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One of only 3 Frank Lloyd Wright houses in N.J. sells for $1M (PHOTOS)

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Meanwhile, the owners of a second Frank Lloyd Wright house has just trimmed the price of the Bernardsville home by $75,000

The Stuart Richardson House, one of only three Frank Lloyd Wright homes in New Jersey, has sold for just over the asking price of $995,000

The three-bedroom, two-bath home in Glen Ridge was built in 1951 and is one of Wright's unusual hexagonal Usonian homes, built on a hexagonal shape ensuring few right angles. It is set back from the road and accessed only by a private gated driveway. It sold for $999,999. 

The new owners, who asked not to be named for privacy reasons, lived in New York City and weren't looking for a home in New Jersey when they spotted a story about the listing on Curbed.com.

"We're great admirers of Frank Lloyd Wright's homes and have toured them and stayed in them in the past; we were delighted to discover such a unique one for sale so close to New York City and fell in love with it the moment we saw the photos online," the owner said. "The previous owner took great care of the place and we're excited about continuing that stewardship."

The previous owners purchased it in 1996 for $455,000 and undertook a careful restoration that included replacing the rusted white enamel kitchen cabinets that the Richardsons had initially installed as a cost-saving measure (the new cabinets were built in accordance with Wright's original plans), as well as replacing the roof and restoring the doors, windows and casements. The project won the 2010 Wright Spirit Award from the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy for outstanding stewardship of a private building. 

MORE: This $17M N.J. home is in foreclosure, will go to auction

Meanwhile, another Wright home on the market in New Jersey, the James Christie House in Bernardsville, just underwent a second price reduction since it was listed in June for $2.2 million. The owners trimmed the price from $1.95 million to $1.875 million, according to its Trulia.com listing. 

The three-bedroom, three-bath Christie House built in 1940 is being sold furnished with some pieces original to the home and others reproductions of Wright's furniture. The current owners, who purchased it in 2015 for $1.7 million, made mechanical and electrical upgrades and replaced the roof. 

The Christie House is also one of Wright's Usonian homes, with its characteristic horizontal lines and flat roofs to better blend with the landscape, and built with brick and cypress, with walls of windows.

There is only one other Wright home in New Jersey, the J.A. Sweeton House built in Cherry Hill in 1959. A fourth home, the 1954 Bachman-Wilson House in Millstone, was disassembled and moved to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., where it was rebuilt and opened to the public in 2015. 

Vicki Hyman may be reached at vhyman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @vickihy or like her on Facebook. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook, and check out Remote Possibilities, the TV podcast from Vicki Hyman and co-host Erin Medley on iTunesStitcher or Spreakeror listen below or here.


Ep. 68: 'When We Rise' is worth watching, but are you?


Boys Basketball playoffs: Statement wins, upsets and surprises through a wild Monday

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Which players and teams had big nights during the state tournament?

WATCH: 7 buzzer-beaters from wild boys' and girls' playoff basketball Monday

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Relive a crazy night in both the boys and girls basketball state tournaments.

Man accused of crashing stolen car on Outerbridge after police chase

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The 21-year-old from Newark was driving a stolen car through Perth Amboy, police said

PERTH AMBOY -- A man driving a stolen car was arrested after crashing into another vehicle on the Outerbridge Crossing following a police chase on Monday afternoon, authorities said.

Perth Amboy police were in pursuit of a stolen Ford Edge on Broad Street, but called off the chase around 4:30 p.m. due to traffic and in the interest of public safety, a city spokeswoman said.

The 21-year-old Newark man driving the SUV continued onto the bridge before making a U-turn and slamming into another car, the official said. 

A person in the other vehicle was taken to Raritan Bay Medical Center with injuries described as non life-threatening.

Charges against Christoper J. Murray are still pending as of noon Tuesday, Perth Amboy spokeswoman Noelia Colon said.

The bridge's westbound lanes were closed for about an hour, leading to massive backups.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

 

Rutgers profs go back to school to learn to be better teachers

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Rutgers-Newark has launched a five-year partnership to step up faculty members' teaching skills.

NEWARK -- Teachers in K-12 schools get plenty of training in how to stand in front of a classroom and teach. 

College professors, however, are largely left on their own to figure out the best way to instruct their students. 

Rutgers-Newark has launched a five-year partnership to help faculty members step up their teaching skills, school officials said Tuesday. 

