Here's how the classic show, revived for a short stay on TV, handled the Jersey Devil and more

As fans of "The X-Files" prepare for a six-episode revival of the iconic series, which premieres on Fox on Jan. 24, they've gone back to the original episodes for some celebratory re-watching -- some even adhering to a one-a-day viewing of the entire series. 

While for much of the series' nine seasons, FBI special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully made their home in a Washington, D.C., basement, their cases took them all over the United States. New Jersey was no exception -- the state provided the dark, subterranean home for one of the most heinous monsters to inhabit the supernatural "X-Files" universe.

In these, the Jersey files, you'll find commentary on Atlantic City's casino economy, New Jersey legend, and, of course, a host of things that go bump in the night. 

The X-Files' fifth episode began in Atlantic County. (Fox)
 

'Jersey Devil'

An infamous creature of Garden State tradition occupied the minds of the "X-Files" writing team early on in the show's run.

On Oct. 8, 1993, the fifth episode of the series' very first season was devoted to the Jersey Devil. But maybe not in the way you might think. No wings, horns or goat hooves. Nope. Just one dirt-covered woman. One murderous, cannibalistic dirt-covered woman!

A teaser for the episode -- which aired when the show was still in its Friday night spot on Fox; when the series became more popular, it moved to Sundays -- said the subject of the episode would be "a terrifying mystery kept secret over 40 years." 

We open on "New Jersey, 1947." A family riding in a car travels a dark road three miles from Atlantic City. They get a flat. Dad goes out to change the tire and boom -- Jersey Devil attack. Cops determine that the thing tore the guy's leg off. 

A scene from 'Jersey Devil.' (Fox)
 

Fast forward to the '90s, and we see Agent Mulder in his office, where Agent Scully has an eerie scoop.  

"They found a body in the New Jersey woods yesterday missing its right arm and shoulder," she tells him. "They think they may have been eaten off ... by a human." 

"Where in New Jersey?" Mulder asks. Scully informs him of the proximity of the body to Atlantic City.

"Not an uncommon place to lose a body part," he replies. "They think it's the mob?"

But then he gets out a file about the 1947 attack, carried out by a "beast man" later shot by police. Apparently the "Paterson PD" had the file on the autopsy of said beast man, which doesn't make any sense, but we continue anyway.

Scully and Mulder head to A.C., where they see the remains of the homeless man who has been attacked. The local investigator is not happy they're there. Mulder senses something is afoot. Scully heads back to D.C. for her godson's birthday party, Mulder stays for the slots and some intrigue. 

A park ranger for the "N.J. Parks Service" tells Mulder about a man he once saw wearing no clothing, and how he found a half-eaten rabbit with a human tooth in it. Then Mulder gets a tip from a homeless man and trades his hotel room for a night in the guy's ramshackle enclosure out on the street, where he spies the "Devil," a wild-looking figure rooting through some trash. 

The local detective gets on Mulder's case about not leaving town, and Mulder in turn accuses him of withholding information about the city Devil sightings to keep the tourist economy intact. (No, we can't blame the Jersey Devil for scaring the gamblers away.)

"You can't fill the casinos, this town disappears like a quarter down the slot," Mulder says. Ooh burn. 

Back on the scene, Scully brings in an anthropology professor. The park ranger realizes the police are hiding a body he found, one suspected to be the very same "Devil" the ranger had seen a few years back. Mulder develops a theory that the figure he saw by the homeless man's tent may be the Devil's mate. This she-Jersey Devil, a "real-life Neanderthal," takes a good swipe at Mulder before running off. Somehow, he develops a fondness for her in all this, calling her "beautiful."

Alas, the she-Devil (who, an autopsy determines, is not a Neanderthal) meets an untimely end as a result of the search -- but there is a she-Devil child! In any case, some serious fudging here of the distance between the Atlantic City and the Pine Barrens (where's the Expressway?). 

This female 'Jersey Devil' claws (?) at Mulder, but he remains fascinated with her. (Fox)
 

'The Host'

Arguably one of the most memorable of the show's so-called "monster of the week" episodes, delivered during the second season, this episode stars a terrifying mutant man-parasite. If you need proof of his vaunted status among all the X-Files goons, just consider that he had his own action figure.

The Sept. 23, 1994 installment of "The X-Files" fixates on a creature known as Flukeman, who arrives on Jersey shores from abroad, carried by a Russian freighter. 

The opening of the infamous Flukeman episode. (Fox)
 

Flukeman's reign of terror unfolds in Newark sewers when the X-Files have been temporarily closed. Thinking it a routine murder case, Mulder is skeptical the matter is even worth looking into, but it turns out that the perpetrator is an anti-ninja turtle of sorts -- he eats (well, bites) humans, not pizza.

The first hint is Scully's autopsy of the body of a Russian man killed on the freighter, which contains a parasitic fluke, or flatworm. When a sanitation worker is bitten by the creature -- no one knows what it is -- he is sent home, only to throw up a flatworm in the shower. Lovely. 

Flukeman, who turns out not to be a man but a sexless, parasite-injecting horror that originated in what Scully calls a "primordial soup of radioactive sewage" made possible by the Chernobyl disaster, is finally captured at the Newark sewage processing plant, conveniently right at the moment Mulder happens to be there.

But when authorities decide to put the giant parasite in a psychiatric institution, Flukeman never makes it there, having attacked his driver and escaped into the night. Let's just say you'll never look at a port-a-potty the same way again. 

