Exclusive | Princeton preppy murder suspects devastated parents are no-shows in court as hes repped by public defender in brothers killing

TRENTON — The devastated parents of alleged preppy killer Matthew Hertgen did not appear in a New Jersey courtroom Thursday morning for their son’s first in-person hearing as he faced charges for his little’s brother’s bashing and slashing death in Princeton, NJ.Hertgen, 31, appeared coherent and alert during the proceedings in Mercer County Superior Court, and agreed that he should be held in jail until his trial on murder and animal cruelty charges as he was represented by a public defender — despite his family’s wealth.Parents David and Debra Hertgen looked utterly bereft at the funeral for their youngest son Joseph, 26, on Saturday.Their oldest son, David Jr., gave the eulogy, saying “There’s not one person on Earth that I would be prouder to call my brother.”Matthew, a bearded former Wesleyan soccer player, is accused of using a knife and a golf club to murder his Jospeh — also a former college soccer star.

He then ripped out Joseph’s eye and ate it, according to a law enforcement source.Sources said he also set the family cat on fire in the rampage at the family’s upscale apartment in Princeton, which is just blocks from the Ivy League university’s campus.In court on Thursday, Hertgen nodded “yes” as public defender Jason Matey reviewed his constitutional rights and asked him if he consented to his detention.Mercer County Deputy Public Defender Malaeika Montgomery told The Post she has not heard anything about Hertgen’s family possibly hiring him a private defense attorney — despite his father being the president and CFO of a multimillion-dollar tech companyHe has seven days to file an appeal if he changes his mind about his pre-trial jail stay, Matey said in court.The judge set his next court appearance for March 24 at 1:30 p.m.Last Thursday, Hertgen unsuccessfully tried to hang himself at the Mercer County Correction Center.The accused killer faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted.The former college soccer player em...