The university is offering free classes to show professors and doctoral students the best ways to connect with students, try out new teaching styles and increase participation in the classroom.

Most popular out-of-state colleges for N.J. kids 

The classes are being offered in a partnership with the Association of College and University Educators, a for-profit company that is working with schools around the nation to promote the idea of training and credentialing college teachers. 

"Research confirms that students' success and instructional practices are directly correlated," said Bonnie Veysey, a Rutgers-Newark criminal justice professor and director of the campus' P3 Collaboratory, a new initiative to help faculty members. 

Some critics have questioned whether it is necessary to invest money in creating a new credential and training program for college instructors who have already been through rigorous master's and doctoral programs to earn their degrees.

But supporters say college drop-out rates prove higher education instructors need to do a better job connecting with students. 

This semester, 32 Rutgers-Newark professors, instructors and doctoral students are taking a 13-week course in effective college teaching. The class combines online and in-person classes with instructional videos from teaching experts. 

Participants can try out new teaching techniques in their classes and discuss them with other instructors in the course each week, school officials said. At the end of the course, the faculty members and doctoral students receive a teaching certificate. 

Christina Zambrano-Varghese, a psychology instructor on the Rutgers-Newark campus, said the course has helped her move away from just lecturing to her students. 

"In the beginning, I was just testing out new techniques each week," Zambrano-Varghese said. "But now that I am putting all of the strategies together, I envision my time with my students differently and set better goals to make sure they are really learning the information, not just hearing me talk about it."

Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KellyHeyboer. Find her at KellyHeyboerReporter on Facebook.

Police seek Roseland bank robber

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FBI, local authorities investigating.

ROSELAND -- Authorities on Tuesday asked for information from the public to find a robber who targeted a TD Bank branch in Roseland.

The thief stole an undisclosed amount of money from the Eisenhower Parkway bank after he passed a note to an employee around 1:30 p.m. Saturday, according to borough police Chief Richard McDonough. No weapons were shown in the robbery.

Police said the man was last seen fleeing on foot. Roseland detectives, the FBI and Essex County Prosecutor's Office were involved in the investigation.

Authorities described the robber as approximately 5-foot-8 and wearing a gray hoodie.

Anyone with information can call Roseland police at 973-226-8700. 

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc and on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

 

Officials ID man found fatally shot after crash in Newark

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Shooting is city's seventh homicide of the year.

NEWARK -- A shooting in Newark's South Ward left a 22-year-old East Orange man dead Monday, officials said.

Nafis Jahad Treadwell was shot around 6:45 p.m. on the 100 block of Hawthorne Avenue, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

Police initially responded to the area for a report of gunfire and found a car that crashed into a wall, according to law enforcement documents obtained by NJ Advance Media. In the car, emergency crews discovered Treadwell was shot.

"The investigation is active and ongoing," a statement from the prosecutor's office said. "No arrests have been made."

Treadwell was pronounced dead at University Hospital, authorities said. He was also found with unspecified narcotics and cash, according to the documents.

A prosecutor's office spokeswoman confirmed Treadwell was found in a car, but did not comment on additional details of the slaying. 

The killing marked the seventh murder in the state's largest city this year, according to city police records.

Anyone with information is asked to call the prosecutor's office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force tips line at 1-877-TIPS-4-EC or 1-877-847-7432.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc and on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

 

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Cops search for car used in violent Newark crime spree

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Attackers shot at a man in one robbery attempt, police say.

Kia.jpgA similar type of Kia wanted in several robberies in Newark (Photo: Dept. of Public Safety) 

NEWARK -- Police on Monday asked for the public's help to find a car used in a string of robberies, including an attack where the assailants shot at a man in Newark.

Investigators identified the wanted car as a white Kia and released a photo depicting the similar model of vehicle used in the incidents. A white BMW, which was reported stolen in Philadelphia, was also used in the robberies, but police recovered that car in Newark's Central Ward.

The first robbery was reported Friday around 2:40 p.m. in the city's South Ward, at Frelinghuysen Avenue and Fenwick Street, according to Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose. Two assailants, one in the BMW and another from the Kia, robbed a 33-year-old man at gunpoint.

Around 4 p.m., the occupants of the same cars robbed a 22-year-old man near North 11th Street and 6th Avenue, and robbed a 37-year-old man near North 10th Street and 3rd Avenue in the North Ward, according to Ambrose. The robbers were described only as wearing masks and black clothing.

