TRENTON – A 34-year-old Millville man has been charged with murder having allegedly fired a handgun at a vehicle occupied by three young men and killing one of them.
A state grand jury indicted Terrell Savage who was charged with first-degree murder in the shooting of Maurice “Reese” Lewis, 19, of Millville, on May 18, 2018.
Savage is charged with two counts of first-degree attempted murder related to the two other occupants of the vehicle, who were not hit by the gunfire. Savage also is charged with unlawful possession of a weapon which are first and second degree counts, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose which is a second degree count, possession of a weapon as a convicted felon another second degree count, hindering apprehension or prosecution which is a third degree count, and tampering with physical evidence a fourth degree count.
Also charged on Sept. 6 was Savage’s girlfriend, Tashannah Wilkins, 32, of Millville, in a separate indictment with a fourth degree count of conspiracy a third degree count of hindering apprehension or prosecution for allegedly driving Savage to another part of the city after the shooting and later driving him back to the area of the shooting so he could attempt to find the gun. Savage allegedly attempted to hide his weapon after the shooting.
The indictments are the result of an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice, Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, Millville Police Department, and New Jersey State Police.
Around 11:11 p.m. on May 18, 2018, Millville police responded to the area of Dock Street and Broad Street on reports that shots were fired and someone had been shot. Once on scene, they found Lewis in the driver’s seat of an SUV with a gunshot wound to the back of his head. Lewis was transported to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, where he died from his injuries on May 20, 2018.
The investigation revealed that on May 18, 2018, Lewis was driving a Chevrolet Suburban on May 18, 2018 and according to the investigation he had one male passenger in the front seat and a second male passenger in the back seat when he stopped at a stop sign at the intersection of Dock Street and Broad Street at approximately 11:05 p.m. Savage had been walking on Dock Street and was standing on the driver’s side of the SUV.
As Lewis began to drive away, Savage allegedly fired 10 rounds from a 9 mm pistol equipped with a 14-round magazine. Eight rounds struck the SUV, including the round that killed Lewis. The passengers were not hit. The SUV then crashed into a parked car.
Savage was arrested on May 22, 2018. He is currently is incarcerated in South Woods State Prison in Bridgeton on prior charges.
The murder charge carries a sentence of 30 years without parole to life in prison. Each count of attempted murder carries a sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison, with parole ineligibility equal to 85 percent of the sentence imposed. The second-degree weapons charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison, with parole ineligibility equal to one-third to one-half of the sentence imposed or 3 ½ years, whichever is greater.
The charge of possession of a weapon as a convicted felon carries a mandatory minimum term of five years of parole ineligibility. Third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison, while fourth-degree charges carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison.
Deputy Attorney General Cassandra Montalto presented the case to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau.
Indictments are accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The indictments were handed up to Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson in Mercer County, who assigned the cases to Cumberland County, where the defendants will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment.
