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Kristen Patricia Lembo was 22 and lived in Pompton Lakes. She died early Tuesday in a motorcycle crash in Morris County.

The wreck happened around 2:39 a.m. on Route 23 southbound near Newark Pompton Turnpike in the Pompton Plains section of Pequannock Township.

It was a single-motorcycle crash. Police found Lembo at the scene and pronounced her dead there.

The Morris County Prosecutor’s Office identified her on Wednesday. No other people were involved.

Pequannock Township police responded first. Their Traffic Bureau is working the case with the Morris County Sheriff’s Office.

Route 23 southbound was closed while crews examined the area. The road has reopened.

Authorities have not said what caused the motorcycle to go down. The investigation is still open.

A 2026 biography has put Elliott Smith’s death back in the news. The singer-songwriter died at 34 on October 21, 2003, in Echo Park.

The Los Angeles County coroner could not decide if the injuries were self-inflicted or caused by someone else. The manner of death remains undetermined.

Jamie Fisher’s book Nobody Broke Your Heart is based on more than 140 interviews. She examines Smith’s career and personal life while treating the final hours with care.

Smith’s girlfriend at the time gave an account of an argument and what she found afterward. Investigators noted concerns about parts of that account, but the coroner reached no conclusion of homicide.

Smith made his name with understated, emotional songwriting. “Miss Misery” from Good Will Hunting brought him an Oscar nomination. His records still draw listeners more than twenty years later.

Online discussion often returns to the autopsy findings and the note left at the scene. Those details have not produced a new official determination.

Fisher has said she did not want to pretend certainty where none exists. The central question about how Smith died stays open in the public record.

Elliott Smith died on October 21, 2003, at age 34. The Los Angeles County coroner ruled the manner of death undetermined.

He was found at his home in the Echo Park neighborhood. Early reports raised the possibility of suicide, but the official finding left open whether the injuries were self-inflicted or caused by another person.

A new biography released in 2026 has brought fresh attention to the case. Journalist Jamie Fisher’s book, Nobody Broke Your Heart, draws on interviews with more than 140 people who knew the musician.

Fisher has said she tried to cover the final hours carefully without claiming to know what cannot be known. The book looks at Smith’s life, relationships and music alongside the unanswered questions.

Smith was known for quiet, personal songs. His track “Miss Misery” earned an Oscar nomination for the film Good Will Hunting. Albums like Either/Or, XO and Figure 8 built his reputation.

Toxicology tests showed no alcohol or illicit drugs. A note found at the scene has been discussed online for years, but it does not settle how the injuries occurred.

More than two decades later the official record still lists the manner of death as undetermined. No new evidence has changed that classification.

Shaliah Nikole Battista, 18, faces a murder charge after the death of her girlfriend in Raleigh. The shooting happened Tuesday afternoon.

Maria Catalina Garcia, 20, was found with a gunshot wound in the 1100 block of Garner Road around 3:10 p.m. She was taken to a hospital and later died.

Battista remained at the scene. Officers arrested her there.

Police said the two were in a dating relationship when the incident occurred.

Court records show Battista was denied bond. Her first court appearance was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon in Wake County.

Garcia had been arrested in August on unrelated misdemeanor charges. Those earlier cases have no clear link to the shooting.

Raleigh police say the investigation continues. Full details about the events leading up to the shooting have not been made public.

Maria Catalina Garcia was 20 years old. On Tuesday afternoon she was shot in Raleigh and later died at a hospital.

Police got the call around 3:10 p.m. in the 1100 block of Garner Road. Officers found Garcia with a gunshot wound.

She was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. She did not survive.

Her girlfriend, Shaliah Nikole Battista, 18, stayed at the scene. Police arrested her and charged her with murder.

The two women were in a relationship at the time, according to a preliminary investigation.

Battista was not granted bond. She was set to appear in Wake County court on Wednesday afternoon.

The investigation is still going. Police have not released full details about what led to the shooting.

Graciela Esqueda was 64 and lived in Shelby. She died Tuesday in a nearly head-on crash in Grant Township, Oceana County.

The collision took place about 2:15 p.m. on South Oceana Drive south of West Webster Road. Austin Martinez, 21, of New Era was the other driver.

Martinez was in a 2014 Chevrolet Malibu. Esqueda was in a 2021 Hyundai Tucson. The cars met nearly head-on while traveling opposite ways.

