Undocumented immigrant parents are bracing for the possibility that they may be separated from their children if they are deported.

BOUND BROOK -- She looked down a long table of parents who, like her, had reached a terrifying consensus: one day they may be forcibly separated from their children.

The 37-year-old dabbed a tissue across her lightly-freckled face as she asked questions with no easy answers -- would she be deported to Colombia or Venezuela, where she holds dual citizenship? Would her U.S.-born children join her in a country with food shortages or violence? Should they stay in the U.S.?

"My babies, they can't go back to Venezuela," said the woman NJ Advance Media is  calling "Veronica," in almost a whisper, to a group of other undocumented immigrants gathered on a recent Saturday in Bound Brook to discuss their legal options under the new president. 

The woman said she did not want her real name to be used because she is an unauthorized immigrant.

"I don't know what to do. It's hard," the soft-spoken woman said in Spanish. "Your kids, they are the most precious thing you have in this world."

Undocumented immigrant parents in New Jersey and across the country are desperately seeking solutions and legal protections for their U.S.-born children who might be left behind should they be deported, according to immigration advocates. And increasingly, some are considering the extraordinary step of signing power of attorney documents that would give friends or relatives the ability to make decisions on behalf of their children if they are no longer here.

"That's huge," said Emily Perez, a licensed social worker in Newark. "That is their family system, that is who they know, that is their identity."

Other parents are obtaining U.S. passports or dual nationality for their children so they can reunite with their deported parents and have rights to schooling and health care.

The Trump Administration's push to target of a wider group of undocumented immigrants for removal is threatening to leave behind a tangled mess of custody battles, family separation and legal questions, immigrant advocates say.

"These cases are all complicated," said Joyce Phipps, an attorney and director of Casa de Esperanza, who has been hosting power of attorney workshops. She said the White House's new policies "haven't taken anything into account ... where are these kids going to go?"

Phipps said separating families with different immigration statuses - and sometimes different nationalities -- is raising a slew of knotty questions.

"We're not just talking about Mexico, we're talking about all countries and U.S. citizen children who are going to be split up," she said. 

In 2014, there were 4.7 million U.S.-born children under the age of 18 living with undocumented immigrant parents, according to the latest data from the Pew Research Center. An estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants live in the U.S. with about 500,000 in New Jersey, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

There's no numbers on how many undocumented immigrants have signed power of attorney documents but advocates say they're encouraging all families to have a plan.

"Because some of the enforcement priorities have changed I think that the level of concern among parents, undocumented parents who may have children who are U.S. citizens are at all time high," said Randi Mandelbaum, professor of law at Rutgers Law School and director of the child advocacy clinic. "People are concerned."

Power of attorney

About 16 parents cramped into the second-floor office of Casa de Esperanza on a recent rainy Saturday. They carefully jotted down notes on colorful sheets of paper as Phipps explained what a power of attorney document could do.

"It is temporary custody, it is not adoption," she said. The legal document allows another person to care for their children for up to six months -- make travel arrangements, health care decisions, pick up a child at school -- in case they are separated. 

The Rutgers Child Advocacy Clinic in conjunction with other attorneys drafted a power of attorney document to aid parents facing deportation. 

But it was clear from the two hour workshop, no case was the same. 

One woman from Guatemala said her four-year-old son had his father's last name but the dad had been deported and she could not locate him to hand over full custody of the child.

Another woman from El Salvador asked how parents could afford to fly their kids from the U.S. if they are deported and working lower-paying jobs in another country? 

"On the one hand it is a relatively simple document but on the other hand, nothing when you're talking about children is very simple," Mandelbaum said.

She said attorneys were trying to combat fraud from notaries who could be overcharging to witnesses signatures on power of attorney documents. Attorneys may charge for their services but notaries cannot charge more than $2.50.

Some libraries and nonprofits, like Ironbound Community Corporation (ICC) in Newark, are offering the services for free.

On this recent Saturday, parents gave each other advice, hugs and shared their stories of fear. 

"We're all scared, whenever the doorbell rings, my kids jump," said a woman as she furrowed her brows behind her purple glasses. 

"The reality is there are no simple fixes to this, these are completely rational fears that kids and families are having," said Michael MacKenzie, chancellor scholar for child well-being at Rutgers University.

"How do we talk to kids about things that are really scary, how do parents do that when they are really scared themselves?" he said. "There's not a lot of guidance in how to do that particularly in this topic."

