25-Year-Old Atlantic City Man Was Sentenced Last Tuesday To 5 Years In Prison on 2020 Gun Charge
Tuesday, July 2, 2024, 8:00 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
MAYS LANDING, NJ.- On Tuesday, June 25, 2024, Jerome Ford, 25, of Atlantic City, New Jersey, appeared in Atlantic County Superior Court and was sentenced by the Honorable Bernard E. DeLury, J.S.C. to a term of five years in New Jersey State Prison on a charge of second-degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon.
Judge DeLury further ordered the sentence to be subject to the Graves Act which will require Ford to serve 42 months of his custodial sentence before becoming eligible for parole.
According to Atlantic County Prosecutor William E. Renolds, the charge stems from an investigation when in February 2020, members of the New Jersey State Police Atlantic City Task Force pulled over a motor vehicle in which Ford was a front-seat passenger following a traffic violation. During the traffic stop, State Troopers noticed the smell of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. They conducted a search of the motor vehicle out of concern for the safety of the occupants.
During the search, State Troopers found a loaded .38 caliber, Rohm Gesellschaft Derringer Special handgun in the waistband of Ford’s pants. During the investigation, State Troopers learned that Ford did not have a permit to possess or carry a handgun. Ford was then taken into custody and charged.
Ford still has a pending case where he has been indicted by an Atlantic County grand jury on the charges of first-degree Conspiracy to Commit Murder; first-degree Attempted Murder; second-degree Aggravated Assault; second-degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon; second-degree Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose; first-degree Witness Tampering; first-degree Gang Criminality; as well as other related charges.
The charges in that matter stem from a shooting investigation that occurred on May 13, 2022, in Atlantic City, New Jersey with his co-defendant Emmanuel Williams.
