More than 400 flights scheduled to land or take off from Newark Airport Tuesday were canceled, frustrating travelers. Watch video

NEWARK -- Three days after a storm dumped a record 28.1 inches of snow on its runways, Newark Liberty International Airport still tops in the nation in the number of canceled flights.

More than 400 flights scheduled to land or take off from Newark Airport Tuesday were canceled, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking service. That includes more than 40 percent of the airport's scheduled departures for the day.

Newark's cancellations are far more than other area airports impacted by the storm.

As of noon Tuesday, LaGuardia Airport, which had nearly 28 inches, had 42 canceled flights. John F. Kennedy International Airport, which received 30.5 inches, had seven canceled flights and Philadelphia International Airport had six, according to FlightAware. Atlantic City International Airport reported no cancellations Tuesday. 

Flight canceled? Here's how you can fly out of N.J. for $9K  

Airline officials said Newark Airport has had trouble getting back on schedule partly because it is still having trouble clearing snow from runways and gates and finding a place for all of the snow that has already been cleared.

"In Newark, we are focused on removing snow," said Jonathan Guerin, a spokesman for United Airlines, Newark's largest carrier. "We're working with the airport authority to remove all the snow and clear the gate areas."

United flew in 128 additional employees from as far away as Hawaii and California Monday to help out at Newark Airport and Dulles International Airport, Guerin said. The employees will help prepare planes and gates for departures and staff desks to help customers who need to rebook.

"They will be above the wing and below the wing," Guerin said. "They will help on the ramp and in the airports."

The mass cancellations at Newark have frustrated travelers, including those who rescheduled flights for Monday and Tuesday, assuming the bad weather would be out of the area.

Nationwide, there have been more than 5,800 cancellations at U.S. airports since the storm ended on Sunday, according to FlightAware. Most airlines continue to offer passengers a fee waiver so they can rebook their canceled flights for free.

United is allowing passengers to reschedule flights through Feb. 2 without a charge if they use the same airports as their original ticket.

It is unclear if Newark will continue to have mass cancellations Wednesday. As of noon, only 10 flights scheduled for Wednesday were scratched, according to FlightAware.

The attorney for Quiama Harris claimed she had been "pressured" by two public defenders to accept the state's offer

The Santander Bank in Parsippany after Avery Spotswood and Quiama Harris robbed it in December 2013. (Megan Shapiro Hodgin | NJ.com) 

MORRISTOWN -- A Superior Court judge on Tuesday refused to let a 30-year-old Newark woman withdraw her guilty plea to driving the getaway car for a friend during two bank robberies in Springfield and Parsippany.

In May, Quiama S. Harris pleaded guilty in Superior Court in Morristown to two counts of first-degree robbery. She admitted that she drove the car for Avery Spotswood, 44, of Newark and took some of the proceeds from the robberies on Dec. 18, 2013 at the Investors Savings Bank in Springfield and on Dec. 23, 2013 at the Santander Bank in Parsippany. 

Authorities have said a total of $8,324 was taken in the two robberies. Harris said her agreed-on share of the proceeds totaled $450 for the two robberies, but Spotswood, who pleaded guilty in November 2014, said the proceeds were split "50-50."

In his argument for the withdrawal of the guilty plea, Harris' new attorney, Michael Kuhns,  said she felt "extreme pressure" from two public defenders who told her accepting the state's offer was her best course of action.

Kuhns said Harris had a serious "drug habit," was under the influence of drugs at the time, and agreed to drive the car for Spotswood "just to get a little extra money to support the habit." Harris didn't know what Spotswood was doing inside the bank, Kuhns said.

In refusing to let Harris withdraw her plea, Judge Thomas Critchley pointed out that she had admitted to a "thorough" accounting of the facts of the case as stated in court.

Harris had admitted in court that she "drove her co-defendant to commit a robbery" and was aware that he had given tellers notes saying he had a bomb, Critchley said.

"The defendant is sorry to have found herself in this situation with relatively little gain," Critchley said, citing the small amount she said received from the robberies. "That remorse is a feature for sentencing," and not a reason to allow the guilty plea to be withdrawn, the judge said.

Although Harris faced a maximum of 40 years in state prison on the two first-degree robbery charges, the prosecutor offered a relatively light six-year sentence as part of the plea agreement, Critchley said. He scheduled sentencing for Feb. 26.

Harris had wanted to enter the state's Drug Court program -- a probation-like program that requires no incarceration -- but her attorneys would not discuss that, Kuhns said.

Morris County Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Schellhorn countered that "there was never an offer" from the state involving Drug Court, because that would not be allowed under the first-degree charges that she admitted.

Ben Horowitz may be reached at bhorowitz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @HorowitzBen. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The mayor said a boost from emergency contractors and the state Department of Transportation helped plow nearly all of the city's 40 miles of roads since Monday Watch video

NEWARK - While many city streets remain littered with snow, Mayor Ras Baraka is holding fast to his position that his administration took every step necessary to deal with the weekend's record-setting blizzard.

In a press conference at the city's Office of Emergency Management Tuesday morning, the mayor again said additional equipment and personnel brought in by emergency contractors and the state Department of Transportation had helped make significant progress in clearing the city's 40 miles of roads.

Since a Monday afternoon briefing, when many neighborhoods remained buried in more than two feet of snow, workers have cleared approximately 25 streets, removed nearly 150 disabled cars from city roads, and responded to more than 600 complaints about the slow pace of snow removal.

