Appellate Court Denies Bid to Trim Murder Sentence

TRENTON – Alberto Martinez is serving 50 years in state prison for murder. His appeal for a sentence reduction was denied by a state Appellate Court Oct. 12. 
Martinez struck Vincent DeSario in the head with a baseball bat in Wildwood, May 10, 2010, then fled on a bicycle, and was arrested by police. He believed DeSario had laughed at him.
DeSario died May 24, 2010, as a result of the cranial and brain injury sustained in the incident.
Martinez lost his bid in Appellate Court that challenged his denial for a motion to suppress a post-arrest statement to police and the length of his sentence.
In a 17-page opinion, the court determined Martinez’s statement made to police without an attorney present had been done in full compliance with his Miranda Rights. He told police he understood his rights, in a recording made in the presence of two Wildwood police detectives.
The sentence was imposed under the No Early Release Act, in which he must serve 85 percent of his sentences, which were combined, for murder and the weapon offense.
He contended that his statement had been made in violation of state and federal laws, and thus should not have been admitted at trial.
Additionally, Martinez believed his “purported waiver of his Miranda Rights, and custodial statements were “not knowingly and voluntarily given, and therefore should not have been admitted at trial.”
He also sought a reduction in his 50-year sentence, “because it was manifestly excessive and procedurally defective.”
“We conclude the sentencing court applied correct legal principles and its findings regarding aggravating and mitigating factors are fully supported by the record,” the court wrote.
“We find no clear error of judgment in the court’s application of the facts to the law that would shock our conscience. Accordingly, we find no abuse of discretion in the imposition of an extended term or the particular sentence imposed here,” the court concluded.