Passaic County Officer Gets 20 Years for Obstruction of Justice

A Passaic County correctional officer has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiring to obstruct justice in connection with an investigation of an assault of a pretrial detainee.

Officer Lorenzo Bowden, 39, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Michael E. Farbiarz in Newark federal court to an information charging him with conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Bowden admitted to conspiring with Sergeants Jose Gonzalez and Donald Vinales to transport a detainee to an area of the Passaic County Jail where there were no video cameras and then to assault the detainee while he was handcuffed.

The assault occurred on January 22, 2021, after the detainee squirted a mixture containing urine onto a correctional officer. Bowden and the other officers involved in the assault later lied about the incident, saying that nothing had happened to the detainee.

“Lorenzo Bowden, a correctional officer, admitted today that he helped transport a detainee to an area where there were no video cameras and stood by while other officers repeatedly hit and assaulted the handcuffed detainee who posed no threat,” said U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.

“The vast majority of law enforcement officers understand the trust placed in them by our community when they wear the badge. But when law enforcement officers abuse the trust the community places in them – when they violate the constitutional rights of the people of New Jersey, including prisoners, they will be held accountable.”

The charge of conspiracy to obstruct justice carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Bowden’s sentencing is scheduled for September 5, 2024.