Tedesco Court Date Moved—Again

The upcoming hearing in the case of a Hopatcong man charged with murdering a borough woman in March 2010 has been postponed, a Sussex County Criminial Division representative said Friday.

Giuseppe Tedesco, who is accused of shooting Alyssa Ruggieri to death in her Durban Avenue home, was due in court on Monday, Oct. 17, for a pre-trail conference. The conference has been moved to Nov. 14 at 9 a.m. at the request of his Nutly-based attorney, Anthony Iacullo. Iacullo will be defending another client on trial on Monday.

The date change is nothing new for the case. At least two other status conferences have been postponed for various reasons.

Superior Court Judge N. Peter Conforti the last time Tedesco was in court in July. Tedesco is being held on $1 million bail with no 10-percent option. Conforti then proceeded to rattle through the litany of evidence stacked against Tedesco, whose suspected relationship with Ruggieri, according to prosecutors, may have provided motivation for the killing.

Conforti said that the court had three key concerns that prevent any change in bail: a flight risk factor because of the strong evidence, Tedesco's "emotional and psychological history" and concerns about safety if a bail bond is posted.

In February, that would allow Tedesco to plead guilty to the murder charge and in exchange face 30 years in prison instead of a possible life sentence.