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Eric Dreiband

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Bergen Town Agrees To Allow Orthodox Worship Center And Pay $1.5 Million Bergen Town Agrees To Allow Orthodox Worship Center And Pay $1.5 Million
Bergen Town Agrees To Allow Orthodox Worship Center And Pay $1.5 Million An Orthodox Jewish congregation will be allowed to build a new worship center in Woodcliff Lake under an agreement reached Tuesday, ending a years-long battle that the borough fought with both the religious group and the federal government. Under a pair of the agreements announced Tuesday, the feds and Valley Chabad are both dropping lawsuits against the borough for denying zoning approvals for the property at Werimus Road and Woodcliff Avenue. The borough also will pay Valley Chabad $1.5 million in damages and attorney’s fees resulting from the ordeal, under a separate agreement between th…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
US Government Sues Jersey Shore Town For Discriminating Against Orthodox Schools US Government Sues Jersey Shore Town For Discriminating Against Orthodox Schools
US Government Sues Jersey Shore Town For Discriminating Against Orthodox Schools Jackson Township is discriminating against Orthodox Jews through zoning ordinances that “intentionally restrict the operation of religious schools and housing associated with such schools,” including yeshivas, the U.S. Justice Department said Wednesday. The ordinances were enacted and used “against a backdrop of extreme [animosity] by Jackson residents and township decision makers toward the Orthodox Jewish community and a movement by residents to keep Orthodox Jewish community members from settling in Jackson,” the government contends in a lawsuit. Jackson’s planning board applied a pair o…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Justice Dept: COVID-Related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses Justice Dept: COVID-Related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses
Justice Dept: Covid-related Directives Can't Treat Religious Groups Differently Than Businesses Although state and local governments may issue coronavirus state-of-emergency directives, "there is no pandemic exception to the Constitution and its Bill of Rights," the Justice Department said Sunday. Federal authorities issued the statement in support of a Virginia church whose pastor was charged criminally with conducting a worship service attended by 16 people in a 225-seat sanctuary. But its message extends well beyond the specific case, as federal authorities continue examining state and local emergency orders to see whether they'd stand up to a constitutional challenge. The Lightho…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Feds: Staff At NJ Women's Prison Sexually Abused Inmates Feds: Staff At NJ Women's Prison Sexually Abused Inmates
Feds: Staff At NJ Women's Prison Sexually Abused Inmates Staff members at a New Jersey prison for women sexually abused inmates, federal prosecutors said Monday. Evidence shows that the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton "fails to protect prisoners from sexual abuse by the facility’s staff," U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said Monday. This violates the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, Carpenito said. The U.S. Justice Department served notice on the Hunterdon County facility "for these alleged conditions and the minimum remedial measures necessary to address them," he said. In turn, Carpenito said, state official…

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by Jerry DeMarco