Tag: Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino

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Attorney General Announces Puts Bounty on New Jersey Corruption

Attorney General Christopher S
Two New Initiatives to Fight Corruption, Including Reward Program Offering $25,000 for Tips From Public
July 28,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ,  Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino today announced two new initiatives to fight public corruption, including a reward program offering up to $25,000 for tips from the public, as well as a program that offers lower-level defendants in a corruption scheme the potential to avoid prosecution if they reveal the crime to the Attorney General’s Office so more culpable defendants can be prosecuted.

New Jersey has tough anti-corruption laws that provide mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment and parole ineligibility for people who commit crimes that touch upon their public office or employment. The Attorney General’s Office has utilized these laws in recent years to prosecute major cases involving elected officials, government employees and companies receiving public funds. A critical challenge, however, is securing the initial leads that allow such crimes to be uncovered and prosecuted. The new programs are designed to encourage those with information on corruption to come forward.

“It’s a troubling reality that along with the many public officials and employees who carry out their duties with integrity, there are some who abuse their authority and corruptly exploit their positions for personal gain,” said Attorney General Porrino. “We know these bad actors are out there, and we’re casting a wide net to catch them with these two new programs. For members of the public who have personal knowledge of corruption and are fed up with it, we’re offering an added motivation for them to turn their anger into action.”

“Our whistleblower program strategically allows secondary players in corruption schemes to come clean and avoid prosecution,” Porrino added. “Whether we’re talking about a skilled public worker assigned to act as a personal handyman for his boss, or a contractor asked to pay bribes to a local code inspector, or a corporate employee pressured by executives to make illegal political contributions, we’re offering a way out of such predicaments for those who come forward first and are less culpable.”

“These new programs offer strong incentives for people to come forward confidentially and help us root out public corruption, whether they’re tipsters from the public seeking a reward, or public workers or others seeking to extricate themselves from a corrupt scheme,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “By offering the programs for a limited time, we’re looking for swift results, and we will vigorously pursue every lead.”

“By implementing the Anti-Corruption Reward and Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Programs for a relatively short time frame, we are hoping for quick and decisive action by anyone with knowledge of public corruption by elected officials and government employees,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “The goal of the initiatives is to encourage those to come forward with information that will eventually lead to the prosecution of anyone who engages in these corruption schemes.”

Attorney General Porrino announced the following programs to promote reporting of corruption cases:

Anti-Corruption Reward Program

The Attorney General’s Office is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for tips from the public leading to a conviction for a crime involving public corruption. The reward program will be funded by the Attorney General’s Office using criminal forfeiture funds.
Individuals applying for this reward must provide information about a crime that has not previously been revealed to law enforcement and they must not have participated in the crime.
The reward limit for any case is $25,000. In most cases, only the person who first reports the crime will receive the reward. However, where two or more people provide different information that is material to successfully prosecuting the case, the reward may be apportioned.
The reward is not available to government employees who learn of the crime in the course of their employment if they have an official duty to report such crimes.

Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program

This program encourages eligible individuals or corporations to self-report their involvement in criminal activity, in return, in appropriate cases, for an agreement by the Attorney General’s Office to waive prosecution of the whistleblower.
Individuals interested in participating in the program can choose initially to report information anonymously and/or through an attorney to determine whether they are a likely candidate for waiver of prosecution under the program. They can then decide whether to proceed with the formal application.
The program is restricted to lower-level participants in a crime who provide information that enables the Attorney General’s Office to charge higher-level defendants. The whistleblower must provide truthful and complete information and must cooperate as required by investigators.
An individual will not be eligible for the program if he or she is an elected official, had a controlling role in the criminal scheme, or enlisted another party to participate in the scheme.
The whistleblower may be subject to forfeiture of public employment depending on the circumstances.
Corporations may apply for the Whistleblower Program only where the criminal activity at issue was committed by employees of the corporation, without the knowledge, acquiescence or participation of the high-level employees, officers, directors or shareholders seeking waiver of prosecution for the corporation, and only where the corporation took prompt action to terminate the illegal activity or report it to law enforcement once it was discovered.

The programs are intended to encourage individuals who have information on public corruption to come forward promptly, so they will be open for a limited time. Both programs will expire on Aug. 1, 2017.

The Attorney General’s Office will keep the identities of applicants to the programs confidential to the fullest extent possible, subject to any statute, rule of court, or judicial decision to the contrary which may require disclosure to certain parties, including, in certain circumstances, a criminal defendant. Applicants to each program may be interviewed by detectives at the discretion of the Division of Criminal Justice. The applicant may also be required to give his or her verbal statement under oath and sign a written memorialization of his or her statement.

Additional information about the two programs can be found posted with this press release on the Attorney General’s Office website: www.njpublicsafety.com.

Individuals may report information and apply for the Anti-Corruption Reward Program or Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program by one of the following methods:

Call the DCJ hotline 866-TIPS-4CJ to speak with corruption detectives 24 hours/7 days a week;
Visit www.njdcj.org to submit an online report;
Write directly to DCJ at the following address:

New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety
Division of Criminal Justice
25 Market Street
P.O. Box 085
Trenton, NJ 08625-0085

Attention: Anti-Corruption Reward Program OR Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program.

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“Just Pups” Pet Stores and Owner Vincent LoSacco Agree to Permanently Stop Selling Animals in New Jersey and Pay $326,000 Fine

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July 27,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Paramus NJ,  Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino and the Division of Consumer Affairs today announced that pet shop owner Vincent LoSacco and his “Just Pups” Stores have agreed to permanently stop selling animals in New Jersey and pay $326,000 to settle allegations they misled customers about the health of the puppies they sold, failed to reimburse consumers for animals that got sick or died, and committed dozens of other acts of consumer fraud.

Under a settlement with the Division of Consumer Affairs, Just Pups is permanently prohibited from conducting business in New Jersey, and LoSacco is permanently barred from advertising or selling animals in the state in any capacity, including, among other things, as an owner, employee, consultant, or independent contractor at a pet store, kennel, or breeding establishment, either in a paid or unpaid position.

“We’re pleased to finally close the book on Vincent LoSacco’s long and troubled history of selling puppies in this state,” said Attorney General Porrino. “By permanently banning him from New Jersey’s pet sales industry, we are not only protecting consumers from fraud, we are shielding families from the heartache of unwittingly purchasing a sick puppy and then being forced to choose between paying costly vet fees or losing their pet.”

“Buying a puppy is an emotional investment as well a financial investment. We will not allow unscrupulous pet stores to deliberately deceive consumers in this very important purchase,” said Steve Lee, Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs. “As this action shows, we will vigorously enforce the laws in place to protect consumers from suffering the emotional and financial cost of purchasing a puppy suffering from an undiagnosed or undisclosed illness.”

The settlement resolves allegations contained in the First Amended Complaint filed by the State in September 2016. The Complaint alleges that Lo Sacco and Just Pups violated New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act (CFA), Pet Purchase Protection Act (PPA), the Pet Regulations and the Advertising Regulations, by among other things:

Selling sick or defective animals to consumers from stores in East Brunswick, East Hanover, Emerson, and Paramus.
Misrepresenting as healthy and selling dogs suffering from Kennel Cough, Parvo, Bronchitis, and Giardia.
Failing to reimburse consumers for veterinary fees associated with the treatment of sick or defective dogs, even after receiving veterinary certifications that the animals had been unfit for sale.
Failing to refund the purchase price plus sales tax of an animal that died due to congenital or hereditary cause, within six months of delivery to consumer.
Misrepresenting that dogs are healthy when such was not the case.
Failing to have an animal that was examined more than 14 days prior to purchase reexamined by a veterinarian within 72 hours of delivery, as required by law.
Misrepresenting on the Just Pups website that Just Pups can prove that all of its puppies are free from adverse health symptoms, when such was not the case.
Selling an animal within the State of New Jersey without a completed animal history and health certificate.

The settlement also addresses the State’s concern that LoSacco violated the PPA in connection with his East Hanover store by accepting deposits and/or other payments from numerous consumers prior to Just Pups and LoSacco having the puppies examined by a New Jersey-licensed veterinarian.

In addition to permanently enjoining Just Pups and LoSacco from any involvement in the sale, advertising, breeding or kenneling of animals in New Jersey, the settlement requires them to pay a civil penalty of $290,000, $30,163 in restitution to consumers, and $5,876 in reimbursement of investigative costs. Under the terms of the settlement, the $290,000 civil penalty will be suspended if the defendants meet the terms of the agreement.

