Officer Lawrence Furlow Arrested For Shaking Down Drug Dealers

The state Attorney General’s Office has decided to retry its case against a Newark police officer accused of shaking down drug dealers for money, drugs and guns, after his first trial ended last month with a hung jury.

The officer, Lawrence Furlow, 49, was arrested in 2004 and charged with conspiracy, official misconduct and theft, according to the original indictment.

A new trial isn’t expected to begin until May because Furlow’s attorney, Thomas Ashley, is handling a death penalty case in Philadelphia, authorities said.

Attorneys on both sides will meet Friday morning with Superior Court Judge Peter Ryan in Newark to set a new trial date, said Peter Aseltine, a spokesman for the attorney general’s office.

Ashley, who represented Furlow in the previous trial that ended Dec. 16 with a hung jury, said he intends to stay on as counsel. He said his client was "heartened" when the jury revealed it had voted, 8-4, in favor of acquittal, before deadlocking.

Furlow’s arrest — along with fellow officer Darius Smith — was part of a larger investigation by the state Division of Criminal Justice and Newark police into allegations so-called rogue officers robbed drug dealers and prostitutes, resold drugs and sold guns, planted drugs on victims and filed false reports over a three-year period.

Smith, 38, whose charges mirror Furlow’s, will be tried separately. His trial will start March 23, according to court records.

Both men, who are out on bail, have been suspended from the police department since their arrests more than five years ago. Ashley said Furlow, who has been on the force since 1996, has found other employment, but is only making "a modicum of a living."

Smith’s attorney, Raymond Beam Jr., could not be reached for comment.

Deputy Attorneys General Annmarie Taggart and Mark Ondris will prosecute the case against Furlow. Office policy prohibits attorneys from discussing an ongoing case, Aseltine said.

Furlow and Smith were implicated by another police officer, Tyrone Dudley, who went into witness protection after pleading guilty to participating in the thefts.

The charges against Furlow cover December 2001 to 2003, when he patrolled the West Ward. Authorities say he took cash, drugs and weapons from drug dealers, criminal suspects and others by shaking them down. He also planted drugs on other victims to increase his arrests and cover up his illegal actions, according to the original indictment.

Ashley said his client denies any wrongdoing and "professes his innocence. I am very confident that at the end of the day, he will be absolutely innocent."