Trial Against Man Accused of Killing Sarah Stern in NJ Begins

A two-year-old murder case that rocked the Jersey Shore will go to trial Wednesday, starting with opening statements. 

The trial for Liam McAtasney, one of two defendants in the case of Sarah Stern, a 19-year-old New Jersey student who was allegedly robbed, killed and then dumped over a bridge back in 2016, will begin Wednesday, prosecutors said.

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Back in 2017, the second defendant, Preston Taylor, entered a guilty plea to seven counts, including robbery and tampering with physical evidence. He also agreed to testify against co-defendant McAtasney, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office said.

A grand jury has indicted McAtasney on seven counts, including first-degree murder, the prosecutor’s office said. He faces life without parole if convicted. 

Stern’s body has not been found. According to prosecutors, McAtasney strangled the young woman in the course of committing a robbery at her Neptune City home Dec. 2, 2016.

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Taylor allegedly helped McAtasney get Stern’s body out of the house and throw her over the Route 35 Bridge in Belmar.

Stern, an aspiring artist, was a graduate of Neptune High School, where she played softball and was a member of the swim team. She went to Brookdale Community College for a year, where she studied art and TV production.

Prosecutors have said McAtasney was motivated by robbery in part and stole thousands of dollars from Stern. Cash was found in a safe buried at a park in Neptune. Stern’s clothing was found in another safe buried on Sandy Hook.

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At a previous court hearing, prosecutors said Taylor — who took Stern to junior prom — told police McAtasney had planned Stern’s slaying for six months.

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