Former Salem City pastor gets 4-year sentence for sexual assault of a child

NEW JERSEY
South Jersey Times

By Alex Young | South Jersey Times
on October 31, 2014

SALEM — Rev. Jonathan H. Smith, former pastor at Salem First Presbyterian Church, was sentenced Friday to four years in New Jersey State Prison for aggravated sexual assault of a child.

Smith, 59, pleaded guilty in July to sexually assaulting a victim that was less than 13 years old. At Smith’s arraignment in April, Assistant Prosecutor Lisa Rastelli revealed that the victim was a member of Smith’s family that spent time at Smith’s home on Market Street in the summer of 2013.

The boy’s mother reportedly became concerned when he returned home after his time in Salem, and something didn’t seem right. The victim told his mother about the incidents, and the mother alerted the authorities.

Charges of first-degree aggravated sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

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