Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler deferred to a Family Court judge to decide whether Andre Higgs should be allowed to see his four-year-old daughter
NEWARK -- A Superior Court judge on Friday declined to rule on whether an accused murderer should be allowed to see his four-year-old daughter in a case where he is charged with killing the child's mother outside her East Orange home while the girl was inside the residence.
Saying he was "punting" on the issue, Judge Ronald Wigler deferred the question of Andre Higgs visiting with the child to a Family Court judge. State authorities have taken legal custody of the girl, and she resides with her aunt.
"A judge in Family Court is in a better position to determine whether or not visitation should or should not take place and, if so, under what conditions," Wigler said during Friday's hearing.
Higgs, 43, of Watchung, was indicted last month on murder, endangering the welfare of a child and related charges in connection with the May 1 killing of Latrena May, 27, who also was a beloved teacher in East Orange.
With their daughter inside May's Tremont Avenue home, Higgs and May were arguing on the porch of the residence, authorities said. As May flagged down a police officer patrolling the area, Higgs shot her three times and the officer then shot Higgs, authorities said.
After the shooting, Higgs went into the house and threw the gun on the floor of a hallway before he was ultimately apprehended, according to Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Justin Edwab, who is handling the case. The girl, who lived with May, was in their first-floor apartment at the time of the shooting, and then ran to the second-floor apartment afterward, Edwab said.
May was pronounced dead at the scene. A teacher at Pride Academy Charter School in East Orange, May has been remembered as a dedicated and passionate educator who showed "unconditional kindness" to others.
Higgs was released from custody on Aug. 14 after posting $1 million bail. As one of the bail conditions, Higgs was ordered to have no contact with his daughter.
During Friday's hearing, Higgs's attorney, Thomas Ashley, entered not guilty pleas on his behalf when Higgs was arraigned on the charges.
Ashley then asked Wigler to remove the bail condition prohibiting him from having contact with the girl. When Higgs agreed to his bail conditions, he did not understand that he would be prevented from visiting his daughter and perhaps also having custody of her, Ashley said.
Ashley argued it was unlikely for the child to be a witness in the case, saying she could not testify about any interactions leading up to the shooting.
Ashley added that one of the issues will be Higgs's state of mind at the time of the shooting, and he said the girl does not have any knowledge relevant to that issue.
Before the incident, Higgs and his daughter were "very close," according to Ashley. He said the child would visit with Higgs and spend weekends with him.
Latrena May "Certainly, it's traumatic enough not to have your mother," Ashley said. "It's even more traumatic not to have your mother or see your father, and there is a presumption of innocence in the case."
But Edwab argued the girl was both a witness and a victim herself in regard to the child endangerment charge.
That charge relates to how Higgs left the gun in the hallway where the child passed through to go upstairs, and how bullets went into the house during a shootout between Higgs and the police, according to Edwab.
"I think it is unconscionable to allow this defendant to be able to see this child when he took the child's mother away from her," Edwab said.
Wigler said he would lift the bail condition barring Higgs from contacting the girl, but he deferred to a Family Court judge to hold a hearing "to see whether or not visitation would or would not be in the child's best interests."
"I'm not ruling, by the way, that Mr. Higgs can see his child. That's not what I'm saying here," Wigler said. "I'm saying that that decision is better left for a Family Court judge to determine."
"Yes, I'm punting," the judge added.
Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.