Just after midnight Christmas Eve, Hamilton Township police responded to an accident near Hamilton Mall for a two car crash involving a police vehicle.

According to a press release, on December 24, 2012, at about 12:30 AM, Township of Hamilton Police responded to the intersection of US Route 40 and County Route 575 for a two car motor vehicle crash involving a police vehicle. The investigation revealed that a Hyundai being driven by Krystal Cruz of Bethlehem, PA, was traveling southbound on County Route 575 and failed to stop for a red light at Route 40. The Hyundai collided with a Ford Crown Victoria Township of Hamilton patrol vehicle that was traveling westbound on Route 40, which was being operated by Officer Belford Rivera. The impact of the collision forced the patrol vehicle onto the center median where it struck and knocked down a pole supporting two traffic lights.

Officer Rivera was transported to Atlanticare City Division for treatment of his injuries. Cruz and her passenger were not injured in the crash.

Cruz was charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, careless driving and failure to observe a traffic signal. Traffic was diverted for approximately one hour while the traffic signal was repaired.

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