Man charged in fatal hit-and-run of Centenary president's wife was drunk, prosecutors say

BELVIDERE — A Hackettstown man who was drunk and driving without a license when he fatally struck the wife of Centenary University's president before he fled the scene on Jan. 7 initially told police he had not been driving and the damage on his vehicle was "new to him," prosecutors said at his detention hearing on Wednesday.

When first questioned at his home less than a half-mile from where Jeanne Murphy, 70, was hit during her morning walk, Jefferson Chimbo-Pelaez "smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot and glassy eyes and gave the first of what would be a couple versions of what happened that morning and night," said Warren County First Assistant Prosecutor Anthony Robinson.

Chimbo-Pelaez, 25, who had received his learner's permit just three months ago and is facing charges of aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide, was ordered by a state Superior Court judge to remain in the Warren County jail.

Despite objections by his attorney Bob Russell, and an assessment by the courts calling for Chimbo-Pelaez's release, Judge H. Michael Curry believed the evidence against him and his purported poor choices and behavior the evening before and the morning of the hit-and-run showed he had a "complete disregard for the criminal justice system and rule of law."

Murphy, a retired U.S. Army colonel, was walking along Reese Avenue, parallel to the liberal arts college's south campus, and near First Avenue when she was struck, police said. She died around noon on Jan. 8 at Morristown Medical Center.

But despite police coming upon the heavily damaged SUV parked outside Chimbo-Pelaez's family home just a couple hundred yards from the crime scene, the 25-year-old offered varying stories.

Chimbo-Pelaez told police during the investigation he last drove his sister's 2008 Lincoln MKX around 8 p.m. on Jan. 6 — roughly 11 ½ hours before Murphy was hit, prosecutors said. He then told police he had driven around 11:30 p.m. that night and had heard a "thump sound" while driving, but believed he had hit a deer, his attorney said.

Prosecutors say it wasn't until after police spoke to witnesses and his family members — 16 of whom were present in the courtroom on Wednesday — searched the damaged SUV in front of his home and watched surveillance video footage that Chimbo-Pelaez admitted he had driven his father to work around 7 a.m. on Jan. 7, telling police nearly verbatim, Robinson said, "Because of what I've done, someone is going to die."

Chimbo-Pelaez is facing seven criminal charges, five that came after Murphy's death, with aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide each carrying a maximum sentencing exposure of 30 years in prison. He is also charged with knowingly leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, a second-degree crime; strict liability vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a crash and endangering an injured victim, all third-degree crimes; and fourth-degree hindering. He is also facing six motor vehicle summonses, including driving while intoxicated.

Chimbo-Pelaez, who wore a green jail jumper in court, appeared withdrawn and only spoke to acknowledge the charges against him, using the services of a Spanish translator throughout the hearing.

He will next appear in court in late February.

'It was dark and foggy'

Chimbo-Pelaez's attorney did not argue whether it was his client behind the wheel of the SUV that struck Murphy, but disputed prosecutors' arguments that his client "callously" drove from the scene.

Russell said that it was dark and foggy — the sun had risen at 7:23 a.m. on Jan. 7 in Hackettstown — when Murphy was hit. The roadway joins the baseball fields of Centenary University, so it was "not unreasonable that [Chimbo-Pelaez] did strike a deer," Russell said.

Chimbo-Pelaez fully cooperated with police when asked about the accident, Russell contended, had the support of his family and was remorseful, a feeling he wished to express in a letter to the Murphy family.

Police say they tracked the SUV, which Chimbo-Pelaez's sister had allowed him to use for several weeks, after the passenger side mirror was found near Murphy's body along with her shoe, hat and house key. His wallet was in the center console of the vehicle, which also had damage to the passenger quarter panel and a crack on the lower part of the windshield, Robinson said.

Court records show Chimbo-Pelaez played soccer the evening of Jan. 6 and purchased liquor at ShopRite, admitting to police he had been "drinking overnight."

Prosecutors say Chimbo-Pelaez's blood alcohol content was .12%, over the .08% legal limit to drive, when it was drawn about five to six hours after the crash. Had his blood been drawn earlier, his BAC would have been "significantly" higher, Robinson said.

Chimbo-Pelaez's charges rise to the first-degree because he was intoxicated and driving within 1,000 feet of Hackettstown High School and Hatchery Hill Elementary School and had shown extreme indifference to life when he left the scene, prosecutors said.

Chimbo-Pelaez is not a United States citizen. The judge stressed that his decision to keep him in jail was not because Chimbo-Pelaez faces possible deportation but instead his own actions that show he is a risk of failing to appear and may pose a danger to the community.

Murphy's life to be celebrated

A "celebration of life" to honor Murphy's achievements and advocacy will take place at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 22, in the Sitnik Theater located in the Lackland Performing Arts Center. The event will be livestreamed. Members of the Centenary University community held a candlelight vigil for the private liberal arts school's "first lady" on Jan. 12.

A former career Army nurse, Jeanne Murphy served in many leadership roles and spearheaded several health, wellness and support programs throughout the United States and abroad, later working with the American Red Cross and helping during Hurricane Katrina. At Centenary, she assisted in the development of a new pathway program for registered nurses to obtain a Bachelor's of Science degree in nursing.

Murphy was deeply involved in the university's equine program, based in Long Valley, and was also active in the Hackettstown community and in university events that provided opportunities for disabled equestrian riders and military veterans. She was a former competitive runner and swimmer and held a master's degree in cardiovascular nursing and exercise physiology.

Her husband, Bruce, announced in September he had plans to retire when his university contract expires in June. He and his wife planned to return to Florida, where they own a home, to live closer to family. The couple arrived to the campus on Jan. 1, 2020.

Murphy will be laid to rest at a later date in the historic Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, where members of the U.S. Army are interred.

Lori Comstock can be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Hackettstown fatal hit-and-run: Man accused to stay in jail