"Mulder, nature didn't make this thing," Scully says at episode's end. "We did." 

The new "X-Files" premieres 10 p.m. Jan. 24 on Fox, followed by a second episode at 8 p.m. on Jan. 25.

Tusha Latham, 32, was indicted on murder, robbery and related charges in the July 3 fatal shooting of Alim Abdul-Ghafur

Tusha LathamEssex County Correctional Facility 

NEWARK -- A Newark man has been indicted on charges of killing another man during a robbery last summer at a city apartment building.

Tusha Latham, 32, was indicted on Jan. 8 in connection with the July 3 fatal shooting of Alim Abdul-Ghafur in the 200 block of Washington Street in Newark. In addition to murder, Latham is charged with felony murder, robbery, resisting arrest and weapons offenses.

Latham is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges on Feb. 1 before Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler. He remains in custody at the Essex County Correctional Facility in lieu of $2 million bail.

The incident occurred at about 8:30 p.m. as Abdul-Ghafur, 35, and two other men entered a hallway leading to his apartment residence, authorities said.

Authorities have alleged Latham approached the three men from behind, brandished a gun, and ordered them to lay on the floor and hand over their belongings, according to police reports.

RELATED: 12 charged in connection with 8 recent Essex County killings

After taking $110 in cash and a cell phone from the other two men, Latham allegedly approached Abdul-Ghafur, the reports say.

But Abdul-Ghafur allegedly began arguing with Latham and refused to turn over his belongings, according to police reports. During the dispute, Latham allegedly shot Abdul-Ghafur in the chest, the reports say.

Latham then allegedly removed items from Abdul-Ghafur's pockets and fled the hallway, according to police reports. After Latham allegedly left the scene, the other two men ran out of the hallway to find help, the reports say.

Abdul-Ghafur was later pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

Court records show Latham has six prior convictions dating back to 2002.

In addition to a conviction for receiving stolen property in Morris County, the other five convictions occurred in Essex County on charges of burglary, resisting arrest and receiving stolen property, court records show.

Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

A 24-year-old Newark woman has been charged with videotaping a 16-year-girl while she was using a restroom at Walmart in Kearny on Thursday.

JERSEY CITY -- A 24-year-old Newark woman has been charged with videotaping a 16-year-girl while she was using a bathroom at the Walmart store in Kearny on Thursday.

Rashonda Solomon, of the 200 block of Bloomfield Avenue, is charged with recording the girl, "whose intimate parts were exposed without ... consent ... as she used the bathroom inside a toilet stall," according to the complaint, which noted Solomon conspired with two other women.

Authorities said in the complaint that Solomon was arrested after Solomon and her co-defendants gave hand-written statements "implicating themselves" and one of three admitted they deleted the videos before police arrived.

Solomon was handcuffed and in street clothes when she made her first court appearance on the charges in Central Judicial Processing court in Jersey City on Friday via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny.

During the hearing, it was noted that there is a warrant for Solomon's arrest out of Newark Municipal Court on the charges of simple assault with a bail of $5,000.

Solomon's co-defendants, Katina L. Robertson, 19, and Jasmine Williams, 20, were both charged with conspiracy and invasion of privacy, Kearny police said this morning. 

A 31-year-old Newark man with 20 prior arrests can face five to 10 years in prison if convicted of robbing $21 from a tip jar in a restaurant in the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City on Thursday.

JERSEY CITY -- A 31-year-old Newark man with 20 prior arrests could face five to 10 years in prison if convicted of robbing $21 from a tip jar in a restaurant in the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City on Thursday.

Salhudine J. Jackson, of the 700 block of South 16th Street, went into the restaurant, started yelling and threatening people and swung a yellow rectangular sign at one of the employees before taking the money from a jar on the counter, the complaint says.

Jackson has 19 prior arrests in New Jersey, one federal arrest, nine disorderly persons convictions and criminal convictions for robbery and removing a price tag from an item and attempting to purchase it, officials said.

His bail was set at $40,000 cash or bond when he made his first court appearance on the charges on Friday in Central Judicial processing court in Jersey City.

In an op-ed for the N.Y. Daily News, the New York governor urged the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to raise the minimum wage to a livable wage. Watch video

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called to raise the minimum wage for the region's airport workers to $15 per hour, urging the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to "get on board and do the same."

"While growth at Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark continues to take off, more than 12,000 hardworking men and women at these facilities remain grounded, barely scraping by on the minimum wage with a shrinking paycheck that just doesn't cut it anymore," Cuomo wrote in an opinion piece published by the New York Daily News.

Full-time airport workers take home roughly $21,000 a year, he wrote. 

Meanwhile, airport workers from nine airports across the country, including at Newark Liberty International, are staging protests as acts of civil disobedience in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

On King's birthday Thursday, a few hundred airport workers went from Newark's Weequahic Park and marched over the Haynes Avenue bridge, forcing police to close off roads leading to the bridge, the Associate Press reported.

Cuomo kicked off the year with a call to raise the minimum wage to $15 for all New Yorkers. If he wins this fight, New York would be the first state to approve a $15 an hour minimum wage.

To those who would oppose the wage increase, he wrote: "For every dollar increase in hourly wages, minimum wage workers spend an additional $2,800 a year. That means an estimated $33.6 million annual return in consumer spending." 

