A former Edison man serving a 20-year sentence after repeatedly hitting his former girlfriend with a car and severing one of her legs lost appeal that claimed ineffective legal assistance.
Riley Walker, 46, filed an appeal claiming that despite being impaired by psychiatric medications, his attorney allowed him to enter a guilty in 2003.
Thursday, a state appeals court panel upheld the 2013 ruling denying Walker's petition for post-conviction relief after Walker failed to provide sufficient evidence to back up his claim.
According to court document, on Oct. 15, 2001, Walker, flagged down his former-girlfriend in Newark and asked her for a ride. The two got into an argument shortly after entering the car. Walker then forced hi ex-girlfriend out of the car and drove rammed her with the vehicle ultimately severing on of her legs along with causing other injuries.
Walker on Feb. 19, 2003, pleaded guilty to carjacking and attempted murder charges. However, after a plea agreement, on April 16, 2003 Walker received a 20-year prison sentence with 17 years to be served before being eligible for parole.
During a previous appeal, another judge denied Walker's petition noting the findings of the psychologist who performed Walker's competency evaluation which stated that the defendant's test results suggested defendant was exaggerating his symptoms to avoid criminal responsibility for his actions.