DANIELLA MAMMARO - 19 mos - Phillipsburg NJ

Phillipsburg man taken into custody following assault, child abduction - UPDATE

Published: Friday, July 22, 2011, 11:00 PM Updated: Friday, July 22, 2011, 11:45 PM


Damon Mammaro stands during a 2005 court proceeding.

A Warren County man is in custody on multiple charges after allegedly assaulting the mother of his 19-month-old daughter tonight in Phillipsburg, abducting the girl and threatening to not be taken alive.

Damon Mammaro, 31, of Phillipsburg, is accused of assaulting his wife, Michelle Mammaro, about 5:40 p.m. at a home in the first block of Sitgreaves Street, police said.

He then fled with the child in a white, four-door 2009 Hyundai Elantra and threatened to take the child to Canada, authorities said.

He was taken into custody while walking about 8:30 tonight on South Third Street in Easton, city police say. Police used caution in pursuing Damon Mammaro, who was a passenger in a vehicle involved in a fatal 2003 shooting with New Jersey State Police.

Emergency radio broadcasts report Mammaro said he wouldn't be taken alive by police and that he wanted to commit "suicide by cop."

The broadcasts also reported Mammaro could be armed with a knife.

During the time Mammaro was on the run, New Jersey State Police issued an Amber Alert for the suspect's daughter. It was called off about 9 p.m. when Daniella Mammaro was found by authorities in Bethlehem Township, N.J., at the home of Damon Mammaro’s relatives.

The child was then transported to a local hospital for an evaluation, said Phillipsburg police Lt. Robert Stettner. Stettner said the baby appeared to be fine.

Warren County Prosecutor Thomas S. Ferguson announced Damon Mammaro's arrest. Mammaro was sent to Northampton County Prison to await extradition.

He faces charges in New Jersey of second-degree aggravated assault, second-degree possession of a dangerous weapon for an unlawful purpose and fourth-degree possession of a dangerous weapon.

If convicted, he would face five to 10 years in prison for each second-degree charge.

Mammaro has a history of violent interactions with law enforcement. In 2003, he watched from the passenger seat of a car as a Washington Township, Warren County, police officer was shot and another man was killed.

Mammaro was riding with Justin McCarthy when police pulled him over. McCarthy, the vehicle's driver, shot the officer three times before New Jersey State Police returned fire and killed McCarthy.

Mammaro played no direct role in the shooting. He pleaded guilty to possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and was sentenced to up to three years in a state youth prison.

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/phillipsburg/index.ssf/2011/07/asbury_man_taken_into_custody.html#incart_mrt

Phillipsburg father who sparked Amber Alert could face more charges, prosecutor says

Updated: Saturday, July 23, 2011, 8:38 PM


Damon and Michelle Mammaro argued for several hours Friday afternoon before the Phillipsburg man took an undisclosed weapon, assaulted his wife and then left their home on the first block of Sitgreaves Street with the couple's 19-month-old daughter, Warren County Prosecutor Thomas S. Ferguson said.

Ferguson, who declined to reveal the weapon -- emergency radio reports said it was a knife -- said Michelle Mammaro called 911 shortly after 5:40 p.m. and was taken to Warren Hospital by Phillipsburg police.

"She was treated and released; I think it’s fair to say she was in good health," Ferguson said.

State police issued an Amber Alert for the baby, Daniella, who later that evening was found unharmed with relatives in Bethlehem Township, N.J.,Ferguson said. The Amber Alert was then canceled. The child was taken
to a local hospital and appeared fine, said Phillipsburg police Lt. Robert Stettner.

While it was reported to police that Mammaro wouldn't be taken alive and wanted to commit "suicide by cop," Easton police arrested Damon Mammaro about 8:30 p.m. Friday without incident as he walked in Easton, Ferguson said.

Damon Mammaro

"This was a long-standing domestic violence situation," Ferguson said in an interview today. "It was a very heated incident. It was a very heated situation."

Ferguson said city police initially found Mammaro’s white, four-door 2009 Hyundai Elantra and then Mammaro in another location on South Third Street in Easton.

A call to the couple's home was not returned today. A woman who answered the phone at the home in Bethlehem Township, N.J., and identified herself as a family member said the baby is staying with relatives and that the couple has been married for two years.

Damon Mammaro faces multiple charges in New Jersey, including second-degree aggravated assault, second-degree possession of a dangerous weapon for an unlawful purpose and fourth-degree possession of a dangerous weapon. He was arraigned Friday before District Judge Daniel Corpora on a Pennsylvania charge of being a fugitive from justice. He remains at Northampton County Prison.

Ferguson said the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office is investigating and additional charges could be filed. He praised law enforcement.

"All in all, it turned out to be OK," Ferguson said.