Trenton Police Detective Indicted for Official Misconduct and Perjury in Connection with Unlawful Use of Force

Mercer County Prosecutor Janetta D. Marbrey reported that a Mercer County grand jury returned a five-count indictment against a Trenton Police detective who, as alleged, unlawfully used pepper spray on a Trenton man and made statements he knew to be false in a criminal complaint he then filed against the victim. 

After hearing testimony and evidence on April 16, 2026, the grand jury voted to indict Aaron Bernstein, 51, of Marlboro, New Jersey.  He is charged with two counts of second-degree official misconduct, one count of third-degree perjury, one count of third-degree aggravated assault, and one count of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

The matter was referred to the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office in December 2024 by the Trenton Police Department’s Internal Affairs Unit. The charges stem from a May 10, 2022, incident in which Bernstein is alleged to have used pepper spray against the victim, a 27-year-old Trenton man, in violation of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Use of Force Policy.  It is further alleged in the indictment that Bernstein then certified to statements he knew to be false when he filed charges of obstructing the administration of law and resisting arrest against the victim in connection with the same incident.  At the time, Bernstein was a 19-year member of the Trenton Police Department, holding the rank of detective.  

Despite having been indicted, every defendant is presumed innocent until found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.