Fatal Crash Shuts Palisades Interstate Parkway At NY/NJ State Line

During the early hours of February 28, 2025, the Palisades Interstate Parkway near Alpine, NJ was shut down in both directions due to a serious car accident that unfortunately resulted in the loss of life. Law enforcement responded to the crash near Exit 5B (NY-303) just before the Northvale/Alpine border. Too often, New Jersey and New York drivers are stuck in traffic only to see the cars wrecked as a result of a collision that caused property damage and death. We drive by the scene, inevitably “rubber neck”, and quickly drive off, maybe an hour or two behind our busy schedules, but grateful that it wasn’t us involved. 

But, why the delay? Shouldn’t they clean up the accident scene right away, restore normal traffic flow, and protect the public from the sight of death and destruction? The truth is that once an accident results in death, the investigation is elevated to that of a potential crime scene. This also occurs in collisions where it appears that the victim may not survive as determined by the first responders, in this case, likely to be the Palisades Interstate Parkway Police, Bergen County Sheriff, and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Fatal Accident Squad.  

What Happens After a Fatal Highway Accident?

If you are reading this due to the loss of a loved one, please accept our sincerest condolences. As injury lawyers, we understand that as you and your family grieve, you’re looking for answers. However, too often things are a lot more complicated than they seem. 

Once a roadway death occurs, law enforcement officers with different specialties arrive at the accident, trained, knowledgeable, and ready to perform their crucial roles at the scene. Local police on New Jersey State Highways, such as the Garden State Parkway, New Jersey Turnpike (I95), and Route 80 primarily fall within the jurisdiction of the New Jersey State Police. 

A fatal accident investigation includes highly trained accident reconstruction experts, forensic experts, medical examiners, police photographers, and law enforcement laser surveyors who map out the important details of the fatal scene. By using computer-generated images, they typically show the final resting place of the accident victim, the point of impact, and other items involved in the accident, such as cell phones, shoes, vehicles, and fuel spills. Detectives will then scour the area for potential eyewitnesses, video cameras, dash cams, intersection cameras, Ring doorbells, business surveillance cameras, and even bank ATMs which have video capabilities. 

How Long Does it Take for Police to Release Information About Traffic Accidents?

Although the families are interested in how and why the collision happened, the police normally are quite silent and give few, if any, answers as to the cause and origin of the crash. In fact, it could take several weeks or months until the investigation is concluded, and the findings are released. If alcohol or drugs were involved, the delay can be extended up to six months or more, until a Grand Jury indictment determines that the collision occurred due to negligence, which would make it a civil lawsuit as opposed to a criminal prosecution.

There is one saving grace. Law enforcement is required to update the victim’s family members pursuant to (OR in accordance with) New Jersey’s Rights of Crime Victims and Witnesses (N.J.S.A. § 52:4B-36) law. This law requires representatives of the prosecutor’s office to provide status updates to victims and their families. 

When Should You Call a Wrongful Death Lawyer?

One thing that law enforcement does not like is a concurrent investigation by a plaintiff’s personal injury lawyers. For that reason, it is necessary to hire the right experienced New Jersey wrongful death lawyers to investigate the accident scene and facts without interfering with the fatal accident unit’s investigation.

Nevertheless, our advice is to act immediately to hire an experienced wrongful death attorney who has built a solid reputation as a wrongful death litigator. With the backing of a substantial New Jersey injury law firm, your experienced lawyer will file the necessary documents to establish and set up the estate to appoint the Executor or Administrator of the Estate. For example, in New Jersey, if there is a surviving spouse, these steps need to be taken within the first 40 days after the date of death. You may also need to file a special Notice of Claim within ninety (90) days of the accident regarding potential claims about roadway design defects, poor roadway maintenance, and collisions with police or construction or maintenance vehicles. 

Why Choose Our New York and New Jersey Wrongful Death Attorneys?

The New York and New Jersey injury lawyers at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. have accepted the somber responsibility of seeking justice for those unable to have a voice due to their passing. Often, like a puzzle, the facts must be carefully pieced together from circumstantial evidence. An expert wrongful death lawyer knows which experts to hire, such as toxicologists, pain and suffering experts, accident reconstructionist experts, forensic experts, medical examiners, and safety experts. They also know which economists to hire to determine the financial losses to the surviving family members. It is never too soon to hire a lawyer. Truck accident lawyers understand this because if a fatality is involved, established national trucking companies will send their lawyers to the accident scene to protect the driver from making statements, asserting the Fifth Amendment privilege, or hiding behind the attorney-client privilege.  

For more information about wrongful death lawsuits and your rights to sue for money because of a fatal car or truck accident, call New Jersey’s Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C and ask for a free copy of The Consumer’s Guide to New Jersey Personal Injury Claims (2025) authored by attorneys Garry R. Salomon and Jeffrey E. Salomon. This handy 200-page softcover book features a chapter specifically on New Jersey’s Wrongful Death Laws and will provide answers to your questions, such as how the law works and how to hire the best wrongful death personal injury lawyer for your case. Wrongful death cases are accepted on a contingency fee basis, meaning the legal fee is a percent based upon the amount of money in the final settlement. Attorney Garry R. Salomon has over 30 years of experience in handling death cases and has lectured to bar association groups about the complexities of the law. He can be reached at (201) 444-4444 to schedule a free, no-obligation, consultation in person or by video call.