Guilty Verdict In State VS Dennis Conover

Toms River, NJ – Defendant Dennis Conover, 34, of Manalapan was found guilty today (5/14) by a jury on one count First Degree Aggravated Sexual Assault, one count Second Degree Sexual Assault, and one count Third Degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child.

Conover’s co-defendant, Mary Ellen Deane, 29, of Lakewood, NJ was tried separately in March of 2014 and was found guilty of 5 counts of First Degree Aggravated Sexual Assault, three counts of Second Degree Sexual Assault, and five counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Dennis Conover, now 34 years old, was arrested on March 2, 2012. The guilty verdict stems from an incident which occurred in Lakewood, NJ in the summer of 2010. The juvenile victim was 12 years of age at the time of the offense. She is currently 16 years old and testified during the trial to multiple acts between herself and both defendants which occurred in both Lakewood and Jackson. Conover in a statement to law enforcement acknowledged only one incident. This statement was played before the jury.

Jury selection in the trial began on May 6, 2014. Trial testimony began on May 8 and was concluded on May 13. The jury began deliberations at 3:15 pm on May 13 and returned a verdict at about 9:45 am today (5/14). Conover and Deane are incarcerated in the Ocean County Jail. Their sentencing is pending an Avenel Sex Offenders evaluation.

Ocean County Prosecutor Detectives Anthony Paciulli, John Caroll, and John Murphy handled the case investigation. Victim Witness Advocate Debra Giordano assisted the victim throughout the process. The case was successfully prosecuted by Senior Assistant Prosecutor Terry Ann Linardakis. The presiding trial judge was the Honorable James M. Blaney, J.S.C.

Dennis Conover