Former cruiserweight title challenger Bobby Gunn will not serve prison time for a 2019 drug-induced car crash that killed a woman and left her husband severely disabled.
Gunn accepted a plea deal that saw him plead guilty to strict liability vehicular homicide and assault by auto, both third degree charges, in the death of 51-year-old Polly Tornari, in exchange for four years of probation. Gunn had originally been charged with the more serious charge of second-degree vehicular homicide for the crash, which occurred on Sept. 28, 2019 in Upper Pittsgrove Township, a township in south New Jersey.
Gunn admitted to being under the influence of the opioid fentanyl at the time of the crash after his blood tested positive for morphine and his urine tested positive of opiates, according to the prosecutor. According to a 2022 NJ.com report, a responding officer had to rouse Gunn after he nodded off while doing a sobriety test. Polly Tornari died at the scene, while the husband, Robert Tornari, claims that Gunn had crossed the centerline with his pickup truck and hit the victims head-on.
Robert Tornari is now wheelchair-bound and lives in an assisted-living facility due to his injuries. He testified during the Oct. 2 sentencing hearing. His sister, meanwhile, slammed the plea deal, calling it “cruel and shameful,” according to NJ.com.
Gunn, 52, formerly of Hackensack, New Jersey had a pro record of 23-7-1 (20 KOs) during a career from 1989-2017. He challenged twice for world titles; stopped in the first round by Enzo Maccarinelli in 2007 for the WBO cruiserweight title and after four rounds in 2009 in his challenge of Tomasz Adamek for the IBF cruiserweight title. Afterwards he became a popular opponent for former champions in their later years, losing to James Toney, Glen Johnson and Roy Jones Jnr in succession.
Gunn had been originally announced for the 2025 class of the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame, which will hold its annual dinner on Thursday, Nov. 13, but has seemingly been removed from the program since his conviction and sentencing.