NJ City Councilwoman Refuses To Resign Over Alleged Hit-And-Run Crash With Cyclist

New Jersey councilwoman Amy DeGise has refused to heed calls for her to resign following her involvement in a road incident that was caught on camera and had gone viral. A rally that took place Saturday afternoon at the Newark Ave Plaza called on the Jersey City official to step down from her position after she was seen on surveillance cameras plowing down biker, Andrew Black, at an intersection on Martin Luther King Drive last week. DeGise, daughter of Hudson executive Tom DeGise, could be seen driving off as she continued onto the road without even slowing down or stopping to check on the injured cyclist.

According to NBC New York, despite the growing outrage from the local community, a spokesperson for DeGise stated on Friday that the councilwoman will not hand in her resignation.

"Councilwoman DeGise was elected overwhelmingly just a few months ago and she has no intention of walking away from the commitment she made to serve the people of Jersey City. She will not resign and plans to complete her full term and continue in public service," the statement said.

In addition to this, the spokesperson said the councilwoman is thankful that no one was seriously injured. It was also mentioned that the city official will refrain from commenting any further on the matter while legal processes are being sorted out. DeGise was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and failing to report an accident.

Safe Streets JC president Jimmy Lee described the incident and DeGise’s actions as criminal and inhumane, citing similar accidents from November last year where two hit and run victims were still alive after getting struck but later died because they did not get help in time.

Meanwhile, Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop did call the incident a “tremendous” mistake but made no mention of calling DeGise to step down. DeGise, who remains scot-free, reportedly claimed she had hit her head in the collision and proceeded to a police station several hours after she left the scene. The victim on the other hand had sustained deep bruising and now suffers from anxiety crossing the street.