After a judge gave improper instructions to the jury during the trial of two men convicted of armed robbery in 2009, today the New Jersey Supreme Court ordered a new trial to be set.
Jamil McKinney, 30, and Al-Tariq Wardrick, 26, both of Newark were convicted in connection with a 2007 robbery at a Newark home.
McKinney and Wardrick have been serving 18- and 15-year prison sentences, respectively.
On April 9, 2007, the duo and an accomplice - armed - broke into a second-floor apartment sometime around 1:30 a.m.
The three made off with the resident's wallet and car keys after beating the resident in the head with a gun.
McKinney and Wardrick were arrested as they tried to flee from the scene. The unidentified accomplice however, left the area in a vehicle.
According to ruling for the new trial, Superior Court Judge Torkwase Sekou was supposed to instruct jurors to find McKinney and Wardrick not guilty of first-degree robbery, if they determined the two men were not armed during the robbery. However, the judge was not supposed to instruct jurors to convict the men of second-degree robbery if jurors found they were not armed.
Although the judge later tried to correct her mistakes, it caused confusion and were ineffective.
A date for the new trial has not been set.