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A dozen airport workers seeking a raise to $15 an hour were gently arrested by Port Authority police officers as they staged a show of civil disobedience. Watch video

NEWARK -- A dozen airport workers seeking a raise to $15 an hour were gently arrested by Port Authority police officers as they staged a show of civil disobedience in front of Terminal C at Newark Liberty airport on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

More than 200 cabin cleaners, security guards, janitors and other airport support workers had gathered at Terminal B and marched to Terminal C Monday morning to call attention to their ongoing demands for a raise from the airport's current minimum of $10.10 an hour -- a wage dictated by Port Authority policy for firms doing business at the airport.

Protesters were closely watched by dozens of Port Authority police officers, and the 12 were arrested after they sat down in a circle on the elevated roadway of the departure level in a deliberate attempt to block traffic and be arrested.

Officers, often two at a time, gently lifted the disobedient dozen from the pavement to a standing position, asked them to put their hands in front of them by demonstrating how, and then applied plastic ties to their wrists before loading them into a Port Authority police vehicle.

The demonstration was organized by Local 32BJ, which has been organizing airport workers into a bargaining unit for the sake of higher wages, benefits and improved working conditions. 

Patricia Arcilia, a 32BJ official who was one of the 12 people arreeted, said officers treated her, "very, very well, very gentle."

The demonstration did not interfere with flights or other airport operations, said Ron Marsico, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates Newark Liberty and the region's two other major airports.

The workers were essentially asking the Port Authority to grant them the raise to $15 an hour though its position as Newark Liberty's landlord, with the power to demand salary levels as a condition of the leases it grants to the airlines, which in turn contract with the workers' employers. Marsico declined to comment on the workers' demands.

The bi-state agency is now deliberating on an agency-wide wage policy for workers at all of its facilities, including the airports.

 

However, the agency's Board of Commissioners has been divided over the issue, with appointees of Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York tending to favor a $15 minimum, verses those appointed by Cuomo's Republican counterpart, Gov. Chris Christie, who are reluctant to raise the airport wage for a second time since the start of 2015.

It was then that the agency boosted the airport wage to $10.10 an hour, about two dollars an hour higher than the minimum in either state at that time, when commissioners also imposed a requirement that airport workers get Martin Luther King Day as a paid holiday.

Today's march in Newark was one of 10 held across the country -- in Boston, Chicago, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Miami, Washington, DC, Seattle, and Portland -- to push for a $15 wage, a nationwide minimum supported by President Obama and many Democrats, and the division over the issue within the Port Authority is seen as a microcosm of the nationwide political debate.

Steven Leone is less concerned about politics than rent.  Leone, a 27-year-old airplane cabin cleaner who lives with his mother in Newark, takes home $650 every two weeks on his $10.10 an hour pay from Prime Flight, a United Airlines contractor. That means Leone has $1,300 to pay his $850 monthly rent, plus heat, food, travel and other expenses. His 67-year-old mother shares what she makes as a street vender, but sales of earrings and scarves have been slow lately, her son said.

"I share with my mother, she shares with me, I help here, she helps me," he said.  But, he added, "It's not enough."

Abou Cisse, 21, also of Newark, works at the airport as a guard who makes $10.10 an hour for a security contractor, Air Serv, making sure no one goes into the secure area of the terminal through the exit for arriving international passengers. For the job, Cisse said he had to pass a criminal background check, and pay $267 for a one-year license to work as a security guard.

Officials of Air Serv and Prime Flight did not returns calls. A spokesman for United, Charles Hobart, issued a statement noting that 32BJ did not represent the airline's employees.

In the case of contractors, United added, "We require our suppliers to comply with all local, state and federal wage requirements." 

For Cisse, an hourly raise to $15 would keep alive his dream of becoming a New Jersey State Trooper.

Cisse, whose mother is from Ivory Coast in African, held aloft a sign with a picture of King with text reading, "Destination: Justice," and the hashtag #PovertydoesntFly. He said he was well aware of the State Police's history of racial profiling, and he wants to become the kind of trooper who serves and protects all the people of his state.

"I want to be different," he said. "I want to show other people that racial profiling isn't what matters. I'm still protecting my state."
  
But making $10.10 an hour and trying to help support a mother, younger brother and sister, Cisse fears he will not be able to finish his criminal justice degree at New Jersey City University.  

"I'm afraid that, making this much, if I take out a loan I'm not going to be able to pay it back," he said. "It just slows you down. It pulls you down even more. Like they say, the poor get poorer and the rich get richer. And it's not fair."   

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

Lewis Williams, 18, and Isaiah Hutchins, 22, both of East Orange, were indicted on Jan. 8 in connection with the July 5 shooting that left 22-year-old Maplewood resident Ahmad Crudup dead

Lewis Williams, 18, and Isaiah Hutchins, 22, both of East Orange, pictured left to right, were indicted on Jan. 8 on murder, attempted murder and related charges for allegedly opening fire outside a city residence on July 5, killing Ahmad Crudup and injuring three others.Essex County Correctional Facility 

NEWARK -- Two East Orange men are facing murder, attempted murder and related charges for allegedly opening fire last summer outside a city residence, killing one man and injuring three others.

Lewis Williams, 18, and Isaiah Hutchins, 22, were indicted on Jan. 8 in connection with the July 5 shooting that left 22-year-old Maplewood resident Ahmad Crudup dead.

In addition to murder and attempted murder, Williams and Hutchins are charged with conspiracy, aggravated assault and weapons offenses.

Williams and Hutchins are scheduled to be arraigned on the charges on Feb. 1 before Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler. They remain in custody at the Essex County Correctional Facility in lieu of $400,000 bail each.

