Driver stopped for motor-vehicle violation

NEWARK -- A member of the public told police that a city man was armed with a high-caliber handgun, leading to the man's arrest early Tuesday, police said.

 

Officers working with the city's violence reduction initiative were patrolling in the 300 block of Elizabeth Avenue when someone called the city's anonymous tip line shortly after midnight, police spokesman Sgt. Ron Glover said. The caller provided a description of the man and his vehicle.

Shortly afterward, police spotted the car and saw someone enter. Police stopped it for a motor-vehicle violation, Glover said.

Officers approached and watched as the driver, Ralph E. Cooper, 31, threw something in the back seat. Officers checked and found a loaded Lorcin .380-caliber automatic, Glover said. Cooper was arrested and charged with weapons offenses and was also issued motor-vehicle summonses.

"Police-community relations, mutual cooperation and respect are pivotal to the success of the department and its officers to keeping our city safe. The anonymous tip line has been a huge part of that collaborative effort. I urge the public, 'if you see something,
say something,' use the tip line," said Newark Police Director Eugene Venable.

"Officers will respond accordingly and investigate every tip, no matter how great or small, to its natural conclusion."

The Newark anti-violence initiative includes personnel from the FBI, State Police, Essex County Sheriff and county prosecutor's office as well as city police from the gang and ceasefire units.  

The department's 24-hour Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line is  877 NWK-TIPS (877 695-8477) or NWK-GUNS (877 695-4867).

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

 

Incident is being investigated by the FAA

NEWARK -- Someone pointed a green laser at an airliner as it made its approach to Newark Liberty International Airport Tuesday night, according to published reports.

The laser was pointed at United Flight 1550 as it was about 14 miles from the airport around 7:30 p.m. The plane landed safely.

The incident is under investigation by the FAA.  

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

 

The food, simply put, is elegant.

On Day 23, among our best choices in Italian cuisine, we offer ...

FASCINO

Ryan DePersio is ambitious -- always with a plan, always with a new venture.

Executive chef Ryan DePersio, in his signature space Cathy Miller 

Yet the chef has maintained a remarkable level of excellence at his flagship fine dining restaurant, despite his endeavors in the more casual dining market.

His most recent opening -- Battello in Jersey City, a lively, cavernous restaurant on the waterfront -- attracts nearly 2,000 people each week and has become a popular wedding venue.

PLUS: More of 30 Best Meals in N.J. 2015

But DePersio refuses to allow the demands of his other responsibilities to distract him from his signature space, his baby, the Montclair restaurant that wins all the awards.

Fascino remains remarkable for its Italian cuisine prepared with lighter French techniques, a natural pairing of DePersio's Italian family dinners and the chef's training with Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

Fascino also is known for its progressive vegetarian tasting menu.

The food, simply put, is elegant.

Rice-crusted fluke, with Tuscan kale, fennel and corn, at Fascino.Cathy Miller 

DePersio credits a loyal and hard-working team, which includes his mother as pastry chef and a general manager who has been an employee since opening day 12 years ago.

Some tweaks?

Fascino now offers nightly specials, which he shunned as a young, cocky chef. ("No need to run specials. The menu is special.")

And more small-plate options, so people needn't equate Fascino as special-occasion only.

• Fascino | 331 Bloomfield Ave., Montclair | (973) 233-0350 | fascinorestaurant.com

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The federal investigation had been launched in 2014 after parents and advocacy organizations filed lawsuits claiming the controversial "One Newark" plan and other reforms disproportionately affected minority students

NEWARK — The city's public school district has reached an agreement that will halt a federal investigation into whether the controversial "One Newark" reorganization plan unfairly harms minority students and their families.

The agreement signed Nov. 9 will require the state-controlled district to take a number of steps to address the alleged discrimination in the suit, including handing over an assessment of the academic performance of students whose schools were either closed, moved or transitioned into charter schools as part of the plan.

Officials will also need to submit data on transportation services provided to those students, the capacity and facilities of the schools where they were transferred, and whether students with disabilities or special needs were provided with appropriate services at their new schools.

Through the reporting, officials will need to identify any students harmed by the reorganization, and take steps to remedy the adverse effects. No monetary penalties were included in the deal.

District spokeswoman Dreena Whitfield said officials had no comment on the agreement.

In a letter to Superintendent of School Christopher Cerf dated Dec. 9, U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights Director Timothy Blanchard said a preliminary investigation into a number of schools closed at the end of 2011-12 academic year found that a "significantly disproportionate" number of black students were affected compared to their white peers.

Former superintendent Cami Anderson, who oversaw the closures, told federal investigators that the closures were not based on race or location, but were chosen because each had deteriorating facilities, low enrollment compared to building capacity and less than a third of students reading at grade level, according to the letter.

MORE: Baraka, Cerf announce $12.5M plan to rescue needy Newark schools

Since 2009, Newark has closed 13 schools — largely in the poor and heavily African-American South and West wards - several of which have since been turned over to charter management organizations.

