BENEFIT ENDS WITH 10 ARRESTS

'Safe, Drug-Free' Benefit Concert Ends With Arrests For Drug Possession And
Assault On Police Officers.

Billed by town officials as a safe, drug- and alcohol-free night of
entertainment for local teenagers, Friday night's benefit concert at the
Township Activity Center turned violent and ended in 10 arrests -- including
one for drug possession, authorities said.

Police said four adults and five juveniles were arrested, some for
aggravated assault on police officers, after several of those in
attendance became disorderly when police shut down the event, which
they felt had begun to get out of hand.

A 14-year old was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer;
a 17-year old was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting
arrest; a 16-year old was charged with failure to disperse, resisting
arrest and aggravated assault on a police officer and two other
juveniles were charged with disorderly conduct, Brick Township police
Sgt. Donald Ling said yesterday.

Keith Beagin, 18; Thomas Bartnicki, 19; Rachel Fondi, 18 and Angelina
Thoman, 18, all of Brick, were charged with disorderly conduct, Ling
said.

In addition, 18-year-old Michael Murphy, of Toms River, was arrested
and charged with possession of marijuana at the event, which was
sponsored by the Brick Municipal Alliance Committee on Alcoholism,
Drug Abuse and Youth Services; the Brick Youth Club; and a student
organization run by the School-Based Youth Services Program of Brick
Memorial High School.

Lt. John Rein, of the Brick Township Police Department, said four
officers originally went to the event at 9 p.m. to respond to a first
aid call, which was handled with no problem. He said that once on the
scene, private security guards advised them that intense moshing (a
violent type of dancing) at the 250-person event was leading to
numerous small fights.

Officers stayed at the event to monitor the situation, Rein said, and
escorted a few of the more disorderly attendees out. However, as the
scene grew worse, backup was called -- with 10 officers eventually at
the Chambers Bridge Road facility -- and the event was shut down.

Rein said that as officers were trying to clear the building, the
crowd became increasingly disorderly, with several cursing and yelling.

He said the rest of the crowd began to disperse without any other
major incidents.

The event, a fund-raiser for New Jersey's Safe Haven for Infants
program, was sponsored, in part, by a grant from the Governor's
Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.