The allegations against LoSacco and Just Pups stem from the Division’s statewide inspections of pet shops to ensure compliance with the PPA, which took effect in June 2015.

Just Pups stores in East Brunswick, East Hanover, Emerson, and Paramus were among 26 pet stores cited for noncompliance.

In the months following the Division’s inspections, LoSacco came under fire from authorities in the towns where his stores were located.

State and local authorities charged him with more than 400 counts of animal cruelty and neglect in connection with his stores in Paramus and East Brunswick, including charges investigators found a gravely ill, emaciated puppy in a cage in the East Brunswick store that later died, and that he left 60 puppies unattended in small crates inside a cold van parked outside his Paramus store in April. LoSacco was also charged with hundreds of health code violations in connection with all four stores.

In March 2016, the Just Pups store in East Brunswick was closed permanently when the town council revoked LoSacco’s shop owner’s license. Just Pups in Paramus closed permanently in May 2016 when LoSacco did not attempt to renew his business license there. The Emerson store was permanently closed in July 2016 when the borough council voted against renewing his business license. The final Just Pups location, in East Hanover, was permanently closed in March 2017 when the town council voted not to renew LoSacco’s business license. The vote came a month after the store was placed in quarantine by the East Hanover Board of Health amid allegations that LoSacco had illegally transported puppies to his store from out of state without medical clearance.

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Former Birdsall Executive Pleads Guilty for His Role in Scheme to Evade New Jersey Pay-To-Play Laws

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Former Birdsall Executive Pleads Guilty for His Role in Scheme to Evade Pay-To-Play Laws With Illegal Political Contributions  All nine individuals charged in the case – and the engineering firm itself – have now pleaded guilty

July 8,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

TRENTON NJ,  Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino announced that a former executive and shareholder of Birdsall Services Group (“BSG”) pleaded guilty today to participating in a criminal scheme in which more than $1 million in corporate political contributions were illegally made through firm employees to evade New Jersey’s pay-to-play laws. Nine former executives, shareholders and managers of BSG have pleaded guilty in the scheme, along with the engineering firm itself, which is no longer in business.

Alan Hilla, 77, of Jupiter, Fla., pleaded guilty today to a charge of second-degree misconduct by a corporate official before Superior Court Judge Wendel E. Daniels in Ocean County. Under the plea agreement, the state will recommend that he be sentenced to five years in state prison. Hilla indicated he plans to apply for a suspended sentence, citing health issues. Hilla is the final defendant in the case against BSG and nine of its top executives, shareholders and employees. Judge Daniels scheduled sentencing for September 1, 2017 at 10 AM.

Deputy Attorney General Anthony A. Picione, Chief of the Corruption Bureau, and Deputy Attorneys General Mallory Shanahan, Brian Faulk and Charles Wright are prosecuting the case and took the guilty plea for the Division of Criminal Justice. The charge was contained in a March 26, 2013 indictment, which also charged BSG and six other executives and shareholders. Two other defendants pleaded guilty pre-indictment. The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau, which found that the defendants conspired to avoid the restrictions of New Jersey’s Pay-to-Play laws by disguising illegal corporate political contributions as personal contributions of employees.

“The many guilty pleas we have secured in this case hammer home an important message that criminal schemes aimed at evading New Jersey’s pay-to-play laws will be met with stern punishment,” said Attorney General Porrino. “Our laws prevent politically connected firms from garnering public contracts based on campaign contributions, but Birdsall’s executives gamed the system and secured millions of dollars in contracts for which they should have been disqualified.”

“My office recently announced two anti-corruption programs – a reward program offering up to $25,000 for tips about public corruption, as well as a whistleblower program that allows lower-level participants in a corruption scheme to potentially avoid prosecution by self-reporting,” Attorney General Porrino added. “I urge people to help us and help themselves by taking advantage of these programs, which expire on August 1.”

“New Jersey’s pay-to-play laws seek to ensure fair and open public contracting, free of the sway of political interests,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “By criminally prosecuting this firm and sending many of its top executives to prison, we have given those laws real teeth.”

Individuals may report information and apply for the Anti-Corruption Reward Program or Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program by August 1 by one of the following methods:

Call the DCJ hotline 866-TIPS-4CJ to speak with detectives 24 hours/7 days a week; or

Visit www.njdcj.org to submit an online report.