Many of the displaced students have been transferred to eight so-called "Renew Schools", where the district concentrated efforts to turn around previously failing facilities by hiring high-performing teachers and extending learning hours. According to Blanchard, however, investigators found the efforts had made little impact in the year following their implementation in September 2012.

"OCR's preliminary review of data indicated that the NPS's closing of schools and transitioning of students did not appear to afford the affected students any measurable, improved educational outcomes," his letter reads.

Newark parents and national civil rights advocacy groups filed the trio of complaints that prompted the investigation between 2012 and 2014. Among their allegations was that black students made up 51 percent of the district, but comprised 86 percent of those affected by school closures.

Federal authorities revealed the probe in July 2014, as public ire over "One Newark" and other Anderson-backed reforms reached a fever pitch.

After repeated protests and calls for her resignation by city officials, Anderson left her post in late June. She has since given way to Cerf, a former state education commissioner who appears to have forged a truce with Mayor Ras Baraka and other critics of state control over the district.

Tawanda Sheard, a parent who joined a complaint filed by advocacy group Newark PULSE, said Tuesday that school closures had had a "devastating impact on our children, families, and community", but was relieved to hear the district was addressing her concerns.

"I am excited about the agreement and hope it helps not just my daughter, but students across Newark," she said.

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The Hudson County school will be the first to hold a weighted enrollment lottery.

TRENTON -- New Jersey will allow a Hudson County charter school to hold an enrollment lottery that favors students from low-income families -- the first time the state has granted permission for a charter school to weight its lottery, according to the New Jersey Charter Schools Association. 

After multiple unsuccessful attempts, the Hoboken Dual Language Charter School this month received approval for the weighted lottery, said Barbara Martinez, president of the school's board of trustees. It will announce the full details of its plan at a news conference Wednesday, she said. 

The weighted lottery could combat a major criticism of both the Hoboken Dual Language Charter School and charter schools in general. Critics locally and across the country have accused charter schools of manipulating enrollment to take only the best students.

Hoboken Public Schools, which filed a lawsuit last year to stop the charter school from expanding, complained that the school consistently has a lower percentage of minority students than the district.  

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2015/03/hola_charter_school_expansion_decision.html

The state's decision to allow the weighed lottery opens the door for other charter schools to ask for lotteries that favor students who are considered underserved.

In the approval letter, state Education Commissioner David Hespe wrote that charter schools can seek weighted lotteries that favor economically disadvantaged students in an effort to better represent a cross section of their school age population. 

The New Jersey Charter Schools Association supports the Hoboken Dual Language Charter School's weighted lottery and hopes the school becomes a pioneer for the state, its president, Nicole Cole, said.

The Hoboken Dual Language Charter School has 22 open seats for kindergarten in 2015-16 and received more than 200 applications, Martinez said. Students at the school spend about 90 percent of their day in Spanish-speaking classrooms in the early grades and 50 percent in Spanish-speaking classrooms beginning in fourth grade.

In 2013-14, about 11 percent of the school's students were considered economically disadvantaged, according to state data. More than 90 percent of its students spoke English as their first language at home, and 62 percent were white. 

Adam Clark may be reached at adam_clark@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on twitter at @realAdamClark. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

In response to NJ Advance Media's "Herointown" project, the former governor offers his view on what can be done. "We can arrest our way out of a crisis with the requisite violence, hopelessness, and overdose deaths or to provide clinically based treatment."

By James E. McGreevey

Seven women from distinctly different backgrounds held hands in a small, humble bedroom on MLK Boulevard in Newark two weeks ago as we prayed in memory of a young woman whose life had succumbed to heroin overdose.

After we read the ancient Christian commendation, "You are dust, and to dust you shall return," we blessed her twin bed with Holy Water then slowly walked out.

The repeated recitation of the burial prayers for an overdose victim is my constant reminder of the heroin crisis -- and how much work remains to be done through education, our criminal justice system, addiction recovery supports and workforce reentry programs.

I have sat with parents trying to make sense of the incalculable loss and searing pain of a child's death. There are no words of solace that can be offered. Many are "good families," parents who raised their children well, attended PTA meetings, did all the right things. These are the parents who discover after a child's death that their loved one had friends they did not know and an addiction to heroin, which was acted out in secrecy.

The tragedy of heroin overdose is that it happens to one family at a time. The overdose typically occurs in dire circumstances, ugly places, where the accomplices are drug pushers, petty criminals, and addicts themselves. Sadly, parents are often filled with a sense of shame, guilt, and anger. Many justifiably seek to apprehend the perpetrator, the dealer who sold their child the heroin, which killed them. 

Heroin and crime, the nexus between drug abuse and criminal behavior is arguably among the most well documented phenomenon in America. Heroin addiction impacts a person's sobriety, judgment, and behavior.

Addict inmates have repeatedly told me of spending up to 90 percent of their time trying to secure their next "hit." Running, gunning and doping are a lifestyle to sustain one's addiction.

