The indictments against two men accused in a deadly Egg Harbor Township robbery will stand despite the grand jury hearing information from a confession that has since been thrown out.
Leonard Ludwigsen Jr. and Neco Pitts were arrested 14 months later, and charged in the killing.
Ludwigsen admitted to driving Pitts to the home and that the occupants of the vehicle talked about robbing the victims, but that confession was thrown out after the judge found his Miranda rights were not "scrupulously upheld."
An appellate panel backed that decision.
But even though that confession was part of the grand jury presentation, Judge William Miller said the indictments against both men would stand.
The judge noted that the grand jurors also heard testimony by an investigator that laid out other evidence, including GPS data, text messages and E-ZPass records.
Ludwigsen's statements to detectives "was confirming a lot of what the electronic data provided," Miller said Tuesday.
A jury could still hear Ludwigsen's confession if he testifies at trial and gives a conflicting account, the judge said, granting a state motion.
"His Miranda rights were violated, however I didn't feel the statements were untruthful or that he was coerced," the judge said. "He wasn't arm-twisted. He wasn't threatened."
But the confession can be used only if Ludwigsen testifies and contradicts them.
"If he deviates from those statements if he takes the sand, then the could be used to impeach him," Miller said.
Ludwigsen remains in the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
He was in court Tuesday, but Pitts didn't make it.
Pitts is currently in New Jersey State Prison, serving a four-year sentence that includes aggravated assault, child endangerment and terroristic threats out of Monmouth County, Department of Corrections records show.
He is eligible for parole in that case Nov. 12, 2025.
Pitts was being transported to Mays Landing for the hearing, but had not arrived by 3:15 p.m., nearly two hours after the hearing was set to begin.
It was indicated in court that the DOC may not grant a future transfer if Pitts was just sent back without appearing in court.
"The state should meet its end of the bargain as well," the judge said when he was told that. "They may be frustrated he's turned around. We're frustrated he's not here on time."