BSG pleaded guilty on June 13, 2013 to charges of first-degree money laundering and second-degree making false representations for government contracts. As a result of its plea, BSG paid two major criminal penalties: a $500,000 public corruption profiteering penalty and a $500,000 anti-money laundering profiteering penalty. In each instance, the penalty was the maximum amount authorized by law. BSG also paid the state $2.6 million to settle a civil forfeiture action filed by the Attorney General’s Office in connection with the criminal case.

Eight other executives, shareholders and managers of the Birdsall firm previously pleaded guilty:

On April 22, 2016, Howard Birdsall, formerly CEO and largest shareholder of BSG, was sentenced to four years in prison on a charge of second-degree misconduct by a corporate official. He paid $49,808 to the state in forfeiture of his illegal political contributions.

On June 10, 2016, Thomas Rospos, formerly executive vice president of BSG and its second largest shareholder, was sentenced to three years in prison on a charge of third-degree tampering with public records or information. He paid $150,000 in forfeiture of his illegal contributions.

On July 11, 2016, William Birdsall, formerly senior vice president and a large shareholder of BSG, was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail and two years of probation on a charge of third-degree misconduct by a corporate official. He paid $129,115 in forfeiture of his illegal contributions, as well as a $75,000 public corruption profiteering penalty.

On June 2, Robert Gerard, 56, of Wall, N.J., former Chief Marketing Officer for BSG, was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail and two years of probation on a fourth-degree charge of making prohibited corporate political contributions through employees. He forfeited $86,200.

James Johnston, 55, of New Brunswick, N.J., former President of the Environmental Services Group within BSG, was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail and two years of probation on a fourth-degree charge of making prohibited corporate political contributions through employees. He forfeited $93,720.

On Jan. 6, 2016, Scott MacFadden, former chief administrative officer of BSG, pleaded guilty to third-degree misconduct by a corporate official. He faces a recommended sentence of up to 364 days in jail and a term of probation. He must pay $30,000 in forfeiture of his contributions.

On Nov. 30, 2012, Philip Angarone, the former marketing director for BSG, pleaded guilty to third-degree tampering with public records or information and fourth-degree making prohibited corporate political contributions through employees. He is awaiting sentencing and faces a sentence of up to 364 days in jail and a term of probation. He must forfeit $26,775.

On Feb. 12, 2013, Eileen Kufahl, a former marketing manager for Birdsall, pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree charge of making prohibited corporate contributions through employees. She forfeited $17,119 and was admitted into the Pre-Trial Intervention Program.

Under the alleged scheme, instead of Birdsall Services Group making corporate political contributions to campaigns and political organizations that would disqualify it from public contracts awarded by certain government agencies, shareholders and employees of the firm made personal political contributions of $300 or less, which are deemed unreportable. Multiple personal checks were bundled together at Birdsall Services Group and sent to the appropriate campaign or political organization. The shareholders and employees were then illegally reimbursed by Birdsall Services Group, directly or indirectly, through added bonus payments, and the firm falsely omitted the illegally reimbursed contributions in documents filed with the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) and with government agencies that awarded the firm engineering services contracts. The scheme continued for more than six years and involved more than $1 million in contributions.

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Two Former Birdsall Executives Sentenced to Jail Terms for Evading Pay-To-Play Law with Illegal Political Contributions

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June 6,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ,  Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino announced that two former executives of Birdsall Services Group (“BSG”) were sentenced to jail today for participating in a criminal scheme in which more than $1 million in corporate political contributions were illegally made through firm employees to evade New Jersey’s pay-to-play law. Eight former executives, shareholders and managers of BSG have pleaded guilty in the scheme, along with the engineering firm itself, which is no longer in business.

These defendants were sentenced today by Superior Court Judge James Den Uyl in Ocean County. Each man was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail as a condition of a term of two years of probation:

Robert Gerard, 56, of Wall, N.J., former Chief Marketing Officer for BSG, and
James Johnston, 55, of New Brunswick, N.J., former President of the Environmental Services Group within BSG.

Gerard and Johnston pleaded guilty on April 12 to fourth-degree charges of making prohibited corporate political contributions through employees. Gerard was required to forfeit $86,200 to the state, and Johnston, $93,720. Each man is debarred for 10 years from personally bidding on public contracts in New Jersey or holding an interest of 5 percent or more in any company that bids for such contracts.

