Judge refuses to reduce $1 million bail for man charged with killing retired NY firefighter

As friends and relatives prepare to mourn the death of a NY firefighter at a funeral set for Tuesday morning, a New Jersey judge has refused to reduce the $1 million cash bail set for the man being charged in connection with his grizzly murder.

Conrad Sipa (Photo: Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)

On Monday afternoon, Conrad Sipa, 52, of Colts Neck, made his first appearance in Ocean County Superior Court before Judge Wendel E. Daniels. His defense attorney, Daniel Rosenberg, said his client had never been convicted of a crime before and asked that his bail be reduced from $1 million cash to an amount between $500,000 and $750,000 bond.

Sipa is accused of killing retired New York Fire Department Lt. Richard P. Doody, one of the thousands of firefighters who responded to the World Trade Center following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. According to authorities, the two men knew each other.

Doody's body was found dead at his Barnegat Light home on Nov. 23 after a family member became concerned and contacted police when attempts to reach him were unsuccessful. His body was discovered by officers from the Long Branch Police Department, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.

Authorities said in a press release last week that an autopsy was conducted by Dr. Ian Hood and showed that Doody’s death was the result of “blunt force trauma to his head and slash wounds to his neck. Dr. Hood ruled that Mr. Doody was the victim of a homicide.”

Sipa was arrested two days later at his home and charged with charged with one count of murder and one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. According to the Prosecutor’s Office, if Sipa is convicted of murder, he faces a “mandatory minimum term of incarceration of 30 years and a maximum term of life.” In addition, he could face a maxiumum penalty of 10 years in a New Jersey State prison for possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, which is a second degree crime.

Doody's funeral mass is set for Tuesday morning at 10:30 a.m. at Our Lady Help of Christian Church in the Tottenville section of Staten Island.

Toniann Antonelli is the digital managing editor at NJ 101.5. Reach her at toniann.antonelli@townsquaremedia.com, or on Twitter @ToniRadio1015.