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NJ's Top Cop Orders Extra Security For Schools Following Texas Massacre NJ's Top Cop Orders Extra Security For Schools Following Texas Massacre
NJ's Top Cop Orders Extra Security For Schools Following Texas Massacre Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin ordered State Police and all 21 county prosecutors Tuesday night to immediately boost law enforcement presence at schools statewide following the Texas massacre. "The safety of our state's residents—including and especially our children—is my top priority," Platkin said after he and State Police Supt. Col. Patrick Callahan had a virtual emergency meeting with law enforcement officers throughout New Jersey. The purpose, he said, was to "ensure coordination in the aftermath of this tragedy." The deadliest school shooting since the 2012 sl…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Jersey Shore Man Forced Girl, 14, To Carve His Initials Above Her Breast, Indictment Charges Jersey Shore Man Forced Girl, 14, To Carve His Initials Above Her Breast, Indictment Charges
Jersey Shore Man Forced Girl, 14, To Carve His Initials Above Her Breast, Indictment Charges A Jersey Shore man who convinced a 14-year-old girl he met online to carve his initials above her breast with a razor blade threatened to hurt her and her family if she didn’t meet his demands, an indictment returned Wednesday by a state grand jury alleges. Jason Berry, 40, of Keansburg also “demanded that the girl photograph herself engaging in acts of sexual penetration,” then sent some of the images to her mother, the indictment returned in Trenton charges. He also sent the girl “sexually explicit photos and videos of himself,” it adds. The case “demonstrates how powerful online predato…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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2nd Arrest Made, 3rd Victim Dies In South Jersey Birthday Party Shooting 2nd Arrest Made, 3rd Victim Dies In South Jersey Birthday Party Shooting
2nd Arrest Made, 3rd Victim Dies In South Jersey Birthday Party Shooting A second person was arrested and a third victim died following a birthday party shooting over the weekend in Cumberland County, authorities announced. Darrell Dawkins, 30, of Bridgeton, was charged with unlawful possession of a handgun days after Kevin Dawkins, 36, was arrested on similar charges, New Jersey State Police said. The younger Dawkins was not believed to be a shooter in the incident, in which 14 people were struck by gunfire. Braylin Holmes, 19, of Millville City, died of injuries sustained in the shooting and was pronounced dead Monday night at Cooper University Hospital, pol…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
'Birthday Party Turned Deadly': Arrest Made In South Jersey Mass Shooting, 2 Victims ID'd 'Birthday Party Turned Deadly': Arrest Made In South Jersey Mass Shooting, 2 Victims ID'd
'Birthday Party Turned Deadly': Arrest Made In South Jersey Mass Shooting, 2 Victims ID'd A 36-year-old man was arrested in a mass shooting that left two people dead and 12 others injured at a South Jersey birthday party over the weekend, authorities said Monday (scroll to bottom for video of full press briefing). Kevin Dawkins, of Bridgeton, was charged with multiple weapons offenses in connection with the Saturday night shooting during a party with hundreds of people in Cumberland County, state and county officials announced. Kevin Elliot, 30, and Asia Hester, 25 -- both of Bridgeton -- were killed in the shooting, with one of the other 12 people shot in critical condition, a…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ Human Trafficker Gets 50 Years For Forcing Girl, 17, Into Prostitution NJ Human Trafficker Gets 50 Years For Forcing Girl, 17, Into Prostitution
NJ Human Trafficker Gets 50 Years For Forcing Girl, 17, Into Prostitution A Trenton woman who cruelly forced an underage girl into prostitution must spend at least 20 years in state prison before she’ll be eligible for parole. Superior Court Judge Darlene J. Pereksta on Thursday sentenced Ashley Gardener, 32, for a series of jury convictions for human trafficking, promoting prostitution and child endangerment, among other crimes. Pereksta sentenced Gardener to 50 years altogether, 40% of which she must serve before she can seek a parole hearing.  It marked the final chapter in what authorities said was a prime example of a crime that occurs “in the shadows,…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Overnight Operation: Cuban Pete's Closed For Repeated COVID-19 Violations Overnight Operation: Cuban Pete's Closed For Repeated COVID-19 Violations
Overnight Operation: Cuban Pete's Closed For Repeated Covid-19 Violations Cuban Pete's in Montclair is closed after the owner repeatedly failed to obey COVD-19 orders. Police on Monday changed the locks on the Bloomfield Avenue eatery because it was not in compliance with Gov.Phil Murphy's orders, following an overnight investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office,  Essex County Sheriff’s Office and Montclair Police Department, NJ.com reports. The State Health Department and Attorney General's Office sought the order after owner Dominick Restaino refused to comply with a DOH order to stop operating, the media outlet said. Restaino was ord…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Man, 25, Sentenced For Lake Hopatcong Boating Accident That Killed Friend Man, 25, Sentenced For Lake Hopatcong Boating Accident That Killed Friend
