Lodi fire marshal, niece, charged in elderly abuse still have crack at clearing charges

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Contrary to a published report elsewhere, Lodi Fire Marshal Paul Wanco and his niece this week haven’t been denied entry into a special program that will removed charges of elderly abuse against them in connection with an incident in which prosecutors said they neglected his mother after she fell down at home, CLIFFVIEW PILOT has learned.

Photo Credit: *Cliffview Pilot File Photo*

Jerry DeMarco

06/10/2013 4:14 p.m.

The three live together in Lodi, where, prosecutors said, the 85-year-old woman fell and needed assistance getting up.

However, she was left there for at least 12 hours — and possibly up to 15 — and later had to be taken to a hospital, Assistant Bergen County Prosecutor Jessica Gomperts said.

Authorities offered probation in exchange for a plea bargain to the 57-year-old Wanco, a 20-year firefighting veteran, and his niece, Jennifer Wanco, 38, she said.

She said they refused and sought Pre-Trial Intervention

Under PTI, as it’s known, defendants without prior criminal records can have charges removed if they follow certain conditions for a specified time period, ordinarily a year. If they do, their records are “expunged” — wiped clean.

Depending on the offense, PTI can require community service, restitution and/or fines, psychological testing, urine monitoring and alcohol evaluations.

Should their bid be rejected, or they fail to complete the program, the charges would go to a grand jury in Hackensack.

Bergen prosecutors said they are opposing PTI for both defendants. The request takes about five weeks to process.

STORY: Mary K. Miraglia, CLIFFVIEW PILOT Courthouse Reporter

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