The U.S. has roughly 2 million incarcerated persons with an additional 5 million subject to parole and/or probation. Upwards of 70 percent of incarcerated persons are clinically addicted to drugs/alcohol, according to Columbia University's 2010 report  "Behind Bars II." Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice has documented that 25 percent of violent offenders in state prisons committed their crime under the influence of a harmful substance.

Grateful for the diligence of Stephen Stirling's coverage of New Jersey's heroin crisis, the investigation shone a bright light into a dark terrible place. Gov. Chris Christie has stated that treatment ought to be the default mechanism for addressing heroin addiction.

Due to Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto's leadership, New Jersey licenses "clinically based" treatment behind bars. As Hudson County Corrections' Center has recognized, the empty time behind bars provides a structured setting to interrupt drug use and initiate treatment best practices.

As New Jersey bolsters treatment availability, nationally, only 15 percent of addicted inmates received professional addictions treatment. As the Columbia University study documents, the cost of treatment is disproportionately offset by a reduction in drug usage, criminal behavior, and an accrued savings.

At the Hudson County Jail, Integrity House counselors offer intensive daily treatment, which is client based. From sunrise until sunset, clients move from a morning prayer and community meetings to didactics focusing upon sexual abuse, anger management, and domestic violence. The clients are largely self governed. 

As a wizened priest shared, "We can't think our ourselves into new behaviors, but we can behave ourselves into new thinking." 

Thus, by creating a community apart from the general incarcerated population, the addict adopts new healthy behaviors. Within the daily ritual of the therapeutic community, the addicts mimic new behaviors, enabling them to act anew.

The addict moves from jail to structured, sober housing. Through Mayor Steve Fulop's foresight, at Martin's Place in Jersey City we offer intensive outpatient treatment for addicts and co-occurring treatment for addicted persons with mental health disabilities. If a person fails to abide by the requirements of the addictions treatment protocol, the client is subjected to judicial monitoring, sanctions, and/or supervision. 

As Hudson County and Jersey City work in partnership, transitional sober housing with outpatient treatment being clinically driven. The client is linked with Medicaid to assess physical and mental health needs, including HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C, diabetes, and depression.

Working with the One Stop career center, clients are then referred to training and employment opportunities. With Columbia University, we are examining how the released person can earn a sufficient income, while participating with increased training for enhanced job opportunities.

Cleaning up the legal wreckage of their past lives, the Young Lawyers Division, NJSBA, represents our clients in court.

And, with the MVC, we can view a client's abstract to identify previous probation or a parole violations. This prevents a client from being rearrested. 

Thus we have a choice: To attempt to arrest our way out of a crisis with the requisite violence, hopelessness, and overdose deaths or to provide clinically based treatment with all the concomitant difficulties.

New Jersey is wisely increasingly choosing clinical treatment. Through the leadership of the governor and State Legislature, an investment toward structured reentry with addiction services is being made in Atlantic, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Ocean and Passaic counties.

God willing, we will expand these services to other deserving counties next year.

James E. McGreevey is the former governor of New Jersey.

Follow NJ.com Opinion on Twitter @NJ_Opinion. Find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook.

 

Bruce and Lynn Schonbraun are giving $5 million towards the expansion of Saint Barnabas Medical Center, and will also have fundraise for it as well.

Saint Barnabas Medical Center has announced a double-barreled gift from Livingston donors Bruce and Lynn Schonbraun: $5 million toward a 241,000- square-foot addition - plus real-world advice on its construction.

Schonbruan is an expert in real-estate merger and acquisition strategy for FTI Consulting, and has served as an instructor at business schools as well as a mentor for the Wharton School's real estate MBA program.

"Overseeing this large and meaningful expansion project fits into my sweet spot," said Schonbraun. "It's something I enjoy and will feel good about."

The hospital plans to build a five-story addition, to be called the Cooperman Family Pavilion, that will have a new operating suite, the availability of new cyberknife technology, along with a parking deck. The pavilion is already under construction and is expected to open in 2017.

An artist rendering shows what the new wing of Saint Barnabas Medical Center will look like. (Barnabas Health)

Schonbraun, already a hospital trustee, will help shepherd the expansion in his role as chair of the hospital's real estate expansion oversight committee.

The Schonbrauns have lived in Livingston, home of the hospital as well, for 40 years. Their children were born there, as were some of their grandchildren.

"All of us at one time or another have received health care at St. Barnabas, so there was that connection," he said. "We understand how important it is to have an excellent hospital for the community."

Those who donate to non-profits - particularly younger donors - are increasingly interested in having some kind of hands-on role, said Linda Czipo, executive director of the Center for Non-Profits in Mercerville.

"Sometimes the donor will just cut the check and say, 'I trust you to put this to good use,'" she said. "But increasingly donors are looking for more fulfillment in others ways to contribute to an organization's success."

As for the Schonbraun gift of expertise in addition to money, Czipo said it has hallmarks of a successful collaboration. "This is a substantial investiment, and since he's got the expertise to make sure the organization gets the results that they want, it's really win-win in this case," she said. "What better way to leverage a gift?