MORE: Maplewood man killed, 3 others injured in East Orange shooting

The shooting stemmed from an ongoing feud on social media between Hutchins and one of the other victims, according to Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Paul Bradley, who is handling the case. That victim was the alleged target of the shooting, Bradley said.

At the time of the incident, Williams, Hutchins and two other unidentified individuals were allegedly traveling in a car when they spotted that victim walking on South Clinton Street in East Orange, Bradley said.

The victim then ran to the porch area of a home in the 200 block of the street, where Crudup and the two other men were hanging out, Bradley said. The four victims all knew each other, Bradley said.

Williams and Hutchins allegedly got out of the vehicle and fired weapons toward the group, striking all four victims, according to Bradley. Crudup ultimately died from his injuries and the other three men survived, Bradley said.

East Orange police arrested Williams and Hutchins on the following day, Bradley said.

Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Walif Smith, 40, formerly of Irvington, has claimed his sentence of life in prison is illegal because he was 15 years old at the time of the 1990 killing Watch video

Walif SmithNew Jersey Department of Corrections 

IRVINGTON -- A state appellate panel has rejected the argument from a convicted murderer that his sentence of life in prison is illegal because he was 15 years old at the time of the 1990 killing.

Walif Smith, now 40, formerly of Irvington, claimed his sentence is invalid as a result of a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court decision that found mandatory sentences of life in prison without the possibility of parole for juvenile homicide offenders are unconstitutional.

With that ruling, the nation's highest court held that, when sentencing juveniles in homicide cases, judges must consider various factors related to the defendant's youth - including immaturity and impetuousness and his home environment at the time of the offenses.

In a motion to vacate his sentence, Smith argued that the judge who sentenced him in 1994 "did not adequately account for his 'less developed brain and lack of maturity' when imposing his life sentence," according to the appellate decision issued on Jan. 8.

But the appeals court affirmed Smith's sentence and upheld a 2013 ruling by Superior Court Judge Alfonse Cifelli to deny the motion.

The panel agreed with Cifelli's findings that the U.S. Supreme Court decision did not apply to Smith's case, because he will be eligible for parole after serving 30 years in state prison. That decision only applied to juvenile homicide offenders sentenced to a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.

"Accordingly, Judge Cifelli found defendant's sentence was 'grounded in competent, reasonably credible evidence,' and concluded it did 'not shock the judicial conscience,'" according to the appellate decision.

RELATED: N.J. man's youth leads to new sentence in deadly robbery spree

Smith was convicted by a jury on Oct. 21, 1994 of felony murder, robbery and related offenses. He was sentenced on Nov. 9, 1994 to life in prison with a 30-year period of parole ineligibility. Life in prison equates to 75 years. 

Smith will be eligible for parole on Feb. 7, 2024, which is shortly before his 49th birthday, according to the state Department of Corrections.

The killing occurred on Sept. 21, 1990 when Smith, then 15, shot 79-year-old Marion Schuetz in the head during a robbery in Irvington, according to a Star-Ledger article on Nov. 10, 1994 about Smith's sentencing.

Schuetz was shot while she was behind the wheel of her Chevrolet Nova on Tiffany Place near her home, the article states. After the shooting, Schuetz crashed the vehicle into a tree on Elmwood Terrace, the article states.

Following his arrest, Smith was ultimately waived up to be tried as an adult, according to the appellate decision.

Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Victim was in a car when he was found

NEWARK -- A male was found dead inside a car in Newark Monday night, Essex County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Thomas Fennelly said.

Newark police at the scene where a male was found dead inside a car Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 (Paul Milo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com) Paul Milo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com 

The victim was found on S. 12th Street near Central Avenue sometime after 6 p.m. No information was immediately available about the circumstances of the person's death, Fennelly said, which remained under investigation late Monday night.

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

Rather than demonizing, we need fearless leadership that's driven by a dream to ensure that the poorest children receive an education that is parallel to the education received by their counterparts, writes a Newark Public Schools Board of Education member

By Rashon K. Hasan 

The Newark School District has a long history that dates back to 1769 when our school system was founded and the first appropriation of money was made for the education of the poor. 

But for many of us who were born and raised in Newark, our modern-day school system began on July 12, 1995 the day that the Newark Public Schools district was taken over by the NJ State Department of Education.  These drastic actions occurred after a Comprehensive Compliance Investigation showcased a variety of inefficiencies and state violations, including low student achievement, election tampering, nepotism, and fraud.

From the ashes of the last 20 years, we have finally been provided the opportunity to build a new education paradigm for our city.

While I strongly support the return of local governance we must not base the promise of our new education system through only the narrow lens of the last two decades. Instead we must challenge ourselves to learn from the entire history of our education system.

Education brings greater freedom and we must all commit ourselves to liberate our children from the shackles of poverty.  As we have seen specifically from our history, Newark must continue to support choice within our public schools system.

Learning from the past

For example, residents of Newark knew as early as 1813 that there should be an emphasis on educating the poor and thus the city established what was known as the free or poor school which served the city's population of poor residents who could not afford to pay for their education. Later in 1828 the Newark Township appropriated $100 for the instruction of poor colored children in the town.

Residents and leaders also realized that there was no one size fits all approach to educating Newark residents. Segregation of Newark schools ended in 1909 with the closing of the "Colored School" which was located on Market Street.

As improvements and additions were made to the school system such as new facilities and the Newark School of Fine and Industrial Arts, there also grew a need to expand school options and provide school choice for Newark families. There were school reforms such as the creation of the first "all year schools" at Belmont Avenue and 7^th Avenue Schools in 1912. 

These reforms and transformations of the school district also led to the establishment of the African Free School and Head Start Centers in 1965, The Springfield Avenue Community School in 1969, and School within a School at Malcolm X. Shabazz that formally became University High School in 1977.

Path to progressive education

Presently, there are some misguided leaders in our education space, who devalue school choice and want to go against Newark's history by limiting the types of public schools that our children are able to attend.  

Rather than create actual moratoriums on schools that are failing our children, those same people would rather blindly create moratoriums that stifle school choice. Rather than celebrating and supporting the public schools that are actually working and serving our kids, they wish to blindly ignore successful school reforms and instead support outdated methodologies that drive failure and poor performance.

This is an attitude that does not represent the needs of Newark parents and will slowly kill our chance to have a progressive education system in Newark.

Rather than demonizing, we need fearless leadership that's driven by a dream to ensure that the poorest children receive an education that is parallel to the education received by their counterparts. 

Some say it's an injustice to have public schools, like Charter schools, operate in a non-traditional fashion. The real injustice is in our inability to use the educational system to our advantage and provide the best school options for underprivileged children in our city and throughout the nation.  

As leaders in this education space we must foster a collaborative environment and work towards a shared vision to improve education for all students. 

Collectively we can make Newark the No. 1 city for public education in the Northeast Corridor. We can achieve this goal by supporting Newark's history and by being unapologetic in our support of expanding public school options in our communities.  

Rashon K. Hasan is a board member and former chairman of Newark Public Schools Board of Education.

A Jewish and Muslim co-president of the Weequahic High School Alumni Association, say they are concerned about the intolerance that fills today's racial and religious climate.

Folks are folks, right?

That means universally, we're more alike than not.

Marc Tarabour, 70, believes life is as simple as that.

It's how he was raised in Newark's South Ward, back when he and his diverse group of friends sang a little doo-wop somewhere on the corner, or in the bathroom at Weequahic High School.

"Some of the greatest acoustics in the world are at Weequahic High School," Tarabour said, laughing, the other day.

The smile doesn't last long, however, when he thinks about the intolerance that fills today's racial and religious climate, one laced with anti-Islamic rhetoric and fear.

You see, his good friend, Karim Arnold of Newark, is Muslim.

Tarabour, who lives in Livingston, is Jewish.

MORE: Recent Barry Carter columns

They grew up years apart in the same Newark community - Arnold, who graduated from Weequahic in 1984, on Bayview and Weequahic avenues; Tarabour, a 1963 graduate, on Peshine Avenue and Voorhees Street.

But together, they are co-presidents of the Weequahic High School Alumni Association, an organization, they say, that is all about inclusion and educating a community that now appears far different from its Jewish roots.

"The school today does not resemble Marc,'' Arnold, 49, said.

While that is true - Weequahic students are primarily African-American - alumni from both cultures continue to feel an attachment to the school thanks to the camaraderie and education they experienced during the school's glory years as an academic powerhouse.

It's a special relationship they want to cultivate in today's students, a sense of loyalty to their alma mater, bolstered by scholarship. In its 18-year history, the alumni organization has raised more than $500,000 in scholarships to help kids with college costs and other financial needs.

A student's nationality, religion or race is never part of the consideration. And that's also something they hope to exemplify for Weequahic students.

MORE CARTER: Newark"s Covenant House will miss Mama Gwen

"There's so much fighting around the world with Muslims and Jews. We have been able to show how people of different faiths, different colors can work together,'' Arnold said.

Tarabour said he has never thought about Arnold as being inherently different from him. Of course, he knows Arnold is Muslim and, just looking at him, he can see the color of his skin. But he doesn't consider either of those things as a reason to act differently around Arnold.

"I'm thinking we should treat folks the way you want to be treated,'' Tarabour said. "The fact that they happen to be a Muslim, that doesn't automatically make them a terrorist.''

Tarabour said that the rancor of the presidential election season, with candidates spewing anti-immigrant rhetoric, makes him think back to a time in Nazi Germany when Jews were forced to identify themselves by sewing yellow cloth patches bearing the Star of David to the outside of their clothing. And that Donald Trump's call for a temporary ban of all Muslim immigration conjures up visions of when Japanese-Americans were forced into internment camps during World War II.

"I'm getting nervous for the American Muslim,'' Tarabour said.

Islamic extremists are driving American furor, not Arnold or Muslims like him.

"I love this guy,'' Tarabour said.

"We love each other,'' Arnold said.

Arnold and Tarabour have known each other five years and have much in common.

They remember egg and milk deliveries in the South Ward and the garbage man collecting trash from the rear of homes. It was so safe at one point, they said, people could leave their back doors unlocked. Aside from the nostalgia, including a well-rounded school curriculum, both men served this country after graduating from high school.

Tarabour, who wa a Marine from 1964 to 1968, did a tour in Vietnam. He is president of an alarm security business in New York.

Arnold, an Army man from 1985 to 1991, spent his time stateside and is a property investment owner.

In the effort to support Weequahic, they're an organized duo. The high school, which was scheduled for closure under the district's "One Newark" plan, remains open and alumni are digging in to make sure it stays that way.

Raising funds, however, is always taxing. Much of it comes from the older Jewish alumni, but it is an aging group that is diminishing in size. Arnold said it's up to African-American alumni now to bolster donations.

Just as important, Arnold said: "I hope people see our relationship and how we treat each together, and how well we work together.''

