NJ man, 23, sentenced to 45 years in prison for 2011 murder

FREEHOLD – A Neptune was was sentenced Friday to 45 years in New Jersey state prison for the 2011 murder of an Asbury Park man.

Thaddeus Reevey, 23, was sentenced on the murder charge and must serve 85 percent of his prison term before becoming eligible for parole, according to the provisions of the No Early Release Act, according to Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

In addition, the prosecutor said Reevey was also given a 6-year state prison term on charges of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. the sentence will run concurrent to the 45-year prison term and carries a 3-and-a-half-year period of parole ineligibility, pursuant to the Graves Act, which requires mandatory minimum sentences for certain firearms offenses, Gramiccioni said in a statement Tuesday. The sentence was handed down by Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Thomas F. Scully.

Reevey was convicted in March of first degree murder and second degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose after a three-week jury trial, the prosecutor said.

According to the prosecutor, on Nov. 8 at about 6:18 p.m., Asbury Park police responded to the the Asbury Park Village housing complex after receiving 911 calls reporting a shooting.

When police arrived at the complex, they found the victim, identified as Eric Freeman, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.He was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, where he succumbed to his injuries at 6:58 p.m. The Middlesex County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Freeman's death a homicide.

During the trial, prosecutors presented testimony and evidece indicating that Reevey approached the victim and his friend and pulled out a handgun. He then shot Freeman three times at close range, the prosecutor said.

Toniann Antonelli is a social content producer for NJ 101.5. She can be reached at toniann.antonelli@townsquaremedia.com, or on Twitter @ToniRadio1015.