Paterson police officer found guilty of aggravated assault with handgun
By Jayed Rahman
Published: March 19, 2019
A city police officer has been found guilty of aggravated assault with a handgun for discharging his weapon while off-duty outside the downtown Paterson 7-Eleven.
A jury convicted Dante L. Gordon of fourth-degree aggravated assault for recklessly causing bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon on Monday.
Gordon was found not guilty of second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, third-degree terroristic threats, and fourth degree aggravated assault by pointing a handgun at or in the direction of another.
The charges against Gordon stemmed from an incident outside 262 Main Street on Feb. 25, 2016. He allegedly pointed a handgun at the direction of Travis Mann, 35, of Wanaque, following a verbal dispute.
Mann is a convicted felon. He is serving a sentence for terroristic threats and threats of violence in state prison.
Gordon discharged the weapon once. A second man, John Smith, 37, of Paterson, was in the vicinity of the discharge. Both victims were injured when fragments and debris from the discharge struck them, said authorities at the time.
Gordon faces 18 months in state prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 10. His bail was revoked following trial and he was remanded to the Passaic County Jail.
Gordon had been working as a police officer since 2014, according to municipal records. Gordon has been terminated as of Tuesday morning, said police chief Troy Oswald.
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