A Mercer County grand jury has handed up a five-count indictment against longtime Trenton police detective Aaron Bernstein, 51, accusing him of unlawfully using pepper spray on a 27-year-old man, then filing a criminal complaint with statements he allegedly “knew to be false,” prosecutors say. The charges all stem from a May 10, 2022 encounter in Trenton and include two counts of second-degree official misconduct, one count of third-degree aggravated assault, one count of third-degree perjury, and one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Mercer County Prosecutor Janetta D. Marbrey announced the indictment, which the grand jury returned on April 16, according to NBC10 Philadelphia. Prosecutors say the two official misconduct counts and three third-degree charges all track back to that same 2022 arrest.
The case landed on the Mercer County Prosecutor’s desk in December 2024 after a referral from the Trenton Police Department’s Internal Affairs Unit, and Bernstein had roughly 19 years on the force at the time of the incident, per Patch. Patch also reports that Bernstein lives in Marlboro. Prosecutors have not said the officer has been convicted of any offense.
Background: Federal scrutiny of Trenton policing
The indictment arrives while Trenton policing is under a broader federal microscope. In 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice concluded that the Trenton Police Department engaged in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional stops and excessive force, finding that officers in some encounters “unlawfully use[] excessive force, including unreasonable forms of physical force and pepper spray.” As summarized by the U.S. Department of Justice, federal investigators pointed to breakdowns in training, supervision, and accountability that they say fueled repeated civil rights violations.
Charges and legal exposure
Bernstein faces two counts of second-degree official misconduct along with three third-degree charges, leaving him exposed to serious prison time if he is convicted, according to prosecutors. Under New Jersey law, a second-degree crime typically carries a sentence of five to ten years in prison, and a third-degree crime generally carries three to five years, per the New Jersey Legislature. The specific counts listed in the indictment were detailed in reporting by NBC10 Philadelphia.
What’s next
A grand jury returned the indictment on April 16, according to Patch, and the case will now move through Mercer County Superior Court on a schedule set by the judge. The December 2024 Internal Affairs referral placed the matter in the prosecutor’s hands, and any arraignment dates, plea talks, or pretrial hearings will show up in public court records as the case advances. Bernstein is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty in a court of law.
