Friday was three months since Joseph Fannell was fatally injured on Route 206, when a driver who police say ran a red light slammed into Joseph's vehicle.
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP - Jeff Fannell has been waiting all summer for an update from authorities about the crash that killed his 22-year-old son in Bordentown Township.
Friday was three months since Joseph Fannell was fatally injured on Route 206, when a driver who police say ran a red light slammed into Joseph's vehicle.
Jeff Fannell said he is done waiting and wants answers.
Joseph Fannell Authorities have not been attentive and the Mansfield resident said he feels no urgency from anyone investigating the case.
And he's not heard from the other's driver's representatives or lawyer, either.
"I feel that with what we've gone through with the loss of our son, the loss is bad enough and this is just making the matter worse," Fannell said. "And couple that with not hearing anything from anyone, it really makes a bad situation worse."
Fannell said he and his lawyer have been making update requests at regular intervals and always get the same answer: the prosecutor's office is awaiting the toxicology report.
"It has been three months, in a case involving a fatality, and there is no apparent priority on obtaining the necessary lab results," Fannell said.
Bordentown Township police Capt. Brian Pesce said Friday that the police investigation is complete, but the urine test on the other driver, Raymond Blinn, was just returned this week to township police from a New Jersey State Police laboratory.
Pesce said the results have been forwarded to the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office, which routinely reviews serious or fatal accidents to see if a criminal charges are warranted.
On Friday, Pesce double checked the police investigation file and sent another copy of the toxicology report to the prosecutor's office, just to make sure investigators there have it.
Pesce declined to say what the results indicated.
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The prosecutor's office spokesman said Friday the office does have test results and the case is under active investigation.
"The assistant prosecutor overseeing this case will make a determination as to whether criminal charges are warranted," spokesman Joel Bewley said.
"The victim's family will be notified of this decision," Bewley said.
An empathetic Pesce said the state police lab is known to be busy and it handles a lot of police department investigative work. Pesce reached out to the assistant prosecutor handling the case on Friday, but the prosecutor is currently on vacation.
Fannell shared the township police's report on the crash and it clearly states, like police said publicly in June, that the 74-year-old Blinn disregarded a red traffic light while driving north.
The report says Blinn was changing lanes from the left to the right just before the collision at Amboy Road.
Joseph Fannell was driving west through the intersection and had the green traffic signal, the report says.
Blinn's vehicle struck Fannell's driver-side door and the force of the collision spun both vehicles around.
Blinn was not injured in the crash.
Joseph Fannell died at Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton the next day.
The report also states that a detective who interviewed Blinn reported that Blinn did not appear intoxicated. Police found three witnesses to the crash, the report states.
Bordentown Township police issued Blinn two traffic citations, failure to observe traffic signals and reckless driving, but such charges are usually pended until the prosecutor's office reviews such a case.
Fannell said he understands the traffic citations will not be handled until the prosecutor's office makes a decision.
Still, he wants action and he wants to see the case move forward. "This is unjust."
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.