Deputy Attorney General Anthony A. Picione, Chief of the Corruption Bureau, and Deputy Attorneys General Mallory Shanahan and Brian Faulk prosecuted Gerard and Johnston and handled the sentencing hearings for the Division of Criminal Justice.  The charge was contained in a March 26, 2013 indictment, which also charged BSG and six other executives and shareholders. The indictment stemmed from an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau, which found that the defendants allegedly conspired to avoid the restrictions of New Jersey’s Pay-to-Play Act by disguising illegal corporate political contributions as personal contributions of employees.

“The many guilty pleas we have secured in this case hammer home an important message that criminal schemes aimed at evading New Jersey’s pay-to-play law will be met with stern punishment,” said Attorney General Porrino.  “Our law prevents politically connected firms from garnering public contracts based on campaign contributions, but Birdsall’s executives gamed the system and secured millions of dollars in contracts for which they should have been disqualified.”

“My office recently announced two anti-corruption programs – a reward program offering up to $25,000 for tips about public corruption, as well as a whistleblower program that allows lower-level participants in a corruption scheme to potentially avoid prosecution by self-reporting,” Attorney General Porrino added.  “I urge people to help us and help themselves by taking advantage of these programs, which expire on August 1.”

“New Jersey’s pay-to-play law seeks to ensure fair and open public contracting, free of the sway of political interests,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice.  “By criminally prosecuting this firm and its executives, we have given the law real teeth.”

Individuals may report information and apply for the Anti-Corruption Reward Program or Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program by August 1 by one of the following methods:

Call the DCJ hotline 866-TIPS-4CJ to speak with detectives 24 hours/7 days a week; or

Visit www.njdcj.org to submit an online report.

BSG pleaded guilty on June 13, 2013 to charges of first-degree money laundering and second-degree making false representations for government contracts. As a result of its plea, BSG paid two major criminal penalties: a $500,000 public corruption profiteering penalty and a $500,000 anti-money laundering profiteering penalty. In each instance, the penalty was the maximum amount authorized by law. BSG also paid the state $2.6 million to settle a civil forfeiture action filed by the Attorney General’s Office in connection with the criminal case.

Six other executives, shareholders and managers of the Birdsall firm previously pleaded guilty:

On April 22, 2016, Howard Birdsall, formerly CEO and largest shareholder of BSG, was sentenced to four years in prison on a charge of second-degree misconduct by a corporate official. He paid $49,808 to the state in forfeiture of his illegal political contributions.

On June 10, 2016, Thomas Rospos, formerly executive vice president of BSG and its second largest shareholder, was sentenced to three years in prison on a charge of third-degree tampering with public records or information. He paid $150,000 in forfeiture of his illegal contributions.

On July 11, 2016, William Birdsall, formerly senior vice president and a large shareholder of BSG, was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail and two years of probation on a charge of third-degree misconduct by a corporate official.  He paid $129,115 in forfeiture of his illegal contributions, as well as a $75,000 public corruption profiteering penalty.

On Jan. 6, 2016, Scott MacFadden, former chief administrative officer of BSG, pleaded guilty to third-degree misconduct by a corporate official.  He faces a recommended sentence of up to 364 days in jail and a term of probation.  He must pay $30,000 in forfeiture of his contributions.

On Nov. 30, 2012, Philip Angarone, the former marketing director for BSG, pleaded guilty to third-degree tampering with public records or information and fourth-degree making prohibited corporate political contributions through employees. He is awaiting sentencing and faces a sentence of up to 364 days in jail and a term of probation. He must forfeit $26,775.

On Feb. 12, 2013, Eileen Kufahl, a former marketing manager for Birdsall, pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree charge of making prohibited corporate contributions through employees. She forfeited $17,119 and was admitted into the Pre-Trial Intervention Program.

Under the alleged scheme, instead of Birdsall Services Group making corporate political contributions to campaigns and political organizations that would disqualify it from public contracts awarded by certain government agencies, shareholders and employees of the firm made personal political contributions of $300 or less, which are deemed unreportable. Multiple personal checks were bundled together at Birdsall Services Group and sent to the appropriate campaign or political organization. The shareholders and employees were then illegally reimbursed by Birdsall Services Group, directly or indirectly, through added bonus payments, and the firm falsely omitted the illegally reimbursed contributions in documents filed with the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) and with government agencies that awarded the firm engineering services contracts. The scheme continued for more than six years and involved more than $1 million in contributions.

