Somerset County forensic head connected to Sheridan investigation set to retire

The head of Somerset County's forensic unit who was accused in a whistle-blower lawsuit of destroying evidence collected during the death investigation of Cooper Health System CEO John P. Sheridan and his wife is scheduled to retire Nov. 1.

The retirement of Capt. Lee Niles will be the fourth high-level departure at the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office after the agency was sharply criticized by the Sheridans' four sons for its handling of the case. They have called investigators "incompetent" in part for failing to dust for fingerprints, failing to collect evidence, and failing to fully process the crime scene.

Acting Somerset County Prosecutor Michael Robertson said Niles' departure was "in no way related to the Sheridan case."

"He served this county proudly and in October reaches the mandatory retirement age [65], and that is the one and only reason he is retiring," said Robertson, who confirmed Niles is currently working in the office.

Niles could not be reached for comment.

John and Joyce Sheridan were found dead in their Montgomery Township home Sept. 28, 2014. Both had numerous stab wounds and were severely burned from a fire intentionally set in the master bedroom. The Prosecutor's Office in March 2015 concluded John Sheridan fatally stabbed his wife, set the fire, then stabbed himself five times.

The couple's sons have accused the former prosecutor, Geoffrey Soriano, of concluding their father was responsible for the crimes as a way to close the investigation and cover up the failings of the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office and the New Jersey Office of Medical Examiner. The family hired its own forensic pathologist, who revealed investigators had not recovered the weapon that caused John Sheridan's wounds.

Niles, who has 32 years of service and earns $110,283, submitted his application for retirement Nov. 4, 2015, according to the New Jersey Treasury Department. His monthly pension benefit will be $9,190, according to the department.

Early in the investigation, Mark Sheridan, an attorney and one of the couple's sons, raised concerns with Soriano and the New Jersey Attorney General's Office about Niles and said it appeared Somerset investigators prematurely concluded John Sheridan killed his wife. The family also alleged the Prosecutor's Office ignored evidence that suggests their parents were killed by an intruder. The family wants the investigation reopened.

Robertson took office in March after Gov. Christie removed Soriano, saying he had lost confidence in him. Soriano now works for the state Attorney General's Office.

Robertson has said he is reviewing the Sheridan files but has declined further comment on the case.

Robertson has also confirmed Soriano launched an internal probe when one of his investigators claimed, among numerous allegations, that evidence in the Sheridan case had been improperly stored and that Niles threw out charred bedding collected from the house.

In April, that investigator, Detective Jeffrey Scozzafava, filed a whistle-blower lawsuit against the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office alleging retaliation. Scozzafava had been a forensic expert, working 20 years with the New Jersey State Police before retiring in 2007 as a detective sergeant. That year, he started working in Somerset County.

In his lawsuit, Scozzafava alleges he was removed from the forensic unit and reassigned to the fugitive squad in February 2015 after he complained that the unit has been poorly supervised since 2010 when the previous head of the forensic unit retired. Scozzafava said that the unit lacked adequate training, and that evidence collected in three cases (including the Sheridan case) had not been properly handled.

Scozzafava alleges in his lawsuit that Niles, in April 2014, used a non-sterile box cutter and his bare hands to remove carpet at the scene of a homicide and arson.

Also that year, Scozzafava said in the lawsuit, Niles asked him to tell an assistant prosecutor that he found money that had been recovered from a bank-robbery suspect, and when he "refused to lie," Niles' demeanor became "brusque."

Scozzafava was out of town when the Sheridans were found dead. According to his lawsuit, when he returned, evidence had been left at the Prosecutor's Office unsealed and unlabeled, including a large piece of charred bedding. Scozzafava said in his lawsuit that in January 2015 he "observed Capt. Niles walking to a garbage dumpster in the parking lot and disposing of the bag containing the Sheridan evidence."

Another time, Scozzafava alleges in the lawsuit, Niles told an assistant prosecutor the Sheridan house was checked for fingerprints using a "flashlight technique" that Scozzafava called an "obvious excuse for nonfeasance during scene processing." Niles was "ordered" by the assistant prosecutor to buy a doorknob to demonstrate the technique, then took the day off the day of the demonstration, Scozzafava alleged.

In addition to Soriano and Niles, two other high-ranking commanders are leaving the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office. Timothy Fitzgerald, chief of detectives, and Steven Ughetta, deputy chief of detectives, are retiring effective May 31, Robertson said Wednesday.

Scozzafava said in his lawsuit that he expressed his concerns about the forensic unit and the Sheridan investigation to Fitzgerald, but the chief failed to take any action.

Robertson said the retirements of Fitzgerald and Ughetta are unrelated to the Sheridan case or Scozzafava's lawsuit.

bboyer@phillynews.com

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