Today James Perry, of East Orange, was sentenced to 15 years in prison after his first sentence of 40 years was overturned for the 2008 crash in Newark that killed a mother and son.
After Perry pleading guilty on June 11 to two counts of aggravated manslaughter and an eluding charge, he was sentenced today to the recommended 15-year prison sentence reached through a plea deal of which, Perry must serve nearly 13 years before becoming eligible for parole but he will receive credit for nearly four years of time served.
On the date of the crash, Perry was driving a stolen Acura as he fled from East Orange police when he crashed into the Toyota Corolla, occupied by Joselin Lizardo and her son, Aneudy Breton on Nov. 25, 2008.
When police arrived, Lizardo was found in the front of her car while Breton was found outside the vehicle after being thrown, according to reports.
The stolen Acura was occupied by Chad Pamplin, Eugene Reaves and Perry. Pumpkin and Reaves who remained at the scene were arrested and later plead guilty to disorderly persons offenses. Perry fled the scene and was later arrested.
In March 2012, Perry was convicted of numerous charges and sentenced to 40 years in prison.
However, last year a state appeals court overturned Perry's conviction after finding that Superior Court Judge Joseph Portelli had improperly told jurors not to assign any weight to the lack of evidence.
After Perry's conviction was overturned, a plea agreement was reached because certain witnesses were no longer available.