A Bergen County jury found Michael Gaffney guilty of reckless manslaughter Friday in the 2019 death of Francis Veronica Garcia, 19, whose body was found in her car on Prospect Avenue in Hackensack. Gaffney, now 28 and living in Maywood, was 21 when Garcia, of Bloomingdale, died. The verdict came after a trial that began with opening statements Oct. 6, NorthJersey.com reported.
The case centered on what caused Garcia to lose consciousness during a sexual encounter in a parked car outside a Hackensack high-rise party—and whether Gaffney’s actions caused her death. Bergen County Assistant Prosecutor Meredith Kunz told jurors that Gaffney admitted putting his hands around Garcia’s neck during sex and said she passed out. Kunz also said he did not call 911 and instead shared images of Garcia while she was unconscious. Those were the prosecution’s claims at trial, according to Daily Voice.
Garcia’s autopsy found compression injuries around her neck, and the Bergen County Medical Examiner’s Office determined that she died from asphyxiation, the reports said. Defense attorney Ilene McFarland argued that alcohol, Xanax and marijuana—not neck compression—caused Garcia’s death, NorthJersey.com reported. The jury’s verdict resolves the criminal charge against Gaffney; the competing accounts remain important to understanding the dispute over causation.
What the legal instructions do—and do not—establish
New Jersey Courts’ model instruction for reckless manslaughter describes the offense as requiring proof that a defendant recklessly caused another person’s death. That standard frames the jury’s task in this case; it is distinct from simply establishing that neck injuries were present, the court’s instruction states.
The courts also publish a separate model instruction for aggravated assault involving strangulation of a domestic-violence victim. It describes obstruction of breathing or blood circulation through pressure on the throat or neck. That is a different instruction and offense category; its publication does not indicate that Gaffney faced that charge, according to the New Jersey Courts. The distinction helps keep the legal context precise: the conviction reported Friday was for reckless manslaughter, not that separate aggravated-assault charge.
Jurors began deliberating Thursday after closing arguments Wednesday, Oct. 28, and returned their verdict Friday morning. Gaffney remains jailed pending sentencing, which Daily Voice reported is expected in December. A representative at McFarland’s office directed the outlet to call back Monday.
