Prosecutor Appeals Ruling on Alleged Drunken Driver's Statement

A Morris County prosecutor is challenging a Superior Court judge’s decision to bar a statement made by the woman charged with killing East Hanover community leader Ralph Politi Jr. in a May 2012 alleged drunken driving accident, according to NJ.com.

During a September hearing in Morristown, Judge Robert Gilson announced that he would not allow a statement made by defendant Vanessa Brown, of Parsippany, in which she said Politi “came out of nowhere” and “hit me” in front of his family business, All Jersey Garage Doors on Ridgedale Avenue. The judge said the statement would “inflame” the jury into thinking Brown was trying to “blame an innocent victim,” the article said.

But Morris County Assistant Prosecutor John McNamara Jr. announced Monday that he is filing with an appellate court to overturn Gilson's ruling and allow Brown's statement, the article continued. Saying that her statement was made “voluntarily,” McNamara asserted that her words would help jurors understand her "state of mind" when the May 5, 2012 crash occurred.

Should an appeals court opt to hear McNamara's case, it could delay the start of Brown's trial on charges of aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide.