Pair encouraged autistic man to plunge into icy ocean

ASBURY PARK, N.J. — Parker Drake thought he was going to drown.

Battered by waves in frigid water over his head off Manasquan, the 19-year-old autistic, diabetic man from Howell struggled to make it back to shore while two other young men laughingly videotaped him with a cellphone as he fought to stay alive.

The men, Drake said, had egged him into accepting a dare on Feb. 25: Plunge into the icy waters of the Atlantic and stay there for a minute in exchange for $20 and two packs of cigarettes.

Drake took the dare, but it almost cost him his life.

The pair took him onto a jetty and told him to jump. Once in the icy water, his insulin pump froze. Drake said he's still not sure how he made it back to shore.

"I didn't realize how cold or deep the water was going to be, but by the time I jumped in, I just went down,'' Drake said, recalling the ordeal. "It was deep enough, I couldn't stand, and I had to be in there, like, five minutes.

"There were waves going over my head and saltwater going down my throat," Drake said as his mother, Christine Marshall, sat nearby. "I didn't really think I was going to make it."

The men were charged in Manasquan Municipal Court on Wednesday in a complaint filed by Marshall. She claims they violated the law by "endangering the welfare of an incompetent person." The charge, a disorderly persons offense, carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail.

The men are identified in the complaint as Nicholas Formica, 20, and Christopher Tilton, 19, both of Howell. When contacted by the Asbury Park Press, Tilton declined comment. A man answering the phone at Formica's house said they did not want to talk.

Drake and Marshall say they want justice and to raise awareness for tougher laws to protect developmentally disabled people from such situations.

But they've run into roadblocks. Authorities say that because Drake is an adult who voluntarily jumped into the ocean, there was no crime committed against him.

"What it brings up is, is it permissible, legally and morally, to offer someone money to place their lives in jeopardy, and it's frightening, but the answer may be yes," said Lisa Krenkel, an Allenhurst attorney representing the mother and son.

"Then you add on top of it someone like Parker," said Krenkel. "Is it OK to offer someone like Parker, who has developmental disabilities, who clearly has a lot of physical and mental challenges in life, to offer him money? ... That's clearly what happened here."

Drake's psychiatrist has diagnosed him as having autism spectrum disorder, anxiety disorder, Tourette syndrome and learning disorders, on top of juvenile diabetes, Marshall said. Drake is enrolled in a job-training program for special needs students.

Drake freely admits that he accepted the dare from Formica and Tilton, who he thought were his friends.

As he struggled to swim to shore , the two laughed and videotaped it, Drake said.

"I'm yelling, 'Help,' and I found out that they're just recording me, and they're laughing about it,'' Drake said.

They later posted the video to the social media website Snapchat. Someone from Drake's school saw the video, videotaped it with an iPhone and showed it to Marshall, she said.

Manasquan detectives at first told Marshall that the young men would be prosecuted, she said. But they later told her they were closing the case.

Manasquan Police Chief Elliot Correia said his detectives, in conjunction with Howell police, investigated the incident, but after consulting with the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, a decision was made not to bring criminal charges.

"What it came down to was, it was lacking the necessary level of criminal intent,'' Correia said. "It came down to a stupid prank that went bad. Fortunately there weren't tragic consequences. It was done as a dare — an ill-advised dare.

"Everyone is thanking their lucky stars that a tragedy didn't result,'' the police chief said.

Meanwhile, Marshall and Drake say they want to share the story so that laws protecting developmentally disabled people might be strengthened.

"It's wonderful that they have anti-bullying laws in the schools, but what happens to these special needs kids once they become adults?'' Marshall asked. "They have no protections whatsoever.''

She said her son has had nightmares and is in therapy since the event, but despite having to relive it by telling his story, he wants to effect change.

"I want to see them prosecuted,'' Drake said of Formica and Tilton. "And I want them to pass better laws.''