Nicholas Louis "Nick" Bissell Jr. (January 14, 1947 – November 27, 1996) was the county prosecutor of
Somerset County, New Jersey
Somerset County is a county located in the north-central part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, the county's population was 345,361, an increase of 21,917 (6.8%) from the 323,444 counted at the 2010 U.S Cen ...
. After being charged with
embezzlement
Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...
,
tax fraud and
abuse of power, he fled to
Laughlin, Nevada, and killed himself after a standoff with
US Marshals
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
.
Biography
Born in 1947 to Nicholas L. Bissell Sr. (1919–2002) and his wife, Louise, Nick Bissell grew up in
Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, and later moved to
. He entered
private practice Private practice may refer to:
*Private sector practice
**Practice of law
In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiati ...
, then worked as a
part-time judge. He then became an assistant prosecutor in Somerset County, and was appointed county prosecutor in 1982 by
Governor Tom Kean. He held that position for 13 years.
[ His specialty was civil forfeiture. At one point, the value of the assets he seized were the highest in the state, even though Somerset County is the eighth-smallest county in New Jersey. One of his best-known cases that didn't involve a forfeiture was the prosecution of Matthew Heikkila, a 21-year-old from affluent Basking Ridge, who, on January 29, 1991, murdered his adoptive parents. Although Bissell pressed for the death penalty, the jury sentenced Heikkila to two consecutive life sentences.][, CrimeLibrary.com; accessed January 26, 2017.]
In 1990, a forfeiture case proved to be Bissell's downfall. On May 10, 1990, James Giuffre was arrested on charges of selling $700 worth of cocaine. Bissell said he would drop the charges if Giuffre forfeited two plots of land to the prosecutor's office, valued at $174,000. They were sold at auction below their appraised value to a friend of Bissell's chief of detectives. Giuffre filed a civil suit against Bissell (which the Somerset County Freeholders later settled for $435,000) and also then contacted the Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
and the FBI. Forensic accountants with the IRS discovered that Bissell skimmed cash from a gas station of which he was part owner. The FBI discovered that Bissell had destroyed a suspect's written request for a lawyer and threatened to frame his gasoline wholesaler for cocaine possession.[
In September 1995, Bissell was indicted on 30 federal charges of mail fraud, tax evasion and abuse of power, and was promptly fired by Governor and Somerset County resident ]Christine Todd Whitman
Christine Temple Whitman (née Todd; born September 26, 1946) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001 and as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration o ...
. In May 1996, he was convicted on all charges and faced a minimum sentence of six to eight years in federal prison and a maximum of ten years. He was released under the condition that he wear an electronic bracelet
Electronic tagging is a form of surveillance that uses an electronic device affixed to a person.
In some jurisdictions, an electronic tag fitted above the ankle is used for people as part of their bail or probation conditions. It is also used in ...
until he was sentenced. He abruptly cut it off on November 18, 1996 and fled to Nevada, leaving a note in which he stated that he intended to commit suicide. He was tracked by his cell phone.[
He fatally shot himself after a 10-minute standoff in his hotel room, while members of the United States Marshals Service tried to lure him out of his room.]
References
External links
Profile (November 21, 1995)
philly.com; accessed October 13, 2016.
Profile (October 8, 1995)
philly.com; accessed October 13, 2016.
* at Crime Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bissel, Nicholas L. Jr.
1947 births
1996 suicides
District attorneys in New Jersey
Suicides by firearm in Nevada
Politicians from Somerville, New Jersey
People from Woodbridge Township, New Jersey
20th-century American politicians
Place of birth missing