In large measure because of an investigation by NJ Advance Media, convicted child molester Gregorio Martinez, once a fugitive, is back behind bars. … More Accused child predator, back in N.J., held without bail
Our coverage of Gregorio Martinez, a convicted sex offender who had been on the run, kick-started a stalled investigation and helped lead to his arrest in Central America. … More A preacher’s flight from justice
The Rev. Manuel Gallo Espinoza was allowed to slip away after a teenage boy accused him of rape. An NJ Advance Media investigation found he later became a teacher in Maryland. Now police are hunting for him. … More Where’s Father Manuel? Police hunting priest accused of rape
A retired teacher accused of sexually abusing one of her teenage students in the 1990s — an allegation chronicled in a two-part series in The Star-Ledger last year — will not face criminal charges “at this time,” a prosecutor said Thursday, adding that the investigation will remain open, though inactive, indefinitely. … More No charges ‘at this time’ in teacher-student sex investigation
It was something about the way she flopped into the chair and cried, all raw innocence and seething emotion, that sent Jim Cunneely back. The 15-year-old girl was having a problem with her father. When she rushed into Cunneely’s empty classroom at Kittatinny Regional High School that morning in 2006, she was looking to vent. She was looking for consolation. Cunneely, a French teacher, said he felt like he was looking at himself. … More The Cycle of Sexual Abuse (Part 2): A Teacher’s Betrayal
Once jailed for molesting a 15-year-old student, teacher of the year Jim Cunneely says his crime is part of a cycle of sexual abuse that began when he was molested at 15 by a teacher of the year. This two-part series prompted a criminal investigation into the 1990s allegation against Carol D’Annunzio, now retired and living in … More The Cycle of Sexual Abuse (Part 1): How a teacher became a sex offender
New Jersey’s bishops won’t say where priests who were credibly accused of sexual abuse are living. … More Hidden priests, secret pasts
The Rev. Matthew Riedlinger was suspended from ministry after The Star-Ledger disclosed his sexually explicit text messages with a person he believed to be a teenage boy. … More Priest in sexting sting thought he was talking to 16-year-old boy, wanted to meet
Parishioners at St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church in Oradell first noticed the man in November. Each night, he slept in the rectory. Every morning, he attended Mass in the soaring brick church, across the street from the parish’s elementary school. What parishioners didn’t know — what neither their pastor nor the Archdiocese of Newark told … More Newark Archdiocese stirs outrage after allowing accused molester to live in parish
This story led to Michael Fugee’s arrest and removal from the priesthood. It also sparked widespread criticism of Archbishop John J. Myers and led to the reassignment of Myers’ top assistant. … More Priest works with kids despite lifetime ban
Mark Mueller Journalism 