Both drivers were pinned. Firefighters from Grant Township used the Jaws of Life to free them. A medical helicopter and paramedics worked at the scene. Neither survived.

The roadway closed for hours. It opened again at 6:22 p.m. Martinez was a Hart High School graduate.

Investigators say the cause is still under review. Crash reconstruction specialists are on the case.

The Oceana County Sheriff’s Office thanked the agencies that helped and sent condolences to the families and friends of both drivers.

Austin Martinez was 21 and lived in New Era. On Tuesday afternoon he died in a crash on South Oceana Drive in Grant Township.

The wreck happened around 2:15 p.m. south of West Webster Road near Montague. Martinez drove a 2014 Chevrolet Malibu. Graciela Esqueda, 64, of Shelby drove a 2021 Hyundai Tucson.

The two cars were going in opposite directions. They hit nearly head-on. Both drivers were trapped inside.

Grant Township Fire & Rescue used the Jaws of Life to get them out. An AeroMed helicopter landed to help Life EMS crews. Both people died at the scene from their injuries.

Martinez had graduated from Hart High School. The road stayed closed while crews worked. It reopened around 6:22 p.m.

Crash reconstruction specialists are looking into what caused the collision. The Oceana County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation.

Other agencies that helped include Rothbury Police, Michigan State Police and victim services. Deputies offered their condolences to both families.

Months after he got probation, Joey DeSena is back in a Wake County jail with no bond. The 44-year-old Raleigh man, a two-time “Jeopardy!” winner, now faces 10 felony counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

He was arrested Friday, Oct. 23, and booked into the Wake County Detention Center. At his first court appearance Monday, Oct. 26, he was denied bond, according to court records and local reports.

The timing matters. On July 27, 2026, DeSena pleaded guilty to two felony counts of secret peeping from a separate case. The judge gave him 60 months of probation and 100 hours of community service. He was also told to get a mental health assessment from a psychiatrist or psychologist who specializes in psychosexual treatment. Under the plea deal, he did not have to register as a sex offender.

That earlier case began in October 2025 at a rental property in Corolla, North Carolina. Police say he secretly put cameras in a bedroom and a bathroom to record a person without their consent. He was arrested in December 2025.

The new warrants say DeSena had and copied 10 digital files showing the sexual exploitation of children. Investigators estimated the children were between 7 and 15 years old. The warrants list Nov. 19, 2025, as the date of the alleged offenses.

DeSena has not been convicted on these charges. They are allegations. He is due back in court on Nov. 16.

Most people know his name from TV. DeSena won two straight “Jeopardy!” games in November 2024 and earned $44,698. He lost in game three, then came back for the Champions Wildcard tournament and reached the semifinals.

The case is in Raleigh, the seat of Wake County. DeSena is being held at the Wake County Detention Center on Hammond Road.

A two-time “Jeopardy!” winner from Raleigh, North Carolina, is back in jail. Philip Joseph “Joey” DeSena, 44, was arrested on 10 felony counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, court records show.

Police arrested him Friday, Oct. 23, in Wake County. He was booked into the Wake County Detention Center. After his first court appearance Monday, Oct. 26, a judge denied him bond.

The arrest warrants say DeSena had and copied 10 digital files showing the sexual exploitation of children. Investigators estimated the children in the files were between 7 and 15 years old. The warrants list Nov. 19, 2025, as the date of the alleged offenses. These are allegations. DeSena has not been convicted in this case.

This is not his first run-in with the law. In October 2025, at a rental property in Corolla, North Carolina, police say he secretly put cameras in a bedroom and a bathroom to record a person without their consent. He was arrested in December 2025 and charged with two felony counts of secret peeping.

He pleaded guilty to both on July 27, 2026. The sentence was 60 months of probation. He was also ordered to do 100 hours of community service and to get a mental health assessment. Court records recommended a psychiatrist or psychologist who specializes in psychosexual treatment. Under the plea deal, he was not required to register as a sex offender.

The new charges came while he was still on probation for that case. He is due back in court on the new charges Nov. 16.

Many people knew DeSena from TV. He won two games in a row on “Jeopardy!” in November 2024 and took home $44,698. He lost his third game. He later returned for the Champions Wildcard tournament and made it to the semifinals before being knocked out.

The case is being handled in Raleigh, the seat of Wake County. DeSena is being held at the detention center at 3301 Hammond Road.