A Slackwood volunteer firefighter is charged with felonies in connection with a January dispute at the firehouse.
LAWRENCE -- The recent arrest of a township firefighter should not blemish the men and women who volunteer at Lawrence's three fire companies, the towns's manager said.
Lawrence manager Richard Krawczun said the volunteers at the Lawrenceville, Lawrence Road and Slackwood companies cover the town well and often go above and beyond in their service.
Krawczun spoke in response to the arrest of James "Jay" Macheda Jr., a volunteer at Slackwood who was charged in January with weapon possession charges and making terroristic threats following a late-night dispute at the firehouse.
Macheda, 22, allegedly threatened to kill and shoot firefighters and then pulled a machete from his vehicle. Firefighters disarmed him, and nobody was injured, officials said.
"It was an unfortunate incident and serious and not to be be overlooked, but at the same time, this should not taint other firefighters in a negative light," Krawczun said.
Krawczun declined to discuss the incident because the matter is still pending in the judicial system.
Firefighter charged with pulling machete at firehouse
He said the township's disciplinary system, in general, allows the fire chief to handle violations of policies and procedures, but with a more serious incident, the town has and will intervene, he said.
Both entities have the right to suspend firefighters, or fire company members, until the matter is adjudicated by authorities, Krawczun said.
The Slackwood Fire Company, he said, is in service and able to respond to fires as needed.
Complaints and arrest papers allege Macheda got into an argument with other members in an upstairs room at the firehouse at about 11:30 p.m. on Jan. 19.
Macheda allegedly threw an item at a victim firefighter, threw a fire pager at a firehouse wall on the first floor and said to firefighters trying to calm him down: "I am going to kill you."
He also allegedly threatened to bring his gun to the firehouse and shoot the victim, then retrieved a machete from the backseat of his vehicle and threatened to kill the victim, and others.
Court records show Macheda was ordered to not have contact with the victim and to stay away form the firehouse until the case is settled.
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.