Eccentric Paulsboro twins to go to trial

John and Gerald Hubbs - identical twins whose yard was dug up by police in 2002 after their 82-year-old mother mysteriously went missing - will go to trial in Paulsboro Municipal Court on charges of harassment, maintaining a disorderly house, and possession of illegal fireworks.

The brothers, who display illuminated fountains and nearly 100 bronze statues in their small front yard, irritated neighbors over the Fourth of July when they allegedly sounded air horns and set off miniature bronze cannons and a fire-breathing dragon that sit atop a two-story boat hoist in their backyard.

Their hearing yesterday was postponed so that their lawyer, Robert Agre, can review statements of neighbors who say the brothers threatened to kill them after police were notified. Instead of a simple hearing, a full-blown municipal trial is expected in a few weeks.

The brothers, 58-year-old former chiropractors, uncharacteristically wore different colored suit jackets to court yesterday. Gerald wore tan, while John sported navy. During a 2005 trial on charges they illegally possessed assault weapons and stole electricity and gas through unlawful hookups, they wore their hair the same and dressed identically.

They were convicted and sentenced to probation.

Yesterday, Municipal Judge William Golden told the men that the charges they faced carry penalties of up to six months in jail and $1,000 in fines. The brothers said they understood and waived their right to have separate attorneys.

Afterward, they declined to comment.

Six years ago, police used backhoes to dig up the Hubbs brothers' yard after a former girlfriend of John Hubbs said she had seen the dead body of Ethel Hubbs during a private funeral in the family home. Police suspected the brothers disposed of her body, after she died of natural causes, in order to continue collecting her Social Security and prescription medication.

A body was not found, and the brothers were never charged in their mother's disappearance. But during the search, police found the weapons, thousands of pills, and the illegal hookups, which led to their trial in 2005.

Until the latest complaints, they had not been in trouble with the law since their conviction.