NEW JERSEY
South Jersey Times

By Matt Gray | South Jersey Times
on April 16, 2015

A Franklin Township pastor has been charged with sexually assaulting a teenager, township police reported.

James E. Simmons Jr., 64, is accused of assaulting the victim, now 21 years old, beginning when she was 17, according to a release issued by the police department.

The victim told police the alleged abuse continued for several years, authorities said.

Simmons, pastor at New Life in Christ Ministries in Malaga, turned himself in to police on Wednesday.

He was charged with several counts of second-degree sex assault, criminal sexual contact and endangering the welfare of a child.

Bail was set at $150,000 full cash.