SUCAUCUS (NJ)
Daily Record
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SECAUCUS -- James T. Hanley, a former pastor at St. Joseph's in Mendham at the center of a highly publicized sexual abuse case, faces criminal charges for allegedly slamming a baseball bat on a hotel manager's front desk.
Hanley, 69, was charged with aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose over accusations that he was violent toward a desk manager at the Extended Stay America Secaucus-Meadowlands hotel on Friday.
Hanley, who was removed from the priesthood in 2002, was arrested by officers, but claimed he suffered a leg injury during the apprehension. Although he is to appear back in court, Hanley was released because he needed medical treatment for the leg injury, said police Sgt. Dominick De Gennaro.
Hanley said he was using the baseball bat as a cane, and that he hit the desk after a manager refused to give him his room key until he paid his bill.