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Attorney General Strengthens Bail Reform Directive To Better Ensure That Dangerous And Recidivist Criminals Are Kept In Jail Pending Trial

Attorney General Christopher S

May 25,2017

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Trenton NJ,  Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino today announced important changes to the directive he issued last year to prosecutors and police that will better ensure that dangerous and recidivist criminals are detained pending trial under New Jersey’s historic bail reform. Among other changes, the revised directive creates presumptions that prosecutors will seek an arrest warrant and/or pretrial detention for offenders charged with gun crimes, assaults on police, certain crimes involving sexual exploitation of children, or any indictable offense committed while on release or under post-conviction supervision for another crime.

“Bail reform is working, as evidenced by the more than 1,200 dangerous criminals detained without bail in the first quarter of 2017 — criminals who under the old system might have paid their way out of jail and continued to threaten the community, victims and witnesses,” said Attorney General Porrino. “With these revisions to our directive, we’re making sure that detention will be sought more frequently for certain categories of offenders, including recidivist offenders, those who commit gun crimes, sex offenders, and criminals with a history of threatening police and the public with their violent or reckless acts.”

“In the first five months of bail reform, we’ve maintained a constructive dialogue with all stakeholders, including law enforcement, the Judiciary and community leaders, and we’ve replaced the theories behind our original directive with real-life experience and data,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “These revisions to our law enforcement directive reflect a renewed confidence that our new system enables us to protect the public by detaining the most dangerous offenders, while avoiding the costs, both fiscal and social, of warehousing indigent non-violent offenders in jail pending trial.”

The bail reform law, which took effect Jan. 1, replaced New Jersey’s monetary bail system with a risk-based approach, requiring courts to assess the likelihood that a defendant will flee, commit a new crime, or obstruct justice by intimidating victims or witnesses. There are two essential decisions for police and prosecutors. First, they must decide whether to charge by complaint-warrant or complaint-summons. If they want to seek pretrial detention or, in the alternative, want the court to impose any conditions of release to mitigate risks, they must charge by complaint-warrant. When a warrant is issued by the court, a defendant is arrested and taken to jail to be held for up to 48 hours. Second, prosecutors must decide whether to seek pretrial detention. Within 48 hours, the defendant will have a first appearance in court, where, if the state has filed a motion to detain, the judge will decide whether to detain or release the defendant, potentially with conditions.

To assist law enforcement and judges in deciding about a defendant, the Administrative Office of the Courts developed a computer-based risk assessment, the Public Safety Assessment (PSA), which factors in the nature and seriousness of the crime charged, as well as information on the defendant’s adult criminal and court-appearance history. The PSA offers three risk indicators: (1) a six-point “failure-to-appear” (FTA) risk scale; (2) a six-point “new criminal activity” (NCA) scale that gauges likelihood of re-offense on release; and (3) a “new violent criminal activity” flag, which flags defendants likely to commit violent crimes if released.

Last month, the Attorney General’s Office sent a letter to the Administrative Office of the Courts requesting certain changes to the PSA and the decision-making framework employed by the Courts’ Pretrial Services Program in making recommendations to judges about pretrial detention. Specifically, the letter requested changes to the PSA and decision-making framework that would make it more likely judges would impose detention in cases where a defendant is charged with a gun crime, eluding police in a vehicle with risk of death or injury, or any new crime committed while on pretrial release, probation or parole. Those requests are pending, and the Attorney General’s Office is continuing to work with the Courts regarding such goals.

The changes announced today to the bail reform directive are separate measures taken under the Attorney General’s authority as the state’s top law enforcement officer. The directive governs prosecutors and police statewide with respect to their decisions about a defendant and what they will seek from a judge, namely, (1) whether to seek a complaint-warrant to arrest a defendant, and (2) whether to seek pretrial detention or release subject to protective conditions.

The following are key changes that, among others, are being implemented through the revised directive:

A new presumption is created that law enforcement will apply for pretrial detention for any indictable crime committed while a defendant is on pretrial release for another crime or on post-conviction supervision such as parole or probation. Previously, there was a presumption only if the new offense was a first- or second-degree crime.

