Paramus Motorcyclist Struck Near Home Dies, Driver Charged With Aggravated Manslaughter

A Paramus man who was gravely injured when he was struck by a car last weekend died, authorities confirmed on Friday, July 28. Charges against the intoxicated driver who hit him were upgraded, they said.

Cody Cleary, Jose Santos (inset)
Photo Credit: *BCJ / Boyd A. Loving (file) / FACEBOOK*

Jerry DeMarco

07/24/2023 1:12 p.m.

Cody Cleary, 28, was on his 2015 Yamaha motorcycle when he was rammed from behind on Farview Drive -- practically around the corner from his family's home -- shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday, July 23, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella confirmed.

Cleary -- whose brother, Michael, is a Paramus police officer -- was rushed to Hackensack University Medical Center.

He remained in critical condition on life support while his family recovered his organs for donation.

Arrested was Jose Santos, 45, also of Paramus, who Musella said was drunk behind the wheel of the 2021 Mercedes Benz that rear-ended Cleary.

Santos was initially charged with assault by auto while intoxicated.

The charges were upgraded following Cleary's death Thursday to first-degree aggravated manslaughter, in addition to vehicular homicide.

Santos, who has remained held in the Bergen County Jail, was served the criminal complaints, which also included child endangerment. Musella didn't explain the charge, however.

Santos has a hearing scheduled in Superior Court in Hackensack next Wednesday, Aug. 2, on whether to release or hold him until trial.

******

NJ Sharing Network is the federally designated, non-profit organization responsible for the recovery and placement donated organs and tissue in the Garden State.

It presents this fact sheet:

At any given moment, more than 100,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for a life-saving organ transplant;
17 people in the U.S. die each day waiting for an organ transplant;
A person is added to the nation’s organ transplant waiting list every nine (9) minutes;
In New Jersey, there are nearly 4,000 residents currently waiting for a life-saving transplant.
Just one organ and tissue donor can save 8 lives and enhance the lives of over 75 others;
Transplantable organs include heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas and intestine;
Transplantable tissue includes corneas, heart valves, skin grafts, bone grafts, saphenous veins, ligaments and tendons.

To learn more, get involved, and join the National Donate Life Registry as an organ and tissue donor, go to: NJSharingNetwork.

Be sure to have a conversation with your family and friends about your decision to register as an organ and tissue donor.

******

Click here to follow Daily Voice Cliffside Park-Edgewater and receive free news updates.