Baraka apologizes to snowed-in Newarkers

"We are a lot better off today than we were yesterday and the day before that," he said.

Baraka acknowledged that, despite an earlier estimate that all streets would be plowed by Tuesday, many streets had still yet to see a plow more than two days after the last snowflakes fell.

Residents of those areas, centered largely in the east and west wards, continued to plead for help into Tuesday afternoon.

@News12NJ @CityofNewarkNJ @rasjbaraka my block is still under snow in Newark waiting to be plowed pic.twitter.com/cnsDik1wtB

-- BangOut (@Authentic973) January 26, 2016

@CityofNewarkNJ What in the world is going in with snow removal in Newark? North 11th Street is a death trap! #snowzilla #imisscorybooker

-- StitchesnSpokes (@stichesnspokes) January 26, 2016

The mayor declined to offer a new forecast for when all roads might be clear, but said his next priority was to ensure the streets were safe for both driving and walking. Areas around schools - which have been closed for two straight days following the storm - also rank high on the list.

"We don't meant that the streets are going to look like they did in July," he said. "But there will be a safe ingress and egress (for vehicles and pedestrians)."

Baraka said he understood the significant criticism directed at him since the snowfall, but maintained that the city had maximized its effort to return life to normal.

"People have a right to be angry. They have a right to be frustrated and upset, they're inconvenienced and when people are inconvenienced they're going be angry and frustrated," he said.

"We're doing our best to get them out of this situation and we're going to continue to work and move forward until we clear them out."

He thanked residents who had boosted the city's efforts through shoveling or checking on neighbors, and said the county had helped with removal by allowing snow to be dumped in local parks and other properties.

When asked if he would do anything differently with the benefit of hindsight, Baraka initially quipped that he would "make the snow not come."

When pressed, he submitted that he would have contacted the state for help earlier on, but maintained that no amount of outside help would have allowed for the streets to be cleared in a day.

He promised to examine the city's response for potential improvements, but took issue with public portrayals he claimed were unfairly focused on Newark's struggles following the storm.

"I don't think that this is an exception. I know many of us like to make this an anomaly that's only happening in Newark, that's not happening around the country," he said. "It's just not true."

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

The sentencing of Haniyyah Barnes, 29, of Newark, was postponed on Tuesday, because the victim's street had not been plowed and she could not reach the courthouse Watch video

NEWARK -- After watching Haniyyah Barnes kill her two-year-old Shih Tzu in 2011 by throwing the dog into oncoming traffic, Nazirah Bey on Tuesday had been planning to attend Barnes's sentencing on animal cruelty and related offenses.

But following last weekend's snowstorm, Bey could not reach the courthouse, because her Newark street had not been plowed as of Tuesday morning, an assistant prosecutor said in court.

"Her street has not yet been plowed and she has no way of getting to the courthouse," Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Michele Miller told Superior Court Judge Richard Sules.

Given Bey's absence, the judge granted Miller's request to postpone the sentencing. Sules set a new sentencing date of Feb. 4.

"Unfortunately, the court has no control over the snow plowing in the city," the judge said.

The postponement comes after Newark residents have complained about side streets not being cleared in the days after Saturday's record-breaking storm dumped nearly 30 inches of snow on the city.

The storm also led to the closure of the city's public schools on Tuesday for the second straight day.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka on Monday said all streets should be cleared by Tuesday morning.

At a news conference on Tuesday, the mayor thanked city residents for their patience and said "we've made significant progress, but we know there's more that needs to be done."

The mayor acknowledged that, despite the earlier estimate that all streets would be cleared by Tuesday, many streets still had not been plowed. He declined to offer a new forecast for when all roads might be clear, but said his next priority was to ensure the streets were safe for both driving and walking.

"I ask that people be patient and we'll get through this," Baraka added.

As for Barnes's case, the 29-year-old Newark resident was convicted by a jury on Oct. 13 of animal cruelty, theft and criminal mischief. Jurors could not reach a verdict on a burglary charge against Barnes, and she is expected to face a second trial on that charge.

Barnes had pleaded guilty in April 2014 to burglary, animal cruelty and theft charges. Under a plea deal, prosecutors had agreed to recommend a six-year prison sentence. But Sules allowed Barnes to withdraw her guilty plea in February 2015.

For her conviction on the three third-degree charges, Barnes is likely facing a maximum prison sentence of five years in total. The second-degree burglary charge has represented the most serious offense in the case.

The Aug. 26, 2011 incident stemmed from an arrangement between Bey and Barnes, in which Bey allowed Barnes's mother to park in her driveway. Bey and Barnes lived two doors down from one another on Fabyan Place in Newark.

Since Bey's car was blocking the mother's car, which was parked in the driveway, prosecutors have alleged Barnes became angry and ultimately kicked in Bey's front door.

After Bey's Shih Tzu, named Honey Bey, began barking, Barnes grabbed the dog by the throat, went back outside and threw her into oncoming traffic, where she was struck by a vehicle and killed, prosecutors said.

A Newark police officer was sitting in a patrol vehicle nearby and witnessed Barnes throw the dog into the street, prosecutors said.

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

City police have arrested a 36-year-old city resident in connection to a dispute over a snow shovel that left one man shot in the buttocks.

Saqirah Davis (Essex County Dept. of Corrections)

NEWARK -- City police have arrested a 36-year-old city resident in connection to a dispute over a snow shovel that left one man shot in the buttocks, officials said.