'This has become reality'

Ricardo Arias, 42, a pastor at First Christian Assembly in Plainfield, said two families in his congregation had asked him to care for their children in case they are deported. 

Arias already has four children of his own but said he couldn't say no. 

"This is a very high responsibility for anyone," said Arias, who is also a paralegal at Casa de Esperanza. "You are liable, you are responsible for anything that happens to this kid." 

Perez, a social worker in Newark, says the idea of having to place your children in someone else's care -- even temporarily -- can take a huge emotional toll.

"It's pretty extraordinary due to the fact this has become a reality for a lot of families in a very short time," said Perez, 36, who will soon head the ICC Family Success Center. "It's not just going to cause damage to that child in the moment, it's going to be a ripple effect as they grow."

She said for parents, it can be devastating. "They are going to be worried about their children's welfare, did I leave them with the right person?"

"The accumulation of adversity into early childhood can last a lifetime," MacKenzie said. "These aren't 'the kid is going to be sad for a little while,' these are lasting impacts, and these are American citizens."

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials told NJ Advance Media the agency strives to ensure detention and removal actions "do not unnecessarily disrupt the parental rights of alien parents and legal guardians of minor children."

"For parents who are ordered removed, it is their decision whether or not to relocate their children with them," officials said. "If parents choose to have their U.S. citizen child(ren) accompany them, ICE accommodates, to the extent practicable, the parents' efforts to make provisions for their child(ren)."

Where to go

Veronica said she left Venezuela last year after she couldn't get food to feed her one-year-old daughter. She remembers getting in line at 2 a.m. to wait hours for milk only to be turned away at the door when she showed her daughter's U.S. birth certificate.

"I had no rights to anything, not even diapers. The pediatrician told me to get my daughter out before she dies," Veronica said, adding that she had her daughter in the U.S. because she fell and the doctors recommended she not fly back to give birth. "It's a country that doesn't have the humane conditions for my daughters to be there."

Venezuela is struggling with a deep economic crisis and a worsening food shortage. Reports from the country say its people are fleeing in droves as food and medicine becomes harder to come by. The Pew Research Center said asylum applications by Venezuelans soared by 168 percent in 2016, compared to the year prior. 

Veronica says she's unsure if she is deported whether it would be to Venezuela or Colombia, where she was born. She will likely ask an aunt with legal status to temporarily care for her daughters. 

But she said, "the girls still need their mom."

Staff writer Ted Sherman contributed to this report.

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

Day two of our search for N.J.'s best craft brewery finds the crew at two North Jersey stops.

The first set of male twin elephants was born in 2010 in Thailand.

The things you learn while working the beer circuit.

Twin Elephant's co-founder, Tim Besecker, is an identical twin, so somehow that and elephants came together to produce the Chatham brewery's name.

He and fellow homebrewer Scott McLuskey knew they were on to something when the beer they made for Tim's and Cindy DeRama's wedding was enthusiastically received - at a winery, no less, where the reception was held.

They scouted locations for three years before finding a vacant warehouse in Chatham Borough; McLuskey, now Twin Elephant's owner and head brewer, stumbled upon it while walking his dog one day.

Twin Elephant's tasting room was busy and bustling when we stopped in mid-afternoon; Jen Pruskowski and other bartenders poured Lil Shimmy Ye ale and other brews nonstop, several little kids scampered and down the back walkway, and a half dozen patrons, familiar with our search for N.J.'s best craft brewery, came over to say hi. 

"There's no other form of entertainment in the tasting room except conversation,'' McLuskey said.

Three of the eight beers listed on the board had already "kicked'' or run out, so my advice here is to visit Twin Elephant early in the day. As a result, I tried five brews instead of the usual eight in this round of the competition. My favorites: Little Shimmy Ye, Table Legs saison with blueberries.

DEMENTED BREWING, MIDDLESEX

Tom Zuber had a simple reason for opening a brewery: job burnout.

A software engineer for 15 years, the home brewer decided to take the leap to full-scale brewery. He scouted locations for nine months before finding a vacant janitorial supplies business in Middlesex and opening Demented Brewing.

"It was the first place I saw that really looked like a brewery,'' Zuber explained.

The brewery's brick walls lend an old-world look, while the tasting room's walls are downright devilish; one-eyed monsters, winged beasts and a Jersey Devil or two scamper across a hellish, beer-laden landscape in artist Drake Barry's fantastical mural.

A steady stream of customers stopped in to pick up four-packs of Double Dementia IPA, Demented's first official can release.

"We like to brew for the seasons,'' Zuber said. "There was a stout series - Seven Deadly Stouts - (over the winter). Wheats and cream ales in the spring, IPAs in the summer, an acorn squash abbey ale, sweet potato porter in the fall. . . 

"Keep things fresh, keep things rotating,'' he added.

You can find Demented - on tap, in cans or bottles - in about 500 restaurants, bars and liquor stores around the state.

My favorite brews here: Wrath, a bourbon-barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout; and Sloth milk stout on nitro.

MAGNIFY BREWING CO., FAIRFIELD

Owner Eric Ruta was not at Magnify Brewing when we stopped, but mom was behind the bar.

"He's very driven,'' Sheryl Ruta said of her 25-year-old son. She smiled. "He's a hard person to work with.''

In the next breath, she said it was "awesome'' when Eric told her he wanted to open a brewery. "'It's great to work with your kid,'' she added. 

Magnify's philosophy, Eric Ruta said later, "is to create a community around craft beer in northern Jersey. It's exciting to see that community grow.''

There are can releases, mostly IPAs, every other week. "Hop-forward beers should be consumed fresh, so people are picking up fresh, limited IPAs direct from the source just a day after canning and drinking them the way they should be,'' Ruta said.

New Jersey craft breweries, as opposed to brew pubs, are not allowed to serve food, so you're welcome to bring your own food to the former. At Magnify, several families with kids happily camped at a table feasted on wings, pizza and sandwiches. 

Five brews were available on tap, so naturally I tried them all. My favorites: Cold Side IPA and Low Visibility pale ale. 

Peter Genovese may be reached at pgenovese@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @PeteGenovese or via The Munchmobile @NJ_Munchmobile. Find the Munchmobile on Facebook and Instagram.

NJ.com selects 15 players to its 2016-17 All-State teams.

The man previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter charges in the beating death of his cellmate at the Essex County Correctional Facility.

NEWARK -- To the shock of the victim's childhood guardian, an Essex County jail inmate who previously admitted to killing his cellmate asked a judge at his scheduled sentencing Monday to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea.

Flanked by body armor-clad officers from the state Department of Corrections' Special Operations Group, Rahdi Richardson remained silent as his attorney, Anita Treasurer, told Superior Court Judge James W. Donohue that Richardson had indicated he wished to have a new attorney appointed, and to withdraw his previously entered guilty plea.

The Prosecutor's Office had charged Richardson with murder after his cellmate, Desmond Sanders, 27, of Newark, was found beaten and strangled in their cell at the Essex County Correctional Facility in September 2013.

On the first day of jury selection for his scheduled trial, Richardson pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated manslaughter in Sanders' death, under a deal the Prosecutor's Office said calls for a sentence of 29 years in state prison.

Richardson also pleaded guilty to robbing two people at gunpoint in June 2013, the crime for which he was being held at the time of Sanders' slaying.

Assistant Prosecutor Justin Edwab, who is representing the state along with Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Giordano, told Donohue that while the prosecution objected to Richardson's attempt to withdraw his plea entered on Feb. 15, they were willing to postpone the sentencing pending a hearing on the motion.

Sanders' maternal aunt and adopted mother, Chanell Sanders, told NJ Advance Media after the hearing that she was "horrified" Richardson might be able to withdraw his plea.

"I raised him," she said of the victim, indicating she believed the case was coming to a close when Richardson pleaded guilty.

Donohue ordered the prosecution and the defense to return for a hearing on the plea motion June 12, with briefs from both parties due in May, to allow time for a new attorney to become familiarized with the case.

The judge told Richardson that his new attorney should be prepared to proceed with sentencing that day if the motion is denied.

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

The judge and victims' families are frustrated with how long it is taking the defense to conduct pretrial investigations.

NEWARK - An Essex County Superior Court judge and the families of the two men killed while crossing Route 440 in Bayonne expressed their frustrations with how long it is taking the defense to conduct pretrial investigations.

During a brief hearing Monday morning, attorney Jeffrey Garrigan said he was still working to collect reports from experts he hired to reconstruct the Nov. 2, 2015 crash that killed Tyler Sellers and Sabore Worrell. His client, Waqas Ibrar, is charged with two counts of vehicular homicide.

Experts have collected information from Ibrar's Toyota Camry and the spot of the crash near 32nd Street.

"Ultimately, I think I have everything as of Friday," Garrigan told Judge Ronald Wigler.

A private investigator who is reviewing expert material, Garrigan said, needs about a week to produce a final report. A toxicology expert hired by the defense also plans to review the final investigation before finalizing his report. The defense attorney asked for an additional three weeks before going forward with a plea cutoff.

Wigler questioned why a "drug expert" would need the private investigator's report. Garrigan said there is an indication that "one or both of the (victims) were under the influence." Sellers and Worrell were both pedestrians when they were killed and authorities have alleged Worrell was driving more than 100 miles per hour at the time of the crash.

"This seems to be getting bogged down unnecessarily," Wigler said, as several family members of the victims nodded their heads in agreement. "Like your experts are dragging their feet."

The only deal the state, represented by Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Tom Zuppa, has offered is for Ibrar to plead guilty to the current charges. Ibrar, wearing a black suit and tie, did not speak during the hearing. 

Wigler said he has accommodated all the requests made by the defense, but felt like he was "getting the runaround a little bit." Monday morning's hearing was originally scheduled for February and was the first court date since November.

Sellers' father Jason said after the hearing the continued delays are getting frustrating. He called the defense's toxicology investigations "ridiculous" and said his son was not under the influence when he was killed.

"It's hard," he said. "Really hard."

Ibrar is expected to appear again on May 8 at 1:30 p.m., where a trial date may be set. The case is being heard in Essex County because one of the victims has a family member who works at the Hudson County courthouse. 

Caitlin Mota may be reached at cmota@jjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitlin_mota. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.

A Newark man suffered non-life threatening injuries in the shooting, police said.

Richard D. Dinnocenzio. (Courtesy Newark Police)
 

NEWARK -- Authorities are looking for a man who they say shot another during an argument in Newark over the weekend.

City police say Richard D. Dinnocenzio, 38, of Newark, got into an argument with a 39-year-old man in Newark's North Ward at about noon on March 25.

Dinnocenzio allegedly shot the man during the altercation.

The man, police said, was treated for non-life threatening injuries at University Hospital.

Police have issued a warrant for Dinnocenzio's arrest in connection with the shooting. Anyone with information about Dinnocenzio is asked to call 877-695-8477 877-695-4867.

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

The New Jersey high school baseball season opens April 1 and NJ.com gets you ready to play ball with the start of a week-long series of previews that will introduce to you the best teams and players around the state. Scroll through and take a look back and 2016 and what we have planned as previews continue over the next seven days.

Firefighters from nine other departments joined the training Monday. Watch video

NEWARK -- If a building collapses in the greater Newark area, firefighters will be prepared.

A class of 33 Newark firefighters Monday began the second of two 40-hour structural collapse training classes held in the city. PSE&G lent the department a crane to use during the training session, which officials said taught new firefighters about crane rescues during building collapses.

Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said the training ensured that the firefighters "can work effectively during search and recovery efforts that require a crane to remove rubble or debris involving collapsed buildings and other structures."

Several other nearby departments sent officers to the class, which was run as part of the Urban Area Security Initiative, a Homeland Security grant program. Officers from the Hoboken, Middlesex County, Bayonne, Jersey City, Elizabeth, North Hudson Regional, Millburn, Paterson and Hackensack departments all joined in the training, held at a Newark fire headquarters on Orange Street.

"The partnership between the Newark Fire Division, UASI and PSE&G creates an exceptional training opportunity for the greater region," Newark Fire Chief Rufus Jackson said in a release about the event.

"When agencies come together like this, it allows us to train for proficiency, under realistic conditions so that we can reduce the likelihood of injury to victims and to the brave men and women performing rescues."

The 29-year-old aide is charged with sending the female student pictures of a 'sexual nature' before engaging in 'sexual conduct' with her

NEWARK -- A 29-year-old former teacher's aide at West Side High School in Newark has been charged with sexual assault, following allegations he engaged in "sexual conduct" with a 16-year-old student, authorities said.

Tyrone Pullins, 29, of Newark, was charged with two counts each of sexual assault, a second degree crime, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a third-degree offense, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray's Office announced Monday.

Prosecutors say Pullins sent photographs of "a sexual nature" to the 16-year-old girl and engaged in "sexual conduct" with her.

Prosecutors said Pullins was employed as a teacher's aide at West Side at the time the crimes were alleged to have occurred.

Murray's office said Pullins made an initial appearance in Superior Court on Monday, and is being held at the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark.

Pullins has a detention hearing scheduled for Thursday before Judge Alfonse Cifelli, said Katherine Carter, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office.

Steve Strunsky may be reached at sstrunsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SteveStrunsky. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Christie has no plans to come to the help of the state's sanctuary cities if they lose federal funding.

TRENTON -- Gov. Chris Christie Monday night said there's "no chance" he'll send state money to New Jersey's so-called sanctuary cities if those areas lose federal funding for bucking the President Donald Trump's administration.

"No chance," Christie said on 101.5 FM's "Ask the Governor" after he was pressed by the show's host if he would fill future funding gaps for sanctuary cities.

The term is given to areas that shelter unauthorized immigrants by refusing to help the federal government enforce immigration laws. On Monday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said cities around the country will have to comply with immigration laws to receive federal grants.

Some of New Jersey largest cities -- Newark, Jersey City and Camden -- are sanctuary cities and could lose federal grants under the Trump administration.

Lawmaker wants details on $1.5M settlement

The governor said if local officials want to "engage in voluntary conduct" that they think "is important enough" to leave taxpayers to pick up the tab, then they can "have at it," Christie said, calling out Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Jersey City Mayor Fulop out by name.

Earlier this year, Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill that would protect cities in the state from financial hits if Trump followed through with his campaign promise to defund sanctuary cities.

State Sen. Brian Stack, who represents Union City, sponsored the legislation (S2007) that would require the state dole out grants to any municipality or county that has its federal dollars cut for being a sanctuary for unauthorized immigrants.

But Christie said last month he would veto the bill if it ever hit his desk.

"That will never happen," Christie said in February. "(It's) so outrageous and such political pandering."

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or on Facebook.

It's time to kick off the softball season in New Jersey and we have some players you will want to keep an eye on over the next couple months.

With only a few days remaining, March 2017 could hit a milestone not seen in 33 years.

If you think Mother Nature is a bit out of step these days, you're right. February and March temperatures have been flip-flopped in New Jersey this winter.

Last month was the warmest February on record in the Garden State, with several spurts of spring-like weather. And March has behaved more like a typical February, with lots of chilly days and, in most parts of the state, bigger snow accumulations.

In fact, March could end up being a colder month than February -- an oddity that has occurred in New Jersey only two times in the past 122 years, according to New Jersey State Climatologist David Robinson.

The last time the average statewide temperature in the Garden State was colder in March than February was in March 1984, said Robinson, who teaches at Rutgers University and oversees the New Jersey Weather & Climate Network. It also happened in March 1960.

In 1960, Robinson noted, it was the state's second coldest March on record. This March has not been unbearably frigid, even though many days have had temperatures below average. So, if March does end up being colder than February, it will have more to do with last month's record-breaking warmth than with this month being brutally cold, Robinson said.

In February, the average statewide temperature -- the average of the daily highs and daily lows in each region of the state -- was 40.1 degrees. The normal February temperature in New Jersey is 33.5 degrees, so last month was 6.6 degrees warmer than usual and almost as mild as it usually is in March.

Newark and NYC on track

With a few more days remaining before the calendar closes out the current month, both Newark and New York City are on track to have a colder March than February, said Tom Morrin, observation program leader at the National Weather Service's regional office in Upton, N.Y.

"We certainly are on pace for that," Morrin said on Monday. "It definitely is something in the realm of happening."

In New York City's Central Park, the average temperature so far this month, from March 1 through March 27, has been 38.3 degrees. That's 3.5 degrees below normal and 3.3 degrees colder than the average temperature in February, which was 41.6 degrees.

The last time March was colder than February in Central Park was 1984, the weather service said.

In Newark, the average temperature so far this month has been 39.0 degrees, which is 2.4 degrees below normal and 2.6 degrees colder than the average temperature recorded in February at Newark Liberty International Airport.

Philadelphia is on pace to end the month about 1 degree cooler than it normally is in March, which would be colder than it was in February, according to the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly, which oversees Philly and most of New Jersey. 

More strange weather

Atlantic City also has a shot at ending March with a colder average temperature than the casino city had in February, even though it felt like summer on Saturday. That's when Atlantic City's mercury shot up to 81 degrees, breaking a daily record for March 25.

One interesting note: During a one-hour period Saturday afternoon, the temperature in Atlantic City dropped 11 degrees, because of cool winds blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean, said weather service meteorologist Valerie Meola.

Atlantic City's weather last weekend was typical of the ups and downs that have been common in New Jersey this month.

On Friday, the high in Atlantic City was 58 degrees, which is 4 degrees above normal. Saturday's summer-like high of 81 degrees was 27 degrees above normal. Just one day later, on Monday, the mercury got no higher than 46 degrees, which is 9 degrees below normal for late March.

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality or like him on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Charges stem from alleged heroin dealing in the city's South Ward.

NEWARK -- Seven people face charges after Newark police spotted heroin being sold outside a building in the city's South Ward, officials said Tuesday.

Andre Alston, 36, Anthony Quintana, 51, both of Newark, and Horace Bland, 33, of Asbury Park, were charged with various offenses, including distributing narcotics within 1,000 feet of a school and near a public housing complex, Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said in a statement.

Detectives with the Newark police division's special enforcement bureau made the arrests late Saturday after they witnessed the drug activity outside a residential building on Brunswick Street, according to authorities.

Four others were charged with wandering with the intent to purchase drugs in the area, a disorderly person offense.

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

Soloist Lukas Vondracek and maestra Xian Zhang made for a striking pair

Last month marked the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, which gave the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra a good excuse to play Prokofiev's First Symphony this past weekend -- a piece written as those events that shook the world were happening. 

If the old world was being dismantled around him in 1917, Prokofiev kept the spirit of the past alive with this 13-minute "classical" symphony. 

Music Director Xian Zhang opened the piece with the strings galloping through the Hadyn-esque theme, then she artfully brought in a stately flute melody. Zhang then ended first movement, the"Allegro con brio," with plenty of brio -- the brash musical equivalent of a big dollop of froth on a cup of Viennese coffee. 

In her remarks to the audience at NJPAC Thursday afternoon, Zhang said that Prokofiev's Symphony No. 1 is "one of the hardest symphonies an orchestra can play." Indeed, watching the NJSO players in the final movement (the feverish "Molto vivace") this was clear. Yet despite the difficulty of the frantic string passages, the wickedly fast and fluttering wind arpeggios, the band played beautifully and accurately. The old, 18th-century sounds that Prokofiev wrote a century ago came alive under Zhang's baton.

Next on the program was Dimitri Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 1, and here you could hear the sounds of the revolution. Written 15 years into the Soviet experiment, this 20-minute piece is a riotous blend of old and new; a mash up--and sometimes parody -- of the old world music Prokofiev was evoking, all the while mixing in allusions to the cacophony of the 20th century, atonality and jazz.

This mix was best heard in the second movement. The "Lento" began with soloist Lukas Vondracek playing the beautiful notes of a slow waltz. Then Zhang expertly introduced the horn solo of NJSO principle trumpet player Garth Greenup. Greenup played this solo with quiet authority then handed the spotlight back to Vondracek, whose piano response was expertly calibrated. A call back of sorts to the horn continued this lovely moment, and then Zhang brought back in the whole band.  

The rest of the piece unfolded with the right mix of pomp and madcap fun that befits the work of a 27-year old wunderkind at the height of his Kremlin-approved fame. 

There are recordings of the composer himself playing the concerto (later in life, after his fall from favor) but they feel understated, if not reserved. Vondracek has a big tone and he tended to bang away when needed, while still bringing a refined, porcelain quality to quiet moments. The 30-year old Czech-born soloist (winner of last year's prestigious International Queen Elisabeth Piano Competition in Belgium, as well as a minor award in the 2009 Van Cliburn competition) played with just enough precision, yet always with plenty of passion. 

It's an odd piece, but its contrasts can work. Zhang and Vondracek were themselves contrasts at the curtain call: she petite and modest in her customary black slacks and Nehru jacket; he big and brawny, wearing a tux with no tie and a open collar. (He looked a bit like a Vegas crooner after a second set at 2 a.m.)  Luckily, the two embraced these contrasts and the results were stirring.

I wish I could say the same about the Beethoven's mighty Seventh Symphony that closed the program after intermission. Did it have rhythm? Yes. Sweep? Sure. Did it sound like a faithful interpretation of a masterpiece? Absolutely.  

But while there were times when you heard the work's greatness, and times when you even felt its greatness, too rarely did you experience both at the same time. For Beethoven to be appreciated as the revolutionary he truly was, you need both.

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra

Zhang Conducts Beethovens Seventh

March 23, New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark

James C. Taylor can be reached writejamesctaylor@gmail.com. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook.

A man has been arrested for allegedly stealing more than $700,000 from his plumbing company.

Robert Keith, 46, of West Orange(Courtesy of the South Plainfield Police Department) 

SOUTH PLAINFIELD -- A bookkeeper for a borough company has been arrested and charged with stealing more than $700,000 from the firm.

Robert Keith, 46, of West Orange, was charged with credit card theft, money laundering, forgery, theft by unlawful taking and unlawful use of a credit card, according to a statement from the county prosecutor's office.

While working as a bookkeeper for RupCoe Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning, in South Plainfield, Keith allegedly stole $715,000 from the company "through forged checks and credit card purchases within a two-year period," according to a statement from the South Plainfield Police Department.

Authorities were alerted after officials from the company learned of the missing funds and contacted police.

Keith also served as a minister at a house of worship, though the name and location of the religious institution were not released by authorities. Though Keith was not a licensed certified public accountant, he allegedly had "sought to add legitimacy to his bookkeeping services by describing himself as a religious leader," according to the prosecutor's office.

He was arrested on Saturday, according to officials, who noted that he was also wanted for a probation violation from Essex County.

Keith is being held at the Middlesex County Adult Correctional Facility pending a hearing.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with information can contact the South Plainfield Police Department at 908-755-0700 or the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office at 732-745-4328.

Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Charles Stango, 73, of Henderson, Nevada, was sentenced to 10 years for planning the plotting the killing, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

NEWARK -- A 73-year-old member of the DeCavalcante crime family, which is said to have been the inspiration for "The Sopranos," was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for a murder-for-hire plot.

Charles Stango, of Henderson, Nev., was trying to arrange a hit on a mob rival who he believed insulted a high-ranking family member. But the two assassins he offered $50,000 for the killing were actually undercover FBI agents, authorities said.

Stango is a captain in the Elizabeth-based DeCavalcante crime family, authorities said. State investigators believe the group is currently operating under the Gambino crime family, one of New York's infamous "Five Families," authorities said.

Stango also pleaded guilty Tuesday to violating terms of his supervised release after serving time for racketeering charges in New York. 

Six other people associated with the DeCavalcante family, including Stango's son Anthony, have pleaded guilty to a number of crimes following a roundup in 2015. The undercover investigation began in 2012, according to court documents.

Rajeev Dhir may be reached at rdhir@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @googasmammoo. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Employees at the Avis rental counter wouldn't let the Brooklyn resident use a credit card that didn't match his ID, police said

NEWARK -- A New York City man was found with drugs after trying to use a stolen credit card at a Newark airport car rental counter early Tuesday, authorities said.

David MarkovPort Authority police 

David Markov, 34, of Brooklyn, tried to run off after employees at Avis confronted him when he tried to use a credit card with name that didn't match his identification, Port Authority police said in a news release. 

When police found Markov around 1:30 a.m., he was "breathing heavily and sweating," according to police. 

In addition to three credit cards with different names, Markov had four hypodermic needles, 46 decks of suspected heroin, 25 tablets of suspected Methadone, 20 suspected Xanax pills and a silver spoon with suspected drug residue.

He was charged with credit card theft, fraudulent use of a credit card and drug possession.  

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

Deborah Burton was killed in Newark on March 13.

NEWARK -- Growing up in the state's largest city in the 1950s and 60s, Deborah Burton was a "math whiz," according to her daughter.

Deborah Burton was killed in Newark on March 13, authorities said. (Courtesy Aiyanna Anderson)
 

Burton was one of four children. She graduated from Weequahic High School with honors, and got a scholarship to Union College in Schenectady, N.Y.

She studied electrical engineering before leaving school to start a family, her daughter Aiyanna Burton Anderson said. Burton had four children, and dedicated her life to caring for them, Anderson said.

"She loved her family and cared about her kids more than anything else," Anderson said. 

"The way she died is just so much in contrast to the person she was," Anderson said. "It makes it all more devastating."

According to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office, Burton, 62, was shot and killed at 1:45 p.m. March 13 on 3rd Street.

Family members say Burton was the victim of a carjacking while shopping in the city. A prosecutor's office spokeswoman declined to comment on the circumstances of the killing, citing an ongoing investigation into Burton's death.

No arrests have been made in the case, the spokeswoman said Monday. 

Burton worked for more than 20 years at the Garden State Parkway, first as a toll collector, and later as a supervisor, before retiring in 1999.

She loved to cook large meals for her family, crochet, knit, and watch old movies. Anderson described her mother as a "homebody" who moved with her kids from Newark to Maplewood in the 1980s, and lived there ever since.

"Education was so important to her," Anderson said. "She wanted us to get good educations."

Burton's two sons and other daughter live in New Jersey, while Anderson - a Princeton and New Jersey Medical School graduate who now works as an obstetrician treating patients with high-risk pregnancies, lives in Texas. Burton also leaves behind two grandchildren.

Records show how cops tied alleged killer to 3 slayings

On the morning of her death, Anderson said Burton dropped off her youngest son at work in Newark. When she didn't pick him up, the family got worried and reported her missing, Anderson said.

Crowds of mourners attended Burton's funeral Saturday. Anderson said the "outpouring of love and support" she and her siblings received has been "amazing."

For the funeral, Anderson returned to New Jersey with her husband and son, who is about a month shy of turning a year old. Because of the distance, Burton had only seen her grandson in person twice, but Anderson said she was in the process of a surprise - buying her mother a home in Texas so it would be easier for her to visit her young grandson.

Now, Anderson said she plans to put the house money toward endowing a scholarship in her mother's name for minority students pursuing medical careers. She said her hope is that her mother's spirit will live on through her own children, and through the children her scholarship helps educate.

At Burton's funeral, Anderson gave the eulogy.

"She was always smiling. She had the best laugh, which was really more of a giggle. When she spoke, it sounded like a song. She was optimistic and always saw the best in people. She taught me by her example. She taught me strength, how to love, how to smile, how to see the best in everyone," she said in the address.

"I didn't really ask much advice on how to be a good mother because I had the ultimate example. Because of that, I am blessed."

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

Officials identify slain city man.

NEWARK -- Officials on Tuesday identified the 27-year-old man who died hours after he was shot in Newark's South Ward.

Darnell Moody, of Newark, was shot around 4:40 a.m. Monday in the 900 block of South 19th Street, according to Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter.

Moody was pronounced dead at University Hospital around 12:20 p.m. the same day, the spokeswoman said.

The killing came after a violent weekend in the state's largest city.

Tyrone Frazier, 41, of Newark, was shot to death early Sunday on the 600 block of Irvine Turner Boulevard. Four men were injured in two shootings late Saturday.

Newark has logged 13 murders this year compared to at least 19 killings in the same span last year, according to records.

Authorities did not comment on a motive for the shootings.

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

Man tossed 100 decks of heroin as police moved in, authorities say.

NEWARK -- Essex County Sheriff's detectives arrested five people and seized heroin, crack cocaine along with cash after an undercover operation in Newark's Central Ward, officials said Tuesday.

Narcotics detectives were sent to West McKinney and Nevada streets Monday night in response to complaints about drug dealing in the area, according to Sheriff Armando Fontoura.

Police saw Marquise Rogers, 23, of Rahway, Anthony Lawrence, 30, and Jabrill Lewis, 29, both of Newark, in a parked Jeep Cherokee, Fontoura said. A passerby, Timothy Donoghue, 48 of Newark, walked up and engaged in a suspected drug transaction with Lawrence.

27-year-old man dies hours after Newark shooting

Detectives followed Donoghue from the group before they found him with a glassine envelope stamped with "King Kong," the sheriff said.

Another man with the Jeep, Khalil Simpson, 26 of Newark, tossed 100 decks of heroin as the investigators approached the group, according to Fontoura.

Authorities recovered four decks of heroin from Lawrence, another 144 decks of heroin in a plastic bag that Rogers was carrying along crack cocaine, the sheriff said. Detectives also seized more than $900 from Simpson, Lawrence and Rogers.

The four face various drug offenses, officials said. Lewis was jailed on unspecified active warrants.

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