In the winter of 2017, a dispute between neighbors in Linden, New Jersey, escalated to a fatal conclusion. On the afternoon of Wednesday, December 20th, police responded to a report of a shooting in the 800 block of Cleveland Avenue. There, they found 27-year-old Alphonso Pearson outside his home, suffering from a gunshot wound to his chest. Pearson was rushed to Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth, where he was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival.
The investigation, a collaborative effort involving the Union County Homicide Task Force and local police departments, quickly zeroed in on a suspect. Shansey Abernathy, a 23-year-old who lived next door to Pearson, was identified as the alleged shooter. Authorities filed charges of murder and two related weapons offenses against Abernathy.
The day after the shooting, Abernathy turned himself in to detectives at the Union County Prosecutor's Office without incident.
Sources suggest the violent encounter stemmed from a personal conflict between the two men who were once friends. Witnesses reported hearing a commotion and then a shot, with Pearson's mother stating she saw her son grab his chest and fall backward. In September 2018, Shansey Abernathy pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of first-degree aggravated manslaughter. A judge sentenced him to 24 years in state prison. Under the terms of his sentence, Abernathy is required to serve at least 85 percent of his term before being eligible for parole. Before the sentencing, Pearson's mother and grandmother both addressed the court.
