Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson announced that on October 12th, Wanda Anthony, 47, of Staten Island, New York, was convicted of 2nd degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose and disorderly persons criminal mischief following a three-week jury trial in Somerville.
Defendant Anthony’s conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred on April 30, 2014, at 3:30 a.m. in Watchung, New Jersey.
At that time, defendant Anthony was employed as a sergeant with the New York City Police Department but was off-duty and on a date with a High Tor Drive resident. Shortly after she arrived at a High Tor Drive residence, defendant Anthony was involved in a physical altercation with the girlfriend of the resident.
Following the altercation, defendant Anthony brandished her NYPD issued 9mm handgun and fired one round into the High Tor Drive resident's vehicle located in the driveway of the residence.
The round shattered the rear driver’s side door window and lodged in the vehicle’s right front A-pillar. Defendant Anthony fled the scene after firing the shot, and was located nearby and arrested by Officer Brian McLaughlin of the Watchung Police Department.
Watchung Police detectives investigated the incident, which included an interview of defendant Anthony, who denied firing her weapon.
A forensic technician employed by the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office later recovered two projectile fragments from the resident’s vehicle, and a Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office ballistics expert matched the projectile fragments to defendant Anthony’s handgun. After the incident, defendant Anthony was terminated by the NYPD.
Defendant Anthony is scheduled to be sentenced on December 1, 2017, at which time she faces ten years in prison with a mandatory minimum 42 month period of parole ineligibility.