Sonya Deville Resolves Gun Charge By Completing Pretrial Intervention Program
Sonya Deville has resolved her gun charge.
In February, Sonya Deville (real name Daria Berenato) was arrested in New Jersey for having a firearm in her vehicle. Deville has a permit in Florida, but the permit was not valid in New Jersey. Court records showed she’s since been charged with one count of unlawful weapon possession — handgun without permit.
According to Courrier Post, Deville resolved the charge by completing six months in a pretrial intervention program in late November, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office.
Superior Court Judge Bernard DeLury Jr. in Mays Landing approved her entry into the program on May 25, the prosecutor’s office said Wednesday, Dec. 27.
From Courrier Post:
The 10-page memo said incarceration was “neither necessary nor appropriate” for “otherwise law-abiding persons who inadvertently violate New Jersey’s gun laws.”
It said those defendants must be under the “misimpression” that their possession of a weapon legal in their home state would also be lawful in New Jersey.
It said prosecutors, depending on the circumstances, could either consent to a pretrial intervention request or could pursue a non-custodial probationary sentence.
The option of a diversion program previously was available only in cases that presented “compelling and extraordinary reasons,” the memo noted.
Deville was a home invasion victim in August 2020 when a man was arrested and charged with aggravated stalking, armed burglary of a dwelling, attempted armed kidnapping, and criminal mischief for breaking into her home.
Deville has been sidelined since August with a torn ACL.
