Violent crime wave disturbs quiet Princeton community

Two recent violent crimes have alarmed the Princeton community in recent weeks. In addition to a carjacking and an aggravated assualt ending in the shooting of the suspect, police reopened an older, unsolved murder.

The carjacking occurred in front of the CVS on Nassau St. on the afternoon of Jan. 20.

As Rosemary O'Connell sat in her car, applying makeup, a man entered the car and threatened her, according to the Times of Trenton .

O'Connell immediately jumped from the car and began screaming for help, several witnesses said.

Several passersby tried to stop the carjacker while he was trying to pull away to no avail.

Neither the car nor the suspect has been found.

Only days after the O'Connell carjacking incident, Princeton Township witnessed another unusual violent crime.

Early on the morning of Jan. 23, Princeton Township police shot and killed a 24-year-old intruder outside the home of a Princeton family after the intruder attacked and stabbed the homeowner with a knife.

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Jelani Manigault, a University of Maryland senior who was taking part in a family religious retreat nearby, stole his parents' car and crashed it into a tree outside the home of William Sword Jr. '76 on The Great Road.

Sword offered assistance to the unknown man, who rushed into the house, took a knife from the family kitchen, and stabbed Sword several times, the Princeton Packet reported.

Manigault was temporarily stunned by a blow from Sword's brother-in-law, Robert Sullivan of Long Island, N.Y.

Police units arrived at the scene shortly thereafter, the Packet said. When they approached the house, Manigault was on the front lawn wielding his knife in an aggressive manner.

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While addressing the approaching Manigault, Patrolman Christopher King tripped and fell within 10 feet of the intruder — allegedly within what law enforcement officers call the "zone of danger."

Patrolman King and Patrolman Harry Martinez fired three shots into the advancing Manigault, killing him on the spot.

Investigation of the incident will continue through the Mercer County prosecutor's office as determinations need to be made whether the officers involved used excessive force and Manigault was of sound mind.

In related news, Princeton Borough police readdressed the "cold case" of 1989 stabbing victim Emily "Cissy" Stuart, a 74-year-old Mercer St. resident.

"There's been some new advances in scientific technologies," said Capt. Anthony Federico. "We've rejuvenated the case, and we are actively conducting the investigation."

The case in 1989 yielded few leads when almost no physical evidence, other than the body, was found. Police at the time could find no murder weapon or any suspicious persons in the neighborhood the day she was believed to have died.

Sgt. Kenneth Samuel of Princeton University Public Safety was unable to comment as to whether the University has taken any added precautions in light of these nearby violent crimes, but he said there have been no violent crimes on campus recently excepting a graduate student suicide during exam period.