New Jersey Criminal Defense Journal : New Jersey Criminal Defense Lawyer & Attorney : Alexander M. Iler Law Firm : Monmouth County NJ DWI & Drunk Driving Defense

A Little Silver woman was sentenced to five (5) years in state prison earlier this month for diverting nearly $1 million from Aberdeen condominium owners. The Defendant was ordered to pay $758,000.00 in restitution and was sentenced to a "five year flat" sentence in Monmouth County Superior Court based on her mishandling of funds with the help of her mother which saw them use condo association funds for personal trips and clothing. The mother and daughter defendants also opened credit cards in the condominium association's name and used them for personal expenses. Further, according to the Asbury Park Press article, "[t]he pair also wrote out numerous bad checks totaling more than $75,000 to vendors in Little Silver, Red Bank and Holmdel from September 2006 until February 2007."

Based on these charges, the defendant plead guilty and received a "five year flat sentence". This means that the defendant will typically be eligible for parole after 15 months. If the defendant had received a 5 year sentence with 85%, under New Jersey's No Early Release Act, the defendant would serve 85% of her five year sentence or 51 months before she would be eligible for parole.

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A criminal defendant from Neptune attacked his Public Defender during a trial at the Ocean County Superior Court in Toms River on Tuesday. The Defendant, who is facing a multitude of charges including aggravated assault on a police officer and eluding police, smacked his lawyer in the face above his eye during the trial and right in front of the jury. I wouldn't say that this is the best strategy to win over a jury. Then, later in the afternoon, the Defendant, now shackled because of the first outburst, grabbed a microphone from the defense table and threw it at his attorney who blocked the object with his foot. For an image of this throw and the block by this lawyer, please see the Asbury Park Press article entitled, "Defendant attacks his own lawyer twice in court". Even after the Defendant attacked his lawyer twice, the Public Defender gave his summation to the jury and asked them to acquit the defendant on these charges. What a trooper huh? I have to say, it would have been difficult to continue to represent someone who just assaulted me and it also would have been difficult not to retaliate after being smacked in the face by another human being. In any case, thankfully I have never been assaulted by a client during a trial and hopefully never will be.

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A Long Branch man plead guilty Monday to charges of aggravated manslaughter and armed robbery in Monmouth County Superior Court and faces up to 50 years in state prison as a result of the plea. The Defendant had his 2006 murder convicted overturned on appeal by the New Jersey Appellate Division based on several errors made by the trial court. According to the Asbury Park Press article, "Bruce D. Beacham Jr., 29, was found guilty of felony murder and aggravated manslaughter by a Monmouth County trial jury in the May 10, 2004 shooting death of 22-year-old Luis Gonzalez during an armed robbery of the man's Long Branch apartment." The Defendant admitted, as a factual basis for his guilty plea, that he and his co-consirator broke into the victim's apartment in search for drugs and money but were interrupted when the victim and his friends returned to the apartment. The Defendant was struggling with the victim when his gun fired and hit the victim in the head. Following the trial in 2006, the Defendant was sentenced to 40 years in State prison. As a result, it looks like although the appeal was successful and the case was remanded back to Monmouth County Superior Court for trial, the Defendant and his attorney decided to plead guilty rather than take the case to trial a second time.

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