TRENTON — A pair convicted and sent to prison for what authorities said was a scheme to rob a reputed drug dealer in Cumberland County will get a new trial.
A three-judge panel from the Appellate Division of New Jersey Superior Court, in a ruling announced Monday, reversed the convictions of Todd C. Ford and Domonique Hines.
The case dates back to Dec. 19, 2007 when Ford and Hines and a third defendant, Damon Jones, were arrested just as they were about to carry out an alleged plot to rob a man at the old Vineland Kosher Poultry facility, officials said.
Jones, of Bridgeton, pled guilty in the case before the trial of Ford and Hines.
Detectives, through the use of wiretaps, were able to intervene before the trio could rob the suspected drug dealer named in court papers as M.B.
Ford, of Pittsgrove Township, and Hines, of Vineland, were tried together in October 2013.
Ford was convicted of second-degree attempted armed robbery, second-degree conspiracy to commit robbery and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
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Hines was convicted of second-degree conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
The appeals court cited what it said were several errors made in the case, including the fact that Hines was not granted permission to be tried separately from Ford.
The panel also found problems with rulings made with evidence allowed into the trial — specifically some of the wiretapped conversations. Also cited for overturning the convictions were instructions given to the jury and actions by the defense, according to the ruling.
The appeals court said the case “against Ford was not only largely circumstantial, but it hung on the dubious credibility of … an admitted drug dealer who testified as part of a plea agreement with the state.
After his conviction in October 2013, Ford was sentenced to 16 years in prison and Hines has been sentenced to six years in prison after being found guilty on the charges against her.
Bill Gallo Jr. may be reached at bgallo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Bill Gallo Jr. on Twitter @bgallojr. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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