicle matching the description of a car connected to a report of two apparently intoxicated men.
Authorities said the driver, identified as George Linard, 24, fled at a high rate of speed, ran a traffic signal at the intersection of Hessian and Red Bank avenues and collided with another vehicle driven by Martinez. Martinez was killed in the crash, and a rear-seat passenger suffered a fractured leg.
The Attorney General’s Office said the investigation included witness interviews, photographs, radio transmissions, vehicle digital forensics, dashboard and body-worn camera footage, third-party surveillance video and autopsy results.
Linard is being prosecuted by the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office. A Gloucester County grand jury indicted him on two counts of aggravated manslaughter, eluding, death by auto, four counts of aggravated assault and one count of fraudulent possession of a government license.
The Attorney General’s Office said it will determine whether any officer involved should be referred for administrative review under the state’s Internal Affairs Policy and Procedures.
