2 Sheridan sons file to administer estate

The two oldest sons of Cooper Health System CEO John P. Sheridan Jr. and his wife, Joyce, have petitioned to serve as administrators for their parents' estate.

Records filed with the Somerset County (N.J.) Surrogate's Office list the value of the combined estates of the Sheridans to be slightly more than $2 million.

The limited information provided to the Surrogate's Office Nov. 13 begins the process of probating the estate, said Winnie Comfort, spokeswoman for the state Administrative Office of the Courts. Detailed information, such as a list of assets, has not yet been filed, she said.

That listing could include assets such as any real estate, cash, corporate stocks and bonds, insurance, and household effects such as jewelry and cars. The Sheridans owned vintage cars and antiques.

No will has been located for the Sheridans, who died Sept. 28, which is why Mark and Matthew Sheridan are seeking to become the administrators.

The paperwork was filed by lawyer Edward A. Gramigna Jr. of Florham Park, N.J. Gramigna said he is representing twin brothers Mark and Matthew Sheridan, 40. The Sheridans' two younger sons, Tim and Dan, are renouncing their rights to be administrators, according to the Surrogate's Office records.

John and Joyce Sheridan owned their two-story home in Montgomery Township's Skillman section, assessed at $511,500, according to public records, as well as property in Otsego County, N.Y., and Wayne County, Pa.

The Surrogate's Office records the value of John Sheridan's estate at $615,000 and Joyce Sheridan's at $1,463,600. John Sheridan, 72, was a former state transportation commissioner whose role in the GOP influenced public policy. His wife, 69, was a retired schoolteacher.

The Sheridans were found unresponsive after a fire was intentionally set in the master bedroom of their home.

A source close to the investigation confirmed that both Sheridans were stabbed and that two knives were recovered. It is believed that a third weapon, which has not been recovered, caused wounds on John Sheridan's neck and side, the source said. Gasoline was used to set the fire in the bedroom, and a gas can, usually kept in the garage, was found in the bedroom, two sources said.

John Sheridan was pronounced dead at the scene. Joyce Sheridan was taken to Princeton Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

The Somerset County Prosecutor's Office has released few details about the Sheridans' case. It has not released the cause or manner of their deaths. It has refused to confirm that the Sheridans suffered injuries not caused by the fire or whether there is evidence of a crime beyond the intentionally set fire. A spokesman for the office said Thursday that there were no updates in the investigation.

A team of investigators and lawyers from the state Attorney General's Office - as well as New Jersey State Police detectives - has been employed to help investigate the two-month-old case, which law enforcement officials have deemed complex.

The Sheridan sons - who the Prosecutor's Office has said "played no role" in their parents' deaths - have hired Michael Baden, a renowned pathologist, to assist the family.