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New Jersey’s bail reform law

WILD PURSUIT: Car Thief Pulled From Frigid Meadowlands Creek Is Violent Career Criminal WILD PURSUIT: Car Thief Pulled From Frigid Meadowlands Creek Is Violent Career Criminal
Wild Pursuit: Car Thief Pulled From Frigid Meadowlands Creek Is Violent Career Criminal UPDATE: A Union City man who jumped into a frigid Meadowlands creek during a dramatic police chase is an ex-con with nearly 50 arrests in no fewer than five North Jersey counties over the past 35 years. Career criminal Gregory Calvo, 53, is the very embodiment of the phrase “known to police.” He's been convicted nearly two dozen times in Bergen, Hudson, Passaic, Morris and Essex counties since 1989 – for offenses that include robbery, theft, burglary, drug dealing, domestic violence and aggravated assault -- and has been in and out of state prison and county jails since that time only to be…
INFANT OVERDOSE: Judge Frees Bergen Woman Charged With Endangerment After Baby Ingests Opioid INFANT OVERDOSE: Judge Frees Bergen Woman Charged With Endangerment After Baby Ingests Opioid
Infant Overdose: Judge Frees Bergen Woman Charged With Endangerment After Baby Ingests Opioid A 23-year-old Bergen County woman was arrested after a 6-month-old child ingested and overdosed on an opioid, authorities said. Alia Elsafy of North Arlington was initially jailed, but a Superior Court judge in Hackensack almost immediately ordered her release on Friday, May 26, under New Jersey's bail reform law, records show. She’s charged with one count of child endangerment. The infant survived the May 19 overdose, which Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said was immediately reported to members of his Special Victims Unit by the state Division of Child Protection and Permanency. W…
Rapper Lil Tjay Busted On Gun Charges From Night He Was Shot At Edgewater Restaurant Rapper Lil Tjay Busted On Gun Charges From Night He Was Shot At Edgewater Restaurant
Rapper Lil Tjay Busted On Gun Charges From Night He Was Shot At Edgewater Restaurant Rapper Lil Tjay, who was shot and critically wounded outside an Edgewater restaurant last summer, was arrested on gun charges stemming from that incident after returning this week from a world tour. The 22-year-old Bronx rapper, born Tione Jayden Merritt, had three handguns hidden in his car when he and a companion were shot during what authorities said was a botched robbery on June 22, 2023. The weapons were stashed in a secret compartment that detectives uncovered during a court-approved search of the vehicle, according to an affidavit filed in Superior Court in Hackensack. An arrest wa…
Stalker From Fort Lee Threatens Officer, Family In Old Tappan: Police Stalker From Fort Lee Threatens Officer, Family In Old Tappan: Police
Stalker From Fort Lee Threatens Officer, Family In Old Tappan: Police A law enforcement officer in Old Tappan and his family were threatened by an online stalker from Fort Lee, authorities said following her arrest. Sammie E. Kim, 46, directed threats and harassment at the officer and family from various anonymous social media accounts over the course of several months, Old Tappan Police Chief Joseph Tracy said on Thursday, April 13. An arrest warrant was approved by a local judge after Old Tappan Police Detective Sgt. Charles DiMaria identified Kim as the source, the chief said. Fort Lee police took Kim into custody and turned her over to their Old Tappan c…
Offender Released After Multi-Town Pursuit Terrorizes Parents Twice In 3 Hours: Fairview PD Offender Released After Multi-Town Pursuit Terrorizes Parents Twice In 3 Hours: Fairview PD
Offender Released After Multi-Town Pursuit Terrorizes Parents Twice In 3 Hours: Fairview PD Imagine a fleeing driver crashing his mother's car into police cruisers three times during a multi-agency pursuit -- sending an officer to the hospital -- then getting released by a judge a short time later. Imagine the same man allegedly going berserk and trashing his parents' apartment, forcing them to lock themselves in the bathroom. Imagine he's taken into custody only to be released again. Meet Joshua Hayes, 30, of Fairview. Borough officers arrested Hayes for the early-morning incident at his folks' home on Monday, March 6. They were back there less than a half-hour after Hayes had …
Motel Guest Covered In Lotion Rescued From Knife-Wielding Woman At Little Ferry Motel: Police Motel Guest Covered In Lotion Rescued From Knife-Wielding Woman At Little Ferry Motel: Police