Saqirah Davis was arrested on Sunday following the incident, said Newark Police Department spokesman Det. Hubert Henderson.

According to police reports, the 38-year-old victim told investigating officers that he was using a snow shovel he'd found that morning to clear the driveway at an elderly neighbor's Lindsley Avenue home, when Davis confronted him, claiming that the shovel belonged to her.

According to reports, the victim returned the shovel to Davis, but not before "words were exchanged."

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2016/01/baraka_defends_response_to_snowstorm_touts_signifi.html

The victim told police he was approached by Davis and several others while walking back to his home, the reports state. A male suspect in the group allegedly shot the victim in his buttocks on orders from Davis, the reports said.

The victim attempted to grab the gun, but was allegedly struck in the mouth by a second woman during an ensuing struggle, the reports state.

Newark police arrested Davis several hours after the shooting, Henderson said. She now faces charges of aggravated assault, possession of a weapon, unlawful possession of a weapon and conspiracy.

The investigation is on-going with police continuing to search for the remaining suspects, Henderson said.

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

The move comes as the mayor faces criticism over his handling of the weekend's record-setting snowstorm

NEWARK -As the city continues to confront the aftermath of a historic snowstorm, Mayor Ras Baraka has rescheduled a town hall meeting that had been set for Wednesday.

The meeting for the city's Central Ward is now set for Friday, Feb. 26. The venue, Abysinnian Baptist Church, will remain the same.

Another meeting for the city's North Ward originally set for Feb. 17 has also been moved to Feb. 29.

5 things we learned at Baraka's Newark Town Hall meeting

The release did not offer any reasoning for the change in dates, and city spokeswoman Marjorie Harris did not immediately return a request for further details.

As of early Tuesday afternoon, workers from the city and state Department of Transportation were still scrambling to plow and clear streets more than two days after the blizzard dropped more than two feet of snow across much of New Jersey - a process that has drawn significant criticism from residents.

Baraka held his first Town Hall meeting of 2016 - part of his "Newark 3.0" series - in the city's East Ward earlier this month. Remaining dates for the West Ward (Feb. 3) and South Ward (Feb. 24) remain unchanged.

Shawn Shaw is accused of raping an inmate more than five years ago while working as a corrections officer.

NEWARK -- Shawn Shaw worked at the Essex County Correctional Facility guarding inmates until 2013.

Tuesday, jury selection began in a case that could make Shaw an inmate himself for the rest of his life. 

Jurors were seated Tuesday in the federal case against Shaw, who is accused of raping an inmate in 2010. 

According to court records, Shaw did not normally patrol the women's tier at the jail but was assigned an overnight shift Dec. 28, 2010, during a heavy snowstorm. He was the only correctional officer on duty on the women's tier, records indicate.

During his shift, court papers say, inmates flashed their breasts and buttocks at him as a hazing ritual. 

Later, Shaw allegedly began propositioning inmates, offering them cigarettes or other favors in return for sex. 

According to prosecutors, Shaw early in the morning entered a cell occupied by an inmate and allegedly raped her.

Essex corrections officer admits taking bribes to smuggle cell phones into jail 

Records from the control desk at the jail indicated the door to her cell was opened at 2:43 a.m. for a period of seven minutes, court records say. 

When correctional officials learned of the alleged attack, they conducted an investigation, including using a kit to determine if she had recently had sexual intercourse. The test came back positive, court records say. 

When confronted by the FBI during an investigation three days later, Shaw lied about the alleged incident, according to a federal indictment. He was indicted by a grand jury in 2013.

Shaw faces one count of depriving an individual of rights under color of law because Shaw was a prison guard when he allegedly committed the crime and obstruction of justice. 

The charge of deprivation of rights under color of law carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison. The obstruction of justice charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman. 

Both charges also carry a maximum fine of $250,000. 

Prosecutors offered Shaw a maximum 10-year prison sentence in return for pleading guilty, but he did not accept the deal, court papers say.

Tim Darragh may be reached at tdarragh@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @timdarragh. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Ito Lightford, 41, of Newark, had pleaded guilty to a murder charge in the Sept. 24, 2014 killing of Talia Capri Nesmith

NEWARK -- Patricia Wiggins said her granddaughter turned 3 years old on Jan. 18. Five days later, Wiggins said she adopted the girl on Friday.

Then on Tuesday, Wiggins stood in a Newark courtroom for the sentencing of the man who stabbed her daughter, Talia Capri Nesmith, to death in front of the child.

"My world and life has changed, because I have to raise my granddaughter," Wiggins said during Tuesday's hearing, before referring to her daughter: "I should be helping her raise her daughter with her, not without her."

Before Ito Lightford was sentenced to 30 years in state prison for the Sept. 24, 2014 killing, Nesmith's family members remembered her as a loving woman, an "angelic soul" and "the epitome of innocence."

The relatives also said they would miss Nesmith's smile.

"None of us will ever see her smiling again," said Nesmith's sister, Khaleedah Wright.

After the family members addressed the court, Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler told Lightford he hopes "you got a glimpse of the kind of tragedy that you caused this terrific family.

"I don't know if you have any real appreciation for what your conduct did, but you're going to have 30 years in which to think about it," Wigler later added.

The judge also noted how the case represents the first conviction for Lightford, who previously worked as a custodian for the Newark school district.

"There is no logical explanation for what you did," Wigler told Lightford, adding that the killing appeared to be "an isolated horrific incident."

Earlier in the hearing, Lightford declined to make a statement.

But his attorney, Anita Treasurer, told the judge that Lightford is "remorseful and he regrets his conduct."

"He understands what harm he has caused," Treasurer said.

Lightford, 41, of Newark, pleaded guilty on Dec. 22 to a murder charge in connection with Nesmith's stabbing death. Under a plea deal, prosecutors agreed to recommend the 30-year state prison sentence for Lightford.

Lightford must serve the entire prison term before he is eligible for parole, and he will receive credit for more than a year of time served.

Authorities have said Lightford lived in a basement apartment for two years in the Goldsmith Avenue home where Nesmith, 34, lived on the second floor. Nesmith lived in the apartment with her grandmother for more than a decade until her grandmother's death in January 2014.

In a statement to police, Lightford indicated he had become "obsessed with" Nesmith and "didn't want anyone else to have her, because she had rejected him," Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Paul Bradley, who handled the case, said during Tuesday's hearing.

Bradley said the killing was "frightening" in light of how Lightford had led a law-abiding life.

"He killed her in front of the 18-month-old daughter, who hopefully has no memory of that," said Bradley, adding that the incident was a "horrific crime."

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

Downtown snarled as snow piles affect traffic flow along major thoroughfares Watch video

NEWARK -- Rush hour was a nightmare for drivers passing through the downtown area Tuesday night. 

Motorists and media accounts described traffic at a standstill heading towards the city's main crossroads, Broad and Market streets, as of about 5:30 p.m. Delays along McCarter Highway were as long as an hour or more, News 12 New Jersey reported. 

My commute home from #Newark 3 days before #blizzard2016 : 22m; 3 days after #blizzard2016 : 1hr 22m. @njdotcom

-- Rosalyn Charles (@ResolveNow) January 27, 2016

NJ Transit buses were averaging about 45-minute delays throughout rush hour and beyond, with delays persisting as of about 8 p.m., a Transit spokeswoman, Nancy Snyder, said. 

Jay Dow, a journalist, posted video from the vehicle he was traveling in along Broad Street around 7 p.m. Dow saw people leaving buses stopped in traffic and walking, and interviewed others at bus stops who said they had been waiting for at least an hour. 

Traffic in Newark is a mess right now. pic.twitter.com/8OgZyzSjHd

-- Jeremy Settle (@JeremySettle) January 26, 2016

Newark has been grappling with the aftereffects of Saturday's blizzard, which dumped a record amount of snow on the city. A number of side streets remained clogged with snow 48 hours after Saturday's storm, prompting the city to ask for the state Department of Transportation to help with removal and street cleaning. 

Even with the state assist, however, a number of side streets Tuesday afternoon were still clotted with snow and ice while major roadways, like McCarter, were narrowed by towering piles of plowed snow. 

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

Hip-hop promotor Damon Dash, the co-founder of Roc-A-Fella Records, is among the top 12 tax debtors to the state of New Jersey

The current focus on addressing the rising levels of poverty in the state, especially among families and children, offers a unique opportunity to promote neighborhood schools that address the needs of the community.

By Raymond Lesniak 

The most significant cause of poverty in America is the failure of education of children from low income families. 

Take New Jersey for example, where the Quality Counts report by Editorial Projects in Education ranked New Jersey fourth-highest in 2015 scores in eighth grade math on the National Assessment of Education Progress test -- but the state's poverty gap is ranked 49th.

Numerous studies have determined that the most important time in a child's cognitive development starts at pre-natal to age 3-5 years. 

Therein lies the solution to improving the poverty gap of education in New Jersey  -- neighborhood schools that focus on early childhood development starting with pre-natal health care services in low-income neighborhoods and support services up to pre-K and after, when needed.

The current focus on addressing the rising levels of poverty in the state, especially among families and children, offers a unique opportunity to promote neighborhood schools that address the needs of the community. Investing in neighborhood, community schools has been ignored by the current strategies employed in education reform, but has many important advantages over current models that have met with limited success because they don't address education beginning at conception or provide  support services for low income families.

Neighborhood schools create a community anchor. They can be the economic driver attracting and keeping small businesses that serve and employ members of the community.

Acting as more than a school building open from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m., these community schools open their doors for events, services and opportunities that make the school a trusted place for parents and children before school age. They provide medical care and nutritional advice for expecting mothers and pre-school children and it can be a place for expecting parents to learn parenting skills.

By caring for a broader array of children's needs, including medical, vision and dental care, homework assistance and other wrap-around programs, the support needed for success is integrated into the educational process. And, teaching adults English and providing job training or financial literacy, the families are better able to support their children's educational progress.   

These types of services can be provided in a number of different ways.

• Social services could be located in the schools.
• Private/public partnerships in the neighborhoods can investments by local business that strengthen the community.  
• Non-profit organizations that serve the area can be located there and federal funding can be utilized to support the development of community schools. 

Across the nation we see examples of successful community schools providing high quality education that extends beyond the classroom. Test scores go up, absenteeism goes down, there are higher levels of parental engagement, decreased discipline problems and improved overall achievement.  

Critical to the success of strong neighborhood schools is developing them in conjunction with the community they serve.  The initial step is a needs assessment to identify the services the community considers priorities.  Parents and community members are integral in creating the vision and actively engaging in the school's operations.