Sometimes donors seek a level of involvement that isn't really helpful or appropriate, which needs to be headed off by discussions that happen very early in fund-raising, Czipo said.

"The first thing you say is, 'Thank you very much,'" said Czipo. "But because different donors have different reasons to donate, you want to make sure you as an organization understand what kind of expectations the donors have."

As long as there is that clear understanding, having donors participate in some kind of hands-on way can only enhance the gift - in part because it continues to keep donors involved with the organization.

"A donor who's more engaged on a personal level is more inclined to give again," she said.

As part of the Schonbrauns' commitment to the construct of the addition, the couple will also lead the fundraising effort for the project, according to Barnabas.

"We are extremely fortunate that Bruce and Lynn Schonbraun are our friends and advocates, " said Barry Ostrowsky, president and CEO of the hospital's parent company, Barnabas Health.

The positions would be eliminated in favor of a single director overseeing a new public safety department

NEWARK - Mayor Ras Baraka has proposed creating a new public safety department that would effectively eliminate the city's longstanding police and fire director positions.

Introduced shortly before a preliminary Municipal Council meeting on Tuesday, the legislation would overhaul both department's upper ranks, placing police, fire and emergency management operations under the auspices of a new public safety director.

Council members are set to take initial votes on two ordinances Wednesday night - one that would create the department and set its structure, and another that would set the new director's salary at between $176,000 and $190,000.

Under the proposed arrangement, the director would appoint an assistant, likely creating a partnership with both police and fire experience. Day-to-day police and fire operations would continue to be overseen by chiefs of the respective departments.

North Ward Councilman Anibal Ramos Jr., who chairs the council's public safety committee, said he believed the proposed changes would create a number of efficiencies by streamlining central office operations in what is three departments that currently maintain their own administration and support staff.

"If you look at the police director and the chief's office, both have deputy chiefs, captains. This kind of consolidates that," he said.

Embattled inspector claims discrimination, political favors at work in Newark Fire Department

City officials, however, said they had been given no indication about a potential pick for the new director position. Mandatory qualifications for the job outlined in the proposed legislation include only "training or experience in public safety and in responsible management of public safety personnel."

"I have no idea. Until its directly told to us by the mayor (we won't know)," said South Ward Councilman John Sharpe James.

Rumors have swirled over possible changes in both the police and fire department's administration over recent days, though Baraka's administration has offered no comment on whether cuts have already come down.

City spokeswoman Marjorie Harris acknowledged a request for comment Wednesday morning but could not immediately provide additional information.

Newark Fraternal Order of Police President James Stewart Jr. said he had yet to review the proposed ordinances, but said he had had no dialogue with officials about them prior to Wednesday.

"It's disappointing that the city does not see the need to discuss an issue that will dramatically alter the administration of the police department with the unions that represent those members prior to trying to implement it," he said.

Chuck West, president of the Newark Firefighters Union, said he was unsure how any shakeups in the city's administration might affect the fire department's rank and file.

"I don't know how it affects us either way. i don't like the elimination of titles, but I'm open to the possibility that the public safety director will work well with us," he said.

Various cities across New Jersey and the country have formed public safety departments in hopes of streamlining operations in recent years, including Jersey City, East Orange, Irvington and Passaic.

"I think it's a trend that's sweeping national, if not just statewide," said James.

NJ Advance Media reporter Vernal Coleman contributed to this report.

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

We've collected hundreds of stories from readers about their experiences with heroin. We want to hear yours.

If one thing is clear in the hours since we published our special report on the New Jersey heroin crisis, it's that it is resonating broadly with state residents.  

We've received scores of touching notes from friends, family members or former users in response to "Herointown," which concluded New Jersey has an active heroin user population of at least 128,000.  

The response hits on one of the key goals of the project -- to help people understand, whatever their connection to the drug may be -- that they are not alone.  

So we want to hear from you.  

If you'd like to share your story with us, please take our short survey below.

Each day, we'll be updating our living wall of stories (we added two dozen more this morning) to include more and more people who have been impacted by the state's growing heroin crisis.  

If you'd like to participate, fill out the survey below. We only ask for a first name, and will only publish what you submit, potentially with light edits for formatting purposes.  

Herointown, N.J.: In their own words

Stephen Stirling | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com 

Click or tap on the icons to show each person's full story, as told to us.  You can filter by the storyteller's county by clicking the buttons at the top.  

They are presented as they were received, and may include typos or strong language. Each provides a window into the life of someone who has gone through, or is going through a battle, in some form, with heroin or opioids in New Jersey 

Trader Joe's is recalling its Triple Ginger Brew after reports came in that unopened glass bottles were exploding on shelves.

Trader Joe's has issued a recall on its Triple Ginger Brew after reports that unopened glass bottles of the soda exploded on shelves.

"Customers who have purchased the Trader Joe's Triple Ginger Brew are encouraged to handle it with care and dispose of it immediately in an outside container," Trader Joe's said in a press release.

No injuries or illnesses have yet been reported, the release said.

