Maplewood Man Guilty Of Road Rage Assault: Prosecutor

MAPLEWOOD, NJ - A 39-year-old Maplewood man faces up to five years in prison for the aggravated assault of a woman in a road rage incident, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II.

An Essex County jury convicted Jahmil Jasper of Maplewood of aggravated assault for attacking a woman as she walked in Maplewood.

"An Essex County jury decided that this kind of senseless violence would not be tolerated in our community," said Assistant Prosecutor Felicia Garnes, who tried the case.

Garnes said on Dec. 8, 2018 the victim, who had recently undergone surgery, apparently angered Jasper because she took a long time getting out the car and held up traffic.

Jasper, who was traveling in a gray Audi, was captured on surveillance video punching the 51-year-old victim, twice in head. He then dragged her into the street where he continued to punch her four times as she lay on the ground and finally kicked her in the head twice, Garnes said. The victim was rushed to Beth Israel Hospital. Her injuries did not prove to be life-threatening.

Garnes credited the successful prosecution in part to the quick action of Maplewood detectives who promptly located the video and tracked down Jasper.

Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 20 before the Nancy Sivilli, Judge of the Superior Court, who presided over the case, Garnes said. Jasper faces up to five years in New Jersey State Prison.

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