Bank robber’s 70-year prison term unfair, N.J. high court says in calling for change
Updated 11:07 AM;
The New Jersey Supreme Court ordered a Monmouth County bank robber re-sentenced Tuesday, saying the two separate prison terms that would keep him behind bars until he is 102 years old are unfair.
The court found the judges who sentenced Edgar Torres to a combined 70 years behind bars did not give explicit explanation for running the sentences consecutively. They sent it back, “for meaningful review and re-sentencing utilizing the principles contained in this opinion.”
The unanimous decision, though, went beyond Torres’ predicament. The court said they took the case because the sentences’ length “concerned” them, and they said the state legislature and an existing sentencing commission needs to address the issue of consecutive sentences.