Torney’s day in court
by Jeff Frankel
A former student charged in connection with the death of a freshman last year has been given more time in the legal process, a spokesperson said this week.
Michael Rogers, the lawyer representing former Phi Kappa Tau fraternity president Mike Torney, of Randolph, N.J., received an extension of 60 days to find more facts before Torney’s status conference in front of a judge, said Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson Casey DeBlasio. The date has been set for April 22.
It will be at this April status conference that Torney can accept a plea deal or go to trial, DeBlasio said.
“It was going to be the make or break date,” she said. “He will either accept the plea deal or the judge will set a court date.”
Torney, along with two other fraternity brothers, seniors Adriano DiDonato, of Princeton, N.J., and Dominic Olsen of Kenilworth, N.J., were charged in connection with the death of freshman Gary DeVercelly Jr., of Long Beach, Calif., after DeVercelly drank a lethal amount of alcohol.
DiDonato and Olsen were granted Pre-Trial Intervention (PTI) to avoid trial and a possible prison term. Torney was unable to apply for PTI because of a prior offense.
