Orange County News
For Immediate Release Contact: Ryan Greenbaum
Friday, May 19, 2023 845.615.3657, 845.415.0868c
District Attorney v
The District Attorney Commits His Most Experienced Assistants to Prosecute Violent Crime
The District Attorney Works With Law Enforcement Partners and the Community to Enhance Public Safety
On May 19, 2023, Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler reiterated his commitment to aggressively prosecute the illegal possession and use of guns. The District Attorney’s Office has prioritized the prosecution of violent crime, in particular the proliferation of illegally possessed guns. To that end, the District Attorney’s Office has worked with local law enforcement to utilize available technology, including DNA, body worn camera footage, surveillance video, and phone technology and analysis to identify and prosecute violent criminals. Additionally, the Office has issued Public Service Announcements to educate and engage the public on the issue of illegally possessed guns. Once offenders are arrested, the Office’s most experienced Assistant District Attorneys are assigned to ensure the cases brought result in appropriate outcomes. Increasingly, the Office has seen a direct connection between high-level narcotics trafficking and guns. To disrupt narcotics trafficking is to also disrupt violent crime, and vice versa. As such, the Office has continued to pursue lengthy and fruitful long-term narcotics investigations which often result in the recovery of illegal guns. Such recovery frequently means taking a gun off the street and out of the hands of a dangerous offender before it can hurt or kill others.
Recent examples in 2023 of the District Attorney’s Office commitment to gun prosecutions include:
- Nicholas Palm, convicted after trial of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for illegally possessing a loaded firearm. Sentenced to 12.5 years in prison after having previously been convicted of a similar charge.
- Wayne Lewis, pled guilty to Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for his involvement in a shooting of another man. Expected to be sentenced to 12 years to life in prison because of prior violent felony convictions.
- James Boursiquot, pled guilty to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for illegally possessing a loaded firearm. Sentenced to 5 years in prison.
- Aljean Cromartie, pled guilty to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for illegally possessing a loaded firearm. Sentenced to 9 years in prison.
- Roger Alleyne, pled guilty to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for illegally possessing a loaded firearm. Sentenced to 11 years in prison.
- Jason Mendoza, pled guilty to Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree for illegally possessing a loaded firearm. Sentenced to 8 years in prison.
“Time and again, we see the tragic consequences of the illegal use and possession of dangerous guns,” said District Attorney Hoovler. “We must utilize all resources available to identify the perpetrators of violent crime and to prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. To be clear, our pursuit of violent offenders does not and will never include the vast majority of gun owners who lawfully and safely possess legal firearms. To the contrary, the licensed and lawful possession of guns is an important right in our community. On the other hand, those who flout our laws and who use guns unlawfully against others pose a grave risk to us all. Police, prosecutors and members of our community must work together to keep our streets safe. We ask anyone with information about illegally possessed guns to report that information to their local law enforcement. The most effective way of addressing violent crime is to prevent it from happening in the first place. My Office will do everything in our power to hold violent criminals accountable, including seeking significant incarceratory sentences for such offenders.”
