2003-07-25 -- Operation Cease Fire -- Arrests -- News Release

New Cooperative Effort Results in Federal Indictments in Two Monmouth County Gun Cases

CAMDEN - Deputy U.S. Attorney Lee A Solomon, along with Monmouth County Prosecutor John Kaye, Philadelphia ATF Special Agent in Charge Mark Potter and Asbury Park Public Safety Director Louis Jordan, announced today that two previously convicted state felons have been indicted federally, charged under tough federal gun statutes, which provide stiff prison sentences upon conviction.

The two separate cases are the first Monmouth County firearm cases to be federally adopted and indicted through a new cooperative effort between the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, ATF and local law enforcement. The effort, dubbed "Operation Cease Fire," seeks to reduce gun violence by combining local law enforcement programs targeting gun crime and federal resources and statutes. The effectiveness of the effort is based on the ability of federal, state and local agencies to cooperate in a unified offensive against gun violence and dangerous felons.

At a news conference at the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, authorities explained that because both defendants had prior felony convictions in state court, they were eligible to be indicted under the federal "felon-in-possession" statute. Specifically, the men were charged in the Indictment with possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony.

The defendants are being prosecuted under the U.S. Department of Justice's Project Safe Neighborhood Program. The applicable statute carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Under the Sentencing Guidelines, defendants who are given custodial terms must serve nearly all of that time.

Another benefit of charging defendants federally is that they are frequently ordered detained without bail pending the outcome of their case, getting dangerous felons off the street immediately, said Solomon, the Deputy U.S. Attorney for the Camden and Trenton offices of the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Of the two individuals under Indictment, Jaheed S. Hill, 29, of Asbury Park, has been detained at the Monmouth County Correctional Facility since his arrest in February. An arraignment hearing is scheduled for Aug. 6 at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper.

The second individual's identity is being withheld due to the fact that the Indictment is under seal until his arrest.

According to charges filed by the Asbury Park Police Department, on Feb. 26, at approximately 6:30 p.m., Asbury Park Police received a call in which the caller stated that one man in a group of five individuals had just pointed a handgun at him while walking along Memorial Drive. Responding officers spotted a group that fit the caller's description. According to the charges, Hill ran when police approached. Asbury Park police officers observed Hill toss what turned out to be a loaded Hi-Point semi-automatic handgun over a fence.

U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie, who was unable to attend the news conference, credited the multi-agency task force approach with ensuring that dangerous felons are removed from the neighborhoods they prey upon.

"This program is working as designed in other counties, and we're happy to be working with John Kaye's office as well as local police to catch and prosecute dangerous felons to the fullest under federal law," Christie said. "Our united goal is to get guns and those who may use them off the streets of our communities."

"We are gratified by the cooperation that we have with the federal authorities to reduce gun violence," Prosecutor Kaye said. "In the past, our cooperation has been exceptional and now with U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie, it is even better."

An Indictment is a formal charge made by a grand jury, a body of 16 to 23 citizens. Grand jury proceedings are secret, and neither those under investigation nor their attorneys have a right to be present. A grand jury may vote an Indictment if 12 or more jurors find probable cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime or crimes charged. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Christie credited Special Agents of the ATF Trenton Field Office, under the supervision of Special Agent in Charge Mark Potter of the ATF's Philadelphia Office; Investigators with the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Offices, under the direction of Prosecutor John Kaye, and Police Officers with the Asbury Park Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Louis Jordan, with developing the investigation which resulted in the Indictments.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Richardson of the U.S. Attorney's Criminal Division in Camden.

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