Hopatcong Man Accused of Drug Possession, Leaving the Scene of a Crash

A Hopatcong man was charged last week with possession of marijuana after leaving the scene of an accident on Lakeside Avenue, police said.

James Duffy, 36, was charged with possession of marijuana, careless driving, leaving the scene of an accident, failure to report an accident, failure to keep right, reckless driving, failure to park off the roadway and possession of a CDS in a motor vehicle.

According to Lt. Thomas Kmetz, officers responded to a single-vehicle crash where the driver left the scene on Lakeside Avenue at about 12:30 a.m. on July 17. The initial officer found the vehicle partially in the roadway near Daydream Lane.

Kmetz said a long black tire mark remains in the roadway showing where the vehicle came from and how it went over the double-yellow lines. No one was inside the vehicle or in the area when officers arrived, Kmetz said.

Officers found marijuana inside the vehicle and went to the home of the registered owner, Kmetz said. The woman told officers her son drives the vehicle and gave them his phone number.

Police contacted Duffy, who refused to meet officers in person and would not tell them where he was, according to Kmetz. Duffy came to police headquarters the next day and told officers he was taking a drink out of his water bottle and went off the road, Kmetz said. He told officers his vehicle got a flat tire from the crash, Kmetz said. He said he called called a friend to pick him up, Kmetz said.

Duffy was charged and released.