An early morning disturbance at the home of Lumberton Township Committeewoman Gina LaPlaca has led to serious criminal charges against her husband, Jason Carty. Known for his controversial stance as a member of the Rancocas Valley Regional High School Board of Education, Carty’s actions have sparked considerable outrage. This latest incident comes just five days before a significant Democratic primary where LaPlaca is on the ballot for re-election.
The timing of the alleged incident is particularly noteworthy, following LaPlaca’s guilty plea to charges of child endangerment stemming from a drunk-driving incident in 2025 that involved her child in the vehicle. According to local law enforcement, Carty faces multiple charges, including aggravated assault by strangulation and harassment, reportedly intended to cause alarm. A police report indicates that officers responded to a call around 6:45 a.m. and asked Carty to leave the residence, although he was not initially arrested. The charges were filed later that day, illustrating the serious nature of the claims against him.
Witness accounts detail that LaPlaca appeared intoxicated at the scene, with officers noting a strong smell of alcohol. However, she refutes this claim. This incident is part of a troubling pattern for the couple. LaPlaca was previously arrested in 2023 for assaulting her husband, with those charges later dropped. Another incident in 2017 involved a verbal altercation initiated after LaPlaca returned home drunk while Carty was then her boyfriend. Carty’s perspective reveals complications in their relationship, as he suggests he was portrayed as the “bad guy” in that situation. He has also shared that LaPlaca faced domestic violence during her college years, adding more complexity to their story.
The couple’s relationship has been marred by multiple incidents. In March 2025, LaPlaca, later serving as mayor of Lumberton, was involved in a hit-and-run during St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in Mount Laurel. At that time, her blood alcohol level tested four times over the legal limit, and her young child was present in her vehicle. Open containers of alcohol were discovered inside her car, marking a significant lapse in judgment. Initially seeking a pretrial intervention, LaPlaca’s request was rejected by the court but was eventually granted upon appeal, resulting in a plea to a fourth-degree child endangerment charge. This plea required her to complete three years of supervised probation, including treatment for alcohol abuse and regular attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
In the aftermath, LaPlaca lost her driving privileges for 90 days, although a Superior Court Judge later reduced her suspension to just 12 days due to her compliance with court-ordered interventions, including installing an alcohol-testing device in her vehicle. Yet just earlier this May, LaPlaca was cited again for driving with a revoked license—a claim she publicly denies.
This series of events surrounding LaPlaca and Carty paints a concerning picture of their lives, intertwining personal struggles with their public roles. The allegations against Carty compound the pressures on LaPlaca as she approaches her re-election campaign, where her past will undoubtedly resurface among voters. The community continues to watch closely as these incidents unfold, reflecting broader issues surrounding leadership and accountability in local governance.
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