Officials ID man found fatally shot after crash

The spree continued until approximately 7:15 p.m., when the two cars were seen driving away from 3rd Street and Central Avenue, where police rushed to reports of gunfire, authorities said.

The Kia was used in a fourth crime shortly before 2 a.m. Monday on Little Street, according to authorities. The car's occupants shot at a 32-year-old man on the block in an attempted robbery.

There were no injuries in any of the incidents, according to police.

In a statement, Ambrose urged anyone with information to call Newark's 24-hour tip line at 1-877-NWK-TIPS (1-877-695-8477) or 1-877-NWK-GUNS (1-877-695-4867). Police said all anonymous calls would be kept confidential and could lead to a reward.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc and on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

New rule 'deconstruction of rent control' in Newark, advocates say

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The Newark City Council Tuesday agreed to make changes to its rent control ordinance, changing how rent hikes are calculated and approved.

NEWARK -- Despite pushback from residents, the Newark City Council on Tuesday approved changing the rules that allow landlords to hike rents in vacant rent-controlled apartments. 

The changes, in part, lower the bar for how much a landlord must invest in rehabilitating a vacant unit to raise rents up to 20 percent.

"This is essentially amounting to piece by piece deconstruction of rent control," said Carl Hill, a member of New Jersey Tenants Association and Newark Tenants United. "We're really disappointed."

Hill and about 20 other residents and tenant advocates expressed their opposition to the changes on Tuesday, concerned that landlords would be encouraged to push people out of their apartments to raise rents. 

"Already it is too expensive to live here," said Victor Monterrosa, an organizer with the HUD Tenants Coalition. "This is about profit, this is about landlords and developers. Leave our rent control ordinance alone." 

The changes amend the city's 2014 ordinance that required a landlord spend $5,000 multiplied by the number of rooms in a vacant unit to rehabilitate the residence in order raise rent by a maximum of 20 percent.

The revised ordinance reduces that threshold and allows landlords who spend eight months worth of a unit's rent to ask for up a 20 percent increase in rent. Rehabilitation work worth six months of rent would allow a 15 percent increase and work worth four months of rent would allow a 10 percent bump.

South Ward Councilman John Sharpe James said the changes strengthened protections for tenants against slumlords and poor maintenance on buildings. He dismissed concerns that renters would be pushed out. 

"If you look at Newark's history, we've been maligned as one of the worst places to live. We can't run a city on what they think might happen, the worst case scenario," he said last week. "This does not touch any current residents."

The amended ordinance defines the type of work a landlord must perform on an empty unit to qualify for a rent increase and eliminates the ability for landlords to receive credit for work and materials they provide themselves. The changes also redirect any appeals from Rent Control Board decision to Superior Court instead of the City Council. 

"Most of you in this room are disappointed at the verdict," Council President Mildred Crump said. "I see it as a new opportunity for us to now to start from square one ... and develop a piece of legislation that will last in perpetuity."

Central Ward Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield Jenkins abstained from the vote and said there was still room to reach a compromise and strengthen tenant protections.

"There is still room to negotiate ... I always said it was too one sided and now it's going to the other side," she said.

But she cautioned that the ordinance was not about gentrification.

"Stop making people think that this is automatically going to shoot their rent up because it's not. This resolution has nothing to do with gentrification. We have enough room (in the city)," she said. 

Still residents worried landlords would be incentivized to kick them out and fall further behind on badly-needed repairs. 

"This is not fair, you are asking for money to fill the pockets of people who do no repairs, who do absolutely nothing," said renter Melody Diouf, who said she's been bitten by mice twice in her rent-controlled apartment. "People are suffering."

The ordinance must be signed by Mayor Ras Baraka before it takes effect.

Monterossa said he's organized a petition on change.org asking the city to reject it.

Karen Yi may be reached at kyi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @karen_yi or on Facebook

 

Driver was on drugs when car hit, killed Verona woman, authorities allege

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Woman and her brother were on the sidewalk when they were both struck by car, according to prosecutors.

Casale.jpgAnthony V. Casale Jr. (Photo: ECPO) 

NEWARK -- A Belleville man was accused of being under the influence of narcotics when the car he was driving struck a woman and killed her as she waited at a bus stop with her brother in Verona, authorities said Tuesday.

Anthony V. Casale Jr., 25, was charged with first-degree death by auto and second-degree assault by auto in the collision that killed Megan E. Villanella, 34, and seriously injured her brother on Friday around 7:45 a.m. at Lakeside and Pease avenues, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

Villanella and her 30-year-old brother were on the sidewalk when the 2006 Mitsubishi hit the siblings, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray and Verona Police Chief Mitchell Stern said in a statement.

