Manslaughter now added to long criminal rap sheet
Scott Bennett, 42, charged in death of Edison motorcyclist
BY MARK ROSMAN Staff Writer

Scott Bennett

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - A township resident with a long history of criminal activity now stands accused of killing a resident of Edison.

Scott Bennett, 42, remained in the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, this week after being charged with aggravated manslaughter and a host of other crimes in connection with the hitand run death of Timothy J. Flanagan, 41, of Edison, on Oct. 7.

Bail on the aggravated manslaughter charge was set at $800,000, according to information provided by the Monmouth County Sheriff's Office. Bennett was also charged with vehicular homicide, eluding a law enforcement officer (failure to stop), aggravated assault with serious bodily injury (fleeing the scene), knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident with serious bodily injury, endangering an impaired, helpless person, leaving the scene of a fatal accident and resisting arrest purposely ($10,000 bail on the last charge).

Monmouth County First Assistant Prosecutor Peter Warshaw gave the following account of the incident.

Shortly before 6:30 p.m. Oct. 7, a Manalapan police officer attempted to stop a driver, later identified as Bennett, for speeding on Sweetmans Lane in Manalapan. The vehicle in question was a GMC Jimmy sport-utility vehicle.

Bennett did not stop for the officer and a pursuit ensued. The SUV eventually reached a point where it was headed south on Gravel Hill Road and entered the intersection of Route 537, where it collided with a motorcycle Flanagan was operating. The motorcycle was eastbound on Route 537.

A passenger on the motorcycle, Diane L. Oberly, of Edison, was thrown from the vehicle and broke an ankle.

Warshaw said, "There was a secondary collision with the victim (Flanagan)" before the driver of the SUV fled the scene. A description of the vehicle was broadcast and police later arrested Bennett at his home on Gravel Hill Road.

"As a matter of protocol, the pursuit of Bennett by the Manalapan police officer is under review, but there is no evidence that the Manalapan police officer did anything wrong," Warshaw said.

The next step in this case will involve the presentation of the charges against Bennett to a grand jury. Warshaw said that will not happen for at least two months.

According to information posted on the New Jersey Department of Corrections Internet Web site, Bennett has a criminal record that dates back to at least 1997. At various times over the ensuing years, he has been charged with burglary; possession, use or being under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance; fraudulent use of credit cards; theft; driving while on the revoked list; resisting arrest; eluding police; driving while uninsured; and obstruction of the administration of the law.

At various times over the past decade Bennett has been committed to jail in Monmouth, Ocean and Middlesex counties, according to the Department of Corrections Web site.

Warshaw would not comment on Bennett's previous involvement with the criminal justice system.