JACKSON – A male resident of Ewing Township has pleaded guilty to charges that were lodged against him following events that occurred in May on Maria Street in Jackson.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that on Sept. 29, Michael Mahan, 38, pleaded guilty to eluding police, making terroristic threats, aggravated assault and driving while intoxicated before state Superior Court Judge Michael T. Collins.
The events occurred in Jackson on May 8.
According to a press release from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, when Mahan is sentenced on Nov. 19, prosecutors will recommend a term of eight years in state prison for the eluding police charge and five years for the terroristic threats and aggravated assault charges. The sentences are to run concurrently.
On May 8, Jackson police officers responded to a 911 call to investigate a report of a stabbing on Maria Street. The officers found a woman who had a large slash across her face. An investigation determined the woman had been followed to her residence by Mahan, according to the press release.
The prosecutor’s office said Mahan held a knife to the woman’s neck, threatened to kill her and then punched her in the face while holding the knife, causing a laceration to her face. As a neighbor intervened and called 911, Mahan fled the area.
Mahan’s vehicle was observed by police officers on Toms River Road. A pursuit was initiated and Mahan fled from the officers at a high rate of speed. As Mahan was attempting to turn onto West Veterans Highway his vehicle struck another vehicle.
The initial collision did not cause Mahan to stop. As he continued to travel at a high rate of speed on West Veterans Highway, Mahan’s vehicle collided with another vehicle and forced that vehicle off the road.
Following the second collision, Mahan’s vehicle traveled another 500 feet before it became disabled. The prosecutor’s office said he was subsequently taken into custody without incident.
Mahan was initially transported to Monmouth Medical Center, Southern Campus, Lakewood, for the purpose of securing a blood sample to determine whether he was operating his vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
The prosecutor’s office said the results of the blood test indicated Mahan’s blood alcohol level was 0.14% – nearly twice the state’s legal limit. Mahan was placed in the Ocean County Jail, Toms River, and has remained there since May 8, according to the press release.
The woman who was stabbed was transported to a hospital for treatment of what authorities described as non-life-threatening injuries.
The occupants of the two vehicles that were struck by Mahan’s vehicle were treated at the scenes of those incidents for what authorities described as minor injuries.