The Verona resident died while her brother was initially listed in critical condition at University Hospital in Newark, according to the prosecutor's office. He remained hospitalized in stable condition Tuesday.

Authorities also issued traffic summonses charging Casale with driving while under the influence, driving while under the influence within 1,000 feet of a school, careless driving, reckless driving and failure to maintain his lane.

Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter said Casale was charged with being under the influence of narcotics, but declined to identify the type of drug.

Casale was being held at the Essex County jail ahead of his first court appearance Wednesday in Central Judicial Processing, the prosecutor's office said.

Villanella worked as an assistant vice president at MetLife, a company spokeswoman said Friday.

"Megan was a valued employee and friend and we are devastated by this tragedy," MetLife said in a statement. "Our thoughts are with her family and friends."

It was not immediately clear if Casale had retained an attorney.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc and on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

3 years later, 1st trial in Short Hills mall carjacking murder set to begin

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Basim Henry, 36, of South Orange, is charged with murder and other offenses in the Dec. 15, 2013 slaying of Dustin Friedland during a carjacking at The Mall at Short Hills.

NEWARK --  Jury selection has been completed for the upcoming murder trial of one of four men charged in the killing of a 30-year-old attorney during a 2013 carjacking at an upscale Essex County shopping center, court officials said Tuesday.

Opening arguments are expected to begin March 14 in the trial of Basim Henry, 36, of South Orange, who is charged with murder and other offenses in the fatal shooting of Dustin Friedland, of Hoboken.

Friedland was fatally shot on Dec. 15, 2013 during the carjacking of his Range Rover at The Mall at Short Hills in Millburn.

Henry, who was arrested in Easton, Pa. by a federal fugitive task shortly after the shooting, was later indicted in September 2014 along with Karif Ford, Kevin Roberts and Hanif Thompson.

The four are set for separate trials before Superior Court Judge Michael L. Ravin in Newark.

Henry was on supervised release from a federal bank robbery conviction at the time of Friedland's slaying, and authorities said he repeatedly violated his probation in the months prior to the Short Hills carjacking.

What you need to know about the trial

Authorities have said the suspects' alleged getaway vehicle, a Chevy Suburban registered to Henry's mother's significant other, was caught on surveillance video fleeing the mall's parking decks.

Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Newark police looking for fugitive, possible reward for info

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Melvin Colon, 41, is the suspect being sought

NEWARK-- Police are seeking the public's help locating a city resident wanted on an outstanding warrant.

In a release, the department did not describe the nature of the offense involving Melvin Colon, 41.

Screenshot (128).pngMelvin Colon (Newark police)  

Anyone with information about Colon is being asked to call the department's 24-hour Crime Stopper tip line at 1-877- NWK-TIPS (1-877- 695-8477) or 1-877- NWK-GUNS (1-877- 695-4867).  All Crime Stopper tips are kept confidential and could result in a reward.

Paul Milo may be reached at pmilo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@PaulMilo2. Find NJ.com on Facebook.  

Newark star who died suddenly remembered as a 'beautiful soul'

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Hundreds gathered at a candlelight vigil Tuesday night to remember Shamsuddin Abdul-Hamid, a graduate of Arts High School who died suddenly last week.

NEWARK -- He was the friend who made you laugh so deeply you didn't think it was possible.

He was the brother who loved Kendrick Lamar and the rising actor everyone knew would one day be the next Denzel Washington. 

Family and friends mourned the sudden death of Shamsuddin Abdul-Hamid during a vigil Tuesday night, remembering his days at Arts High School and his career as an infectious performer. 

Abdul-Hamid, 25, known as "Sham," passed away last Friday. 

"Every once in a while you come across a truly exceptional artist and you are completely spellbound by them," said Naja Selby, 26, a former classmate. "They remind you of all of the perks associated with being human, like being able to feel on such a profound level, deep down into the very muscles of your being, the marrow in your bones ... That was the kind of artistry Sham was capable of."

Former classmates, teachers, childhood friends and city officials gathered outside Arts High School holding candles as they shared stories about Sham's days on the high school speech and debate team, his one-time run for class president and the countless plays he starred in. 

"It just hurts so bad that he's not here right now," said Sheleah Harris, 26, who was on the speech and debate team with Abdul-Hamid at Arts High. 

