A convicted killer recently released from prison is back in jail after he allegedly arrived at parole with a loaded gun in his bag and an outstanding warrant in the system.
Isaiah Cooper Newsome, now 26, has been living in Egg Harbor Township since his release from prison in April, after pleading guilty to the 2015 killing of Dr. Steven Davion Garrett — whose legal first name was Dr. — when both were just 17.
It would take nearly seven years and two mistrials before Newsome would take a deal and admit to the fatal shooting. He would be sentenced to 10 years with 8½ years of parole ineligibility.
The sentence encompassed all of his cases, including a racketeering charge from 2021, that alleged he was part of a drug-trafficking ring where cell phones and drugs were smuggled into the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
Newsome also faced charges of weapons and aggravated assault all while incarcerated.
"The dangerousness factor is really off the charts with this defendant," Chief Assistant Prosecutor Allison Eiselen told the judge at his detention hearing Tuesday.
Newsome is now accused of fleeing a motor vehicle stop in Egg Harbor Township, tampering with evidence and possession of a loaded handgun.
He had been out of prison less than two months when he failed to stop for a township officer's flashing lights around Hingston and Old Egg Harbor roads around 1:36 p.m. May 29, according to the affidavit of probable cause obtained by BreakingAC.
The officer ended the pursuit for safety reasons, but was able to identify the registered owner as Yolanda Cooper, Newsome's mother.
The car was found abandoned on Church Street two days later. Surveillance video showed the vehicle speed into the parking lot there just minutes after the attempted stop, the affidavit stays.
The driver exits with a duffel bag and goes into the woods where "a loud noise that sounds like a gun 'racking'" can be heard, according to the affidavit. The suspect — who investigators recognized as Newsome — exits the woods without the bag.
Another vehicle then picks him up.
Newsome's parole officer gave investigators two phone numbers for him, with both pinging to the areas of the called-off chase and the car abandonment, Eiselen said.
Newsome was arrested July 18, when he arrived to the parole office in Pleasantville driven by his mother.
A black satchel bag was found in the back passenger seat that has been occupied by Newsome, according to the charges. His mother said she believed it belonged to her son.
A warrant led to the bag being searched, where police seized a .40-caliber Glock with one round in the chamber and 46 in a high-capacity magazine, Eiselen said.
Defense attorney Stephen Funk argued for Newsome's release, saying he has family in the area and a job as a food runner at the Deauville Inn in Strathmere, Cape May County.
But because of Newsome's history and extended-term eligibility, the presumption was for detention, Eiselen pointed out to the judge.
Judge Pam D'Arcy found that the defense did not overcome that presumption.
Newsome will remain jailed.