Trader Joe's has 11 New Jersey stores in West Windsor, Millburn, Westfield, Florham Park, Clifton, Edgewater, Wayne, Paramus, Westwood, Shrewsbury, and Marlton.

"This precautionary action comes after the company received inquiries from customers that had experienced unopened bottles shattering or bursting," Trader Joe's said. "The potentially affected product was distributed to Trader Joe's stores nationwide."

The product has been removed from store shelves.

Trader Joe's spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki said the company declined to comment further.

Trader Joe's - a specialty American grocery store chain - describes the non-alcoholic drink on its website as packed with "a substantial amount of fresh ginger that's added during the brewing process."

Coming in flavors such as "Gingerbread" and "Triple Ginger Snaps," the website states the soda is packaged in "an old-fashioned, emerald green, 750-milliliter glass bottle."

Lindsay Rittenhouse may be reached at lrittenhouse@njadvancemedia.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

The NBA legend and Brick City native sat down with NJ Advance Media Tuesday after helping to launch a program aimed at helping Newarkers get union jobs and work on construction projects

NEWARK - Like a lot of dreams, Shaquille O'Neal's journey into Newark real estate began with a conversation with his mother.

More than a decade ago, the NBA great was riding his hometown returning from a family function when his mother remarked at the marked changes the city had seen.

"She said, very sadly, 'This city used to be so beautiful, I wish somebody would come back and fix it up,'' he said in an interview Tuesday. "And I knew she was talking about me."

Now four years removed from a legendary career on the hardwood, O'Neal has refashioned himself into a TV personality and launched a series of real estate ventures in Newark, Atlantic City, Orlando and his adopted home of Atlanta, Ga.

MORE: Shaq helps launch program to help Newarkers find construction project work

O'Neal's holdings in Newark started small - he bought a number of small houses, refurbished them and flipped them for market value - but in recent years he has aimed much higher, helping to bring the city its first movie theatre in decades, and backing plans for "One Riverview" - the first downtown high-rise apartment tower in half a century.

"The first thing we started doing was asking the city to tear down these projects, and start giving them some Applebee's, you know, let's start giving them some mixed-use development. Let's give them places where they can feel good about themselves," he said.

The 43-year-old won't call himself a "real estate mogul". He credits much of the work behind his New Jersey work to Boraie Development, the New Brunswick-based developer that does the nitty gritty work like scouting sites, securing permits and overseeing the construction process.

"I wish I could take that title. You know what I realized in sports, if you have the correct teammates around you, you can do anything," he said.

Asked about rising concerns about gentrification and potential displacement of longtime residents amid a boom of development in downtown Newark, both O'Neal and his partners said they intended to keep their ventures accessible to people who already call the city home.

"We're looking at a lot of stuff. Newark has record of building good quality affordable housing," said Boraie Vice President Waseem Boraie. "You need something to turn the tide. (One Riverview) is 100% market rate to prove a point - that Newark can handle market rate."

O'Neal appears to be on the same page. On Tuesday, he helped Mayor Ras Baraka launch a program to assist minority and female Newarkers with obtaining coveted union jobs on local construction projects. During a press conference, he doubled down by promising to buy up part of the top floor of the tower for his own - where he can look down at his birthplace to watch dreams of a new era take shape.

"I didn't do this to make $500 million dollars. I'm doing this because I believe in the city," he said. "I just want my mother to come back here and just smile."

Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Authorities have identified the man shot dead in the 100 block of Columbia Avenue Tuesday as a 44-year-old city man.

(file photo)

NEWARK -- Authorities have identified the man shot dead in the 100 block of Columbia Avenue Tuesday as a 44-year-old city man.

Ulysses Murphy was shot at approximately 6 a.m.,  Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray and Newark Police Director Eugene Venable announced Wednesday.

Prosecutor's office spokeswoman Katherine Carter said the slaying is being investigated by the Newark Police Department and the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force.

Details of the shooting were not immediately made available. Investigators have not yet identified a suspect in the shooting and no arrests have been made, Carter said.

An investigation into Murphy's death is ongoing, Carter said.

The incident marks the 97^th homicide of the year in Newark, according to police statistics. 

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Newark Police chief Anthony Campos will leave the department amid a push by Newark officials to overhaul the administrations of the city's police and fire departments, multiple sources told NJ Advance Media.

NEWARK -- Police chief Anthony Campos will leave the department amid a push by Newark officials to overhaul the administrations of the city's police and fire departments, multiple sources told NJ Advance Media.

It is unclear whether Campos, a 29-year police veteran, has officially applied to the state for retirement from the department, when his final day as police chief will be or what his specific reasons are for leaving. Messages left with Campos were not returned.

Multiple sources with knowledge of Campos' status with the department said that his office has been cleared of personal effects since the weekend. The sources requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.

Campos, 49, began his career in Newark in 1986, working his way through the ranks until former Mayor Cory Booker named him chief in 2006.

In the following years, he clashed with then-Newark police director Garry McCarthy, and was suspended for flouting orders and allegedly patronizing an illegal motorcycle club bar, marking the first time a chief had faced such discipline in more than 20 years.

