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NJ Driver, 20, Accused Of Killing 4 Friends In Crash Tells Her Side On TikTok, GoFundMe NJ Driver, 20, Accused Of Killing 4 Friends In Crash Tells Her Side On TikTok, GoFundMe
NJ Driver, 20, Accused Of Killing 4 Friends In Crash Tells Her Side On TikTok, GoFundMe Money began pouring in to help pay legal fees for a 20-year-old Essex County woman after she posted a TikTok video on Saturday defending herself against charges in a violent crash that killed four of her close friends last spring. A badly-burned Nashauna Johnson of Newark also mounted a GoFundMe campaign to deal with legal costs. A grand jury in Newark on Thursday returned an indictment charging Johnson with four counts of death by auto – also known as vehicular homicide -- in the June 9 crash on Route 22 at the Newark-Hillside border. In her TikTok video, Johnson contends that drugs, alc…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
TikTok Finds NJ Man Kidney Donor Months After He Discovers Long-Lost Son TikTok Finds NJ Man Kidney Donor Months After He Discovers Long-Lost Son
TikTok Finds NJ Man Kidney Donor Months After He Discovers Long-Lost Son A North Jersey man's will to live has been renewed after finding his long-lost son, granddaughter and then a kidney donor over social media all within the last several months. Jamie Fatato, of Weehawken, began suffering from kidney failure 15 years ago while visiting his mom in Florida, his girlfriend, Mariam "MJ" Mirbaba said. The kidney Fatato received from his brother back then began failing in 2018. Since then, 49-year-old Fatato has spent five hours a day, three days a week on dialysis trying to find a new kidney.  The search was exhausting, and Fatato was losing hope. But, las…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
'Pick My Cotton': Police Investigate TikTok Comments That Terrorized Elmwood Park Girl, 12 'Pick My Cotton': Police Investigate TikTok Comments That Terrorized Elmwood Park Girl, 12
'Pick My Cotton': Police Investigate TikTok Comments That Terrorized Elmwood Park Girl, 12 After all these months of remote learning, an Elmwood Park mom couldn’t figure out why her 7th-grade daughter resisted returning to a classroom. “She begged me not to send her back,” the young mom said. “I couldn’t understand why. She is well-liked and intelligent. It didn’t make sense.” Then her daughter showed her screen shots of racist comments left under a TikTok video of her dancing with friends by three male students at Elmwood Park Memorial Middle School.  A sampling: “KKK for life” “pick my cotton I need some more” “when I find you you will pay for escaping the farm” “HISPANIC L…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
New Jersey Paraplegic, 22, Answers TikTok's Most Intimate Questions About Being Paralyzed New Jersey Paraplegic, 22, Answers TikTok's Most Intimate Questions About Being Paralyzed
New Jersey Paraplegic, 22, Answers TikTok's Most Intimate Questions About Being Paralyzed Place your hand on a flat surface. Tuck all of your fingers except for your ring finger under your palm. Now, try to lift your ring finger. That's how Bergen County native Jessica Tawil explains what being paralyzed feels like to her 1.3 million TikTok followers. The 22-year-old college student began using the video-sharing app last November, nearly six years after the West Milford accident that left her wheelchair-bound, to provide an inside look at life as a paraplegic. She says sharing videos about the accident and her new life has been therapeutic and eye-opening -- for herself and o…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
New Jersey Woman In Family Of TikTok Singers Gets Shot At Solo Career On 'American Idol' New Jersey Woman In Family Of TikTok Singers Gets Shot At Solo Career On 'American Idol'
New Jersey Woman In Family Of TikTok Singers Gets Shot At Solo Career On 'American Idol' As much as Samantha Sharpe loves singing with her parents and three brothers, the New Jersey native is hoping for a solo career of her own. And thanks to "American Idol," that dream could soon be a reality: The 25-year-old Basking Ridge resident is going to Hollywood. Samantha was joined by her parents and three brothers -- known altogether as the "Sharpe Family Singers" -- on Sunday's episode of the ABC hit singing show. The Sharpe Family performed an a cappella version of "Into the Unknown" before judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. Then, Sam performed her rendition of "Ti…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Pennsylvania TikToker Stabs Disabled Sister To Death Day After Going Viral, DA Says Pennsylvania TikToker Stabs Disabled Sister To Death Day After Going Viral, DA Says
Pennsylvania TikToker Stabs Disabled Sister To Death Day After Going Viral, DA Says A Pennsylvania teen stabbed her disabled sister to death a day after one of her videos went viral on video sharing app TikTok, authorities and reports say. Claire Miller, 14, was charged as an adult by the the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office with homicide after calling 911 around 1 a.m. Monday saying she had killed her sister. Police arrived at her home where they found Miller in blood-stained pants, and her 19-year-old sister Helen Miller with a fatal stab wound to the neck, the New York Post reports. Helen, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair, was pronounced dea…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Sticky Situation: Woman Hospitalized After Substituting Gorilla Glue For Hairspray Sticky Situation: Woman Hospitalized After Substituting Gorilla Glue For Hairspray
Sticky Situation: Woman Hospitalized After Substituting Gorilla Glue For Hairspray A Louisiana woman affectionately dubbed "Gorilla Glue Girl" is going viral for a sticky situation that landed her in the hospital. When 40-year-old Tessica Brown ran out of Got2Be hairspray about a month ago, she resorted to Gorilla Glue spray instead. "Bad, bad, bad idea," she said teary-eyed on a TikTok video that had been seen 20 million times as of Monday night. "I've washed it 15 times and it don't move." Seeking some relief, Brown went to a nearby hospital and was sent home with products to help break down the glue, she said in a YouTube update. View this post …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
New Jersey Teen Accused Of Killing Neighbor On TikTok Arrested Again In Florida New Jersey Teen Accused Of Killing Neighbor On TikTok Arrested Again In Florida
New Jersey Teen Accused Of Killing Neighbor On TikTok Arrested Again In Florida A New Jersey teen accused of killing his neighbor for TikTok fame was arrested again in Florida, this time on aggravated assault charges, records show. Zachary Latham, 18, of Vineland -- a private in the New Jersey National Guard -- brandished a BB airsoft gun during a confrontation with a driver near the Meridian Center Parkway on Saturday, the Fort Myers News-Press reports. Latham has been in Florida awaiting trial for the killing of William "Timmy" Durham Sr., 51. The teen was released Jan. 25 on a $2,000 bond, the according to the Lee County Sheriff's Office. Latham is facin…

