By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in Atlantic County announced that on Thursday, July 25, Louis Stokes, 27, of Barnegat, NJ, pleaded guilty before the Honorable Donna M. Taylor, J.S.C. to charges of second-degree aggravated assault, second-degree possession of a handgun for an unlawful purpose, and third-degree hindering apprehension.
Officials stated that under the terms of his plea agreement, Stokes is expected to be sentenced to an aggregate term of five years in New Jersey State Prison, with an 85% period of parole ineligibility under the No Early Release Act and the Graves Act.
Upon his release from prison, officials say, Stokes will be subject to intensive parole supervision for a period of three years.
Shortly before midnight on October 14, 2022, the Atlantic City Police Department responded to Sewell Avenue in Atlantic City, where they located a gunshot victim, officials said.
According to officials, the victim had been shot once in the leg, and his injuries were non-life threatening.
A crime scene consisting of eight expended 9mm shell casings were located nearby in the area of Pennsylvania and Adriatic Avenues, authorities say.
Through surveillance video, police learned that a group of men had been in the area of the shooting before fleeing inside a home together, officials stated.
Officials said Stokes was arrested after he exited the home, and a consent search revealed three handguns, including a stolen 9mm handgun, which the ballistics laboratory later determined had been used to shoot the victim.
This handgun was found after it was hidden outside a second-floor window on an adjacent exterior windowsill, officials stated.
Officials say Stokes’ DNA was present on two of the handguns, and he was identified as the shooter by an eyewitness.
Under oath during his guilty plea, Stokes admitted shooting the victim with the handgun, which he then hid to hinder his apprehension, officials said, and after his guilty plea, authorities say Stokes requested to be released from the Atlantic County Justice Facility pending his sentencing.
Stokes is scheduled for sentencing in September 2024, according to officials.