"Sham was definitely a force to be reckoned with," added Tayeesha Ruff, the team's co-coach.

Abdul-Hamid was found dead on Martin Luther King Drive in Jersey City. Authorities have not classified his death as suspicious but few other details were released.

"This is very difficult to comprehend," said Abdul-Hamid's brother, Ameer Natson. He said Abdul-Hamid was one of nine siblings and lived in Newark.

A 2010 graduate of Arts High, Abdul-Hamid went on to attend Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts. He performed in plays at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Shakespeare Globe in London, and several productions at Rutgers.

Last year Abdul-Hamid was featured in a New York Times column for his role in "The Brothers Size" at the Luna Stage in West Orange.

Mayor Ras Baraka said he met Abdul-Hamid when the young actor was a student at Lady Liberty School. Baraka was scheduled to address the eighth-grade graduation and went to see a play Abdul-Hamid had put together.

"I was expecting to see just a regular kind of play that a little kid put together," Baraka said. "This was a real play and he was really acting. I was amazed by that. There was no doubt in my mind that this kid would grow up and be incredibly successful."

Hundreds crowded outside Arts High on Tuesday wiping away tears and embracing each other as friends and family members spoke for more than an hour about Sham. 

"He brought the city out," said Maryum Abdul-Hamid, his sister, as she thanked the large crowd for their support. "Sham was my inspiration for a lot of the things I do today. He was so good."

Some broke into songs -- including the Arts High School anthem -- and at times laughed at the stories shared about Abdul-Hamid.

"He was a light, a pure light," said Lauren Morris, who also went to Arts High. Morris painted a portrait of Abdul-Hamid calling it "Shades of Sham" as a tribute on display during the vigil. 

Friends called him a "beautiful soul" who was "talented, gifted and powerful." 

School Advisory Board member Marques-Aquil Lewis, who was also on the speech team with Abdul-Hamid passed around a basket to collect donations for the funeral.

"This is our star, we want him to have a home celebration," Lewis said. "And we don't want his mother to have no worries." 

A GoFundMe page has also been set up for funeral expenses. As of Tuesday night, more than $13,000 had been raised. 

"He was so full of life," Abdul-Hamid's mother, Jamillah Lawson, told NJ Advance Media. "He was someone that everybody loved."

The funeral arrangements have not been finalized. 

Karen Yi may be reached at kyi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @karen_yi or on Facebook

Proposed 'veterans court' may not reach those who need it most | Di Ionno

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Language excludes vets with charged with more serious crimes

Jamie Smith joined the Army in 2003 when he was 33 years old, leaving behind a family in Bayonne.

"I went in because of 9/11," Smith said. "I didn't go in to get college benefits or job training. I went in for patriotic reasons."

By 2006, he was fighting in Iraq. When he speaks about the deaths he witnessed, he describes the victims as "kids."

"I saw a kid (a soldier) get shot in the face. He died right in front of me," Smith said. "It wasn't even in battle. We were just standing around and somebody's gun went off. They call it 'negligent discharge.' "

Another soldier he knew died in an I.E.D. explosion.

"It was in a convoy. We passed over the spot and the kid was behind us."

Then there was a kid who was really a kid. An Iraqi child "with half his face blown off. That really hit me hard because I had two little girls at home,'' Smith said.

Gregory Bowles was a kid himself when he joined the Marines right after high school during the Vietnam War , following in the footsteps of an uncle who fought in World War II and Korea.

"I'd see him in those dress blues and thought, man, that's it," Bowles said. "Nobody tells you about the other stuff." 

The other stuff for Bowles was dragging body parts and body bags out of the bush outside of Saigon and Da Nang during the American evacuation.

"I'd never seen a dead body before that," Bowles said.

A member of his detail went missing and was found dead, barb-wired to a tree with a punji stake in his chest.

"There was a note. It said 'Americans Go Home,'" Bowles said.

Two servicemen. Two wars. Gregory Bowles is 67 now and has been wrestling with his post-war "demons" for 42 years. Jamie Smith is 47 and has been at it for 10.

But their symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder are hauntingly similar. Unexplained anger. Sleeplessness. A gnawing unease that could only be quieted with drugs -- first prescribed, then otherwise. Next came the arrests. And job loss. And the alienation of loved ones, the homelessness. The spiral down that led to desperation. Crime.

