Asbury Park Man, 23, Pleads Guilty to 2017 Shooting
Officials: Fowlkes Fired Into Crowd At A Washington Village Block Party & Injured 15-year-old Girl
An Asbury Park man has pleaded guilty to firing into a crowd of people and injuring a 15-year-girl in the leg during a city block party last year, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced Tuesday.
Josiphiah Fowlkes, 23, of Washington Avenue was charged with aggravated assault, possession of a handgun for unlawful purpose, and being a certain person not to have weapons, officials said in a written news release.
The guilty plea was accepted before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Joseph Oxley, with a sentencing date scheduled for July 27.
Fowlkes admitted he was responsible for firing multiple shots into a crowd of 30-40 people at a Washington Avenue block party on May 31, 2017, officials said. One of those shots struck the 15-year-old girl who was treated and released at a local hospital.
Asbury Park Police patrols were in the area of Washington Avenue at approximately 11:05 p.m. when they heard several gunshots in the immediate area, spokesman Charles Webster said. When officers arrived in the area of the Washington Village Apartment complex, they found the injured girl and discovered a vehicle located in a driveway and the Washington Village security post booth were struck by gunfire.
The following day, on June 1, 2017, while investigating the shooting incident, police made contact with Fowlkes and discovered he was in possession of a stolen handgun. As a result, he was taken into custody and charged.
Fowlkes now faces up to 20 years for the second degree aggravated assault charge, which is subject to the No Early Release Act provision; 20 years for the weapons offense, which is subject to the Graves Act that would require he serve a minimum one-third of the sentence; and 20 years for the Certain Persons charge, which carries a mandatory 5 years before parole.
The case is assigned to Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Competello, and Fowlkes is represented by Carlos Diaz-Cobo of Freehold.
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