An East Orange man has been convicted of murder and attempted murder by an Essex County jury following trials connected to two separate shootings in Newark and Irvington.

James Tolbert, 31, was found guilty on October 9, following a day of jury deliberations before Superior Court Judge. The convictions stem from a fatal 2022 shooting in Irvington and a 2023 shooting outside a Newark home.

According to evidence presented by Supervising Assistant Prosecutors, Tolbert and several other men picked up 16-year-old Alsanir Hall from a Newark residence on November 27, 2022, and drove him to Irvington. Prosecutors established that after getting out of the vehicle, Tolbert demanded money from the teenager and shot him in the face at close range before fleeing with the vehicle's other occupants.

Months later, on January 22, 2023, Tolbert used the same handgun during a shooting in Newark. Prosecutors proved that Tolbert and another gunman threw items outside a residence—where a five-year-old's birthday party had recently concluded—to lure 26-year-old Altiliyah Butler outside. The men fired 19 rounds at Butler, striking him twice.

The jury convicted Tolbert of first-degree murder, first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, and related weapon offenses for the 2022 killing. For the 2023 incident, he was convicted of first-degree attempted murder, second-degree aggravated assault, conspiracy, and weapons charges.

Following the verdict, prosecutors acknowledged the collaborative investigative work of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force, the Newark Police Division, and the Irvington Police Department.