Man shot by Deptford cop on Thanksgiving Day ID’d; officer’s name also released
Sgt. David Grogan shot 58-year-old Jeffrey Jaworski after police were called to the Fairfield Inn for a disturbance, the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office said.
The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office on Friday identified a man shot by police and the officer who shot him during a disturbance at a motel in Deptford Township on Thanksgiving Day.
Deptford Police Sgt. David Grogan shot 58-year-old Jeffrey Jaworski after police were called by management at the Fairfield Inn at 1160 Hurffville Rd. on Nov. 28 to respond to an occupant who was “acting aggressively,” the prosecutor’s office said.
When police arrived around 1:30 p.m., they spoke to Jaworski, who “opened the door of his hotel room for the officers but quickly slammed it shut,” the prosecutor’s office said.
Jaworski allegedly refused to comply with the officers’ request to open the door and was told he was under arrest. Police gained access to the room with assistance from motel management and found that Jaworski had jumped from a second-floor window and fled.
The officers followed Jaworski into a densely wooded area behind the motel parking lot, and at some point Jaworski allegedly told police he had a gun.
“During the encounter, Deptford Township Police Sergeant David Grogan discharged three rounds at Jaworski from his service weapon. Jaworski sustained a single gunshot wound,” the prosecutor’s office said without disclosing where he was shot.
Jaworski allegedly fled further into the wooded area, jumped over a chain-link fence and ran into traffic on Route 42, where he was apprehended.
Jaworski was transported to Cooper University Hospital, where he was treated for the gunshot wound. He was later charged with being a fugitive from justice and possession of a controlled dangerous substance, the prosecutor’s office said.
The prosecutor’s office did not say a gun was found, nor was Jaworski charged with firearms violation.
The prosecutor’s office said it was appointed by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office as an independent prosecutor in the case, and the investigation is ongoing.
In 2020, then-Lt. David Grogan was honored for bravery for helping to rescue a couple from an apartment fire in Deptford. He was honored as Officer of the Month August 2020 by the National Law Enforcement Memorial and Museum.
In September 2020, Grogan was arrested and charged with assault and resisting arrest for grabbing and throwing a woman to the ground in what was described as a domestic incident at the Jersey Shore.
In March 2021, a municipal court judge ruled that the charges would be dropped after Grogan completed programs addressing alcohol abuse and family violence.
Records show Grogan was demoted to sergeant because of the incident.
Deptford Police Chief Joseph J. Smith could not be reached for comment Friday on whether Grogan had been placed on administrative duty pending the shooting investigation.