Law enforcement officials roll out new joint initiative
Serious gun-related crime offenders will be federally prosecuted
Law enforcement officials have upped the ante for those that commit gun-related crimes in Monmouth County.
In a continued effort to curb violence throughout the county, members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the state attorney’s office announced a joint initiative that increases prison time for citizens that have committed gun crimes or who use guns to commit violent crimes by subjecting them to federal levels of prosecution.
Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni and Paul J. Fishman, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, stood alongside local and state officials Friday at the Asbury Park satellite office the launch to outline “Project Stop the Violence.”
Through the project, representatives from numerous local, state and federal law enforcement agencies will meet to identify “priority targets,” screen their crime history to determine “case specific” factors and ultimately decide whether they will be prosecuted, said Gramiccioni. The most serious offenders will be subject to federal prosecution, he said.
The federal system does not offer parole and defendants can serve time at any jail within the national prison system, effectively cutting them off from their family and community. The idea operates on the assumption that if the violent offender is removed from their own drug-trafficking networks, families and gangs, it will deter further criminal activity, he said.
Individuals who meet certain criteria will be notified in writing that their cases are being considered for adoption on the state level, he said. In addition, a member of the prosecutor’s office will be designated as a special assistant to the U.S. Attorney’s office to assist with the prosecution of these cases in the federal court in Trenton.
“Were not introducing anything other than great common sense,” said Fishman.
The initiative combines efforts from local and state law enforcement officials, community activists, educators and faith-based organizations across the county.
Pastor Lyddale Akins of Triumphant Life Church, who was there to back the initiative alongside other local clergy members, will be getting out into the streets to warn would-be offenders “the game is changing,” law enforcement officials are “not playing” and they don’t want to “go down that road,” he said.
“What it boils down to, is gun crime is going to equal jail time,” Gramiccioni said.
Offenders who are prosecuted in federal court will face lengthier periods of incarceration for gun-related crimes than they would in state court.
According to federal statutes, felons who are found in possession of a weapon face a 10-year maximum penalty, career criminals—those with three prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses—found in possession of a weapon face a mandatory minimum 15-year sentence. Time also increases for offenders who are found with firearms in connection with certain crimes, which include up to 25-year mandatory minimum sentences.
To date, three cases from Monmouth County have been adopted for federal prosecution under this initiative.
Mykal Hall, 21, and Lachtavo Nance, 24, were indicted earlier this month related to the sale of illegal firearms and robbery of an intended buyer. Robert A. Fiolka, 69, of Staten Island, N.Y., was sentenced in July to 114 months in federal prison for his role in a June 2, 2012 jewelry store robbery in Fair Haven, and Quam Wilson, 23, of Neptune Township, was named in an 11-count indictment in September. Wilson is charged in the indictment with five counts of committing a Hobbs Act robbery, five counts of using a firearm during a crime of violence and a lone count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, according to the prosecutor’s office.
Project Stop the Violence is the latest effort local and county law officials have put in place to combat the recent uptick in gun activity, particularly in Asbury Park, which Gramiccioni previously stated Asbury has one of the highest per-capita crime rates in Monmouth County.
Prior initiatives include the addition of a Monmouth County Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line and several gun buyback programs held in the county.
[Photo at top: Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor announces Project Stop the Violence while flanked by various state law enforcement officials Friday.
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