A N.J. power broker’s son was convicted in a fatal hit-and-run. Former Gov. Murphy pardoned him on his last day.
Harris Jacobs, 28, called his father 10 times after the 2022 accident but did not report it to police.
The governor’s pardon was issued Tuesday even before a jury convicted Harris Jacobs, 28, for a hit-and-run in Atlantic City that killed a pedestrian.
The pardon was one of 97 issued by former Gov. Phil Murphy in his final hours in office. Jacobs’ attorney, Lou Barbone, told the news site BreakingAC that his client was notified even before the jury came back with its verdict on Tuesday.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill was sworn in at noon Tuesday to be New Jersey’s 57th Governor.
Jacobs is the son of attorney and Atlantic City power broker and Democratic fundraiser Joe Jacobs, who has longstanding ties to Murphy and his wife, Tammy.
Harris Jacobs was involved in a fatal hit and run at 3:30 a.m.on Sept. 4, 2022 outside the Dunkin’ Donuts at Atlantic and Indiana in Atlantic City, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor.
Jacobs spoke to his father 10 times after the crash, but never called police, according to testimony reported by BreakingAC.
The pedestrian, Orlando Fraga, 76, was pronounced dead at scene. Both Fraga and Jacobs were from Atlantic City.
Seven hours after the accident, Jacobs was arrested and charged with one count of second-degree “Knowingly Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Motor Vehicle Accident.” He was initially jailed is in the Atlantic County Justice Facility, but later released pending his trial.
Surveillance video showed Harris stopping at the Dunkin’ Donuts and rushing to the injured man. He told his roommate what happened, according to BreakingAC’s account of the trial, and repeatedly called his father, but did not call police.
A first trial in May ended without a verdict. But the re-trial ended in conviction on Tuesday, which was immediately nullified by the Governor’s pardon.
Barbone did not immediately return a request for comment. The Governor’s office also did not respond to a request.
The second-degree conviction would have carried a sentence of five to ten years under New Jersey law.