Evan “Van” William Jahos, 93, passed away peacefully of natural causes at his summer home on Lake Warren in East Alstead, New Hampshire, May 24, 2022. Born April 2, 1929 in Trenton to Greek parents William E. Jahos and Stella Bravakis, he was the eldest of three children.
Van attended Trenton public schools and The Peddie School before attending Princeton University (Class of 1951). At Princeton, he played football, baseball, ran track, and served as the Tiger Inn Sports Manager. Upon graduation, he served in the United States Coast Guard, attaining the rank of lieutenant commander. After serving on active duty, Van joined the Sandy Hook Reserve Unit, where he was commander and spent the remainder of his nearly 20-year Coast Guard career.
In 1954 Van began a career teaching English and science, as well as coaching football at The Peddie School in Hightstown. It was there where he was introduced to Catherine Rawson Roman, daughter of assistant headmaster Benjamin Roman. Ms. Roman would go on to become Van’s wife of 61 years.
Van earned his L.L.B. from Rutgers School of Law in 1959 and, while a student, he served as law clerk to the attorney general. His work there earned him a position as a deputy attorney general from 1960-1962, during which time he also served as Ocean County prosecutor. He was appointed assistant attorney general and, in 1964, head of the Criminal Investigation Section, both posts he held until 1966, when he was named Atlantic County prosecutor. During these early years in the Attorney General’s Office, Van also held positions as counsel to the NJ Division of State Police, NJ Racing Commission, and Narcotics Advisory Council and was a member of the Supreme Court Committee on Criminal Procedure, and the Supreme Court Committee on Municipal Courts. In 1967 he briefly left state service to continue his work in private practice in Red Bank. In 1968, Jahos was appointed municipal court judge for the Borough of Fair Haven.
In 1970, Jahos returned to state service to form and become the first director of the Criminal Justice Division, which the state created to consolidate New Jersey’s 21 county prosecutor’s offices. The post made him the state’s chief law enforcement officer under the attorney general. It was during his time in this role that New Jersey Gov. William T. Cahill nominated Jahos to the New Jersey Superior Court. In 1974, Jahos returned to private practice and would soon resume his judgeship in Fair Haven. He remained a partner of Jahos, Broege, and Sheehen for the rest of his career, before deciding to conclude his nearly 60-year career at the age of 90.
Van was devoted to his community, holding a variety of local positions including trustee of the First Unitarian Church of Monmouth County, president and director of the Red Bank YMCA, president of Navesink Country Club, chairman of the Fair Haven Planning Board, and counsel to the New Jersey PGA. He was also a proud and active member of the Princeton alumni community, serving as chairman of the Princeton Club of Monmouth County and Class of 1951 Reunion chairman.
As a young man, he spent many summers as a lifeguard on the Jersey Shore where his family owned a bungalow in Seaside Park. In addition to being a devoted family man, Van had a love for duck hunting and playing squash and was a voracious reader. However, it was golfing and fishing that would be his lifelong passions. Van was an especially excellent golfer, shooting a personal best of 69. If he wasn’t working, on the golf course, or fishing, he would be sitting in his favorite chair with a book or newspaper in hand.
Van is survived by his wife Catherine Roman Jahos; two children, William Rawson Jahos and Jennifer Jahos Chaladoff; son-in-law Michael Chaladoff; four grandchildren, Aaron Jahos (26), Elias Jahos (24), Evan Chaladoff (21), and Catherine Chaladoff (19); his younger sister Thalia Richman; his two nieces, Alexa and Stephanie; and a devoted lineage of Greek-American cousins.
As per his wishes, a celebration of Van’s life will be private.
The article originally appeared in the June 16 – 22, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