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2015/12/baraka_proposes_eliminating_newark_police_fire_dir.html#incart_river_home

The move sparked a political and legal battle that included the temporary elimination of the police chief position and Campos' reassignment to the 5th Precinct as a deputy chief.

In 2013, Campos sued Booker, claiming the city's former mayor had pressured him to resign as chief and then reneged on promised pay raises and other incentives he offered in return. That suit was settled for $25,000 earlier this year.

Campos returned to the chief's office in 2014, after mayor-elect Ras Baraka tapped him to direct the department's day-to-day operations.

Campos, who according to state records earns a $177,169 annual salary as police chief, remains a figure in political circles in the East Ward, where he won a district leaders seat in 2012.

The move earned him attention from the police department's internal affairs unit over allegations he had improperly used sick time to further his political pursuits, but allies claim the probe was retribution from power-wielding rivals.

Campos' departure coincides with a recent proposal by Mayor Ras Baraka to merge leadership of the city's public safety and emergency agencies.

Introduced shortly before a preliminary Municipal Council meeting on Tuesday, the legislation would consolidate each department's upper ranks, placing police, fire and emergency management operations under the oversight of a new public safety director.

By establishing a new department, the legislation would also effectively eliminate the city's police and fire director positions. What that means for the future of police director Eugene Venable and fire director James Stewart is currently unclear.

Rumors have swirled over possible changes in both the police and fire department's administration over recent days, but Baraka's office has yet to say what specific personnel moves may be in the offing.

City spokeswoman Marjorie Harris declined comment on Campos' departure, saying that city officials will address recent personnel moves within city's public safety and emergency departments at a Dec. 21 event at City Hall.

Spokesmen for Stewart and Venable did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Staff reporter Dan Ivers contributed to this report.

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Two men were arrested on multiple drug and gun charges after Jersey City police looking for another man found the pair pretending to sleep in his room on Warner Avenue yesterda

JERSEY CITY -- Two men were arrested on multiple drug and gun charges after Jersey City police looking for another man found the pair pretending to sleep inside his Warner Avenue home yesterday. 

The mother of the man being sought by police told authorities that Rashawn McFadden, 26, of Virginia Avenue in Jersey City, and John Worsely, 26, of Orange, did not have permission to be in the residence and may have slipped in through a side door, a prosecutor said when the pair appeared in court today.

Both men found in the home near Rutgers Avenue are charged with weapons offenses related to a handgun found in the room, including possession of a firearm during the commission of a drug offense, the criminal complaints state.

They are charged with possession of 26 bags of suspected marijuana and possession of a bag containing "rocks" of suspected cocaine, intent to distribute both within 500 feet of public property and within 1,000 feet of school property, the complaints say.

Worsely is also charged with possession of two bags of suspected heroin with intent to distribute near a school and near public property. Finally, both men are charged with burglarizing the residence and possession of drug paraphernalia, the complaint states.  

McFadden has six prior arrests, one disorderly persons conviction and a criminal conviction for drug possession near school property, court officials said. His bail was set at $100,000 cash or bond. Worsely's bail will be set in Superior Court where he has two open cases.

Both men appeared in Central Judicial Processing court in Jersey City this afternoon via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny. 

The Newark man is facing life in prison, officials said.

Roberson. (Courtesy Essex County Prosecutor's Office)
 

NEWARK -- A city man is facing life in prison after being convicted Wednesday of killing his friend over a Super Bowl bet, officials announced.

Eddie Roberson, 31, was convicted Wednesday in the February 2013 murder of Talif Crowley, 38, of Bloomfield, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray announced Wednesday.

According to Assistant Prosecutor Adam B. Wells, the two men were friends who had bet $700 on the 2013 Super Bowl between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens. Roberson did not want to pay, believing that the 49ers had been cheated in their 34-31 loss to the Ravens, Wells said in a release.

Two days after the game, prosecutors say Roberson confronted Crowley on Goodwin Avenue in Newark and shot him six times, killing him.

Roberson, who has three prior felony convictions, was found guilty of murder and weapons offenses, officials said. He will be sentenced on Jan. 22, they said.

"This was a particularly senseless murder of a man who was well liked in the neighborhood,'' Wells said in the release.

"This defendant killed a friend rather than pay up on a friendly bet. I'm glad the jury saw it for what it was.''

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

 

A three-panel jury will decide if the ruling was fair.

Jadiel Velesquez, and his grandparents, Neomi Escobar (right) and Jose Betances. (Aristide Economopoulos | The Star-Ledger)
 

NEWARK -- The fate of the largest verdict ever awarded in a civil case against the state hangs on whether or not child protective workers made discretionary decisions when they did not remove an infant who eventually sustained permanent disabilities from his abusive father's care in 2009.

