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Priest-Turned-Bookstore Owner From Jersey Shore Convicted In Virginia Of Having Sex With Teen Priest-Turned-Bookstore Owner From Jersey Shore Convicted In Virginia Of Having Sex With Teen
Priest-Turned-Bookstore Owner From Jersey Shore Convicted In Virginia Of Having Sex With Teen A former Virginia priest from New Jersey has been convicted of sexually assaulting a teen in 1985, authorities announced. Scott Asalone, 65, was arrested in Asbury Park — where he owned a bookstore — in March 2020. A grand jury in Virginia indicted Asalone three days earlier on what is known there as "carnal knowledge of a minor" between 13 and 15 years old. The incident involves a former parishioner in 1985 while Asalone was a member of the clergy assigned to St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church in Purcellville,  Asalone was removed from public duties in 1993 and dismissed from …

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by Cecilia Levine
Obituaries
Lifelong Morris County Resident, Faithful Church Deaconess Dies Unexpectedly, 39 Lifelong Morris County Resident, Faithful Church Deaconess Dies Unexpectedly, 39
Lifelong Morris County Resident, Faithful Church Deaconess Dies Unexpectedly, 39 Lifelong Morris County resident and faithful church deaconess Shanell Renee Henderson died unexpectedly on Sunday, Aug. 14. She was 39. Born in Morristown, Shanell was a “miracle child” who suffered health issues as an infant and was given a two percent chance at survival, her obituary says. “Thirty-nine years later, she exemplified the sufficiency of God’s grace and mercy,” reads her memorial. Shanell graduated from Morristown High School in 2001 before briefly attending The Chubb Institute in East Hanover. She was also a faithful member and singer in the choir at Union Baptist Church in…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
'Remorseful' NJ Minister Released From Jail After Recording Sex Assault Of Teen Girl: Report 'Remorseful' NJ Minister Released From Jail After Recording Sex Assault Of Teen Girl: Report
'Remorseful' NJ Minister Released From Jail After Recording Sex Assault Of Teen Girl: Report A 54-year-old South Jersey minister who is a licensed family therapy and marriage counselor has been released from jail after being arrested for recording a video of a 15-year-old girl performing a sex act on him, NJ Advance Media reports. Bridgeton's Allahdjinn Wright can be seen touching the victim before unzipping his pants and pulling her head toward in in the video, apparently taken in his vehicle last month, the outlet says. The clip was discovered by a teen in his care. Wright initially denied being the person in the video but later admitted to it, and even expressed remorse. W…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Celeb Pastor Sold Montclair Home Days Before He Was Fired Over Marital Affair Celeb Pastor Sold Montclair Home Days Before He Was Fired Over Marital Affair
Celeb Pastor Sold Montclair Home Days Before He Was Fired Over Marital Affair A celebrity pastor fired from a popular international church sold his Montclair mansion days before his cheating scandal hit the tabloids. Carl Lentz and wife Laura sold their Heller Way home for $1.5 million on Oct. 23, a Halstead sales associate told the New York Post. Eleven days later, Hillsong Church's founding pastor announced Lentz had been fired due to "moral failures" and "breaches of trust." Lentz -- Justin Bieber's former "spiritual advisor" -- said on Instagram the following day that he had, in fact, cheated on his wife. View this post on Instagram …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Former Central Jersey Altar Boy Says Defrocked Catholic Cardinal Molested Him Former Central Jersey Altar Boy Says Defrocked Catholic Cardinal Molested Him
Former Central Jersey Altar Boy Says Defrocked Catholic Cardinal Molested Him A former altar boy from Monmouth County has gone public with accusations of sex abuse as a child at the hands of defrocked Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Geoffrey Downs, now 53, said in a lawsuit that McCarrick invited him to stay at a Catholic diocese-owned Jersey Shore beach house when he was a teenager. In this interview with NJ.com, Downs said he never told his parents and continued serving as an altar boy until high school, when he was preparing for Mass with McCarrick. He claims that the cleric fondled him. “I was kind of frozen,” Downs said in the newspaper interview.  Last …

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by Jon Craig
News
Bergen County Pastor Resigns Amid Pre-2000 Abuse Allegations Bergen County Pastor Resigns Amid Pre-2000 Abuse Allegations
Bergen County Pastor Resigns Amid Pre-2000 Abuse Allegations The pastor of Cliffside Park’s Church of the Epiphany has resigned amid allegations that he abused a minor before he was ordained. The Rev. Bruce Harger, 66, “has not been convicted of any civil or canonical crime” and has denied any wrongdoing, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Newark said. He decided “after thorough and careful consideration” to step down until the matter is resolved, however, “out of concern for the people of the parish and for the benefit of the church,” the spokeswoman, Maria Margiotta, said in a statement. "The alleged abuse occurred before Fr. Harger was associa…

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by Jerry DeMarco