MAPLEWOOD MAN ALLEGEDLY MURDERED BY HIS SON

Broadview Avenue home were Wesley Reason was killed

The Broadview Avenue man killed in his home early this morning was the victim of domestic violence when his son allegedly hit him in the head, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

Investigators first revealed news of the killing this morning, identifying the victim as Wesley Reason, 53, and stating he was assaulted in his home at 2:30 a.m. He was pronounced dead at 3:08 a.m. from "blunt force trauma."  

Alexander Taylor Reason

Police this evening revealed they had arrested Alexander Taylor Reason, 19, the victim's son. The men lived together in the house at 63 Broadview Ave.

A prosecutor's office release also stated: 

The younger Reason has been lodged in the Essex county Correctional Facility pending a detention hearing, according to Fennelly.

Maplewood police officers were dispatched to the Reason’s residence at approximately2:30 a.m. today on a report of an assault. The victim, who was suffering from apparent blunt force injuries, was found unresponsive and he was pronounced dead at 3:08 a.m., according to Fennelly. Both the victim and the suspect lived in the residence, along with other family members.

An investigation conducted by detectives from the Prosecutor’s Major Crimes Task Force and Maplewood detectives led to charges being filed against the suspect. The investigation is continuing at this time. The exact cause of death will be determined by an autopsy conducted by at the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office, according to Fennelly. 

This marks the fourth murder in Maplewood this year after a triple homicide on Van Ness Court in January, which resulted in the arrest of three people.