A three-judge appellate panel heard arguments Tuesday in the state's appeal of a 2013 decision that awarded Jadiel Velesquez, now 6, a record-breaking sum after finding that the state's Division of Youth and Family Services failed to protect the boy from his father. A jury originally awarded the boy - who has since been adopted by his maternal grandparents -- $166 million. State Judge James Rothschild reduced the sum to $102 million in 2014, which is still the highest amount awarded against the state.

In the initial decision, the jury pegged three DYFS workers with 100 percent of the responsibility for the boy's injuries, which include brain damage, lifetime confinement to a wheelchair, and permanent blindness.

In his subsequent decision, Rothschild also put 25 percent of the blame on the boy's father.

The jury's decision should be voided, the state's attorney Edward Dauber argued Tuesday, based on a statute that exempts public employees from liability when injuries stem from decisions they make on the job.

"It never should have gone to a jury," Dauber said. "The trial judge erred in not dismissing the case."

But David Mazie, the attorney representing Jadiel's grandmother Neomi Escobar, argued that the state workers were negligent in completing ministerial acts - ones required by the division's handbook. Removing the boy from the home would have been mandated by the agency's standards, and would not have been a "discretionary" decision, Mazie said.

He also argued that the statute exempts only high-level policy decisions, not daily decisions that are in the normal course of a worker's job.

Judge cuts $64M from record-setting jury award for Hillside boy beaten by his father

The discrepancy swirled around a months-long campaign Escobar waged in 2009 to have DYFS (which has since been renamed Child Protection and Permanency) remove the boy from his father's care. After she called the agency in May, the boy was hospitalized with bruises on his cheeks and blood in both eyes, according to the attorneys. Doctors released him with a finding of suspected abuse, they said.

Escobar also reported seeing a crack pipe in the baby's diaper bag, they said.

A DYFS caseworker implemented a plan that prevented the boy's father, Joshua Velesquez, from being alone with the boy. The plan had expired by July 16, 2009, when attorneys said the boy was left alone with his father for about 15 minutes in their Jersey City home, when the beating occurred.

During the trial, Mazie argued the caseworkers made several missteps, such as failing to do a nationwide background check on Joshua, which he said would have revealed 20 prior arrests on violent charges.

Mazie said that there were as many as 16 steps that the caseworkers either did not take, or completed incorrectly, that would have resulted in the child's removal prior to the beating, had they been done.

"They were mandatory things they had to do...DYFS abandoned Jadiel," he said.

But, Dauber said the immunity clause is in place so that state workers are not discouraged from making tough decisions by knowing that they could be held legally responsible for those decisions. Without it, the whole system would be "undermined," he said.

The state's attorney also argued that procedures the judge used throughout the trial were not valid. Though Dauber said the state feels the amount awarded should be lessened, and argued that the boy's parents should share in the blame for the incident, he argued that the judge did not have the authority to make those decisions, and he should have instead called for a new trial.

Dauber also argued that the boy's mother should share in some of the blame for putting him in a situation where he would be alone with his father.

Escobar has also filed an appeal of the reduction, but conversely Mazie argued that the boy's father was a known danger, and therefore the blame should fall entirely with the state for failing to keep the boy from him.

The boy's mother, Mazie said, was "also a victim" of domestic abuse, and should not have been legally expected to protect the boy from his father.

The three-judge panel is expected to make decisions on all aspect of both appeals.

Jadiel now lives with his grandparents in Hillside, and does not have any interaction with either of his birth parents, Mazie said.

Joshua Velesquez, who was sentenced to six years on aggravated assault charges in connection with the beating, has since been released from prison, Mazie said Tuesday.

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

 

It's difficult to think of an out-of-state or international mega-act that hasn't performed in New Jersey.

New Jersey is a great place for music. Frankly, I'd say there's hardly room for debate.

Certainly, the list of chart-topping musicians who hail from the Garden State is a long one. And, I'd venture to say there's nary an out-of-state or international mega-act that hasn't performed here. Bands and solo acts have packed venues ranging from high school auditoriums to football stadiums.

We from the Garden State are steeped in the traditions of Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen. We've been told about girl groups from the '60s like the Angels and the Shirelles and solo acts like Lesley Gore and Connie Francis. And we've reveled in the innovations of performers and producers like George Clinton and Les Paul. Here are a handful of lesser-known facts about pop music in New Jersey:

Mark Stein, founding member of Vanilla Fudge, was a Bayonne native.courtesy of Bayonne Retro 

* The first live performance of "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley and his Comets took place at the HofBrau Hotel in Wildwood in 1954.

* Donald Fagan of Steely Dan was born in Passaic in 1948 and later attended South Brunswick High School.

* Paul Simon was born in Newark, as was Ice T (Tracy Marrow)

* Joe Walsh attended Montclair High School, where he played oboe in the school band.

MORE: Vintage photos around New Jersey

* Country superstar Clint Black was born in Long Branch; Wyclef Jean was born in South Orange.

* Kate Pierson, one of the founding members of the B-52s, was born in Weehawken.

This gallery offers a humble sampling of some of the pop, rock and soul talent to take the stage in the Garden State. Be sure to click on the captions button to read more about these vintage photos.