Both have multiple drug offenses. Bowles also has a conviction of robbery by force and Smith was charged with domestic violence. Both have been in jail and housing for homeless veterans.

A bill  being voted on next week by the state Senate will create a "Veteran's Treatment Court Pilot Program." The  bill, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Van Drew (D-1st District) and Sen. Diane Allen (R-7th District) will help troubled veterans who are arrested for minor offenses skirt the regular judicial system and instead get the counseling, healthcare and other assistance they need.

An  Assembly bill, which was passed a month ago and had six bi-partisan sponsors, shares the exact language as the Senate bill.

"We can't have these people who served and sacrificed for us sitting in jail cells," Van Drew said. "Their problems are a cry for help. We want to get them the proper care and counseling and get them on the right track."

The bill establishes a three-year program to divert "nonviolent offenders" who served in wars "away from the criminal justice system and into appropriate treatment" for drugs and alcohol abuse and mental health issues.
Under that language, however, veterans such as Smith and Bowles would not be eligible.

"While I applaud the effort, which is long overdue, the bill leaves too many veterans out," said Thomas Roughneen, the leading attorney at Citizen Soldier Law, a Chatham practice that specializes in helping veterans and military personnel.  

"The awful truth is that many of these people have offenses that are violent or serious, and they are the ones who need help the most," said Roughneen, who is a lieutenant colonel in the New Jersey Army National Guard and an Iraq War veteran.

"Domestic violence is more prevalent than we think among these veterans and it is the start of their downward spiral," he said.

To prove his point, he introduced the cases of Smith and Bowles, neither of whom would have been eligible for the new program, as examples of why the program should be expanded to include veterans who might fall outside the criteria, on a case-by-case basis.

"Their problems all stem from the service," Roughneen said. "The men who went off to serve their country were not the men who came home. Their families want them to get treatment, not thrown in jail."

Roughneen has a letter from Smith's estranged wife, Lisa, to the court after he was charged with drug possession in 2016 which said in part, "It's sad to watch a man you love so much change into someone you can't be around. It's heartbreaking ... all we ever wanted was treatment for Jamie."

He admits making threats but said he never struck or manhandled his wife, a statement supported by his wife's letter.

 Bowles, who grew up in Elizabeth, said he came from a "law and order family. My father was a city cop. We were on the straight and narrow. I never even smoked a joint before the Marines."

But at the end of the Vietnam War, drug use was rampant in the military and that's when Bowles was introduced to heroin. The addiction led him to multiple jail stints on drug charges and a robbery where he encountered a security guard.

"I never hurt anybody in my life," he said. "I bumped the guy on the way out and got charged with using force."

 Van Drew said the legislators "worked very hard" on the bill and the issue of violence was particularly sticky.

"This is a difficult line to walk," he said. "We have to be very careful when it comes to violent offenses. But this is just the first step. Let's see how it works."

 Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph Coronato launched his own veteran's diversion program last year. It includes a mentorship program as well as counseling and other social services.

"We approach the violent offender in a holistic manner," he said. "Certainly the guy's service experience is taken into account. Just because he was in the service doesn't give him a pass. But if he has serious PTSD issues, we have to look at that."

Another problem, Coronato said, are weapons charges. 

"These guys are taught to sleep with their gun, go to the latrine with their gun, do everything with their gun," he said. "Then they come out and we say, 'No guns.' Again, counseling, not jail, might be the way to go."  

Roughneen, who is holding a press conference at 11a.m. today in Room 209 in the Statehouse, said he, Coronato and the state bar association all lobbied for wider inclusion of veterans eligible for the program.

In a letter to bill sponsors Lisa Chapland, head of the bar's government affairs arm, asked that the program not be limited to combat veterans and allow violent offenders to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. The bar also wants veterans to have an appellate appeal if their local prosecutor deems them ineligible.

"Under these bills they're at the mercy of their local prosecutor. We owe it to these guys to give them every chance," Roughneen said.

Mark Di Ionno may be reached at mdiionno@starledger.com. Follow The Star-Ledger on Twitter @StarLedger and find us on Facebook.  


Services announced for retired Elizabeth officer killed in car fire

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James "Jim" Varga died Friday when his car crashed into a transformer near the Newark-Elizabeth border.

ELIZABETH -- Funeral services have been announced for a former Elizabeth police officer who died Friday when his pickup truck crashed into a transformer and caught fire.

The wake for James "Jim" Varga is scheduled for Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Krowicki McCracken Funeral Home on East St. Georges Avenue in Linden. 

