Suspect Charged In Connection With Neptune Woman's Death Staying In Jail
FREEHOLD, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A judge has refused to reconsider whether a former classmate charged in connection to the death of a 19-year-old New Jersey woman should be released from jail.
Superior Court Judge David Bauman on Thursday refused 19-year-old Preston Taylor's lawyer's request that he get a new detention hearing.
Taylor's attorney, John Perrone, says he will appeal the decision.
Prosecutors say Taylor confessed that he first hid Sarah Stern's body in the bushes of her home before later helping toss her body off a bridge in Belmar.
Liam McAtasney has been accused of killing Stern and recruiting Taylor to dump her body, which has not been found. The judge ruled Tuesday that the 19-year-old McAtasney will also remain jailed until his trial.
The men were both longtime friends of Stern's and Taylor was her junior prom date.
Both defendants were among the nearly 100 people who volunteered to help search for Stern in the area surrounding the Shark River inlet after her car was found the same day she went missing.
McAtasney faces charges of murder, felony murder, conspiracy, hindering apprehension and disposal of human remains. Authorities allege Stern was killed during a robbery that McAtasney had planned for several months.
Taylor has been charged with conspiracy, hindering apprehension and disposal of human remains for his alleged role in the crime.
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