Photo Credit: newjerseymonitor.com 28 months ago the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office accused former 31st District Assemblyman and 2018 Bayonne Mayoral candidate Jason O’Donnell of accepting a $10,000 bribe from a cooperating witness during his unsuccessful, mayoral run. The state alleged at the time that O’Donnell promised the witness, Matt O’Donnell, that he would be named Bayonne’s tax attorney after Jason won the election. Matt is not related to Jason.
In mid-2021, a Hudson County Superior Court Judge dismissed the indictment against Jason O’Donnell. That dismissal was overturned by the Appellate Court in a 21-page decision released earlier today.
In their ruling, Appellate Judges Clarkson Fisher, Patrick DeAlmeida and Nancy Smith stated “…we cannot take seriously the contention that defendant (Jason O’Donnell) acted under the assumption that he was not accepting a bribe.”
The Appellate case was argued on March 21, 2022. There is no timetable for this reinstated bribery case to be adjudicated.