Funeral services will begin at Krowicki McCracken on Friday at 9 a.m. and continue at Immaculate Conception Church on Union Avenue in Elizabeth at 10 a.m.

Varga's car was just over the Newark border behind Jefferson Avenue when it struck the transformer. The Essex County Prosecutor's Office is investigating the crash. 

Varga, 67, was a Marine and a Vietnam War veteran who joined Elizabeth's police department as a patrolman in 1982. He was a member of the Fraternal Order of Police and was living in Hillside. 

Varga helped organize the Elizabeth Police Department's annual participation in the Marine Corps Toys for Tots donation program after he retired from the force two years ago.

The family asks that donations be made to Toys for Tots on Amboy Avenue in Metuchen. 

Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati or on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Girls basketball: Statement wins, upsets, surprises through Tuesday's finals

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Highlighting some of the best games from the state tournament

Orange's school board election will happen, but results may not stick

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A judge's ruling will likely not be the final word in an ongoing dispute over the Orange Board of Education.

ORANGE -- There will be a special school board election in Orange next week. Though, whether or not the results of the vote will hold, is still up in the air.

OrangeHighSchool.JPGFile photo. (Jessica Mazzola | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)
 

Administrative Law Judge Michael Antoniewicz last week dismissed the board of education's move to stop the election. The board had filed a petition for emergent relief to reverse a referendum vote last November in which about 77 percent of the population voted to switch the board from one made of members appointed by the mayor, known as a "Type I" school, to one of those elected by the people, known as "Type II."

In his decision, Antoniewicz noted that the case was essentially taken to the wrong court - school board election issues are not under the purview of the Commissioner of Education, and instead need to be resolved in state superior court, he said.

"I am also concerned about the petitioner's failure to act in a timely matter," Antoniewicz said in the decision, noting that the Board of Education did not file any grievances with the referendum until Feb. 8, seven months after the council voted to place it on the ballot, and three months after the vote.

The board has argued the ballot question was worded poorly, and says voters were not properly informed of all of the implications of voting to change from an appointed to an elected board.

"We are in total disagreement with the process," Board President Cristina Mateo said in a phone interview Tuesday, noting that the city council did not tell the board of education that it had voted to put the referendum question on last November's ballot. She said she found out about it on Election Day.

But, she said, "we are not in disagreement with the vote or with the residents."

Board members have said they were prompted to attempt to overturn the referendum vote by a realization after the election that the switch would no longer allow them to bond for capital improvement money the same way they used to. A $2.5 million bond they attempted to pass after the election would need to go up for a referendum vote under the new system.

"That's the saddest part of all of this," Mateo said. "This is money that could help our kids."

But, Robert Tarver, the attorney who represented the city council in the administrative law hearing, said instead of attempting to overturn the election results, the board could have put the bond referendum on the March 14 special election ballot.

"All the board had to do was put the capital improvement referendum on the March 14 ballot, which they had time to do." Tarver said. "They chose not to do that."

Mateo disagreed, saying the board was advised it could not put that type of referendum up for a vote now because all of the members serving on the board are still appointed. The first elected members will join the board after next Tuesday's election, with a few more joining in each November until all of the current board members are replaced with elected ones.

Though Mateo said the board has run out of time to make any changes before the election next week, it plans to continue to question the validity of last November's referendum vote.

"We do want to continue," she said, noting that bringing the matter to superior court is a possibility the board is considering. "We do not believe the residents were properly informed."

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Stephen Edelstein, the attorney representing the board of education in the ongoing dispute, did not return a call for comment Tuesday.

The debate over the make-up of the school board has spurred several controversies in the embattled city, including a back-and-forth over poll hours for next week's election. Citing cost-cutting measures, the board of education has set the voting hours from 1 to 8 p.m.

But, according to Tarver, the city council offered to give the school board an additional $4,000 to open the polls earlier in the morning, which the board decided not to do.

"There's no legitimate reason for cutting the voting time except to suppress the vote," Tarver said. "That's unacceptable"

The Essex County Clerk's Office affirmed Tuesday that the election would go on, but said it is still "confirming the times."

The school controversies have been playing out amidst the backdrop of a federal investigation into government spending and other practices at Orange city hall and in other city-run institutions. The school district has not been targeted in the investigations.

A spokesman for Mayor Dwayne Warren acknowledged but did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the judge's ruling. After the referendum vote in November, Warren said he was looking forward to switching the board to one that was popularly elected. 

