Victim in Fatal Route 35 Hit-and-Run Identified by Authorities, Suspect Remains Jailed

The suspect vehicle in a Jan, 13, 2024 hit-and-run on Route 35 in Brick Township. (Photo: Brick Township Police)

Authorities on Tuesday identified the person who was fatally struck by an SUV while she was walking on the shoulder of a state highway.

The Jan. 13, 2024 accident claimed the life of Julia Sutton, 56, of Weehawken, Hudson County, who was in the shoulder of Route 35 in the township’s barrier island portion when she was struck by a Ford Explorer allegedly being driven by Mark Carey, Jr., 19, of South Amboy.

After police and EMTs rushed to the scene of the 9:15 a.m. crash, Sutton was taken to Hackensack Meridian Ocean University Medical Center in Brick Township, where she was pronounced deceased.

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Carey is then said to have left the scene. An investigation, including the release of surveillance photos of the vehicle, ensued, leading police to Carey, who owned a 1999 Ford Explorer.

Mark Carey, Jr. (Photo: Ocean County Jail)

“Further investigation identified Carey as the individual who operated the subject Ford Explorer at the time of the crash that resulted in Ms. Sutton’s death,” prosecutors said in a statement.

Carey was taken into custody at his home in South Amboy without incident, and thereafter processed at Brick Township Police Headquarters. Carey was subsequently transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he presently remains lodged pending a detention hearing.