Head of major NJ LGBTQ group resigns after being charged with assaulting foster son

The director of New Jersey’s most prominent LGBTQ rights group resigned after he was accused of pulling a foster child out of bed and slapping him repeatedly across the face.Christian Fuscarino, who has ties to top Dems including Gov.Phil Murphy and Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill, was charged with child endangerment and simple assault for an alleged attack that was caught on camera last month.“Garden State Equality takes allegations against our staff seriously and we oppose violence of any kind.

When we learned about the charge against Mr.Fuscarino, we immediately placed him on leave,” the organization said in a statement.He later resigned from the group — which he has led since 2016 — and claimed in a statement that the incident was a “private family moment.”Fuscarino was allegedly caught on security camera yanking the boy out of bed at a home in Neptune City on Nov.

9, according to court records obtained by NJ.com. The 35-year-old then smacked the child with an open hand across the face “multiple times” and then repeatedly shoved the kid into a wall, the docs alleged.“Fuscarino appears to stop and speak to (the child) before striking (the child) again … upward in the face,” the affidavit alleges.The boy was identified in court documents as a “resource child” under Fuscarino’s care, the Asbury Park Press reported.Fuscarino’s attorney, Mitchell Ansell, described the incident as a “difficult personal family moment.”“Unfortunately, this private moment has now become public,” Ansell told NJ.com in a statement.Another person in the home reported the alleged abuse, according to court docs.After the alleged beating, a caretaker took the child to the Monmouth County Child Advocacy Center, which investigates allegations of child abuse.Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.

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