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| Three officials charged in inmate's release |
| By New York Times |
| Published: 10/25/2004 |
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Defense lawyers say their clients were on a humanitarian mission, just trying to do a good deed for a family in need. But the clients - a judge and two law enforcement officials - broke the law, state officials say. Last Monday, the municipal judge in Englewood, N.J., the town's police chief and a police sergeant were arraigned in New Jersey Superior Court, charged with falsifying public records to release an inmate for a day so he could attend his father's funeral. The three, who pleaded not guilty, vowed to fight the charges, arguing that they were merely trying to do a favor for a grieving family. But a deputy attorney general said that New Jersey law outlined a way to obtain the temporary release of an inmate and that it did not involve a phony warrant, a bogus charge and a nonexistent court date. "There is a procedure in place," the deputy attorney general, Robert Czepiel Jr., said after the arraignment. "The procedure was not followed in this case." The three, Judge Joseph M. Clark, 61, of Englewood Municipal Court; and Chief David Bowman, 56, and Sgt. Emma Jackson, 56, of the Englewood police, were indicted on Sept. 8 on charges of tampering with public records and falsifying records. The tampering charges carry a prison sentence of up to five years, while the falsifying-records charge carries a maximum term of 18 months. Mr. Czepiel said the three concocted a fictitious warrant that cleared the way for an inmate, Lloyd Fields, 24, to be released from the Bergen County Jail for a few hours on March 8, 2003, to attend the wake and funeral of his father. At the time, Mr. Fields was serving a 364-day term on a drug conviction. According to Mr. Czepiel, the document stated incorrectly that Mr. Fields was required to appear in Englewood's town court on March 8 to answer shoplifting charges. March 8 was a Saturday, and the court was closed that day. The shoplifting charge was also false, Mr. Czepiel said. Judge William C. Meehan declined to order any bail and allowed the three officials to remain free on their own recognizance. |
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