Dover, NJ Manslaughter Conviction
A Morris County Superior Court judge reduced the sentence of a woman convicted of killing a man in Dover, NJ in 2008.
Jade Ransom originally pleaded guilty to reckless manslaughter for causing the shooting death of Jesus Dimas Rodriguez-Marques. Ransom told authorities that she committed the crime in retaliation for Rodriguez-Marques touching her on the butt.
Ransom’s plea deal came about because a key witness against Ransom died while the case was pending. According to prosecutors, the witness, an inmate at Morris County Jail, was going to testify that Ransom admitted to the killing.
After accepting the prosecutor’s deal and pleading guilty, Ransom was sentenced 10 years in New Jersey State Prison. This represented the maximum penalty for the offense.
Ransom later appealed the sentence for being excessive. After a state appeals panel reviewed the case and sent it back to the lower court judge for reconsideration, the judge decided to reduce Ransom’s sentence from 10 years to nine years.
Despite the reduction in sentence, Ransom must still serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole because the crime is covered under the No Early Release Act.
For more information about this case, read the NJ.com article entitled “Woman Who Admitted Killing Man on Dover Street Gets Sentence Reduced from 10 Years to 9.”
