Photo Courtesy ECPO Andre Higgs, pictured in his booking photo, was convicted of killing a former girlfriend in 2015.
A 53-year-old man has been convicted for the second time for the murder of an East Orange teacher.
Andre Higgs, of Watchung, was convicted by a jury in a second trial for the 2015 murder of his former girlfriend Latrena May, of East Orange, according to a press release from Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II.
Higgs was found guilty of first-degree murder and second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun. Following those verdicts, Higgs was also convicted of first-degree unlawful possession of a handgun by a person who has previously been convicted of a crime under the No Early Release Act as well as second-degree certain persons not to have weapons.
Deputy Chief Assistant Prosecutor Justin Edwab and Assistant Prosecutor Tehilla Cohen tried the case before Judge Ronald Wigler.
The prosecution proved that on May 1, 2015, Higgs shot the 27-year-old teacher outside her home in East Orange. The shooting occurred after May ran from her home to escape an attack by Higgs and flagged down a police vehicle.
As East Orange Detective Kemon Lee exited his vehicle and approached, Higgs fired multiple shots at May. Lee returned fire, striking Higgs in the legs. After the shooting, Higgs barricaded himself in the residence where the couple’s then four-year-old daughter was sleeping.
Higgs was originally sentenced to life in prison in 2017 following his first conviction for murder. However, in 2023, the New Jersey Supreme Court overturned that conviction and ordered a new trial. The Supreme Court ruled Higgs’ attorneys should have been granted access to Lee’s internal affairs records and permitted to cross-examine Lee about prior on-duty shootings.
“This second conviction for murder for Andre Higgs was possible only because of the brave witnesses who once again came forward to testify about the defendant’s callous actions,” Edwab said. “As we said in 2017 and repeat today, Detective Kemon Lee was a hero that day for responding to Latrena May and attempting to save her from the grip of her abuser.”
Cohen thanked “May’s family for their unwavering faith in this office and the judicial system throughout this lengthy process.”
Higgs is scheduled for sentencing on Feb. 26. He faces a sentence of 30 years to life in prison.
Prosecutors will again recommend a sentence of life imprisonment, as it is consistent with the original recommendation.
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