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Tag: Essex County Correctional Facility
Police ID Woman, Montclair Officer Wounded In Shootout (Update)
Authorities have identified the alleged gunman and released details in a police-involved shooting Monday in Montclair.
Maryann Swain, 39, a township resident, struck Montclair Police Officer Michael J. Medrano, 33, in the shoulder on the 100 block of Forest Street around 1:10 p.m. Monday, April 15, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II said.
Medrano and other officers were responding to the scene on reports of an armed person and "were met with gunfire," Stephens said.
Another Montclair officer returned fire, striking Swain, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries and wa…
Montclair Lawyer James Ray III Convicted Of Murder
A 60-year-old Montclair lawyer has been convicted of murder in the 2018 death of the mother of his 6-year-old daughter, authorities announced.
James R. Ray III was found guilty of first-degree murder and weapons offenses following a six-week trial before Superior Court Judge Verna G. Leath, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II said Friday, May 12.
The murder occurred nearly five years ago in the house the couple shared with their daughter on North Mountain Avenue in Montclair, when Ray shot Angela Bledsoe, 44, in the chest, face, and back, after she dropped the girl …
Newark Officer Convicted Of Making $50K Working Private Security Job While Out On Sick Leave
A Newark police officer has been convicted of stealing from the department by working a hospital security job while on sick leave, authorities said.
Newark Police Officer Anthony Gibson was convicted on Wednesday, March 8, of official misconduct and theft, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II.
An investigation found that Gibson took sick leave from the Newark Police Division from March 6, 2018, through November 2, 2018. During that period, he received his full pay and benefits from the City of Newark, the prosecutor said.
At the same time, Gi…
Brothers Killed Newark Grandmother Celebrating Birthday, Late Twin Sis: Prosecutor
A pair of brothers from Newark have been arrested in the murder of a local grandmother celebrating her birthday, authorities announced.
Jonathan Ritchie, 21, of Newark and Josiah Ritchie, 19, killed Debra Derrick, 63, who was celebrating her birthday and that of her late twin sister when she was shot on the front porch of her home in March 2021, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, said.
Derrick, who had worked as a certified nursing assistant at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, was at her home in the 200 block of Lehigh Avenue releasing balloons when sh…
Jashyah Moore's NJ Mom Arrested For Abuse, Kids Removed By DCF: Prosecutor
The mom of New Jersey teen Jashyah Moore who was found after several weeks missing has been charged with abuse and neglect, authorities said.
Jamie Moore, 39, of East Orange, had previously been pleading with the public to help find her daughter, Jashyah, 14, who went missing Oct. 14.
The teen girl was found in New York City on Thursday. On Friday, her mom was charged with two counts of second degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child.
The endangering charges include allegations of physical abuse and also neglect, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and East O…
NJ Correctional Employees Indicted In Beating Of Federal Detainee Who Squirted Liquid At Them
Four Essex County correctional employees were indicted by a grand jury on civil rights charges in the beating last summer of a federal detainee.
The indictment returned in Newark charges Officer Damion James, 41, with assaulting the pretrial detainee at the Essex County Correctional Facility, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said.
Sgt. Herman Pride, 51, Sgt. Jennifer Whitley, 38, and Lt. Nicholas Palma, 46, were all charged in the indictment with failing to intervene to stop the Aug. 17, 2020 assault, she said, adding that Whitley also was charged with submitting a false report. …
Cover-up: Essex Correctional Officers Beat Detainee As Sergeant Stood By, Feds Charge
Three Essex County correctional officers beat a federal detainee as a sergeant stood by, said authorities who charged all four with civil rights violations.
The detainee – who was being held pending a federal trial -- squirted a mixture of urine, yogurt, and milk onto a correctional officer at the Essex County Correctional Facility (ECCF) the evening of Aug. 17, 2020, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said Friday.
The detainee was brought to a disciplinary cell and beaten by Officers Angel Chaparro, 38, Damion James, 40, and Luis Ortiz, 29, in front of Sgt. Herman Pride, 51, Honig said.…
NJ: Montclair Retiree Shared Sex Chats, Child Porn Pics With Boys, Tried To Lure One
A Montclair retiree had sex chats with underage boys, sent them pornographic images and even tried to lure one to have sex with him, said authorities who urged any other potential victims to come forward.
An unidentified social media service tipped off authorities that Keith Matheis, 67, had messaged a child exploitation file to someone, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said Tuesday.
The Elmwood Park native, it turned out, “engaged in sexually explicit chats with multiple users he believed were under 16 years old,” Grewal said.
He also “arranged to meet one suspected minor chi…
Prosecutor: Brothers Indicted In Slaying Of Newark Woman, 30
Two brothers have been indicted in connection with the murder of a 30-year-old woman from Newark, authorities said.
Gualberto Lebron, 35, was charged on Thursday with murdering Julia Vega, an ex-girlfriend and the mother of his children, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens and Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose.
The grand jury also indicted his older brother, Gilberto Lebron, Jr., 36, for helping cover up Vega's murder, Stephens and Ambrose said.
On May 5, 2018, Gualberto Lebron assaulted the mother of his young children at her home in …
Prosecutor: Newark Hotel Clerk From Bergen Had 2,263 Child Porn Files
A Newark front desk clerk from Hackensack collected nearly 2,300 child porn files, authorities charged.
Jeremy M. Haar, 22, who has a previous related arrest history, remained held in the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark following a months-long joint investigation by the FBI and Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, they said Tuesday.
Haar “used the Internet to view, download, and possess approximately 2,263 digital files depicting nude and/or sexually explicit prepubescent children on three different mobile devices,” Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.
The Wyndham hotel c…
Prosecutor: Essex County Corrections Officers Lied About Making Jail Rounds, Charged
A pair of Essex County Correctional Facility officers were charged with falsifying and tampering with records while working at the Newark jail, authorities said.
Raymond Distasi, of Roxbury, and Quasi Cary, of Newark, both made false entries in the jail logbook indicating that they made made rounds in the jail that surveillance footage indicated that they did not make, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, said.
Distasi, 52, was working a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. shift at the Doremus Avenue facility March 17 and 18, when he logged certain rounds that he did not actually mak…