The same is true for Tarabour, but he circles back to the face of religious indifference.

"I wish somehow, some way, people would start to say, 'If I was a Muslim, how the hell would I feel having people treating me like that,' '' he said.

He pauses, holding onto the simplicity of his beliefs.

"Folks are folks,'' he said.

Yes, they are.

It's too bad not all of us can see that.

Barry Carter: (973) 836-4925 or bcarter@starledger.com or nj.com/carter or follow him on Twitter @BarryCarterSL

Find out how New Jersey ranks compared to other states.

Community college students in New Jersey are among the most successful in the nation at transferring and earning four-year degrees, according to a new study. 

The state ranks sixth in the nation for the percentage of community college students who earn a bachelor's degree within six years of starting college, according to a study by Columbia University, the Aspen Institute College Excellence and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

About 17 percent of New Jersey community colleges earned bachelor's degrees within six years, compared to 14 percent nationally. The data is for students who began college in the fall of 2007. 

The high ranking for New Jersey may be tied to the state's efforts to promote community college as a starting point for earning a four-year degree.

New Jersey is one of few states that offer financial aid for high performing students to start college at a two-year school. It's generous financial aid for low-income students expands community college access to some students who might otherwise not be able to afford college. 

Additionally, nearly every four-year college in the state has a partnership with one or more community colleges, making it easier for students to transfer their credits. 

Among the report's other findings: 

• New Jersey ranked second for the percentage of students who earn an associate's degree or certificate before transferring to a four-year school
• It ranked 29th for the percentage of low-income students who transfer and earn a bachelor's degree in six years.
• Outcomes at both two- and four-year institutions varied remarkably by state.
• Nationally, lower income transfer students had worse outcomes than higher income students on almost all measures.  

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

The exhibit will run through Dec. 31 during regular library hours.

"Newark at 350: Settlement, Growth, Renewal" will be on display throughout 2016 at the Newark Public Library.Courtesy of the Newark Public Library 

NEWARK -- "Newark at 350: Settlement, Growth, Renewal," an exhibit of photographs, posters and writings on display at the Newark Public Library, will take visitors on a journey through the city's history.

Curated by librarian Thomas Ankner, the exhibit will provide both chronological and thematic approaches to the city's history, from its founding by Puritans in 1666 to the present day.

The Newark Public Library is located at 5 Washington St. The exhibit will run through Dec. 31 during regular library hours. For more information and to register to attend the opening reception, call 973-733-7793.

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

 

State officials had assured food bank operators in August a food stamp work waiver that was ending in December would be renewed. It wasn't.

TRENTON -- On New Year's Eve, Gov. Chris Christie's administration stunned food bank operators and anti-poverty groups with the announcement that a temporary food stamp program for 11,000 unemployed people was ending.

But that action didn't only surprise those serving New Jersey's hungry. It suddenly reversed what the Christie administration had told them would happen months before that, a memo obtained by NJ Advance Media confirms.

State Human Services officials had assured food bank operators in August that when this program, which allowed people to forgo the requirement they hold a job in order to receive food stamps, ended in December, a new program would take its place.

Christie administration ends waiver for food stamp work requirement

The state officials also said they would ask the federal government to continue to waive the job requirement for people living in counties and some cities where the unemployment rates were higher than the statewide average.

"As promised, below are the list of counties that are waived. Can you please forward to the rest of the group as I do not have everyone's email address?" according to the Aug. 24 email Human Services officials sent to a food bank director that was obtained by NJ Advance Media.

"Here are the 15 counties that are waived: Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Essex, Gloucester, Hudson, Mercer, Ocean, Passaic, Salem, Somerset, Sussex, and Union Counties," according to the email.

But the Christie administration changed course. 

Instead of cobbling together a new food stamp safety net under the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, state officials decided to pull the plug -- something anti-poverty groups say will only exacerbate the hunger problem in the state.

"The upshot is we will inevitably have more hungry people in New Jersey," said Adele LaTourette, director of the New Jersey Anti-Hunger Coalition., who was among those who had been informed of the contingency plans over the summer.

"We find this just unacceptable," she said.

The advocates questioned whether there are available job and training programs, particularly for people who struggles to find work because they have spotty education and work histories.

State Department of Human Services spokeswoman Nicole Brossoie on Friday said the administration made the decision "after careful review of the new federal waiver opportunities in relation to the state's employment rate and other economic factors." 

"Rather than piecemeal New Jersey's compliance with a federal work requirement for SNAP benefits, New Jersey would augment its workforce training strategies to move this population into work programs that will help clients to meet the work requirement, maintain benefits and progress to self-sufficiency," Brossoie said.

The federal government has granted similar regional requests to waive the work requirements in 33 others states, so approval for New Jersey's  waiver was very likely, said Ellen Vollinger, legal director for Food Research and Action Center, a national advocacy organization. 

"SNAP benefit cut-offs hurt the well-being of needy individuals, further strain local charities and pull federal dollars out of local commerce," said Vollinger, who joined anti-poverty advocates at a Statehouse press conference last week to urge the administration to rethink its decision.

Federal law requires people who are "able-bodied adults" from 18 to 50 years old without kids to work at least 20 hours a week to receive SNAP benefits. Unemployed people are limited to three months of benefits over a three-year period.

But because of the struggling economy, a waiver has been available in New Jersey since 2009 to allow this population to qualify for the aid without a time limit despite not fulfilling the work requirement.

