Middletown BOE Member Joe Fitzgerald Hires 2nd Amendment Rights Lawyer To Defend His Case

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Embattled Middletown school board member Joe Fitzgerald hired a 2nd Amendment rights lawyer to defend him from the six illegal gun charges he is facing.

Fitzgerald hired Evan Nappen as his defense attorney, Nappen confirmed Thursday.

Nappen has a law office in Eatontown, and on his website he describes himself as a lawyer who "dedicated his life to fighting for gun rights and honest gun owners ... He dedicated his career to defending 'law-abiding criminals' who become trapped by New Jersey’s harsh and unforgiving gun laws."

Nappen said he intends to defend Fitzgerald's case as a gun-rights issue, and he will argue that Fitzgerald has a legal right to own firearms.

"We certainly plan to defend this as a gun-rights issue," Nappen told Patch Thursday. "But this isn't just a firearms law issue. There are plenty of criminal due-process issues (in Fitzgerald's arrest), as well. But there is a definite need here for specific knowledge on firearms and weapons law."

Fitzgerald is next due in court at 9 a.m. on Aug. 18, where he will appear in the Monmouth County courthouse before Judge Richard English for a pre-indictment conference. This is a public court hearing where county prosecutors, Fitzgerald and his lawyer will try to resolve the case before it goes to a grand jury. Fitzgerald has not yet been indicted on the charges against him.

One possible outcome is Fitzgerald could plead guilty, and the charges would be reduced.

However, Nappen vowed Thursday they intend to fight the charges.

Shortly after 5 p.m. on June 30, Fitzgerald was stopped in his pick-up truck by Atlantic Highlands Police (however, Middletown Police were the first agency to confirm he was arrested that night). Inside the pick-up, police said they found four weapons: A loaded Ruger LCP .380 handgun (which police say Fitzgerald could not produce a permit for), two dart or spring projectile guns and a stun gun in the shape of brass knuckles, with a Taser component on it.

Fitzgerald was charged with three counts of unlawful possession of a weapon and one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, among other charges.

Fitzgerald was headed that evening to engage in an altercation with the husband of the woman he is accused of having an affair with, the Monmouth County prosecutor previously said at Fitzgerald's detention hearing, held July 9. An assistant Monmouth County prosecutor told Superior Court Judge Vincent Falcetano that Fitzgerald and his wife are going through a separation because he is having an affair with another woman, NJ 101.5 previously reported.

Prosecutors say Fitzgerald was headed to the husband's home on June 30 to confront him, telling his wife "I'm going to take care of this right now'' — referring to the other woman's husband. It was Fitzgerald's wife who called 911 that evening.

At the time of his first court hearing, Fitzgerald's lawyer was a public defender, Lisa Maglone. She entirely disputes prosecutors' account of what happened that night.

She says Fitzgerald took the guns from his home and put them in his pick-up that night because he didn't want his wife to harm herself. She said Fitzgerald's wife had been acting erratic recently.

His new lawyer, Nappen, said the way prosecutors have described the events of June 30 — and the weeks leading up to it — is not correct.

"We vigorously disagree with the state's position," said Nappen Thursday.

He declined to answer when Patch directly asked if Fitzgerald was having an extramarital affair.

"I'm not going to try this case in the media," said the lawyer. "But let's take a look at the guns he was charged with possessing. A lot of them have been miscategorized in a very pejorative way. For example, a spring gun. What is that? It's very vague. And that's just one example."

"Can police overcharge someone? Can police file charges where they are treading into ground they don't even understand and let the courts sort it out later? Of course, yes," said Fitzgerald's lawyer.

"There was no affair. This was a domestic issue," Fitzgerald told Patch after this article was published. "The police report clearly states I was headed home. I live on Lakeside Drive."

Nappen has had prior success defending people accused of illegal gun ownership in New Jersey. In 2014, he represented the somewhat famous case of a 27-year-old single mother, Shaneen Allen.

Allen owns guns (Nappen said she has them for security, as she's been robbed twice in the past while living in Philadelphia) and has permits to carry them in Pennsylvania. In 2013, she was driving to Atlantic City and was stopped on the Atlantic City Expressway for failure to maintain lanes. Allen volunteered to the officer that she was carrying a gun and had the PA carry permit on her. The officer arrested her because she does not have a permit to carry in New Jersey.

Nappen was Allen's lawyer and he helped her avoid prison time, and instead be recommended for pre-trial intervention. Allen was later pardoned entirely by then-Gov. Chris Christie. Her case has been written about by the Star Ledger and NJ Spotlight, and Republican lawmakers introduced a bill in her name that would give New Jersey judges more discretion when a legal gun owner from out of state is arrested in New Jersey.

"The victory we got for Shaneen Allen was huge," said Nappen.

After his arrest on June 30, Fitzgerald was held for more than a week in the Monmouth County jail, and he was released after his July 9 detention hearing on Level III pretrial monitoring, the highest level of court monitoring short of having to wear an ankle bracelet. Judge Falcetano ordered Fitzgerald to surrender his firearms purchaser ID card to police until his case is resolved.

Fitzgerald is currently living in an apartment in Middletown and his wife has a temporary restraining order out against him, NJ 101.5 previously reported. He is the owner and founder of an IT firm in Red Bank. He is a former U.S. Marine.

Due to the charges against him, Fitzgerald was temporarily suspended from the Middletown Board of Education. The new Middletown school board lawyer, William Burns, said he was told by the New Jersey Department of Education that Fitzgerald must be temporarily suspended due to how serious the criminal charges are.

Fitzgerald's seat is up for re-election this November, and Fitzgerald intends to run again, along with six candidates. Seven candidates will run for three open seats on the Middletown school board this fall.

Who's Running For Middletown School Board, Twp. Committee In 2025 (July 30)

Affair Was Behind Arrest Of Middletown BOE Member Joe Fitzgerald, Prosecutor Says (July 11)

First report: Middletown School Board Member Joe Fitzgerald Arrested On Illegal Gun Charges (July 1)