Next Tuesday's election will fill two newly-created unexpired positions on the board, one that is an eight-month term, and one that is a one-year-and-eight-month term. The new positions will create nine seats on the board, the minimum for an elected board.

According to the clerk's office, those running for the eight-month term are: Derrick Henry, John Lasell, Courtne J. Thomas, Fred Vandermeer, Jr., Patricia A. Arthur, Francenria Elaine Moore, Mia Garrett, Jeffrey M. Toussaint, and Tisa Singleton. The candidates for the longer unexpired term are: Wanda Sharif-Rodriguez, Tyrone Jon Tarver, Thomas M. Wright, Celeste Newell, Terri A. Jackson, Elroy A. Corbitt, David Wright, Hashim Garrett, Melissa Kollar, Rachel G. Archelus, Anthony P. Johnson, and Maris Yurose Celestin.

Jessica Mazzola may be reached at jmazzola@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessMazzola. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Top turf company faces mounting lawsuits in N.J., across U.S.

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To fend off the challenges, FieldTurf has hired Theodore Wells Jr., an attorney who investigated Patriots quarterback Tom Brady as part of the NFL's Deflategate probe.

The country's leading maker of artificial sports turf faces a growing number of lawsuits from across the country accusing it of misleading and defrauding customers, and the company has hired one of the National Football League's go-to lawyers to defend against the claims.

Six complaints have been filed against Montreal-based FieldTurf in federal courts in New Jersey, Minnesota and California since a December investigation by NJ Advance Media revealed company executives kept selling a high-end brand of turf after knowing it was falling apart.

For years, FieldTurf made millions selling faulty fields to taxpayers

Four of the cases are seeking class-action certification.

Alexander Robertson IV, an attorney representing two California school districts that filed suit in February, said his firm was speaking with several dozen schools across the country and he expected "many, many" more lawsuits to be filed against FieldTurf in the near future.

"I anticipate in the next 30 to 60 days we'll have cases filed all around the country," said Robertson, noting that they will be litigated individually and not as part of a class action. "The facts are stunning in terms of what the company knew versus what it was telling its customers."

The lawsuits accuse FieldTurf officials of failing to disclose to customers that the turf, sold across the U.S. from 2005 to 2012 and known primarily as Duraspine, was cracking, splitting, breaking apart and lying flat long before it should, and before advertisements had promised.

Records obtained by the news organization showed that executives knew of the problems shortly after sales began, and despite candid internal discussions about the deterioration and their overblown sales pitches, they never changed their marketing campaign for the turf.

Most of the fields, which fetched $300,000 to $500,000 or more, were paid with tax dollars. FieldTurf sold 1,428 of those fields in the U.S. to everyone from small towns to NFL teams for an estimated $570 million. The turf was discontinued in 2012, and many fields have since failed.

FieldTurf, a division of publicly traded French flooring maker Tarkett, has been on the defensive, sending letters to customers and releasing a video from its CEO, Eric Daliere, disputing that it engaged in wrongdoing and saying that it has always put its customers first. The company has also hired lobbyists in New Jersey and Washington, D.C., state and federal records show.

"FieldTurf stands behind its products and customers, and we are fully confident that when considered in full, the facts will show that customers were well-served by FieldTurf," company officials said in a statement. "Notably, a number of the cases against us have involved Duraspine fields that have actually surpassed their warranty period, and are still in use."

In a sign FieldTurf's preparing for a fight, it has hired attorney Theodore Wells Jr., who became a household name after the NFL asked him to investigate the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady over deflated footballs, in a probe known as Deflategate.

Wells, who lives in Livingston, has represented Bank of America, Johnson & Johnson and Philip Morris, among other large corporations, in major class-action lawsuits.

"Going forward we will continue to take care of customers while fully defending ourselves against any attempts to take advantage of our company or to misrepresent the facts," the company said in its statement.

In addition to the two districts in California, the Newark public schools and the borough of Carteret have filed proposed class-action fraud lawsuits against the company. They have been joined by two private businesses: a soccer club in Clifton, and a pet resort in Minnesota.

Last month, the Hudson County freeholders approved the hiring of several law firms to "prosecute claims against FieldTurf," but no suit has yet been filed.

Christopher Baxter may be reached at cbaxter@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @cbaxter1. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Boys Basketball playoffs: Statement wins, upsets & surprises through Tuesday's finals

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