Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw announced that a member of the Lumberton Township Committee who was charged last year with drunk driving and failing to protect her young child who was in the vehicle at the time of the incident was sentenced yesterday to three years of supervision under a diversionary program for first-time offenders known as Pretrial Intervention (PTI).

Under terms imposed by the Hon. Craig A. Ambrose, J.S.C, Gina LaPlaca, 46, must continue to provide proof of attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and abide by specific conditions of participation in the PTI program, such as compliance with any requirements imposed by the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency.

Those who fail to abide by the conditions can be terminated from the program and prosecuted on their criminal charges. For LaPlaca, that would be a fourth-degree Child Abuse charge, to which she pled guilty yesterday in Superior Court in Mount Holly.

She also pled guilty to Driving Under the Influence and was ordered to have an ignition interlock device installed on her vehicle, which will prevent it from starting if the driver has consumed alcohol. LaPlaca indicated to the court that she voluntarily had one installed on her vehicle in October 2025. She also presented a certificate to the court showing she has completed an outpatient treatment program for alcoholism at a recovery center.

Additionally, LaPlaca completed and was discharged from an intensive treatment program in May 2025.

The charges stem from a March 2025 investigation that began after another motorist contacted police to report that LaPlaca’s vehicle was swerving across the centerline, nearly striking oncoming vehicles. LaPlaca was taken into custody by Lumberton police officers who went to her residence after viewing video footage recorded by the motorist.

The investigation, conducted by the Lumberton Township Police Department, revealed LaPlaca had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .30%. In New Jersey, drivers with a BAC above .08% are guilty of drunk driving.

LaPlaca was prosecuted by BCPO Assistant Prosecutor Stephen Eife, supervisor of the Special Victims Unit and Assistant Prosecutor Jennifer Paszkiewicz, supervisor of the BCPO Appellate Unit.

2026-08 Lumberton Elected Official Pleads Guilty to Child Abuse and DUI