Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Newark Man Charged with Firearms Offenses in Connection with Shooting of a 5-Year Old Child
NEWARK, N.J. – A Newark man made an initial appearance in federal court today on charges of being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Jamar Battle, 30, was charged by complaint Aug. 10, 2018, with one count of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. He was arrested on Aug. 11, 2018, and appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor in Newark federal court and ordered detained.
According to the complaint filed in the case:
On July 4, 2018, Battle, who was convicted in 2015 for illegally possessing a firearm, fired a handgun on Avon Avenue in Newark after engaging in a verbal dispute with another person. While the defendant did not hit his intended target, he did hit a 5-year-old child who had been walking down the same street with her father. The child was injured and required medical treatment.
The charge of being a felon in possession of a weapon carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited law enforcement officers of the Newark Department of Public Safety, under the direction of Director Anthony F. Ambrose; special agents of the Department of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John B. Devito; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie; and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel Robert Frazer and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Naazneen Khan of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
18-269
Defense counsel: Chester Keller Esq., First Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
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