Can't get enough? Here's a link to last year's gallery.

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

The 26th annual Essex County Sheriff's Holiday Gift Drive was Wednesday.

NEWARK -- Christmas came a bit early this year for needy kids in Essex County.

The annual Essex County Sheriff's Holiday Gift Drive - which saw Sheriff's Office and other county employees collecting toys over the past several weeks - doled out over 5,000 toys Wednesday.

Officers loaded their trucks and toured more than 20 locations, including the Salvation Army and area hospitals, dropping off toys as they went.

"We are trying to fulfill every child's need and every child's dream," Sheriff Armando Fontoura said in a statement about the event.

"Our vehicles are loaded with computer games, iPOD's, educational activities, bicycles, skate boards, roller skates, books, all sorts of sports gear, dolls and board games. You name it we've got it. We will also provide winter coats to those who need them."

This marked the 26th year the department has hosted the toy drop off.

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

December doesn't end for another two weeks, but if this warm trend lingers and we end up with no snow or just a trace of the white stuff, how rare would that be?

We're more than halfway through December and the only snowflakes we're seeing are those fake plastic ones clinging to the windows of storefronts, schools and houses.

No winter storm warnings, no plows on the road, no measurable snow to add to the official record books in New Jersey -- even in the cooler and hillier northwestern corner of the state.

Yes, we still have two weeks to go before the month wraps up, but if this warm trend lingers and we end up with no snow or just a trace of the white stuff, how rare would that be?

Not as rare as you might think.

Since 1895, New Jersey has had 25 Decembers with less than 1 inch of snowfall, said David Robinson, the state climatologist at Rutgers University. Of those 25, seven were completely snowless: 1943, 1953, 1965, 1994, 1990, 2006 and 2011.

Of the seven snowless December years, five (1943, 1954, 1994, 1990 and 2006) were similar to this year, with no measurable snowfall not only in December but also in October and November, Robinson said. Measurable snow is considered one-tenth of an inch, or more. 

"If no measurable snow falls this month, it will be the eighth such December and the sixth time we've gone through the cold season through December without seeing measurable snow anywhere in New Jersey," Robinson said. "The last time this happened was 2006."

Snowless in Newark

In the past 84 years, there have been 15 Decembers in Newark with either no snow at all or just a trace, said Faye Barthold, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Upton, N.Y., which handles forecasts and weather data for northeastern New Jersey.

Two Decembers (2001 and 2011) were completely snowless in Newark, Barthold said. And 13 Decembers had just a trace of snow -- less than one-tenth of an inch. That was the case in 2006, 1999, 1996, 1994, 1978, 1972, 1965, 1954, 1953, 1943, 1937, 1934 and 1931.

PLUS: Early Christmas weather forecast

Will 2015 join the list of snow-free Decembers?

"So far, this year is on track to add to that," Barthold said. 

The most snow Newark ever received in December was 29.1 inches, back in 1947. Newark normally gets 5.4 inches of snow in December, and the statewide average is 4.9 inches. 

Warm streak continues 

Temperatures have been running far above normal this entire month, breaking numerous daily records across New Jersey. And although a wave of cold air will be sweeping in this weekend, bringing temperatures down to where they should be this time of year, above-normal temperatures are expected to return next week and continue through Christmas.

Among the interesting trends emerging this month:

* New Brunswick had six consecutive days with temperatures reaching 60 degrees or higher, breaking the city's previous record of four straight December days with 60-degree highs.

* Newark had six straight days with temperatures of 60 degrees or warmer -- just one day short of the city's record of seven straight December days with 60-degree highs. That happened in 1998, when Newark saw 60-degree readings from Dec. 1 through Dec. 7, as well as the final three days of November. 

* One weather station in New Jersey -- the Atlantic City Marina station -- has not hit the freezing mark once this entire season. The lowest reading at that station was 33 degrees, recorded on Nov. 23 and also on Nov. 24.

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

FLASHBACK TO 2010 

For everyone who forgot what snow looks like, here's a flashback to February 2010, when a monster storm hit New Jersey.

 

Authorities have arrested a 24-year-old Jersey City man on multiple drug-related charges following a Tuesday undercover operation, officials said.

Mark "Sky" Skladany (Essex County Corrections)

BLOOMFIELD -- Authorities have arrested a 24-year-old Jersey City man on multiple drug-related charges following a Tuesday undercover operation on Bloomfield Avenue, Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura announced.

Mark "Sky" Skladany was charged with possession of a controlled substance and other drug-related offenses after plainclothes investigators from the Essex County Sheriff's Office and Bloomfield Police Department found him in possession of multiple quantities of heroin, Fontoura said.

After detaining Skladany, investigators discovered 531 envelopes containing heroin stuffed inside his pockets, Fontoura said. "Lobster King" was stamped across each envelope, he added.

Authorities said Skladany was at the time of his arrest under a supervised release order from the New Jersey State Parole Board.

Skladany was transferred into custody at the Essex County Correctional Facility following his arrest, authorities said.

Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.