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by Cecilia Levine
Lifestyle
VIDEO: TikTok Going Wild Over Long Lost Footage Of Jersey Shore Dancer's Bar Mitzvah Routine VIDEO: TikTok Going Wild Over Long Lost Footage Of Jersey Shore Dancer's Bar Mitzvah Routine
Video: TikTok Going Wild Over Long Lost Footage Of Jersey Shore Dancer's Bar Mitzvah Routine Monmouth County's Jake Dylan thought he'd never get the video footage of his 2006 Bar Mitzvah party. All the Marlboro native knew was that there had been some miscommunication, and his memories and photos alone would be his only relics of the night. But sometime last week, Dylan's Bar Mitzvah videographer found his mom on Facebook and said his tapes were headed for the trash -- unless they wanted them. They did. They certainly did. Dylan, a 27-year-old actor and dance instructor from Hoboken, popped the DVD into the player, reliving every glorious second of the Broadway-themed evening. …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
HIT AND RUN: State Police Probe South Jersey Crash Going Viral On TikTok HIT AND RUN: State Police Probe South Jersey Crash Going Viral On TikTok
HIT AND RUN: State Police Probe South Jersey Crash Going Viral On TikTok Footage of a driver sprinting down Route 42 in Camden County after crashing his SUV into the median and ricocheting into another car Sunday afternoon is going viral on TikTok.  When New Jersey State Police troopers responded to the southbound crash at milepost 13.2 in Runnemede around 1 p.m., the driver of a black Honda Pilot had already fled. Gino Deanne got it all on tape. Deanne was behind the SUV while coming home from the hospital, where had been visiting his fiance and newborn twins. "I was running back and forth from the hospital and had my 3-year-old with me," said Deanne, of…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
1 Dead After Off-Road Vehicle Overturns In NJ 'Hidden Gem' Crystal Lake Popularized On TikTok 1 Dead After Off-Road Vehicle Overturns In NJ 'Hidden Gem' Crystal Lake Popularized On TikTok
1 Dead After Off-Road Vehicle Overturns In NJ 'Hidden Gem' Crystal Lake Popularized On TikTok One person died after an off-roading vehicle with four occupants overturned this weekend into a Jersey Shore lake that became popular on TikTok. Earlier this year, one person drowned at the same, privately-owned former mining property in Ocean County. The incident occurred Saturday evening, when the utility terrain vehicle overturned and became submerged in 25 feet of water -- James Grover, 62, still attached by his seatbelt, NJ.com reports. Grover was pronounced dead at the scene, and authorities believe he drowned, the article says. Two other occupants and the driver were able to escape…

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by Cecilia Levine
Lifestyle
Kellyanne Conway's Teen NJ Daughter Teases 'American Idol' Audition Kellyanne Conway's Teen NJ Daughter Teases 'American Idol' Audition
Kellyanne Conway's Teen NJ Daughter Teases 'American Idol' Audition Will Kellyanne Conway's teen New Jersey daughter be the next American Idol? Alpine native Claudia Conway, 16, posted a TikTok video of herself in the show's confessional studio with a film crew Sunday, hinting that she'll be competing on the upcoming season, set to premier Feb. 14 on ABC. Judges will be Lion Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan, with longtime host Ryan Seacrest. The teen, whose mom served as the counselor to President Trump's, sent shockwaves through the internet in June, when she took TikTok to share her anti-Trump views. “Believe it or not, you can have your own opini…

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by Cecilia Levine