So I spent most of this morning in Morris County Superior Court on two separate, but related criminal cases. These matters involve separate, mulitple acts of theft around Morris County. My two clients actually know one another, but were not together during the commision of any of the alleged offenses. There are two other defendants involved as well.

The connecting thread among the two is that one of the defendants name the others, including my two clients, in various separate thefts. Likewise, one of my clients names some of the others. One client has an extensive criminal record, the other, not so much. The plea offers from the State are harsh: one client has been offered 9 years in state prison with 4 1/2 years of "stip" time (time that must be served before parole eligibility).

The problem for the State is that there is no physical evidence tying anyone to these crimes!! Not a finger print, not a hair strand. Nothing!! The defense attorneys are all scratching there heads as to how the State intends to prove its case. At best they have a cell phone dropped by one of the defendants (not my client:)) found at the scene of one of the thefts.

I do believe that both of these cases will have to be tried.