SOMERVILLE, N.J. - Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson announced that on Friday, May 25th, the Honorable Kevin M. Shanahan, J.S.C., sentenced defendant Ms. Wanda Anthony, 48, of Staten Island, NY, to five years in New Jersey State Prison, with 42 months to be served without parole, for her conviction for 2nd degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose and disorderly persons criminal mischief.
Officials say Anthony was convicted on October 12, 2017, following a three-week jury trial before the Honorable Bradford M. Bury, J.S.C., in Somerville, New Jersey. Defendant Anthony’s conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred at 3:30 a.m. on April 30, 2014, in Watchung.
According to officials, at that time, defendant Anthony was employed as a Sergeant with the New York City Police Department, but was off-duty and in Watchung on a date with a High Tor Drive resident.
Shortly after she arrived at a High Tor Drive residence, officials say defendant Anthony was involved in a physical altercation with the girlfriend of the resident. Following the dispute, 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 projectile 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 Watchung Police. Detectives from the Watchung Police Department investigated the incident.
A Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office forensic technician later recovered two projectile fragments from the resident’s vehicle, and a ballistics expert matched the projectile fragments to defendant Anthony’s handgun. After the incident, defendant Anthony was terminated by the NYPD.