A New Jersey state appeals court on Friday affirmed a lower court’s decision to dismiss racketeering charges against George E. Norcross III, one of the state’s top Democratic power brokers.
The decision from a panel of appellate judges upheld a ruling from last February, when a judge dismissed the entire 13-count indictment. Mr. Norcross had been accused of illegally obtaining waterfront property in Camden, N.J., and fraudulently collecting millions in tax breaks. He has denied all charges.
Last year’s ruling was a stunning defeat for the New Jersey attorney general’s office under Matthew J. Platkin, who had brought the charges amid a broader campaign against the corruption so often associated with New Jersey politics.
Jennifer Davenport, the state’s acting attorney general after Mr. Platkin departed this month, must now decide whether to appeal the decision to the New Jersey Supreme Court. A spokeswoman for Ms. Davenport said the office was reviewing the ruling.
Complicating Ms. Davenport’s decision about whether to appeal is the fact that she has not yet been confirmed by the State Senate, where Mr. Norcross still holds considerable sway. A lawyer for Mr. Norcross did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
For decades, Mr. Norcross, 69, was one of New Jersey’s most powerful kingmakers, an unelected official who used his tremendous influence to choose the state’s governors, shape its policies and direct its economic development.
Though he was a member of the Democratic National Committee until 2021, Mr. Norcross built his power in part by forging political alliances with both Democrats and Republicans. He was a longtime friend of Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker, while also being a member of President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club.
Mr. Norcross came of age politically in Camden in the late 1970s, after he dropped out of Rutgers University. Using a political connection from his father, the mayor of Camden appointed Mr. Norcross to the city’s Parking Authority. It was the only elected office he would ever hold.
In June 2024, Mr. Norcross was charged alongside five co-defendants that included his brother and the former mayor of Camden, Dana L. Redd. For 12 years, according to the indictment, Mr. Norcross and his co-defendants led a criminal scheme in which they corruptly obtained waterfront property meant to revitalize Camden, a poor city outside Philadelphia that had long struggled with the effects of deindustrialization and had been afflicted with violent crime.
Those charges were dismissed last year by Judge Peter E. Warshaw Jr., who wrote that there was no evidence of a racketeering conspiracy in Mr. Norcross and his associates’ dealings. Even if there were a conspiracy, Judge Warshaw wrote, the charges were brought too long after the crimes took place.
Friday’s ruling from the appellate panel reprised much of Judge Warshaw’s reasoning. The judges wrote that a number of the charged offenses were “untimely” or “time-barred.” And the indictment, the judges wrote, did not show “a conspiracy to commit either extortion or coercion.”
As part of the scheme, prosecutors said, Mr. Norcross and his co-conspirators bullied other developers who were also trying to revitalize Camden. On one occasion, Mr. Norcross called a rival developer who owned the property rights that Mr. Norcross needed in order to build what would become the tallest building on the city’s waterfront, according to the indictment.
When the developer said he would not give up his property rights, Mr. Norcross said he would ensure the developer would never do business in Camden again, according to the indictment.
“Are you threatening me?” the developer asked.
“Absolutely,” Mr. Norcross replied.
Tracey Tully contributed reporting.
Santul Nerkar is a Times reporter covering federal courts in Brooklyn.
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