A Pennsylvania dentist has been charged with the Jersey Shore's most serious beach-dumping case in two decades, according to an Associated Press story.
Authorities said that Thomas McFarland Jr., D.D.S., took his motorboat to Townsend Inlet near Avalon on August 22 and dumped a bag full of some 300 dental-type needles, along with 180 cotton swabs and other materials from his Wynnewood, PA, office.
According to police affidavits, Dr. McFarland admitted tossing the material from his boat. Needles and other medical materials began washing up August 22 on the northernmost beaches of Avalon.
The debris forced beach closings in Avalon throughout the week leading up to Labor Day weekend. In all, more than 200 syringes were picked up.
