New Jersey “death race” state trooper faces charges

A New Jersey State Police trooper is accused of escorting an event with a rather unfortunate title: Death Race 2012. Motorists reported seeing two state-police cruisers on March 30 lead a pack of Porsches, Lamborghinis and Ferraris toward Atlantic City, reaching speeds of 100 miles an hour, Bloomberg News reported.

The trooper accused of escorting the cars, Sgt. 1st Class Nadir Nassry, has been in law enforcement for 25 years, the Wall Street Journal reported. He resigned from his job on Wednesday, and his lawyer says that he will be charged in court on Friday. The drivers participating in the race included former New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs, business executives and lawyers.  

A second trooper, Joseph Ventrella, was also involved in the incident, the WSJ said. 

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Nassry's attorney acknowledged that there may have been some "safety issues" with the Death Race: "He knows this was not a smart move," Charles Sciarra, Nassry's attorney, told NBC. "He knows there were safety issues with regard to this and we don't debate that."

Documents obtained by The Star-Ledger show that police are rarely allowed to escort cars. Rare exceptions to this policy are usually only made for medical emergencies, government officials, dignitary funerals and protected witnesses, The Star-Ledger reported.