We see seeds of these successes in New Jersey. Paterson is beginning to strengthen some neighborhood schools by providing services. A school in Trenton is collaborating with a local foodbank to make sure that students and their families are eating at home, not just at school. And Newark is proposing community schools in the impoverished South Ward that has suffered the most from school closures. In Camden, modified discipline practices are ending out-of-school suspensions, dropping out or getting into trouble. 

If we want to reduce poverty in New Jersey in a meaningful and sustainable way, we must address the lack of educational opportunities afforded to our children and families which continues the cycle of poverty. We must remove the barriers we know impede educational success.  That means caring for the whole child and providing opportunity and support to their families.  It means making our schools easily accessible and open to the families they serve.  

Embedding community schools as anchors to support the growth and development of neighborhoods will improve educational outcomes and move New Jersey away from being 49th in the measurement of its educational poverty gap.  

Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) is a New Jersey state senator.

 

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Anthony Konah, 55, of Irvington, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a weapon in connection with the Oct. 21, 2014 incident

Anthony KonahNewark Police 

NEWARK -- An Irvington man admitted on Tuesday to shooting his ex-wife two times in 2014 during an altercation at her Newark apartment building.

Anthony Konah, 55, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a weapon in connection with the Oct. 21, 2014 incident. His ex-wife survived her injuries.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors have agreed to recommend a 10-year state prison sentence for Konah, according to Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Sara Wilson, who is handling the case. Konah would have to serve eight and a half years before becoming eligible for parole, Wilson said.

As part of the plea agreement, charges of attempted murder and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose against Konah will be dismissed, Wilson said.

Konah's sentencing is scheduled for March 14 before Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler.

Authorities said the incident occurred outside the ex-wife's apartment building in the 500 block of Central Avenue in Newark after Konah confronted her there and the former couple started to argue. After the shooting, Konah returned to his vehicle and drove off, authorities said.

During Tuesday's hearing, Konah answered questions from his attorney, Stephen Brown, as he admitted shooting his ex-wife two times, once in the shoulder and once in the leg.

Konah was arrested on Oct. 28, 2014 and later sent to the Essex County Correctional Facility. He was released from custody on Feb. 5, 2015 after posting $60,000 bail, court records show.

Following Konah's guilty plea, Wilson called on Wigler to revoke Konah's bail and remand him to the Essex County jail, because he is facing a lengthy prison sentence.

"Because of the jail time he's facing, there is a substantial flight risk in this case," Wilson told the judge.

But Brown asked Wigler to allow Konah to remain released on bail. Brown argued Konah has appeared for each court appearance, and he said Konah would return to court for his sentencing.

"He's an older gentleman," Brown said. "I think he realizes that there's no place for him to run and hide."

The judge permitted Konah to remain released on bail, acknowledging that Konah has appeared for every court appearance. But Wigler said Konah must continue to not have any contact with his ex-wife.

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

The slow pace of plowing and snow removal after the record-setting blizzard has emboldened critics who say hires based on political patronage and cronyism are partially to blame Watch video

NEWARK -- Mayor Ras Baraka is defending key staff members some critics are claiming contributed to a lackluster response to this weekend's record-setting snowstorm.

While the mayor has taken the brunt of widespread complaints about the slow pace of plowing and snow removal in the city, many residents have taken to social media and other forums to place blame at the feet of officials they say are in place due to personal and political connections rather than professional qualifications.

"This administration has a history of hiring their friends, people who they like," said Veronica Branch, a city resident and former School Advisory Board candidate.

"Not necessarily somebody who would be qualified to get the job done."

Some Newark blocks still unplowed; Baraka touts 'significant progress' after storm

Much of the invective has been directed at Director of Neighborhood and Recreational Services Patrick Council, who is charged with developing and executing the city's snow removal plan.

On Wednesday morning, East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador initially refused to vote for a resolution presented by Council's department to establish a fee schedule for non-residents to use certain city facilities until Council could share details on his response to the storm.

"In view of what has happened in the last weekend, he needs to appear before us and give us some explanations to a lot of questions that I, for one, have," he said.

"We were in a reactive mode, not in a proactive mode. Someone has to be accountable for some of the mistakes that were made."

A prominent pastor and current head of the South Ward Democratic Committee, Council was named acting director in August 2014 -- one of two unsuccessful City Council candidates backed by Baraka to get city jobs following his inauguration.

Prior to accepting the $136,599 job, Council served as recreation director for Newark Public Schools -- experience Baraka has cited as key to his appointment. In an interview Tuesday, the mayor said he had also proven more than capable of overseeing snow removal.

"It's a plan that's been in place before we got here. Maybe some minute changes here and there...Most of it is about management," he said. "Patrick Council is highly qualified."

Patrick Council

Attempts to reach Council directly Tuesday were not successful, but Baraka attributed any calls for his removal to motives that had more to do with last year's campaign than the safety of residents.

"Many people are taking advantage of this situation. They didn't say all of this last year when we had snowstorms," he said. "To make a judgment about them because we're having a bad snowstorm now, it's politically motivated. Ultimately there are going to be a few people who use this as an opportunity to campaign."

Baraka also defended Juba Dowdell, an admitted longtime friend who was named the city's deputy emergency management coordinator in January 2015. The city's Department of Emergency Management took over storm operations once a state of emergency was declared on Saturday.

A fellow poet who has performed at local tributes to Baraka's famed father, Amiri Baraka, Dowdell served six months in federal prison in 1994 for a small role in a tax fraud scheme while attending Hampton University in Virginia. He later returned to Newark to complete college and began teaching at Central High School, where Baraka also taught before becoming principal in 2007.

