A Bayonne man was arrested and charged yesterday in a fatal Jersey City hit-and-run crash.
According to Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez, members of the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit arrested 25-year-old Arley Ulloa in connection with a March 5, 2023 hit-and-run that caused the death of Ralph Haynes, 55, of Jersey City.
At approximately 12:31 a.m. that day, police responded to a report that a pedestrian had been struck in the area of Stegman and Garfield Avenues. There, police found Haynes with life-threatening injuries. The car that hit Haynes had left the scene. Haynes was taken by emergency medical services to Jersey City Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 3:38 p.m.
Colin DeVries of Safe Streets Jersey City has termed crashes involving pedestrians an “epidemic.”
Reducing traffic fatalities has been a priority of both the Fulop administration and local advocacy groups like Safe Streets Jersey City and Bike JC. In 2018, Jersey City became the first city in New Jersey to adopt Vision Zero, the international traffic safety framework that set a goal of zero traffic fatalities. In 2022, Jersey City logged zero traffic deaths.
However, Mayor Fulop has resisted pressure to call for the resignation of Councilwoman Amy DeGise. CCTV footage from July of last year showed DeGise’s black SUV striking a bicyclist as she drove through the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and Forrest Street.
On January 24, DeGise pled guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and received a one year suspension of her driver’s license along with a $5,000 fine.
Ulloa is charged with one count of Knowingly Leaving the Scene of a Motor Vehicle Collision Resulting in Death. He was arrested at the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office in Secaucus and released pending his first court appearance, which is tentatively scheduled for May 30, 2023.
Prosecutor Suarez credited the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit and the Jersey City Police Department with the investigation and arrest of Ulloa.