The forms of post-conviction supervision triggering the presumption discussed in the first bullet have been expanded beyond traditional parole and probation to include two forms of supervision routinely imposed on sex offenders: (1) community supervision for life, and (2) parole supervision for life. As a result, there is a presumption that prosecutors now will seek pretrial detention for any sex offender subject to such supervision if they are arrested for a new indictable crime.

Consistent with the request made to the Courts regarding the PSA and the Pretrial Services decision-making framework, the revised directive also establishes a presumption that police and prosecutors will apply for pretrial detention for any defendant who commits a Graves Act firearms offense or possesses a firearm as a convicted felon, or who eludes police in a motor vehicle creating a risk of death or injury to any person.

There is a new presumption that police and prosecutors will apply for pretrial detention for any first- or second-degree crime if the defendant has an NCA score of 4 or higher. Previously that presumption was triggered only if the defendant had an NCA score (or FTA score) of 5 or higher.

Police and prosecutors are subject to a new presumption that they will apply for pretrial detention for defendants charged with third- or fourth-degree crimes if the defendant has an NCA score of 5 or higher, or an FTA score of 6. Previously there was no presumption for third- or fourth-degree cases.

There is a new presumption that police and prosecutors will apply for a complaint-warrant in (1) any case involving second-degree eluding, as discussed above, (2) any case where a defendant is charged with third-degree assault on a police officer or other public official or employee causing bodily injury, or (3) any case where a defendant is charged with manufacturing or distributing child pornography, or related crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children.

There is now a presumption that police and prosecutors will apply for a complaint-warrant in any case where the PSA generates an FTA or NCA score of 3 or higher, whereas the original directive set the threshold at 4 or higher.

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Attorney General Announces Two New Initiatives to Fight Corruption, Including Reward Program Offering $25,000 for Tips From Public

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May 10,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

TRENTON NJ, Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino today announced two new initiatives to fight public corruption, including a reward program offering up to $25,000 for tips from the public, as well as a program that offers lower-level defendants in a corruption scheme the potential to avoid prosecution if they reveal the crime to the Attorney General’s Office so more culpable defendants can be prosecuted.

New Jersey has tough anti-corruption laws that provide mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment and parole ineligibility for people who commit crimes that touch upon their public office or employment. The Attorney General’s Office has utilized these laws in recent years to prosecute major cases involving elected officials, government employees and companies receiving public funds. A critical challenge, however, is securing the initial leads that allow such crimes to be uncovered and prosecuted. The new programs are designed to encourage those with information on corruption to come forward.

“It’s a troubling reality that along with the many public officials and employees who carry out their duties with integrity, there are some who abuse their authority and corruptly exploit their positions for personal gain,” said Attorney General Porrino. “We know these bad actors are out there, and we’re casting a wide net to catch them with these two new programs. For members of the public who have personal knowledge of corruption and are fed up with it, we’re offering an added motivation for them to turn their anger into action.”

“Our whistleblower program strategically allows secondary players in corruption schemes to come clean and avoid prosecution,” Porrino added. “Whether we’re talking about a skilled public worker assigned to act as a personal handyman for his boss, or a contractor asked to pay bribes to a local code inspector, or a corporate employee pressured by executives to make illegal political contributions, we’re offering a way out of such predicaments for those who come forward first and are less culpable.”

“These new programs offer strong incentives for people to come forward confidentially and help us root out public corruption, whether they’re tipsters from the public seeking a reward, or public workers or others seeking to extricate themselves from a corrupt scheme,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “By offering the programs for a limited time, we’re looking for swift results, and we will vigorously pursue every lead.”

“By implementing the Anti-Corruption Reward and Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Programs for a relatively short time frame, we are hoping for quick and decisive action by anyone with knowledge of public corruption by elected officials and government employees,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “The goal of the initiatives is to encourage those to come forward with information that will eventually lead to the prosecution of anyone who engages in these corruption schemes.”

Attorney General Porrino announced the following programs to promote reporting of corruption cases:

Anti-Corruption Reward Program

The Attorney General’s Office is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for tips from the public leading to a conviction for a crime involving public corruption. The reward program will be funded by the Attorney General’s Office using criminal forfeiture funds.
Individuals applying for this reward must provide information about a crime that has not previously been revealed to law enforcement and they must not have participated in the crime.
The reward limit for any case is $25,000. In most cases, only the person who first reports the crime will receive the reward. However, where two or more people provide different information that is material to successfully prosecuting the case, the reward may be apportioned.
The reward is not available to government employees who learn of the crime in the course of their employment if they have an official duty to report such crimes.

Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program

This program encourages eligible individuals or corporations to self-report their involvement in criminal activity, in return, in appropriate cases, for an agreement by the Attorney General’s Office to waive prosecution of the whistleblower.
Individuals interested in participating in the program can choose initially to report information anonymously and/or through an attorney to determine whether they are a likely candidate for waiver of prosecution under the program. They can then decide whether to proceed with the formal application.
The program is restricted to lower-level participants in a crime who provide information that enables the Attorney General’s Office to charge higher-level defendants. The whistleblower must provide truthful and complete information and must cooperate as required by investigators.
An individual will not be eligible for the program if he or she is an elected official, had a controlling role in the criminal scheme, or enlisted another party to participate in the scheme.
The whistleblower may be subject to forfeiture of public employment depending on the circumstances.
Corporations may apply for the Whistleblower Program only where the criminal activity at issue was committed by employees of the corporation, without the knowledge, acquiescence or participation of the high-level employees, officers, directors or shareholders seeking waiver of prosecution for the corporation, and only where the corporation took prompt action to terminate the illegal activity or report it to law enforcement once it was discovered.

The programs are intended to encourage individuals who have information on public corruption to come forward promptly, so they will be open for a limited time. Both programs will expire on Aug. 1, 2017.

The Attorney General’s Office will keep the identities of applicants to the programs confidential to the fullest extent possible, subject to any statute, rule of court, or judicial decision to the contrary which may require disclosure to certain parties, including, in certain circumstances, a criminal defendant. Applicants to each program may be interviewed by detectives at the discretion of the Division of Criminal Justice. The applicant may also be required to give his or her verbal statement under oath and sign a written memorialization of his or her statement.

Additional information about the two programs can be found posted with this press release on the Attorney General’s Office website: www.njpublicsafety.com.

Individuals may report information and apply for the Anti-Corruption Reward Program or Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program by one of the following methods:

Call the DCJ hotline 866-TIPS-4CJ to speak with corruption detectives 24 hours/7 days a week;
Visit www.njdcj.org to submit an online report;
Write directly to DCJ at the following address:

New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety
Division of Criminal Justice
25 Market Street
P.O. Box 085
Trenton, NJ 08625-0085

Attention: Anti-Corruption Reward Program OR Anti-Corruption Whistleblower Program.

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Former NJ Assemblyman Schroeder Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison

NJ_assemblyman_Bob_Schroeder_theridgewoodblog

By Max Pizarro • 02/06/17 5:21pm

Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino announced that former New Jersey Assemblyman Robert Schroeder (R-Bergen) was sentenced to prison today for stealing nearly $1.9 million from individuals who loaned him money for a business venture in North Dakota and writing over $3.4 million in bad checks to other creditors who loaned him money or provided goods and services for his various companies, including All Points International Distributors, Inc., which sold tents and prefabricated buildings to the U.S. military.

https://observer.com/2017/02/former-nj-assemblyman-schroeder-sentenced-to-eight-years-in-prison/

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17 indicted in auto-theft ring that targeted Craigslist sellers

Grand theft auto

By Craig McCarthy | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

on August 25, 2016 at 7:47 AM, updated August 25, 2016 at 11:12 AM

TRENTON — Two New Jersey residents and a Florida man are accused of running an auto-theft ring that recruited 14 others to scam people trying to sell cars on Craigslist, authorities said.

The trio — Luther Lewis, 38, of Piscataway, Tyisha Brantley, 36, of Scotch Plains, and Justinas Vaitoska, 39, of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. — were indicted Wednesday by a grand jury in Mercer County, Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino said in a release.

Authorities said the operation used fake bank checks to buy cars from online sellers and flip them at car dealerships in New Jersey. The scam netted $107,250 from 10 vehicles, which had a total value of $248,650, according to authorities.

Lewis, Brantley, Vaitoska are accused of running the scheme from May to November of 2015. They sent others to pose as buyers for a payout of $300 to $1,000 per car, authorities said.

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2016/08/craigslist_auto_scam_busted_in_nj_17_indicted_poli.html?ath=9c46bfc08d76232bb5a5e00eeaf0bfa2#cmpid=nsltr_strybutton