Man, 25, Sentenced For Lake Hopatcong Boating Accident That Killed Friend A 25-year-old Morris County man was sentenced to nearly a year in jail for a drunken boating accident that killed his friend in 2019, authorities said. Nicholas Zarantonello was sentenced to three years probation conditioned on 364 days in Morris County Jail and 200 hours of community service, Acting Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll said. Zarantonello also can not operate a boat for one year or drive for three months, Carroll said in a joint release with Acting Chief of Investigations Christoph Kimker and New Jersey State Police Superintendent Colonel Patrick Callahan. …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Retired NJ Corrections Officer, Couple Charged In Sex Trafficking Of Girl, 14 Retired NJ Corrections Officer, Couple Charged In Sex Trafficking Of Girl, 14
Retired NJ Corrections Officer, Couple Charged In Sex Trafficking Of Girl, 14 A retired New Jersey corrections officer paid a couple for sex with a 14-year-old girl who was trafficked at an Atlantic City casino hotel, authorities charged. The girl was rescued when she showed up at the hotel after undercover State Police detectives responded to an online escort ad, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said Wednesday. Authorities later that day arrested Derrick V. Ross, 27, of Atlantic City, who Grewal said brought the girl to the hotel to have sex for money – and often sexually assaulted her himself. Also arrested was Tiffany N. Davis, 39, of Egg Harbor Township, …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Lifestyle
NJ Cracks Down On Crowded Jersey Shore Bars As COVID-19 Cases Rise Among Youngest Patrons NJ Cracks Down On Crowded Jersey Shore Bars As COVID-19 Cases Rise Among Youngest Patrons
NJ Cracks Down On Crowded Jersey Shore Bars As Covid-19 Cases Rise Among Youngest Patrons Concern remains for loosening COVID-19 restrictions too fast as New Jersey continues to "open up" bars, restaurants and other businesses. Gov. Phil Murphy and Col. Patrick Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, have voiced worries about the widespread lack of social distancing at Jersey Shore boardwalks and its bars and clubs. ABC-TV Eyewitness News and other media outlets posted video of D'Jais Bar & Grill in Belmar. "Can you blame people for coming out and letting their hair down a little? I certainly can't blame folks for doing that, but we are going to have to tig…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Disabled Vets Group Praised By Murphy Could Lose Liquor License For Alleged COVID Violation Disabled Vets Group Praised By Murphy Could Lose Liquor License For Alleged COVID Violation
Disabled Vets Group Praised By Murphy Could Lose Liquor License For Alleged COVID Violation A North Jersey group publicly praised by Gov. Phil Murphy for distributing free meals to disabled veterans and hospitals is now fighting to keep its liquor license after investigators cited them for violating the governor’s emergency closure orders. Organizers of Disabled American Veterans Chapter #2 in Clifton have been doing all they can to help 300 or so members cope with the isolation created by the coronavirus pandemic. They also delivered 100 gas gift cards last month to nurses, doctors, EMTs and staff at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson and at St. Mary’s General Hospi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Murphy: Dog Grooming OK But Not People, Unless 'Romantic Partner' Or Household Member Does It Murphy: Dog Grooming OK But Not People, Unless 'Romantic Partner' Or Household Member Does It
Murphy: Dog Grooming OK But Not People, Unless 'Romantic Partner' Or Household Member Does It You can get your dog groomed in New Jersey but not yourself -- unless a household member or "romantic partner" does it -- under a revised set of state social distancing directives, Gov. Phil Murphy and State Police Supt. Patrick Callahan announced Monday. The rules were outlined in "modifications" to Murphy's executive orders restricting certain business operations in the state during the current coronavirus state of emergency. Among the changes, Calahan cited: You can test-drive a car before you buy it, but you have to be alone in the vehicle and it has to be sanitized once you're done if …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Newark Police Ticket 161 'Knuckleheads' For Violating Coronavirus Curfew Newark Police Ticket 161 'Knuckleheads' For Violating Coronavirus Curfew
Newark Police Ticket 161 'Knuckleheads' For Violating Coronavirus Curfew Newark police closed 15 non-essential businesses and issued 161 summonses to people accused of violating governmental orders designed to combat the coronavirus, authorities said Tuesday. The tickets are further proof that authorities won't tolerate "knucklehead gatherings," Gov. Phil Murphy said. "I don't know why people are not thinking about themselves," NJ State Police Supt. Col. Patrick Callahan said during the governor's daily news briefing. "At least think about the first responders. When law enforcement has to go to a large gathering, (they) are exposing themselves, as well…

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by Jon Craig