In an application obtained by NJ Advance Media through an open records request, Dowdell lists no previous public safety or emergency management experience, disclosing only his time as a teacher. Newark school personnel records indicate he left the teaching position to take a leave of absence before accepting his current $89,932 position.

City officials said he went through six months of training with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other state and local entities before fully taking the reins.

On Tuesday, Baraka said Dowdell's role is focused on helping to apply for grants and reimbursements for overtime and other expenses incurred during local emergencies, and he played no direct role in coordinating the city's storm response.

"It's strictly administrative," he said. "He is in no way strategizing any public safety response."

Since taking office, Baraka has hired a number of political allies from the South Ward and beyond, as well as family members, though the moves drew little to no public criticism at the time.

Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose, who oversees the city's police, fire and emergency management operations, called Council a "highly competent executive" and said Dowdell, while not directly involved with snow removal, was "one of the most valuable and hardest working people (in OEM)."

"I wish I had 10 Juba Dowdells," he said. "Snow removal is a team effort, and Pat and Juba are valuable members of the team."

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

Pepper, a 17-pound black poodle, went missing from Animal Emergency & Referral Associates in Fairfield on Saturday morning. Watch video

 

Pepper, a 17-pound gray poodle, went missing Saturday morning. (Photo provided)

FAIRFIELD -- The snow was already coming down hard Saturday when a dog went missing from a township animal hospital.

A nurse at Animal Emergency and Referral Associates was walking Pepper, a 17-pound, gray, male poodle, around 6:30 a.m., when the leash slipped from her grasp and the dog ran off.

Pepper crossed Bloomfield Avenue, zigging and zagging through more than six inches of snow, before running into dense woods along the Passaic River. He hasn't been seen since.

Dr. Michael Palescandolo, the animal hospital's director, said he intends to do whatever he can to find the dog for owner Maria Cambria, of Chatham, and her family.

"Our job is to heal and to do no harm, and that's the first law of your medical oath," Palescandolo said. "Losing the dog I would consider maybe not following that thought."

Cambria brought Pepper to the animal hospital Friday, after he was hit by a car in front of her house and needed minor treatment. 

Palescandolo said after the poodle ran away Saturday morning, hospital staff searched for him for six hours in the blizzard. When they stopped looking, they figured the dog had probably hidden in the snow.

Pepper is not wearing a collar but has a microchip under his chin with identifying information, Cambria said. She said he had an IV catheter banded to his front leg and was attached to a blue-white harness when he went missing.

The family is offering a $100 reward for Pepper's safe return. 

Have you seen him? Call Cambria at (917) 449-8144.

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

Parents say they faced serious impediments getting their kids to school Wednesday. Watch video

NEWARK -- When Shante Rollins left to take her two kids to school Wednesday morning, it took her longer than usual. "Mounds of snow" that narrowed city streets backed up traffic, and parents had to maneuver around roadways that are still being plowed, she said.

When she finally got to the KIPP SPARK Academy on Halsey Street, she says she saw teachers waiting in the streets, and parents parking about two blocks away and walking their kids along snowy sidewalks to the school, because the roads surrounding the school building had not been plowed.

The sight caused her to record a video of the conditions that she said she hoped would urge Mayor Ras Baraka to "do a better job."

On the other side of town, another Newark mom, who asked to be identified by only her first name, Darlyn, said she began waiting for an NJ Transit bus with her 9-year-old daughter at 7:30 a.m. The girl's trip to Robert Treat Academy usually takes her about 10 minutes.

Wednesday, it took about an hour and a half.

"The traffic is just unbelievable," Darlyn said. "A lot of the snow hasn't been picked up. When is this going to get done?"

Both moms said they felt it was a mistake to reopen city schools Wednesday, which were closed Monday and Tuesday as the city grappled to clean up from a monster storm that dropped nearly 30 inches of snow on Newark over the weekend.

Massive traffic delays reported in Newark

When announcing it planned to be open, Newark schools asked parents to "exercise  caution and patience" while commuting to school.

District officials said Wednesday that most school buses operated on schedule, and that all students "transported by district and contractor operated buses have been delivered safely and effectively to their school buildings."

"A few buses encountered minor delays on their way into schools," school spokeswoman Dreena Whitfield said in a statement Wednesday

The district also reported one "minor incident" in which a bus carrying six charter school students was bumped from behind by a car on Orange Street. The school is working with those students' parents and schools to respond to the incident, she said.

"Newark Public Schools thanks families, students and staff for their caution and patience this morning on their commutes into school."

But, Newark parents are also questioning the city's clean-up effort, which has garnered harsh criticism from residents who say it is taking Newark too long to clean up after the storm.

Baraka's office did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday, but the mayor has been sending numerous messages to residents blaming the unanticipated severity of the storm and number of stuck and abandoned vehicles in the streets, among other causes, for the delay in street cleaning.

In a video on his blog taken in front of a plow truck Tuesday night, Baraka reiterated that crews will be out working until all of the city streets are cleared.

"I know there's a lot of frustration and anger...we're out here doing the best that we can," he said in the video.

State Department of Transportation and county trucks rolled in to the city Tuesday to supplement city plowing resources.

"I am not happy or excited about how long this process is taking, or how well we are even doing at it, but I know we won't stop until it gets done," Baraka said in the message.

As the clean up continues, parents and school officials say they are now readying for the trip home from school Wednesday afternoon.

