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Desmond Newberry, of Marlton, Pleads Guilty to Causing Mt. Laurel Fatal Collision

The event data recorder from Newberry’s BMW revealed he was traveling at 126 miles per hour. He did not dispute in court that his blood alcohol concentration was .256.

Desmond Newberry

On February 17, 2023, Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw announced that a 45-year-old Marlton man pled guilty yesterday to driving under the influence of alcohol and causing the death of a Mount Laurel man during a high-speed collision on Hainesport Road last summer in Mount Laurel.

Under an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office, Desmond Newberry pled guilty to Aggravated Manslaughter (First Degree) in exchange for 13 years in New Jersey state prison.

Sentencing Date

He must serve 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole. The Hon. Philip E. Haines, J.S.C., scheduled sentencing for April 19.

Investigation

The investigation began on September 3, 2022, when officers from the Mount Laurel Police Department were dispatched to Hainesport Road in the area of the Cucina Carini restaurant for a report of a motor vehicle collision just after 8 p.m.

The investigation determined that Glenn Keen, the owner of the restaurant, was pulling out of the parking lot when he was struck by a vehicle traveling westbound being driven by the defendant.

Keen, who was pulled from his burning vehicle by civilians prior to the arrival of police, was airlifted to Temple University Hospital, where he later died.

Newberry was extricated from his vehicle by the Mount Laurel Fire Department and transported to Cooper University Hospital in Camden with minor injuries. Charges were filed against him four weeks after the crash.

The event data recorder from Newberry’s BMW revealed he was traveling at 126 miles per hour just prior to striking Keen’s Ford SUV. Newberry did not dispute in court that his blood alcohol concentration was . 256 immediately following the collision – more than three times the threshold to determine drunk driving in New Jersey.

It was disclosed at the plea proceeding that Newberry had been charged and pled guilty to drunk driving on two previous occasions.

Newberry is being prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Joshua Dennis, supervisor of the BCPO Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Unit.

The investigation was conducted by the Mount Laurel Police Department Traffic Unit, with assistance from the New Jersey State Police. The lead investigator was MLPD Sergeant Nicholas DiGirolamo, who was joined on the case by Officer Jeffrey Herrmann.