The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA) has released the name of the man who died after an encounter with Bloomfield Police Department officers on July 23, 2024, in East Orange. Omar Williams, 43, from Hamilton in Mercer County, was identified as the individual who died during the incident.
The OPIA is currently investigating the fatal encounter. In line with policies set by the Attorney General’s Office in 2019 to ensure transparent investigations into fatal police encounters, footage from dashboard cameras, body-worn cameras, and third-party cameras has been made public. Representatives of Williams’ family were given a chance to review these recordings before their release.
According to preliminary findings, Bloomfield Police detectives received an alert from an Automated License Plate Recognition system regarding a vehicle connected to a robbery investigation. Deputy Chief Anthony Sisco located this vehicle in Newark. When officers attempted a traffic stop, the driver did not comply. Officers pursued the vehicle through Bloomfield into East Orange. The chase ended when Williams’ vehicle crashed into another civilian car and then struck two more vehicles, including a parked ambulance.
Williams died from injuries sustained in the crash. Other civilians involved suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. Police vehicles involved in the pursuit did not directly collide with any vehicles during the incident.
Under New Jersey law N.J.S.A. 52:17B-107(a)(2), any death occurring during an encounter with law enforcement or while a person is in custody must be investigated by the Attorney General’s Office and presented to a grand jury for possible indictment decisions regarding officers involved.
Further details about how such cases are investigated under New Jersey’s Independent Prosecutor Directive can be found on the Attorney General’s website.
The investigation remains ongoing and no additional information is being released at this time.
