A former Old Bridge resident could be sentenced to serve up to 18 months in a New Jersey state prison with a mandatory six months without parole after being convicted on Dec. 7 of driving while his license was suspended.
Giacomo Abrusci, 35, now a resident of Long Island City in New York, was found guilty of a single count of operating a motor vehicle while his driver’s license was suspended for a second or subsequent conviction for driving under the influence or refusal to submit to a breath test, according to a statement prepared by Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey. During a three-day trial, Middlesex County Assistant Prosecutor David M. Liston presented evidence and testimony showing that Abrusci was convicted in Woodbridge Municipal Court on June 12, 2013 for refusing to submit to a breath test. As it was his third offense related to driving under the influence, his driving license was suspended for 10 years, Carey said.
He subsequently was driving in the Cheesequake rest area of the Garden State Parkway in Sayreville on March 11, 2014 when he was stopped by a New Jersey State trooper and was unable to produce a valid driver’s license, according to Carey.
The prosecutor said driving privileges are revoked for repeat drunk-driving offenders, who face mandatory incarceration for their third offense. The statute criminalizes the conduct of those defendants who ignore court-ordered suspensions and continue to drive.
“These laws are enforced to protect the public and keep incompetent drivers off of the road,” Carey said.
Abrusci is scheduled for sentencing on Jan. 26 in New Brunswick by Superior Court Judge Colleen Flynn.