Keansburg Woman Pleads Guilty To Attempted Murder For Trying Kill Her Boyfriend
Tuesday, February 3, 2026, 7:30 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
OCEAN TOWNSHIP, NJ.- A 42-year-old Keansburg, New Jersey, woman will be facing over a decade in New Jersey State Prison when she is sentenced next month after pleading guilty last Wednesday to attempting kill her then-boyfriend by running him over with her car in the parking lot of an Ocean Township strip mall in the summer of 2024.
According to Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago, on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, Yvette C. Barnes, 42, of Keansburg, New Jersey, appeared in Monmouth County Superior Court and pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Jill G. O’Malley to one count of first-degree Attempted Murder.
In return for the guilty plea, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office will recommend that Barnes be sentenced to 15 years in State Prison, subject to the No Early Release Act, which will require Barnes to serve 85% of her custodial term before becoming eligible for parole. Following entering her guilty plea last Wednesday, Judge O’Malley accepted the plea and scheduled sentencing for March 11, 2026.
The guilty plea stems from a joint investigation by Detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ocean Township Police Department, which led to Barnes’s arrest.
According to the initial Police reports, on July 10, 2024, just shortly after 11:00 p.m., members of the Ocean Township Police Department responded to multiple 911 Emergency Calls reporting a woman driving erratically and hitting a man with her motor vehicle in the parking lot of a strip mall located at 2301 Route 66 in the Township.
Upon arrival, Police Officers discovered a man lying in the parking lot having sustained serious injuries to his head, neck, and body. Additionally, Investigators located blood and hair scattered throughout the parking lot. During the ensuing investigation, Detectives and Investigators determined that the man was run down by a vehicle that was being operated by Barnes and that he was dragged through the parking lot while being trapped under her vehicle.
The man was transported to an area hospital and underwent life-saving treatment. The man still remains hospitalized as a quadriplegic and has undergone multiple surgeries and skin grafts.