"We are asking our vendors to ensure to make every effort to be on time for pickup this afternoon, and have deployed additional support to ensure that every student is home safely this evening before shutting down operations," Whitfield said.

But, Darlyn said she and her daughter plan to just walk home from school, despite the snow-covered sidewalks that she said make up the route.

"I can't wait another hour-and-a-half for a bus," she said.

Staff reporter Dan Ivers contributed to this report.

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

The fifth and final suspect wanted in connection with the bloody assault of a city man earlier this month has been arrested. Watch video

NEWARK — The fifth and final suspect wanted in connection with the bloody assault of a city man earlier this month has been arrested, city officials announced Wednesday.

Tevone Craig, 20, of Newark, surrendered himself to police Tuesday, and was later taken into custody at the department's 3rd Precinct facility, said Newark Police Department spokesman Captain Derek Glenn.

Craig now faces charges of robbery, aggravated assault and conspiracy, said department spokesman Glenn said.

Authorities say Craig was one of five men who allegedly attacked attacked the victim at Broad and Market streets Jan. 10, video of which was uploaded to social media.

Four other men arrested in connection to the beating—Jahid Smith of Irvington, 18, and Newark residents Corey Sabb, 21, Joshua Craig, 18, and Julio Pendola, 28— all face similar charges.

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2016/01/3_arrested_in_connection_with_brutal_downtown_newa.html

The search for suspects began after Newark police interviewed the victim in the attack, which occurred around 1 p.m. near Broad and Market streets, one of the busiest intersections downtown.

According to police reports, the 28-year-old victim, whose name is being withheld, told investigating officers the attack began as a confrontation over cigarettes.

Their confrontation led to a fight, during which several men began kicking and punching the victim, the reports said.

Footage of the beating, which surfaced last Sunday, show the victim growing increasingly bloody and unsteady as the attack moved from the sidewalk to the street and back again.

The attack carried on for several minutes, despite the presence of a mini-precinct less than a block away, the footage shows.

Asked about police presence in the area at the time of the beating, Glenn said a two-officer patrol unit assigned to the mini-precinct was responding to the scene of a separate incident in the 200 block of Market Street as the assault was occurring.

Newark police did not learn the assault had taken place until after viewing video of the incident posted to social media, Glenn said. An investigation by department officers was initiated immediately afterward, he added.

In the days following the beating, Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose called the incident "unacceptable," telling NJ Advance Media he and police officials intend on implementing a comprehensive plan to "step up" presence of the city's metro police division, which patrols the areas in and around downtown.

The city police department has since supplemented Metro Division with additional personnel from the mounted and motorcycle squads, Glenn said.

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

Wednesday's cancellations were a fraction of the 400 flights scratched Wednesday, when Newark had more axed flights than any other airport in the nation. Watch video

NEWARK -- After five days of delays and mass cancellations, Newark Liberty International Airport appeared to be getting back to normal Wednesday.

As of 1 p.m., the airport had 15 canceled flights and 43 delayed flights Wednesday, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking service. That is far less than the more than 400 flights canceled Tuesday when Newark had more scratched flights than any other airport in the nation.

Airline officials said Newark Airport and its carriers struggled to recover from the blizzard that dropped a record 28.1 inches of snow on its runways, taxiways and gates Saturday. While nearby John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport were mostly back on schedule by Monday, problems at Newark lingered.

Baby boom 9 months after a snow storm: Fact or fiction?

The cancellations were largely due to problems moving snow from gates and runways as the airport attempted to find a place for the accumulation, airline officials said. The lack of available gates also meant airlines had trouble getting planes back in service and on their regular schedules.

United Airlines, Newark's largest carrier, flew in extra staff on Monday to help clear the gates of snow and assist passengers who had their flights canceled.

United, which had been offering to let storm-affected travelers change the dates of flights at no charge, has lifted the offer now that most planes are flying again, company officials said.

Newark Airport had no cancellations of Thursday flights announced as of 1 p.m. Wednesday, according to FlightAware. 

Tyrique Spruell, 24, of Newark, pleaded guilty to conspiring with Eugene Walker to commit the Sept. 13, 2012 robbery at a Newark grocery store

Tyrique SpruellNew Jersey Department of Corrections 

NEWARK -- Superior Court Judge Verna Leath said Jamil Bader Jr.'s family was operating a grocery store in Newark to provide a valuable service to neighboring residents.

But then Tyrique Spruell and Eugene Walker allegedly conspired to rob the business on Sept. 13, 2012. When the 18-year-old Bader tried to stop the robbery, he was shot and killed.

While charges are pending against Walker for allegedly pulling the trigger, Leath sentenced Spruell on Tuesday to seven years in state prison for acting as the getaway driver.

In handing down the sentence, Leath said the incident represented "a senseless crime directed at an innocent target by a young man who clearly has no concern for the value of this community," according to an audio recording of the hearing.

Spruell, 24, of Newark, had pleaded guilty on Nov. 9 to conspiracy to commit robbery at Jamil & Sons Family Grocery on Clinton Avenue, which was owned by Bader's family.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors recommended the seven-year prison sentence for Spruell. Spruell must serve nearly six years before becoming eligible for parole, and he will receive credit for almost three years of time served.

Spruell was sentenced on July 9 to five years in state prison on aggravated assault and theft charges in an unrelated case. On Tuesday, Leath noted how Spruell has been arrested seven times and this case represents his third conviction on an indictable offense.