By the end of 2015, however, New Jersey was "ineligible" to continue the state waiver because the state's economy has "improved dramatically," Brossoie said.

The state unemployment rate in New Jersey is 5.3 percent, the lowest since 2008. The rate was 5.7 percent in August.

There are 900,000 people in New Jersey receiving SNAP benefits, including 60,000 who are able-bodied and childless and who must work or be enrolled in a training program to qualify, Brossoie said. Of these people, 11,000 are not meeting the work requirement and could lose benefits.

Unless they found a job or a training program, benefits ended Jan. 1 for people who live in Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, Somerset and Sussex counties. People living in the remaining categories lose benefits beginning Feb. 1.  

They received an average SNAP benefit of about $160 to $180 a month, Vollinger said.

Half of the people affected by the loss of the program never graduated from high school, said Raymond Castro, senior analyst for New Jersey Policy Perspective, a left-leaning research and advocacy group "These cannot compete for the scarce jobs out there."

New Jersey's long-term unemployment rate -- defined as more than 27 weeks --is among the highest in the nation, noted Dennis Micai, director of the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen.

"There are a lot of inferences that these people are lazy or caused this problem. The people making a lot of these rules have never talked to (chronically unemployed) people in their life," Micai said. "I don't understand the benefit, other than politically."

The SNAP program and its quick expansion during the post-recession became a political issue in the 2012 presidential election, when Republicans branded Barack Obama "the food stamp president."

Christie, who is running for president, vetoed a bill in 2014 that would have raised the amount of money families must receive in heating assistance subsidies in order to qualify for a larger portion of SNAP benefits. He said the bill would have exploited a loophole by unilaterally raising heating aid "without regard to actual heating and cooling expenses."

Christie's decision about the SNAP program demonstrates how he is the balancing his roles as governor and a presidential candidate, said Ben Dworkin, director of the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics. 

"It probably doesn't help to have headlines about cutting people off from food stamps, which is why it makes sense to announce it on New Year's Eve, when the public is focused on other things," Dworkin said. 

"Right now, the presidential race is very tight as several candidates, including Christie, fight to be the dominant establishment alternative to Donald Trump. In this kind of close race, cutting off the SNAP program may make a difference among hard-core Republican primary voters," he said. 

Diane Riley, advocacy director for the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, said the 1,100 food programs around the state will be expected to fill the need for people who lose SNAP. But half of the people she serves also receive SNAP because the money doesn't stretch very far, she said.

"Combining our food with SNAP gives them the nutrition they need. These are not people who are trying to get over on us," Riley said.

"I don't know where these work programs are. And I know we are not ready for this," she said.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

NJSO gave the world premiere of Richard Danielpour's Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra

This weekend, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra kicked off its first concert series of the New Year with a literal bang: the world premiere of Richard Danielpour's Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra, titled "The Wounded Healer."

Danielpour is a New York composer best known in the classical world for his opera "Margaret Garner," which premiered in 2005 and featured a libretto by Toni Morrison. At a talk before Sunday's concert at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the 59-year-old composer described himself as a storyteller first and foremost, and that all of his instrumental pieces were really "secret operas."

On a first listen, there seems little that is secret about "The Wounded Healer." The 22-minute concerto is remarkably straightforward and accessible. The NJSO, under the baton of Jacques Lacombe, had no problem giving an authoritative account of this recently written score, playing the piece with clarity and vigor.

"The Wounded Healer" opens with a big clang, as soloist Lisa Pegher began playing arpeggios on a set of chimes upstage behind the orchestra, which churned out string-heavy sounds in minor keys. Then the horn section emitted some Straussian blasts, giving Pegher time to work her way downstage to one of three percussion set-ups. She worked the xylophone first, getting into a call and response with the orchestra, and then moved on to the vibraphone and some Tibetan bells.

The second movement began with Pegher behind a five-octave marimba that was downstage right. Here, she crisply elicited bright melodies that played against the orchestra's chugging chords. It was the most minimalist moment of the score -- and the most sonically evocative, especially when Danielpour brought in a muted trumpet solo into the mix.

 It should be mentioned that Pegher is an ideal interpreter of the work -- Danielpour wrote the piece for her. With a slender build and long dark hair, her taught, precise playing grabs the eye, as did her outfit on Sunday: a lacy black top with red leggings and fluffy black leg warmers.

For the third movement, "The Martyr," Pegher was back at the xylophone banging out an earnest, very tonal melody while the band emitted an emotional string sound that called to mind an effective soundtrack to a weepy television melodrama.

Finally, for the fourth and last movement, "The Shaman," Pegher was seated front and center at a bright red rock-and-roll drum kit. She began playing a swinging backbeat as the orchestra followed with a jazzy, Bernstein-esque sound. The retro mood of this passage tickled the ear, even if it also seemed like a square, "Hey, classical can be hip too!," exercise from the 1960s.  The piece ended after a big, rousing drum solo, and Pegher wailing away at her skins like John Bonham. Not surprisingly, she received a vigorous ovation -- as did Danielpour when he took a bow.  

This is Danielpour's fifth commission from the NJSO, and "The Wounded Healer" is a good match for both the orchestra and the audience. If it delighted more than it stirred or challenged, that seemed to be the vibe of the whole afternoon. 

"The Wounded Healer" was programmed opposite two Beethoven symphonies: his first symphony in C minor, which opened the concert, and his fourth, in B-flat major, which closed it -- and these are his two most pleasant, and least revolutionary symphonies.

