Election Site Bomb Threat Targets School In Toms River

TOMS RIVER, NJ ? A polling location at one of the schools in the Toms River Regional School District was among those targeted by hoax bomb threats on Tuesday, authorities confirmed.

The threat was made to the polling location at Cedar Grove Elementary School, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.

"A bomb threat was received via email. The same email was sent to numerous polling locations throughout the state," Billhimer said. "The FBI, New Jersey Office of Homeland Security & Protection and New Jersey State Police are working to locate the source of the email."

Billhimer said the prosecutor?s office and local police departments in Ocean County "will continue to monitor all polling locations throughout the county to ensure that they are safe and secure."

NJ 101.5 reported the email said the alleged bomb at Cedar Grove Elementary School was "political" and would be easy to find, citing a copy the radio station obtained of the emailed threat.

There were no students near the building, as the Toms River Regional School District is conducting classes virtually on Tuesday.

The threat was received about 7 a.m. Tuesday, Toms River Mayor Daniel Rodrick said. The Toms River Police Department and the Ocean County Sheriff's Office responded and had K-9 officers search the building. It was cleared in about 20 minutes, Rodrick said.

Toms River Regional Superintendent Michael Citta did not respond to a message about the incident.

Citta, who became superintendent of the 14,500-student district in May 2022, has been asking the Ocean County Board of Elections to move polling places out of the district's schools since he took over.

Twelve of the district's 14 schools in Toms River are used as polling places: Toms River High Schools North and East, Intermediate East and Intermediate North, and the Joseph A. Citta, Cedar Grove, East Dover, Hooper Avenue, Silver Bay, Walnut Street, Washington Street and West Dover Elementary schools. Only North Dover Elementary and Toms River High School South are not used for elections.

The other four district schools ? Intermediate South in Beachwood and Beachwood Elementary, Pine Beach Elementary and South Toms River Elementary ? are not used as polling locations in their respective towns.

Only four other towns in Ocean County have polling locations in schools, but in a very limited capacity. The Russell O. Brackman School and Barnegat High School in Barnegat serve as polling places, and in Stafford Township, Ocean Acres Elementary School is used as an election site. Lakewood has three schools used: the high school, the middle school and Clifton Avenue Elementary.

There have been efforts to move polling locations out of New Jersey schools dating back to 2013 in the wake of the Sandy Hook school shooting in Connecticut, as districts sought ways to limit access and protect students and staff.

In 2018, a bill was introduced in the New Jersey Assembly to prohibit the use of schools as polling places. It has been reintroduced each session of the state Legislature since then. The current bill, S2120, was introduced by state Sen. Holly Schepsi in 2024, but the bill has never gained any traction.

Some Ocean County districts are closed all week, including Barnegat, but Toms River and Lakewood are open Monday through Wednesday, with all districts closed Thursday and Friday due to the statewide teacher convention.

Toms River had been closed the entire week for a few years, avoiding Election Day conflicts, but Citta moved to open the first three days when he became superintendent because the school year was spilling well into the third week of June.

Note: This article has been updated with comment from the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and from Toms River Mayor Daniel Rodrick.