Authorities have said Spruell was the getaway driver, and he never got out of the vehicle during the robbery, when Walker allegedly shot Bader. During Tuesday's hearing, Spruell's attorney, Sterling Kinsale, said his client had "nothing to do with" the homicide, according to the recording.

Spruell declined to make a statement during the hearing.

Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Adam Wells, who handled the case, said during the hearing that the Bader family continues to be distraught over the "senseless loss" of Jamil Bader Jr., according to the recording.

Wells added that the family is eager to see Walker's case proceed, and they are satisfied with the resolution of Spruell's case.

Walker, now 20, of Newark, was 16 years old at the time of the incident, and he was later waived up to adult court.

Walker also was charged with robbing a bodega on Aug. 14, 2012, authorities said. He was scheduled to go on trial in that case when he pleaded guilty on March 4, 2014 to robbery and related offenses.

Walker was then sentenced on May 8, 2014 to a 16-year prison term. He must serve nearly 14 years before becoming eligible for parole.

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

East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador said he will demand Neighborhood and Recreational Services Director Patrick Council leave his position at a meeting next week Watch video

Augusto Amador (Star-Ledger file photo)

NEWARK - As public frustration with the handling of the weekend's winter storm continues to simmer, Councilman Augusto Amador has announced his intention to call for the resignation of Director of Neighborhood and Recreational Services Patrick Council.

The longtime East Ward representative told NJ Advance Media he planned to make his demand official at a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, in which Council and other administrators will be invited to explain their response to the record-setting blizzard.

His remarks came after a roughly hour-long session in which Amador and others offered differing opinions on the city's performance. Council is responsible for coordinating snow removal efforts.

"I need a guarantee that (Council) will appear before us, in a public forum, to discuss the reasons why we had the problems that were manageable to a certain extent," Amador said.

"Other towns and municipalities and other cities larger than the city of Newark handled this matter in a better way than we did....someone dropped the ball on this."

Despite widespread anger from residents, Mayor Ras Baraka has continued to defend the city's response, as well as Council and other appointees, often noting urban areas up and down the eastern seaboard have struggled to deal with the unique challenges presented by the historic snowfall.

He took exception to Amador's resignation call, saying it was unfair to single out anyone for a situation created by snowfall that doubled what was predicted by many forecasts.

"I don't blame Pat Council for what happened here. I think that Mother Nature hit us harder than we expected," he said. "It's not the time to begin blaming people for what happened."

In a statement, Council maintained that he followed a comprehensive plan designed to deal with the more moderate storm predictions, and passed off control of all removal operations to emergency management officials after a state of emergency was declared early Saturday morning.

"It was only after the snow began to fall that we found that we were in a blizzard," he said.

At-Large Councilman Luis Quintana took issue with the city's communication both during and after the snowfall, saying he was falsely led to believe many North Ward streets would be plowed by early Sunday afternoon. He also criticized NJ Transit what he said was a failure to clean up bus stops, contributing to massive traffic delays.

"The plan has to be all nine of us, and all of us should be periodically told what was going on. We need to have eyes and ears on top of (employees)," he said.

"We can talk and blame everyone here today. Everybody can be blamed. We have to have a better plan."

Baraka defends appointees caught in snowstorm backlash

Other council members took a more sympathetic view, noting that the total pile-up of 28.1 inches over the weekend was, quite literally, something the city had never seen before.

"There was zero emphasis on our equipment for snowstorms over the last eight to10 years....we dealt with that with a decimated department," said South Ward Councilman John Sharpe James, who described seeing contracted plows and other trucks with bald tires, stuck spinning in the piles of snow.

"In times like this we need to work together instead of playing politics."

West Ward Councilman Joe McCallum also cautioned against any rash action, saying his visits to the city's command center had led him to believe that neither Council or Emergency Management Director Dorian Herrell were atop the organizational heap that coordinated operations.

"I didn't see them really at the table. I think it went a little higher than them," he said.

Patrick Council

Severe weather events have helped bring down city officials before. In 2010, council members berated neighborhood services director James Souder over his handling of a blizzard that dropped 24 inches of snow on the city.

Frustration grew after Newark suffered significant damage during Hurricane Irene, leading then-South Ward Councilman Baraka to propose a vote of no confidence. The call never officially came, however, as Souder resigned over allegations he sent a lewd photo to a City Hall staffer he was romantically involved with.

Though they acknowledged deficiencies in the city's strategy during and after the blizzard, it is unclear whether councilors other than Amador feel it might warrant Council's exit.

Central Ward Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield Jenkins issued a statement calling for a special committee to review what she called a clear "breakdown" in how the city handled its cleanup, but made clear it purpose was not to "point fingers or lay blame."

"Our goal should be to review what went wrong this time and develop a better plan so this doesn't happen again," she said.

Baraka said he would be more than happy to cooperate with any such review.

"We're going to do that anyway. After every emergency event that the city has, we have to do that," he said. "It's time for us to regroup, reassess."

City police are investigating after the body of deceased person was discovered Tuesday evening in the 100 block of Irving Turner Boulevard.

(File photo)

NEWARK -- City police are investigating after a body was discovered Tuesday evening in the 100 block of Irvine Turner Boulevard.

Details of the investigation, including the identity of the deceased, were not immediately available, said Newark Police Department spokesman Capt. Derek Glenn.

Police do not suspect foul play at this time, Glenn said.

The specific cause of the person's death is under investigation by the Essex County Medical Examiner's Office, he added.

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