Paul Bergrin Found Guilty of all 23 Criminal Counts

The high profile attorney, a former Nutley resident, was found guilty on all charges brought against him.

The trial of Paul Bergrin, a Newark defense attorney who prosecutors say urged the 2004 murder of a witness against one of his clients, has culminated in Bergrin's conviction on 23 criminal counts, according to a report in the Star Ledger published on Monday.  Bergrin, a former prosecutor who rose to fame both for his flamboyant style and his defense of US soldiers in the Abu Ghraib prisoner-abuse case in 2004, was accused of narcotics and other charges, including witness tampering and murder.  Bergrin, once dubbed "the baddest lawyer in the history of New Jersey," faces life in prison.  Bergrin represented himself throughout his trial and repeatedly attempted to discredit these and other witnesses, including a woman who said she was …

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Bergrin Pleads Innocent During Closing Trial Remarks

Prosecutor portrayed high profile attorney as a criminal mastermind behind murders and drug trafficking.

Paul Bergrin made an emotional display during his prolonged closing arguments in the courtroom where the one prominent Newark defense attorney was representing himself against charges including that he helped arrange the murder of a witness against a Bergrin client in 2004. According to a report in The Record, Bergrin capped off the eight-week trial with a nearly four hour plea arguing that the case against him was inconsistent and untrue. Bergrin, a 57-year-old Nutley resident, is representing himself against nearly 30 federal charges, including witness tampering and murder.  In response to Bergrin's protestations of innocence, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph N. Minish characterized Bergrin as a drug dealer and a murderer who hid behind …

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Former Ally Testifies that Pressures Made Nutley Attorney Turn to Witness-Murder Plot, Drug Trafficking

Lawyer who worked closely with Paul Bergrin claims under testimony that the attorney acted recklessly under pressure.

Bergrin Tries to Rattle Witness

Former defense attorney tries to prove Young was coached

Former defense attorney Paul Bergrin continued his cross-examination Tuesday of a man accused of gunning down Kemo Deshawn McCray, who was set to testify against a Bergrin client at the time of his death in 2004, North Jersey.com reported. Bergrin, a 57-year-old Nutley resident, is representing himself against nearly 30 federal charges, including witness tampering and murder. The government alleges Anthony Young, who was on the witness stand for a second day Tuesday, was urged to kill McCray by Bergrin. During his cross-examination of Young in Newark federal court, Bergrin homed in on alleged inconsistencies in Young’s testimony and also tried to prove he had been coached by federal authorities to alter his testimony. Young strongly denied…

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Towns Get Large Federal Grants and Baseball/Softball Registration Underway

The week in review in Belleville, Nutley

During the trial of Nutley resident Paul Bergrin, a once high-profile defense attorney now charged with murder and racketeering, a former Belleville resident testified Bergrin coerced her into giving false statements to authorities to help her father, a Bergrin client. A Nutley resident was nominated to become a commissioner of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal grants were awarded to groups within Belleville and Nutley as well as the communities themselves. The funding will also be used for local roadway repairs. Registration began this week for Belleville Recreation’s baseball and softball leagues.   Retailers this week have gotten permission to charge a fee of 4 percent on credit card …

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Bergrin Grills Agent During Lengthy Cross-Examination Thursday

Government alleges attorney helped arrange execution of government informant in 2004

Paul Bergrin continued his cross-examination of a federal agent who testified that the once prominent Newark defense attorney helped arrange the murder of a witness against a Bergrin client in 2004, NorthJersey.com reported Thursday. Appearing in federal court in Newark, the 57-year-old Bergrin, of Nutley, focused on alleged inconsistencies in the evidence showing he had helped arrange the murder of Kemo Deshawn McCray on a Newark street in 2004. Bergrin was heard to have said “No Kemo, no case,” the agent testified. At one point Judge Dennis Cavanaugh said he may have to limit the length of Bergrin’s cross-examinations, which Cavanaugh feared could force the trial to continue beyond its expected 12 to 14 weeks. But he also assured Bergrin…

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Witness: Bergrin Said She 'Had to Lie' in Court

Trial of celebrity attorney continues Monday

A woman testified in federal court Monday that attorney Paul Bergrin coached her to lie in order to help her father, a Bergrin client, beat attempted murder and other charges more than a decade ago, North Jersey.com reported. Bergrin's trial began last week. Carolyn Velez, formerly of Belleville, was nine years old in November 2001 when her father, Norberto, attacked her mother Marilu Bruno with a knife outside a township school. Velez  testified that Bergrin, 57, a Nutley resident who had a practice in Newark, said she “had to lie” in order to save her father, suggesting that Velez tell authorities see had actually seen her mother grab a knife at her father’s house. Bergrin, a defense attorney who is representing himself, faces 26 counts …

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Belleville PD Makes Prostitution Arrests, High-Profile Trial of Nutley Resident Begins

The week's top stories in Belleville and Nutley

Belleville police Thursday arrested two women for allegedly working as prostitutes out of a Washington Avenue business. The business’s owner was also charged but had not yet been arrested. A Nutley man was among those charged in a massive, $10 million mortgage fraud scheme, the US Attorney’s office announced. The scheme, carried out over four years, involved properties in Newark and Elizabeth. The trial of Paul Bergrin, a Nutley resident and prominent Newark defense attorney, began this week. Bergrin, whose list of former clients includes rap stars and alleged drug dealers  is accused of tampering with witnesses against his clients, among many other charges. Signups for Nutley’s Little League begin Sunday, with another session held next …

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Belleville Native Testifies in Bergrin Trial

Another witness set to testify she was 'brainwashed' as a child by flamboyant attorney

The trial of defense attorney Paul Bergrin continued this week  in Newark, where the jury heard testimony from a number of witnesses, including a Belleville native, NorthJersey.com reported Marilu Bruno, who no longer lives in the township, testified Wednesday that her estranged husband at the time, Norberto Velez, attacked her with a knife in 2001, the site reported. Prosecutors say Bergrin and Velez convinced the couple’s 9-year-old daughter to provide false testimony that helped Velez, Bergrin's client at the time, beat murder and other charges. The now-adult daughter, Carolyn Velez, was scheduled to testify Thursday. But a judge ordered a delay until Friday after Bergrin said he had not had enough time to review a video of Velez’s …

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Bergrin Trial Begins Tuesday

Newark attorney, Nutley resident allegedly took part in the murder of witness against his client

The trial of Paul Bergrin, a Newark defense attorney and Nutley resident who prosecutors say urged the 2004 murder of a witness against one of his clients, began Tuesday in Newark, Nj.com reported. Bergrin, 57, a former prosecutor who rose to fame both for his flamboyant style and his defense of US soldiers in the Abu Ghraib prisoner-abuse case in 2004, is also accused of narcotics and other charges. Prosecutors also say Bergrin was caught on tape in 2008 talking about the potential murder of a witness in yet another of Bergrin’s criminal cases with a gangland hitman. In opening remarks Tuesday Bergrin refuted that evidence, claiming he had been lying to the hitman. This is the second time Bergrin is being tried. In 2011, the jury reached …

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