Black churches still shaken by vandalism in Morris County

MORRISTOWN — Why did Zuri C. Towns vandalize five black churches?

Morris County Prosecutor Fredric M. Knapp said there was no evidence to indicate Towns' actions, which included breaking a stained-glass window and damaging the signs of the churches, was a bias crime — something that members of the community had feared.

But Knapp said he could not say what Towns' motivation was due to the ongoing investigation. Towns is black.

"I cannot comment on any details of the case except in court," Knapp told New Jersey 101.5. He said that Towns first appearance has not yet been scheduled but expected it to be next week.

Knapp earlier said that Towns, 45, attended one of the churches as a child.

The four churches in Morristown vandalized included the Church of God in Christ for All Saints on Rowe Street, the Bethel A.M.E. Church on Spring Street, the Calvary Baptist Church on Martin Luther King Avenue, and the Union Baptist on Spring Street in Morristown and the Morristown Church of Christ in Morris Township.

The African-American Clergy Association of Morris County, whose membership includes several of the pastors at the churches involved, in a message posted on the Union Baptist Church's Facebook page, said that while the incidents were determined not to be hate crimes, "it still has a lasting impact upon those of us who care for the people of Morristown and Morris Township."

None of the pastors at the respective churches have returned calls regarding the incident.

The letter continued, "There is much work to do to restore and repair many of the lives affected by this crime. We hope to understand from this, the factors that cause this kind of action and seek ways to pro-actively address the needs of people before any other crime of this nature takes place in the future."

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ.