Scheme involved more than 15,000 pairs of boots, federal authorities say

NEWARK -- A Staten Island man on Tuesday admitted to his scheme to distribute more than $2.5 million in counterfeit UGG brand boots that were shipped to the Port of Newark, federal officials said.

Shi Wei Zheng, 42, pleaded guilty in Newark federal court to one count of trafficking counterfeit goods, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Between September 2016 and February 2017, Zheng received shipping container numbers from someone in another country that specified at least three containers loaded with the knock-off UGG boots, court documents and authorities said.

Zheng told his workers to remove the containers before they could be checked by customs officers and ordered the goods be distributed to others, who would peddle the merchandise in New Jersey and other areas, according to court papers.

Authorities intercepted the containers and discovered the counterfeit footwear, prosecutors said. Zheng was not authorized to import real or fake UGG merchandise.

Documents in the case show Zheng trafficked more than 15,000 pairs of the phony UGG boots and he was paid more than $50,000 for delivering the containers.

Zheng faces a maximum possible 10-year prison term and a $2 million fine when he is sentenced early next year.

In a statement, Acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey William E. Fitzpatrick credited agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations branch for the probe.

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

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

The former secretary of state and presidential candidate appeared at a book signing in Montclair Tuesday.

MONTCLAIR -- The line waiting for Hillary Clinton nearly shut down Watchung Plaza in Montclair Tuesday. It went from the entrance of Watchung Booksellers, snaking around the corner and continuing down several blocks of North Fullerton Avenue.

Clinton greeted about 1,000 people who paid $30 for a signed copy of her new book, "What Happened," and a brief individual encounter with the first woman to win a major party nomination for president of the United States.

The first fan to meet Clinton was an 89-year-old retired journalist, Betty Hall. From her wheelchair Tuesday, Hall, who traveled from Titusville with her daughter, Jane Lee, told reporters she wanted to meet Clinton because, "she should have won."

Hall staked out her prime spot in line at about noon Tuesday for the event, which began shortly before 6 p.m. With the little time she had, Hall asked Clinton whether she would run again in 2020.

"She said, 'No, but I'm going to be around,'" Hall said afterward.

Hall, who sat in a wheelchair, was the first person Clinton addressed upon entering the bookstore from a rear door near the table where she sat and signed books, including "What Happened"  and "It Takes a Village," her 1996 book about the impact of non-family members on a child's upbringing.

With little ado, Clinton said out loud, "We're going to get started," sat down and began greeting ticket holders and signing books, something Watchung Booksellers' owner had not expected her to do on the spot. She smiled at each one, said it was nice to meet them, and paid compliments to mothers about their children.

"She comes off as such a warm person, as if you're the first person she' greeted that day," said Carole Francesca, 66, of Montclair, a senior partner at a trademark licensing agency.

Clinton served as first lady with her husband President Bill Clinton from 2001-2009, as a U.S. senator from New York from 2001-2009 and as the U.S. secretary of state under President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013. She was the Democratic presidential nominee in 2016.

Tuesday's event was one of nine sold-out book signings in addition to a Hillary Clinton Live speaking tour she is doing to promote the book. Montclair was clearly friendly territory, as one of the most heavily Democratic suburbs in the blue state of New Jersey, where she garnered 55% of the vote statewide to Donald Trump's 41%.

The store's owner, Margot Sage-EL, said the 1,000 tickets sold out within an hour, mostly to women from Montclair and surrounding Essex County communities, many of them customers of the store notified though its electronic mailing list. But there were men also.

Married couple Israel Martinez and Matt Kudish of Montclair left the the book store thrilled at having met one of their political heroes. Martinez, 40, a psychotherapist, said Clinton complimented him on his T-shirt, which had an image of the Statue of Liberty and the words, "She carries a torch for me." 

"It's nice to meet someone who it feels like was fighting for us," Martinez said.

A crowd of about 60 Hillary fans without tickets to the event stood behind police tape across the street from the books store.

"I didn't hear about it in time," said 15-year-old Riley Rendino of Montclair, a freshman at Montclair Kimberly Academy. "I was so disappointed."

The Steinke family was anything but. Laruen Steinke, her son, Jacob, and daughter, Bayla, were among the early birds who got tickets and then met Clinton.

"She was much cooler in person," said Jacob, a seventh grader at Montcliar's Buzz Aldrin School.

Bayla, 14, was nervous, but she said, "It was really fun."

Lauren Steinke said Clinton seemed entirely sincere when she told her, "Lovely children, nice to meet you."

"No parking" signs had been posted by the Montclair Police Monday afternoon on the store's block of Fairfield Street, in the Watchung Plaza commercial district, adjacent to one of the township's five NJ Transit rail stations. The same block and one other street, as well as the station parking lot, were closed Tuesday from 3-10 p.m.

"What Happened," is Clinton's third memoir, this one a reflection on the 2016 election, herself, and why she thinks she lost.

In a review in The New York York Times, book critic Jennifer Senior wrote: "'What Happened' is not one book, but many. It is a candid and blackly funny account of her mood in the direct aftermath of losing to Donald J. Trump. It is a post-mortem, in which she is both coroner and corpse. It is a feminist manifesto. It is a score-settling jubilee."

Not everyone at Tuesday's event was a fan. Outside the store, a man dressed in a striped prison costume and wearing an oversized Hillary mask held a sign reading "Blame yourself," referring to Clinton's criticism of her Democratic primary opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermon, and of former FBI Director James Comey, who notified Congress in late October that he was reopening the investigation into Clinton's use of private email for official business.

The man declined to identify himself, saying his family disagreed with him and he did not want to drag them into his argument. He did say he was a 43-year-old military veteran who lived in Morris County and had voted for Trump.

"She had the arrogance, once she lost, to turn around and blame Comey, blame  Bernie Sanders," he said. "She talks about everybody but herself. But she didn't run an effective campaign. She took everything for granted." 

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

Plea calls for 17 year prison term, according to prosecutors.

NEWARK -- A Newark man pleaded guilty Tuesday to robbery and sexual assault charges as jury deliberations were set to begin following a two-week trial in Essex County Superior Court.

Shawn Rainey (Photo: ECPO) 

Shawn Rainey, 20, admitted to raping an 18-year-old stranger in Irvington Park in October 2012 and to a string of robberies in August 2014, prosecutors said.

A plea agreement calls for Rainey to be sentenced to 17 years in state prison and he must serve 85 percent of the term before being eligible for parole, according to prosecutors. The agreement also says Rainey must register as a sex offender under Megan's Law and face lifetime supervision if he is released from prison.

"The state believes this is a fair resolution to multiple matters that result in keeping a violent offender off the streets for many years.," said Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Sarah Jolly, who tried the case.

Rainey also pleaded guilty to heroin possession and weapons offenses. Prosecutors said he was originally charged in three holdups, including one where a victim was shot.

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

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

NEWARK-- Police are asking the public's help identifying a man who entered a backyard Sept. 14 and swiped a lawnmower. The suspect, described as a black man with black and gray facial hair, took the lawnmower from a home in the 700 block of South 18th Street. Anyone with information is asked to call the 24-hour Crime Stopper tip...

NEWARK-- Police are asking the public's help identifying a man who entered a backyard Sept. 14 and swiped a lawnmower.

The suspect, described as a black man with black and gray facial hair, took the lawnmower from a home in the 700 block of South 18th Street.

Anyone with information is asked to call the 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 anonymous Crime Stopper tips are kept confidential and could result in a reward.

Barringer High in Newark, Woodrow Wilson High in Camden team members knelt last season and coaches say they felt repercussions on the field.

The high school football teams are separated by 86 miles and located on opposite ends of New Jersey, but they share stark similarities: Both schools, Barringer High in Newark and Woodrow Wilson High in Camden, had coaches and players alike protesting social injustice by kneeling during the national anthem last season. And coaches from each say after taking a stand, their games were not officiated fairly and their teams were the subject of numerous questionable calls.

Now, as the 2017 season gets rolling and as the football world is suddenly explosive again after President Donald Trump’s recent attacks on NFL protests, reminders of negative blowback has played a factor in whether at least one of those teams is kneeling again.

Barringer coach Ronly London said the officiating was so egregious last season his team decided to stop protesting after some players and coaches did so before the first four games in 2016.

RELATED: Kneeling for anthem, 1 year later: Wilson coach reflects on intense year

“When this stuff took place, all our kids were like, ‘Coach, how is it that we’re getting all these calls [against us]?’” London said. “And one of my kids was like, ‘It’s because we took a knee and the refs don’t like that.’”

After the fourth game against Parsippany Hills, “We all decided collectively, ‘Guys, let’s not do that. Let’s stop,’” London said. “I hate to tell my kids not to express themselves or deter them from doing whatever they feel, but it came down to that because the kids decided we can’t take a knee.”

Wilson coach Preston Brown said he also believed his team’s protest impacted the way referees called the Tigers' games last season. Wilson was one of the first teams in the nation to gain widespread attention when the entire team and coaching staff — except for two players — knelt before the team’s game against Highland on Sept. 10.

“I was told by my [athletic director] that some refs didn’t want to ref our games,” Brown said. “We got a penalty for too many men on the field when we didn’t have enough. One game they went to explain a call to the other coach and when I asked for an explanation I got a sideline warning. Against Moorestown, we were called offside when we weren’t even rushing in. We got a penalty on an extra point for not enough people on the line that didn’t make any sense.

“In a lot of games there were some interesting calls. Usually you just deal with it, but in close games, that can cost you. And I still saw some questionable calls in one of our scrimmages this year.”

RELATED: Members of Newark football team join national anthem protest

Brown said his team decided to stop kneeling this season, but only because the media attention was overshadowing the positive impact his team is making in the Camden community, including taking part in a mentoring program, local food bank and community support groups.

New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association assistant director Jack DuBois said Tuesday his office never received any complaints about questionable officiating from coaches or officials at Barringer or Wilson last season.

In addition, Carmine Picardo, state coordinator for football officials, and Joe Piro, president of the North Jersey Super Football Conference — of which Barringer is a member school — also said they never received any formal reports of suspected biased officiating from either school.

“I can’t imagine any officiating crew that I have worked with as an assigner in all my years even remotely thinking about some kind of bias against a team in regards to a team expressing their First Amendment rights,” Picardo said. “Obviously, if it was, if it was confirmed, no question about it, that would be dealt with very harshly.”

Piro also said any allegations of skewed officiating would have been vigorously investigated.

“We don’t operate like that,” Piro said. “If it were true, yes, they would not referee another game in the Super Football Conference. I’m pretty confident they wouldn’t referee another game in the state. I’m pretty confident the NJSIAA would probably share our opinion.”

Members from one other New Jersey football team — Penns Grove in Salem County — also knelt for the national anthem last season. Some players remained seated on the bench during the team’s game against Haddon Heights in September, and the following week, against Salem, about half the team kneeled for the anthem.

RELATED: Can N.J. schools punish students for NFL-style 'take a knee' protests?

The team’s coach, John Emel, referred all questions about the protest to the district office when reached by phone Tuesday.

Penns Grove-Carneys Point district superintendent Zenaida Cobian did not return a phone message Tuesday seeking comment about Penns Grove’s decision to kneel last season.

Last fall, players and coaches from Barringer, Wilson and Penn Grove joined many others across the nation who began following the lead of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and kneeling during the national anthem. The silent protests were meant to draw attention to racial inequality and police brutality against people of color in the United States.

No instances of kneeling at the high school level in New Jersey have been reported this season. But the movement gained newfound momentum this past weekend when President Trump blasted NFL protests during a rally in Huntsville, Alabama and said players who kneel should be fired.

Trump’s comments prompted hundreds of players and coaches across the NFL to stage even more protests during games over the weekend, with some teams remaining in the locker room during the national anthem, while other players knelt or stood and interlocked arms with teammates and team personnel.

New Jersey officials said they’re anticipating more protests at the high school level before games this week.

“Everything trickles down, so I’m sure we’ll see some of it this weekend,” Piro said.

The NJSIAA, meanwhile, has no rules regarding the national anthem.

“The NJSIAA does not have any policies or regulations related to the national anthem,” NJSIAA spokesman Mike Cherenson said. “Questions would be best directed to the school.”

There is nothing in New Jersey statute, code or case law that addresses kneeling during the national anthem at football games, and last year there were no reports of suspensions or other punishments after players knelt. If a public school student was punished for kneeling, it is unlikely the punishment would survive a lawsuit, experts say.

On the playing fields, coaches from Barringer and Wilson said there are no renewed plans at the moment to kneel or protest before games. But dialogue amongst the teams continues to take shape as players come forward with questions about President Trump and his latest comments or Tweets of the day.

“He holds the highest office in the country and he says things that are contradictory to what the office upholds,” Brown said. “I just have to control what I can control with my influences and work within the community.” 

NJ Advance Media staff writer Kelly Heyboer contributed to this report.

Matthew Stanmyre may be reached at mstanmyre@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattStanmyre. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Bill Evans may be reached at bevans@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BEvansSports. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The Ainsworth, a bar and lounge with locations in New York City and Hoboken, opened inside the Hotel Indigo Newark Downtown.

NEWARK - A new eatery and bar - with views of the Manhattan skyline - has opened steps from the Prudential Center. 

The Ainsworth, a restaurant bar and lounge with locations in New York City and Hoboken, officially debuted this month inside the 12-story Hotel Indigo Newark Downtown. 

"The Ainsworth will bring an elevated sport viewing venue to Newark," said Brian Mazza, president of Paige Hospitality Group, which opened The Ainsworth. "Our main goal is to be part of the community. Everyone from corporate businesses to event patrons and Devils fans."

The space includes a 3,000-square-foot wrap around roof with views of Newark and the New York City skyline, an event space and a full restaurant and bar. The restaurant is hoping to capitalize on the crowds that fill the city for sporting and concert events at the Prudential Center. 

"Since we are already operating in Hoboken, we saw an amazing opportunity to join in on the amazing things going on in Newark," Mazza wrote in an email. "I feel like every time you look at a real estate article, Newark is mentioned. This area has so much culture, and is exploding in such a positive direction."

New restaurants and bars have opened this year on Broad Street including the popular arcade bar, Barcade, which opened on 494 Broad Street. 

The Ainsworth serves American fare and specialty cocktails. It's located on 810 Broad Street. 

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

Another new collection of teams make the jump into the Top 20.

You won't hear a better male vocal this year, and you might not see a better show

NEWARK -- Sometimes you can look ahead on the concert calendar and foresee a sure highlight. 

Paul McCartney is one of those definitive, "this is gonna be awesome!" knockout acts. So is Beyonce. So is Bruce Springsteen.  

And so is a certain ultra-slick Hawaiian troubadour -- someone much younger, and much shorter. 

Prudential Center was packed full Tuesday night in anticipation of Bruno Mars' 24K Magic World Tour date: 15,000 fans prepped to party with an artist and backing band whose reputation for live performance has been crystallized on the world's grandest stage -- twice. 

More than 115 million people watched Mars and his electrifying Hooligans troupe rock Super Bowl XLVIII in East Rutherford back in 2014, and around the same number saw them steal the show from Coldplay in 2016. You know you're good when you've been asked to play two Super Bowls in three years (no other artist can claim this feat). 

Bruno Mars performs onstage during Bruno Mars: 24K Magic World Tour. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Atlantic Records) 

But it was something else to see Mars jam for a 90-minute block in Newark, to observe the five-foot-five frontman seamlessly weave bundles of swaggy funk, radio pop and crunchy rock n' roll with no real lulls or breaks in the action.

This was sheer interactive entertainment, akin to how James Brown or Michael Jackson's shows willed you to sing, cheer and get the hell up and dance. 

When Mars, 31, wasn't plugged into full choreography, popping and sliding with his band to the rowdy opener "Finesse" or retro smash "Treasure," he played polished R&B balladeer, gracefully wailing and ad-libbing through the new sexy single "Versace On The Floor" or the heartsick hit "When I Was Your Man," which saw Mars embellishing the most demanding melodies with even more challenging, sky-scraping sections. I don't think I've heard a more impressive male vocal this year. 

Though the singer's latest album, November's "24K Magic," is far more devoted to the bombastic party sounds akin to "Uptown Funk," and most of the accompanying tour followed suit. The theme was ... early '90s urban wear? The opener "Finesse" features a New Jack Swing-y, rat-a-tat pulse while Mars and his affable eight-piece group wore uber-vibrant "Fresh Prince" era baseball jerseys, track pants and caps. There was no costume change. 

Bruno Mars performs onstage during Bruno Mars: 24K Magic World Tour. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Atlantic Records) 

The deep stage was kept clean and uncluttered; no props, just a drum kit, keys station and DJ table. An array of light boxes formed different shapes and patterns from above, otherwise it was just a pack of dudes left with plenty of room to move and show off. All night there were laughs and playful jokes; during the new funky jam "Perm" Mars and half the band sat on the side of the stage, stopping the show to poke the crowd for its endless smartphone recording. 

"Put this s*** on Instagram!" he yelled, cueing himself and the seated members for a bumping sit-down dance. 

The sold-out crowd ate it up and were deeply engaged all night, clapping, swaying arms and singing along, from small children up through grandparents. I saw multiple three-generation families sitting in my section. And even though some songs are overtly sexual, Mars' retro-tinged presence and buoyancy is about as close of a "9 to 99" all-ages pop show as you'll find today.  

As a songwriter, music has always been a spiritual thing for me. What amazes me is that it felt this way last night when thousands of complete strangers were moving in the same direction, at the same time to #brunomars rhythm. Music can touch people's soul in the deepest way, great music can connect them together. Thank you to the gifted #Brunomars for sharing your gift with us last night! #gift #spirit #music #inspired #touch #feel #grateful #pridencialcenter

A post shared by Belle (@bellesongwriter) on Sep 27, 2017 at 5:49am PDT

Dua Lipa's pulsing opening set 

The ignition turned early with Dua Lipa, a U.K. pop songstress who's already broken big time overseas. The 22-year-old's latest single, a fiery dance number called "New Rules" is the first solo female track to hit No. 1 in England since Adele, and she's earned more than 1 billion (with a "B") listens on Spotify streaming alone. 

But Lipa hasn't quite found her footing in the U.S. yet and while she performed well with an array of shimmies and twirls and a strong, raspy vocal, the early crowd took a while to warm up. But by the end plenty were dancing. It's clear Lipa is winning us over -- I reviewed her headlining show at Irving Plaza back in March, where she played to 1,000 people. This night it was 15,000. 

Bruno Mars' set list

Sept. 26, 2017 -- Prudential Center, Newark, N.J. 

• "Finesse"
• "24K Magic"
• "Treasure"
• "Perm"
• "Calling All My Lovelies"
• "Chunky"
• "That's What I Like"
• "Straight Up & Down"
• "Versace on the Floor"
• "Marry You"
• Drum solo / "Runaway Baby"
• "When I Was Your Man"
• "Grenade"
• "Just The Way You Are"
• Encore:
• "Locked Out of Heaven"
• "Uptown Funk"

Bobby Olivier may be reached at bolivier@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobbyOlivier and Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.  

Here are 26 must-see games throughout New Jersey in Week 4, according to the high school football staff at NJ.com.

Can you name the No. 1 team that produces D1 talent? The answer might surprise you.

Officers treated at the scene, according to police spokesman.

NEWARK -- An East Orange man threatened to disarm and shoot a Port Authority police officer after she stopped him for evading the PATH train fare at Newark Penn Station, officials said Wednesday.

Elijah F. Myers (Photo: Essex County jail) 

Elijah F. Myers used a handicapped turnstile door to enter the station without paying Monday evening, according to Port Authority police spokesman Joe Pentangelo.

Officers told Myers to leave the train before he made the threats, started shouting and refused to leave, Pentangelo said.

He kicked and flailed his arms as police tried to remove him from the train, the spokesman said. Officers used pepper spray to subdue Myers.

Police found Myers had a pipe that contained suspected cocaine residue, according to officials. He was charged with offenses, including aggravated assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and drug possession.

Officials said emergency medical crews treated the officers at the scene.

Records show Myers remained held at the Essex County Correctional Facility Wednesday. 

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

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

Authorities released photos of the suspected robber.

NEWARK -- Police asked for the public's help to identify the robber who grabbed the purse from a 75-year-old woman, causing her to fall in Newark's North Ward Tuesday.

The woman was walking in the 400 block of North 11th Street around 4:30 p.m. when the assailant snatched her bag, police said.

The woman was treated at Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville and released, according to police.

Authorities described the robber as a Hispanic woman, 5-foot-5, about 150 pounds and last seen wearing a black and white top with pink shorts and flip flops.

Police released photos they said showed the assailant. Anyone with information was urged to call the city 24-hour tipline at 1-877-NWK-TIPS (1-877-695-8477) or 1-877-NWK-GUNS (1-877-695-4867) or submit information online.

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

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

Johnson & Johnson had made Working Mother magazine's list 32 years in a row

An in-depth interview with the former alt-right leader under fire.

Places to wet your whistle.

An exceedingly rare photo of the K&O in Vineland, taken in the early 1960s.Courtesy of the Daily Journal 

The K&O Bar on Sixth Street in Vineland was an "old man bar," one of many drinking establishments in the state to wear that badge of honor.

The expression "old man bar" is a term of endearment, for sure; it is a label that a tavern must earn.

The K&O was the kind of place where a dad, like mine, would take a child for his first bar sandwich. I honestly believe mine was liverwurst, and I most definitely remember the pickle that came with it. I also remember the feeling of being completely welcome.

It was a bar where a "regular" would occupy the same stool each time he entered; it was where the drinks and decor were simple; it was where $20 could go a long way.

MORE: Vintage photos around New Jersey

So, I was brought to the K&O when I was a kid, but I should note that I chose to go there when I became "legal" in 1976. I never knew exactly when it closed; the last time I saw the building, there was a "for rent" sign in the window.

One of my favorite old man bars may be gone, but I say "cheers" to the ones that still dot neighborhoods in New Jersey.

Here's another gallery of vintage bars and taverns in New Jersey. And here is a link to more of them covered in a previous gallery.

Vintage photos of bars and watering holes in N.J.

Greg Hatala may be reached at ghatala@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregHatala. Find Greg Hatala on Facebook.

At least one school district in New Jersey is testing the theory that rescheduling the crowd-drawing events might help curb student drinking and drug use.

MILLBURN -- High school football and Friday nights may not go hand-in-hand for much longer.

At least one school district in New Jersey is testing the theory that rescheduling the crowd-drawing events might help curb student drinking and drug use.

"They are good kids, but they act like teenagers sometimes," said Millburn High School Principal Bill Miron. "We are doing what we can."

Miron said school leaders have been actively discussing ways to deter students from drinking at games since an incident two weeks ago in which a student spectator was taken away in an ambulance and treated for being "under the influence." 

The incident, he said, prompted the school to reinforce past policies that it had let lie, like banning bottled drinks and large bags from games. Security guards are now positioned at each entrance to the stands.

And, he said, the school has also increased the number of Friday night games that were rescheduled to Saturday afternoons, in an attempt to stop drunk and high students from attending games.

The effort, Miron said, is only a small piece of a "multi-pronged effort" to address the issue, noting that parents and the students themselves play important roles in keeping kids substance free. In a CBS report on the moves, local parents agreed, saying they should take responsibility for their kids' "pre gaming," or drinking outside of school before the games.

School leaders, Miron said, did discuss moving every Friday night game, and banning fans from the stadium, but decided not to go to such extremes, yet. They are also avoiding breathalyzing every student who enters the stands before the games.

"We've had some serious talks about it," he said, but noted that school spirit and parent spectatorship are important parts of the game. While saying the problem isn't rampant in Millburn, Miron did say he views the issue as serious, and will continue to consider more drastic measures if they become necessary.

"Will there be a breaking point?" he asked. "We're not there. I hope we don't get to that point."

For now, he said, "maybe we can make a significant dent in this."

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

Course to give participants inside look at police work, firefighting.

NEWARK -- Newark is accepting signups for its Citizen/Clergy Academy, an 8-week course that seeks to give students an inside look at police work and emergency services in the city.

The course, scheduled to begin Oct. 10 at 311 Washington Street, offers lessons on police training, emergency dispatch, police deployment decisions, firefighting, fire safety and how the city prepares for major emergencies.

"The Citizen/Clergy Academy is a great way to help community members understand how different facets of the Department of Public Safety operate," said Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose. "The course will allow concerned citizens to become active partners in our efforts to eliminate crime while inviting them into the world of police officers, firefighters and emergency management personnel."

Newark residents find police work difficult and deadly

The academy's newest courses will focus on violence reduction, community health and wellbeing issues, an announcement said.

Anyone interested in attending can sign up by visiting www.newarkpd.org and clicking the "forms and reports" tab, or contacting the Public Safety Department's Community/Clergy Affairs Unit at 973-877-9552, 973-877-9550 or CommunityAffairs@ci.newark.nj.us.

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

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

While the cameras were fixated on kneeling football players over the weekend, the Newark Anti-Violence Coalition was planning its part in Monday's "National Day of Remembrance" for murder victims. Early that evening, while the national media was still kicking around the Trump vs. NFL political football, about 30 people gathered at the corner of Clinton Avenue and Stratford Place...

While the cameras were fixated on kneeling football players over the weekend, the Newark Anti-Violence Coalition was planning its part in Monday's "National Day of Remembrance" for murder victims.

Early that evening, while the national media was still kicking around the Trump vs. NFL political football, about 30 people gathered at the corner of Clinton Avenue and Stratford Place in Newark to remember several recent murder victims.

MORE: Recent Mark Di Ionno columns

They carried signs that said "Stop the Violence" and "Stop the Killing" and displayed posters of murdered loved ones. They handed out balloons to anyone who wanted to join. Organizers and family members of victims spoke through a portable public address system that echoed down the block all the way to Avon Avenue.

"In discussion about the 'Black Lives Matter' movement, there's a myth that black people don't protest against black-on-black crime,'" said Larry Hamm, founder of the People's Organization for Progress and a participant in Monday night's event. "Well, we do. It just doesn't get the attention."

That's because, let's face it, race-baiting sells. Kneeling football players, ragtag white supremacists, protests over police shootings, the Trump tweets that incite both love and hate for him - all of it feeds our news-as-drama culture.

But peaceful protests by black people about violence in black neighborhoods have no black vs. white flash point, so in our world today, that's not news. Not in a world where the media exploits our differences rather than explores our similarities and stokes resentment, and even violence, on both sides of the ball.

In this case, the president inflated the ball, the NFL and its players lined up on the other side of it, and the media responded with overkill coverage. The public response went from sideline to sideline -- from either outrage against or support for either side, to "who cares?"  

So while hundreds of cameras zeroed on who would or would not "take a knee" for the National Anthem on Monday Night Football, the Newark Anti-Violence Coalition was taking a knee for Annie King, Eric "Uggie" Bowens, Deborah Burton and Gregory Thomas.

The coalition was formed in 2009, after a running gun battle near Weequahic Park left Nakisha Allen dead. She was on her way to get milk for her children and was the third person to die on that July day.

Since then, the coalition has gathered nearly every week at the site of a recent murder, through blizzards, rainstorms and 100-degree heat. They've taken a knee, figuratively, for more than 500 murder victims. You can count the times their rallies have been covered on one hand.

While a debate about the free speech rights of football players went round and round and round, the Newark activists and the families of victims talked about a more fundamental right. The right to live.

Annie King made the best of that right until her murder. She was the embodiment of the American Dream. She and her late husband, Charles, an Army veteran of the Korean War, raised four children in Newark, preaching education and faith the whole way.

One son is a research scientist; another is a helicopter pilot for the Newark police. Her daughter became a psychologist. Her other son is Mustafa El-Amin, a retired Newark teacher and the resident imam at Masjid Ibrahim mosque on Chancellor Avenue.

"Her focus was education - to get as much education as you can," El-Amin said.

 And she lived what she preached. She went from housekeeper to teacher to teacher with a master's degree, which she received from Kean University when she was 65. She bought a house in the Weequahic section that she once cleaned.   

She was a longtime parishioner at the Gethsemane Church of God in Christ in the Weequahic section, and was active in its outreach ministries as well as the community service of her son's mosque.

"She was the epitome of love, righteousness and justice," said LaTonya King-Gray, King's only daughter. "She lived by 'do unto to others.' "

Annie King died on July 31, two weeks after being beaten by a man "she tried to help" by giving him work as a handyman, El-Amin said.

"Whatever he wanted, she probably would have given him if he just asked," El-Amin said. "For her to die like that, at 85 years old, in her own home, being brutalized like that ... I can't even think about it. If people like her aren't safe, no one is. If we've lost that much respect for life, I don't know what to say."

The same could be said for the murder Eric "Uggie" Bowens, 44, a man who danced along the streets of Newark with a boom box.

He was found shot on a Newark street last November.

"This guy was a gentle soul," said Bashir Akinyele, a co-founder of the coalition. "He never hurt anybody. Why would somebody shoot him? What was it, just for sport? It's terrible, man."

Burton, a 63-year-old grandmother from Maplewood, was shot in Newark after dropping her son off at work.

Tamika Darden-Thomas, a professional singer and community activist, was at the rally with a picture of her father, Greg Thomas, who was killed in 1981.

She took the microphone at the event and said, "If black lives don't matter to us, how are they going to matter to anyone else."

The right to protest is the right to be heard. The NFL protestors get the coverage but these street corner activists are crying out, too. Is anybody listening? 

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

A group of clergy has made new allegations against members of the Board of Trustees and attorneys for the college as Essex County College tries to hold on to its accreditation.

Is N.J. on Amazon's wish list? Gov. Chris Christie has 5 billion reasons why it should be.

TRENTON -- Are we giving away the store to get the store?

New Jersey is offering Amazon $5 billion in tax breaks over the next 10 years to build its second headquarters here and provide tens of thousands of jobs.

On Wednesday, lawmakers from both parties pledged to double the tax credit the company could receive for each job it creates in order to improve its bid's odds in the public auction to land the internet giant.

Amazon announced earlier this month plans to build a second headquarters in North America, bringing forth a raft of suitors, many bearing their own subsidies.

New Jersey leaders hope the Garden State's package will set it apart from such cities as Atlanta, Austin, Indianapolis, Baltimore and Charlotte -- all of which meet Amazon's infrastructure and educational demands.

But these incentives are highly controversial.

"Clearly Amazon is getting what they wanted out of this: a bidding war, a race to the bottom among states and municipalities, and a lot of publicity," said Jon Whiten, vice president of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a liberal think tank that wants to rein in the state's robust tax incentive program.

Christie to guv candidates: Help me land Amazon

Touting New Jersey's international airport, ports, highly educated workforce and mass transit, state leaders plan to sweeten the pot with billions in blandishments.

The state's proposal, outlined in a pair of letters from Gov. Chris Christie and leaders from both parties in the state Senate and Assembly, would double the tax credit the retailer could receive each year for each job created from $5,000 to $10,000.

Currently, companies receive up to $5,000 per job plus a $3,000 bonus if they're within certain industries or locales.

Over 10 years, Amazon would be eligible for up to a whopping $5 billion in tax credits.

Earlier this year, Wisconsin lured Taiwan-based Foxconn, which makes screens on iPhones, with $3 billion in incentives if it creates 13,000 jobs and invests $10 billion.

And in the single-biggest state tax subsidy in U.S. history, Washington offered Boeing $8.7 billion to stay put in 2013.

But would it be a good deal for New Jersey? Opinions vary.

Christie said the headquarters would create $9 billion in economic benefits for New Jerseyans.

New Jersey's legislative leaders in both houses said they'll back him up and rewrite New Jersey's tax subsidy law for Amazon.

"Everyone is fighting for this right now," said state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester. "If we can land 50,000 high-wage jobs, of course we're going to support it."

But skeptics say this is a race to the bottom, with states and municipalities bidding each other out of much-needed revenue.

"It creates a competition that may make the winner a loser," said Chris Sims, a professor at Princeton University and winner of the 2011 Nobel Prize in economics. "This kind of competition is something localities should be wary of."

Edmund Phelps, winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in economics and director of the Center on Capitalism and Society at Columbia University, agrees, saying "I think it's a bad idea for taxpayers and the country as a whole to see their precious tax money dissipated in a bargaining tug-of-war to see who gets the company."

"If the states of the union entered into a pact not to engage in these subsidies, Amazon would settle somewhere, and the taxpayers would be ahead," said Phelps.

The fine print has far-reaching implications, warned Greg LaRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First a Washington, D.C.-based group that tracks economic development subsidies.

Amazon stands to gain if the tax credits are bigger than what it would actually have to pay in state corporate taxes.

If this happens, the company can use those tax credits for up to 50 years to reduce future taxes. It can even sell up to $25 million in credits a year to other businesses, with the requirement that the money must be spent for infrastructure improvements at its facility.

"When you let them sell them, it's almost like a negative income tax liability," LeRoy said. "This is an enormously prosperous company. Why would you give them a negative income tax?"

Lawmakers would also remove the geographic restrictions on tax incentives which limit recipients to urban transit hubs, more than five dozen "distressed" communities or such designated "growth zones" as Camden, Trenton, Paterson, Passaic and Atlantic City.

Whiten said New Jersey is selling itself short and should stress the many assets that meet Amazon's wish list.

"We're not suggesting that New Jersey put together a package that has no incentives in it. But I think the disproportionate focus on them is not warranted," he said.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Brent Johnson contributed to this report.

Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

Claude Brodesser-Akner may be reached at cbrodesser@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter: @ClaudeBrodesser. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.