Lacombe and his band played both of these pieces with a relaxed, cool flow. The dry, clear sound of the orchestra, which worked for Danielpour's American idiom, too often left Beethoven sounding bleached of its richness. While the string section performed with sensitivity in the adagio of the fourth, and David Fein brought texture to both works (as well as the percussion concerto, naturally) with his timpani playing, the NJSO's Beethoven First and Fourth served mainly to make Danielpour's new work and Pegher's performance ring louder in the audience's collective ear. 

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

The state Legislature has approved all of these measures for New Jersey schools. The governor must approve the bills for them to become law.

TRENTON -- New Jersey lawmakers sent dozens of bills to Gov. Christie Christie's desk last week, including nine ideas about school recess, bus safety, special education and other education topics. 

Christie has until today to decide whether he wants to sign the bills and make them law. 

What do you think he should do? 

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

The teen was sexually assaulted after moving in with the married pastor and his family, authorities allege

West Whiteland (Pa.) police 

A former pastor at a Pennsylvania church who fled to Ecuador after allegedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl was arrested entering the country at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, authorities said.

Jacob Malone, 33, of Exton was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals and will be extradited to Chester County to face charges of institutional sexual assault and rape, West Whiteland, Pa., police said in a news release.

Malone met the victim when she was 12 and he worked at a church in Mesa, Arizona. The married father then moved to a church in Minnesota before relocating his family to Downington, Pa in 2014. 

The then-17-year-old girl moved in with Malone and his family soon after they settled in suburban Philadelphia, police said. He allegedly provided the victim alcohol after she turned 18 and sexually assaulted her on one occasion after she became intoxicated, police said.

Malone resigned from Calvary Fellowship in November, according to Philly.com. The website also reported Malone impregnated the teenager.

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

Lauren Whatley, 26, of Irvington, is one of four people charged in the November 2014 shooting death of 22-year-old Newark resident Ana Satian during a cell phone robbery

Lauren WhatleyEssex County Correctional Facility 

NEWARK -- An Irvington woman has been indicted on charges of slipping out of her handcuffs and punching an Essex County Sheriff's officer in the face last June after she appeared in court for a murder case.

Lauren Whatley, 26, was indicted on Wednesday on charges of making terroristic threats, aggravated assault and throwing bodily fluid at law enforcement officers in connection with the June 23 incident.

The attack allegedly occurred after Whatley was arraigned on murder and related offenses in the November 2014 shooting death of 22-year-old Newark resident Ana Satian during a cell phone robbery.

Three men - Perry Howard, 28, of Bloomfield; Mumit Marrow, 22, of Newark; and Massai Laboo, 23, of Irvington - also have been charged in Satian's killing.

All four defendants are in custody at the Essex County Correctional Facility in lieu of posting bail.

RELATED: Accused murderer slipped out of handcuffs, punched officer, authorities say

Authorities have said the incident involving Whatley occurred hours after she had appeared before Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler in the murder case.

Whatley was being transported in a van at about 4 p.m. back to the county jail when she began slamming her body into the side of the vehicle and making threats towards the sheriff's officers, authorities said.

To ensure Whatley's safety, the officers returned to the Essex County Courthouse, authorities said. Inside the van, Whatley allegedly removed one of her hands from the handcuffs, authorities said.

Ana Satian, 22, of Newark, died on Nov. 9, 2014 after being shot the day before during a cell phone robbery, authorities said.File photo

When the officers were removing Whatley from the vehicle, she allegedly spit on one female officer and struck her in the face, authorities said.

The officers subdued Whatley and brought her to East Orange General Hospital for treatment of any injuries before ultimately transporting her to the jail, authorities said.

In the murder case, authorities said Satian was visiting her friend's house on 3rd Street in Newark on Nov. 8.

As Satian was walking into the house, at least two of the defendants approached her, stole her cell phone and shot her, authorities said. The cell phone was later discarded and recovered nearby, authorities said.

Satian died from her injuries the following day at University Hospital in Newark, authorities said.

The mother of two young children, Satian was born in Ecuador and moved to the United States when she was seven years old. She attended Newark Tech High School before becoming married and having children.

Bill Wichert may be reached at bwichert@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillWichertNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

The man is wanted for questioning in relation to the Saturday night burglary at the Exxon station on Bloomfield Avenue

Police are searching for this man after a burglary at a North Caldwell gas station Saturday night. (North Caldwell police)

NORTH CALDWELL - Authorities are asking for the public's help finding a man who may be connected to a break-in at a local gas station over the weekend.

According to North Caldwell police, the man was seen in the area of the Exxon station on Bloomfield Avenue when it was burglarized around midnight Saturday night.

At the time, he was wearing a black and white long sleeved Ralph Lauren polo with the number 3 on the right arm, tan pants, gray and white Nike shoes and a dark jacket with a yellow lining.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the North Caldwell Police Detective Bureau at (973) 226-0800.

 

Authorities have identified the man found dead inside a car on South 12th Street Monday as an East Orange 34-year-old.

(File photo)

NEWARK -- Authorities have identified the man found dead inside a car on South 12th Street Monday as an East Orange 34-year-old.

Westley R. Roberson was shot to death in the 100 block of South 12 Street, said Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokeswoman Katherine Carter.

Roberson's body was discovered inside a car near the intersection of Central Avenue and South 12th Street at approximately 6:45 p.m., she added. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

No suspects have been identified in connection to the fatal shooting, and no arrests have been made, Carter said.

An investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force is ongoing.

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