Parents ask judge to release grandfather charged in deaths of their children

☑️Stephen Schneider's boat struck a channel marker in Barnegat Bay, police say

☑️The parents of 2 children killed in the crash asked a judge to release him

☑️ Schneider's next court date is Sept. 15.

The parents of two children killed in a boat driven by their grandfather in Barnegat Bay asked a judge to release him in letters read during his detention hearing Wednesday.

Stephen Schneider, 64, of the Bayville section of Berkeley Township, is charged with reckless vessel homicide after prosecutors say his boat struck a waterway channel marker.

New court documents released Tuesday show Schneider had three beers at dinner before the accident and was headed home with his grandchildren, who wanted to ride with him. Prosecutors said his blood alcohol level was 0.16 after the crash.

After hitting the marker, the children were ejected into the water and Schneider went in after them. He found them facedown in the water.

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Mya Golabek (left), Sigmund Golabek

Parents ask for grandfather's release despite children's deaths

During Wednesday's detention hearing, Schneider's attorney, William P. Cunningham, read from a letter written by the parents of Mya Golabek and Sigmund Golabek asking the judge to release him despite him being charged in the deaths of their children.

"He's been there for our family in ways that words cannot fully express. Our family is better because of him he's a wonderful father-in-law a loving grandfather and a man with a generous heart. I am grateful for the way he loved my children, the role he played in their lives and for the example he set for them in the time they were blessed to have together," Cunningham told Judge Wendel Daniels in Ocean County Superior Court.

Cunningham said it is not clear whether the buoy struck by his client was lit. He also said Schneider cares for his parents, who are elderly. Schneider has sworn off alcohol and will never drive a boat again, according to his attorney.

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First responders following an incident involving a motorboat striking a buoy in Barnegat Bay Sun., July 19, 2026

Prosecutors argued Schneider should remain jailed

In arguing to keep Schneider imprisoned until trial, Assistant Ocean County Prosecutor Kate Burke said he was a flight risk and pointed out that his BAC was twice New Jersey's legal limit of 0.08. She also said he was previously arrested on a controlled dangerous substance charge.

Cunningham said the arrest was 40 years ago and that Schneider's record had been clean since.

Daniels agreed to release Schneider with Level 3 conditions, including being prohibited from operating a vessel or motor vehicle pending a substance abuse evaluation.

Schneider's next court date is Sept. 15.

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