Paterson Man Convicted In Fatal Bound Brook Shooting

BOUND BROOK, NJ — A Paterson man was found guilty in connection with the October 2017 fatal shooting of William Roberts, 27, of Somerville, while in Bound Brook, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael Robertson announced.

Michael Washington, 28, was found guilty of first-degree aggravated manslaughter as a lesser offense of first-degree murder, second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, and second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun.

The verdict came following an 11-day trial where the jury deliberated for about 10 hours over two days before delivering their verdicts.

Numerous 911 calls of shots being fired with a person down in the area of Church Street and East Second Street were reported on Oct. 16, 2017 around 6:23 p.m. to Bound Brook Police, Robertson said. (See Related: One Dead Following Bound Brook Shooting)

Police responded and found Roberts suffering from a gunshot wound to his stomach.

Life saving measures were performed on Roberts by officers along with medical first responders from the Bound Brook Rescue Squad and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital - Somerville.

He was transported to a local trauma center and rushed into emergency surgery where he later died from his injuries, Robertson said.

An autopsy found that a bullet had struck Roberts’ abdominal aorta, causing him to bleed to death internally, according to Robertson.

Three shell casings and two live rounds were found on Church Street. It was found that Washington pulled out a handgun and fired multiple times at Roberts, with one shot striking Roberts, causing his death, according to an investigation by detectives of the Bound Brook Borough Police Department and the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit.

Washington was found hiding in a basement of a home on Cherry Street on Oct. 31 and was arrested. A search found several glassine envelopes of heroin.

Washington was charged with third-degree possession of a controlled dangerous substance with respect to the heroin. That count was severed from this trial and is still pending, according to Robertson.

A sentencing date has not yet been set. He faces up to 40 years in state prison, with 30 years and six months without parole for the charges for which he stands convicted.

Washington also has two additional indictments pending, one charging third-degree possession of a controlled dangerous substance, (alprazolam), from July 9, 2017, and another charging second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun from June 20, 2016. The remaining three charges carry a potential for up to 20 years, 10 years without parole.

(Image via Shutterstock)

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