A 2024 Wildwood Police Event Ended With Five Injured, Lawsuit

An accident that injured five people during Wildwood's National Night Out in 2024 has now gone to court, with the injured people suing for negligence by Wildwood Police.

The annual event meant to build relationships between police and the community was held on Tuesday, August 6th, 2024, at Fox Park.

A Drunk Simulator Golf Cart

For many years, Wildwood Police used a low-speed golf cart that mimics impaired driving at the National Night Out event to teach people about the dangers of driving drunk.

Police said the cart is meant to be contained in an enclosed area during demonstrations.

The lawsuit names Wildwood, its police force, Jonathan Goraj, the officer overseeing the course, and the National Association of Town Watch, which founded the event in 1984, as defendants, according to NJ.com.

A Fun Night Gone Wrong

An 11-year-old boy was driving the golf cart accompanied by Officer Goraj in the passenger seat when the vehicle "left the enclosed area and struck several people," police said. Four adults and one child were injured.

Medics with the Wildwood Fire Department took the injured people to Cape Regional Medical Center. Three of them were treated and released. Police said two remained at the hospital overnight.

The course was set up on the park’s ball field and included orange barriers about 4 feet high. As part of the exercise, the child navigated the course while wearing goggles that simulated intoxication.

While driving, the child accelerated and lost control of the low-speed vehicle, causing it to leave the course and plow into an area of display tables set up by event sponsors.

Five People Were Taken to the Hospital

When the golf cart left the course, it hit five people, including Christopher Hines of Wildwood, along with David Galambos and his grandson, both of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, causing the three to suffer neck and back injuries, burns, and abrasions.

Two other members of the Galambos family also sustained injuries.

The five were taken to Cape Regional Medical Center. Three of them were treated and released. Two remained at the hospital overnight, police previously said.

NJ.com reports that the lawsuit argues that Goraj, who was seated in the golf cart, failed to help the child veer away from the crowd or stop the vehicle.

The lawsuit seeks punitive and compensatory damages for injuries the three people sustained. James Wells, a Philadelphia-based attorney, filed the lawsuit.

After the accident, Wildwood Police wrote about the accident on Facebook while explaining the importance of the night.

National Night Out is at its core, a night of building police and community partnership. We look forward to the event each year and many of our officers along with their families are in attendance.
This tragic incident is disconcerting to the entire City of Wildwood Police Department, and we would like to offer our sincere thoughts and prayers to the injured individuals.