Former SHU Coach Pleads Not Guilty

Former Seton Hall University men's basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez pleaded not guilty Wednesday on shoplifting charges and has been barred from the Mall at Short Hills.

He is charged with shoplifting and criminal mischief for an incident on June 29 at the Mall at Short Hills. The conditions of his plea include not entering the mall for the duration of the case. Gonzalez also had to sign a waiver of extradition.

Gonzalez's attorney, Anna Cominsky, entered the plea on his behalf. The only time Gonzalez spoke was to verify his residence in Harrison, N.Y.

Gonzalez was calm throughout the five-minute arraignment. Judge Amilkar Velez-Lopez chastised him at one point for turning his head as the judge was explaining the conditions of his release without bail.

"Pay attention. What are you looking back for?" Judge Velez-Lopez said.

Gonzalez, 47, is accused of stealing a men's satchel bag from the Ralph Lauren Polo store in the Mall at Short Hills on June 29. Police said he left the store without paying after removing the security sensor from the $1,395 satchel. According to a police report, he later left it at Joe's American Bar & Grill, which is next to the Ralph Lauren store, and the manager returned it.

Gonzalez, who was fired from the SHU coaching post in March, turned himself in to Millburn police on July 5. If convicted on the shoplifting charge, Gonzalez faces up to five years in prison, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

The arraignment hearing took place at the Essex County Veterans Courthouse in Newark. His next court date is set for Aug. 27, with Judge Rachel Davidson.