Angelo Lotrecchiano, the 83-year-old West Caldwell barber accused of fleeing after his car struck Sharon Thomas on Bloomfield Avenue in January, leaving her in the roadway where a second vehicle ran over her, pleaded guilty this week to a second-degree felony and will avoid prison if he completes a three-year pretrial intervention program. Thomas's family, including a sister who traveled from out of state for the hearing, says the outcome amounts to little more than a wrist slap.
According to Montclair Local, Lotrecchiano pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of a crash and causing bodily injury. Essex County Superior Court Judge Mark S. Ali accepted the plea and placed him in the pretrial intervention program, which the outlet describes as an alternative to prison typically reserved for first-time offenders. Lotrecchiano will serve no jail time if he completes the three-year program's terms, but he faces up to five years in prison if he violates any condition.
Thomas, 57, died Jan. 16 after she was struck by two vehicles on the 400 block of Bloomfield Avenue in Caldwell, according to nj.com. She had just exited an NJ Transit bus. Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said at the time that Lotrecchiano's car struck Thomas, that he stopped and got out of the vehicle, then returned to it and fled the scene. A second vehicle also struck Thomas while she was in the roadway; that driver pulled over and stayed at the scene, the prosecutor's office said.
A Guilty Plea Without an Apology
Montclair Local reports that Lotrecchiano did not apologize for his actions during the hearing. The outlet also notes that before fleeing, he moved Thomas's purse to the side of the road as she lay in the street unable to help herself. His attorney, Dennis Cleary, did not respond to an email or phone message seeking comment, per the same account.
Judge Ali, in explaining the resolution, said Lotrecchiano was not speeding and was not intoxicated at the time of the crash, the report states. Ali also laid out why more serious charges weren't pursued, saying murder requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt of a knowing or intentional act, while aggravated manslaughter and manslaughter require criminal recklessness. Still, the judge acknowledged that the plea resolution does not erase the pain felt by Thomas's loved ones.
Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Adam B. Wells said his office's recommendation was the proper legal resolution, according to the same report. The amount of restitution Lotrecchiano may owe remains undetermined, the outlet notes.
Conditions of the Pretrial Program
Conditions of the Pretrial Program Under the terms described in Montclair Local's report, Lotrecchiano must complete 100 hours of community service and has had his driver's license permanently revoked. He is also barred from any contact with Thomas's family. If he successfully completes the three-year program, the case against him will be dismissed entirely.
Allison Davis, 51, Thomas's younger sister, traveled from out of state for the hearing and called the pretrial intervention outcome a slap on the wrist, per the report. Thomas's brother, Linden Thomas, was also named in connection with the case. Thomas's death left her 14-year-old son, who has autism, without a mother, the outlet reports.
Remembering Sharon Thomas
Thomas, who was from Rock Tavern, New York, worked as an executive assistant at JPMorganChase, according to the same account. She was active in her church and was known for enjoying dancing and laughing, the outlet notes.
Lotrecchiano, meanwhile, has long been a known figure along Bloomfield Avenue. He owned Angelo's Barber Shop there for decades and was described as a well-known community figure, according to nj.com's earlier coverage. Police had issued him traffic citations for leaving the scene of a crash causing death and careless driving by Feb. 11, according to newjerseyhills.com, and a grand jury indicted him on March 6, as the outlet separately reported.
New Jersey's pretrial intervention statute describes its purpose as a statewide program of Pretrial Intervention, according to the New Jersey Legislature. The law says such treatment should ordinarily be limited to people without a prior criminal conviction, though the statute's full eligibility criteria were not detailed in available excerpts.