Motel Guest Covered In Lotion Rescued From Knife-Wielding Woman At Little Ferry Motel: Police Little Ferry police rescued a motel guest from Hackensack from a knife-wielding Englewood woman who covered him in lotion and held him against his will, authorities said. Responding officers two people arguing loudly on the other side of the room door when they arrived at the Capri Inn, Police Chief James Walters said. Desarey Victoria Hutchison, 31, who records show has a history of stalking arrests, initially refused to open the door, the chief said. She finally relented but was “extremely irate and screaming," he said. The officers found the 35-year-old victim covered head-to-toe in lo…
Violent Repeat Offender Threatens To Kill Children At Wayne Restaurant, Exposes Himself: Police Violent Repeat Offender Threatens To Kill Children At Wayne Restaurant, Exposes Himself: Police
Violent Repeat Offender Threatens To Kill Children At Wayne Restaurant, Exposes Himself: Police A violent repeat offender who terrorized patrons of a Wayne restaurant by threatening to kill their children urinated on the lawn of Wayne Valley High School while students were in class after he was released from custody, authorities said. Stephen Sales, 42, of Wayne was drunk and holding a beer can when he approached New Year's Eve diners at their tables at the Hamburg Turnpike restaurant, pointed at their children and threatened to kill them, Detective Capt. Dan Daly said. Officers rushed there and seized Sales, who’d previously been banned from the establishment and has a history of sim…
Dual Threat: Wayne Twins Sexually Harass Same Woman, Tangle With Police, Authorities Report Dual Threat: Wayne Twins Sexually Harass Same Woman, Tangle With Police, Authorities Report
Dual Threat: Wayne Twins Sexually Harass Same Woman, Tangle With Police, Authorities Report Twin brothers from Wayne sexually harassed a local mom repeatedly, then tangled with police who arrested them both, authorities said. The woman told police that she was walking in her neighborhood with her young child on Aug. 29 when Ryan Kayal, 33, rode up on a bicycle and “threatened to force himself on her sexually,” Detective Capt. Dan Daly said. Kayal was “evasive and uncooperative,” then walked away and refused to stop when they found him on the bicycle a short time later, the captain said. They’d taken Kayal into custody when his twin, Daniel, emerged from their home and tried to fr…
SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say
Sneaky PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say A brazen voyeur from Hackensack took "upskirting" to an extreme, authorities said, when a browsing shopper found him lying on the floor of a discount department store snapping photos up her dress. Marco Alvear, 40, scrambled to his feet and ran from the Lyndhurst store after the horrified 53-year-old Rutherford woman discovered what he was doing, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. Lyndhurst Detectives Chris Cuneo and Tom McSweeney identified Alvear, the lieutenant said, thanks to video surveillance from the store, which won't be identified here because of its cooperation with them. They al…
Brazen Senior Burglar Subdued By Resident, Leonia Police Say Brazen Senior Burglar Subdued By Resident, Leonia Police Say
Brazen Senior Burglar Subdued By Resident, Leonia Police Say Amid multiple warnings of how senior citizens can protect themselves from break-ins, a younger Bergen County resident found himself face-to-face with a burglar well past his prime, authorities said. The Christie Lane resident was home alone when he heard what he thought might be a returning family member around 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 28, Leonia Police Chief Scott Tamagny said. He found Jose Velez, 67, of West 31st Street in Manhattan, instead, the chief said. It wasn't all that tough for the resident to restrain the elderly intruder until police arrived. They charged Velez with burglary, …
Passaic Sheriff: Detectives Seize 11,450 Heroin Folds, Gun, More From Ex-Con In Street Bust Passaic Sheriff: Detectives Seize 11,450 Heroin Folds, Gun, More From Ex-Con In Street Bust
Passaic Sheriff: Detectives Seize 11,450 Heroin Folds, Gun, More From Ex-Con In Street Bust Passaic County sheriff's detectives seized 11,450 heroin folds, more than five ounces combined of unpackaged heroin and cocaine and a loaded gun from a convicted felon from Woodland Park, authorities said. Jemell Carter, 39, was stopped by the investigators on Summer and Fulton streets in Paterson following a drug deal on Jackson Avenue in Woodland Park on Tuesday, April 19, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik said. In his car, Berdnik said, they found: the 9mm Hi-Point handgun; 700 heroin folds; the unpackaged drugs; illegally obtained pot; $2,522 in drug cash. With Carter's consent, …
Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say
Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say A botched robbery in Paterson cost a repeat offender from Union County his life, although New Jersey’s bail reform law also had something to do with it. It was a week ago that Kyle Newton, 28, was arrested in Lyndhurst while he and another man were scoping out vehicles to steal, authorities said. Newton (inset in photo above), of Hillside, had a history of arrests in multiple counties over the past few years. Just as in the those cases, he was released from custody after last Monday’s arrest in Lyndhurst because of New Jersey’s bail reform law, records show. He ended up dead less tha…
NOT THIS TIME: Would-Be Gas Station Robber Body-Slammed By Route 46 Attendant, Police Say NOT THIS TIME: Would-Be Gas Station Robber Body-Slammed By Route 46 Attendant, Police Say
NOT This Time: Would-Be Gas Station Robber Body-Slammed By Route 46 Attendant, Police Say A self-described crackhead got a surprise when he tried robbing a Route 46 gas station with a sharpened mop handle and instead got body-slammed by the attendant, authorities said. Two Good Samaritans helped hold down Dwayne Fain, 53, after the attendant at the Enrite station on the highway's eastbound side at Liberty Street blew up his plans, Little Ferry Police Chief James Walters said. Fain, an Ohio native who apparently had been staying at a nearby hotel in South Hackensack, spent eight days in the Bergen County Jail earlier this month following his arrest for a pair of armed burglaries…
NJ BAIL REFORM: Released Twice In Two Weeks, Ridgefield Park Man Gropes Woman, Police Charge NJ BAIL REFORM: Released Twice In Two Weeks, Ridgefield Park Man Gropes Woman, Police Charge
NJ Bail Reform: Released Twice In Two Weeks, Ridgefield Park Man Gropes Woman, Police Charge A repeat offender wanted for groping a local woman may have been ready to strike again when a Ridgefield Park police officer grabbed him, authorities said. It became the third time that Michael Hernandez, 22, had been arrested in Bergen County in a little over a month -- as well as the third time that police ended up seeing him released. The first time, they were required to release Hernandez under New Jersey's bail reform law after they said they caught him breaking into cars on May 16. SEE: Detective Work Produces Ridgefield Park Vehicle Burglary Arrest Ten days later (May 26), Hernande…
Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen
Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen Federal authorities placed a detainer on an Ecuadoran national living in Hackensack after local authorities jailed him on charges of sexually assaulting a pre-teen. Nelson Fabian Padilla, a 26-year-old pizzeria worker, remained held Monday in the Passaic County Jail following his arrest three days earlier on charges of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault by contact and child endangerment, records show. ICE authorities issued a detainer so that Padilla can be brought before a U.S. District Court judge in Newark for a hearing on his immigration status if a local judge releases him …
Twice-Imprisoned Morris County Ex-Con Nabbed With Gun Again, Paterson Police Say Twice-Imprisoned Morris County Ex-Con Nabbed With Gun Again, Paterson Police Say
Twice-Imprisoned Morris County Ex-Con Nabbed With Gun Again, Paterson Police Say A Morris County ex-con appears headed to state prison for the third time in just four years after Paterson police said they found him carrying a loaded gun, cocaine, pot and Xanax. Daniel Wendt, 29, has been through this before. He spent 3½ years in separate station prison sentences on drug and weapons offenses before being released this past March. Wendt had been charged in 2015 with drug offenses and attempted murder, among other counts, before pleading guilty to being a convicted felon in possession of a weapon following a shooting in the parking lot of a Hanover motel. Earlier this mon…
Hudson Mail Thief Who Kicked, Bit Wood-Ridge Officer In Fierce Fight Quickly Released By Judge Hudson Mail Thief Who Kicked, Bit Wood-Ridge Officer In Fierce Fight Quickly Released By Judge
Hudson Mail Thief Who Kicked, Bit Wood-Ridge Officer In Fierce Fight Quickly Released By Judge A Wood-Ridge police sergeant was injured during a furious struggle with an accused mail thief from Union City who was quickly back on the street following his arrest. Responding to a 911 call, Sgt. Joseph Rutigliano found Jimmy Yepez, 36, while searching the area of the thefts near Bergen Street and Industrial Road, Detective Lt. Joseph Biamonte said. As the sergeant pulled up, Yepez ran around his vehicle and threw mail and other evidence into Berry’s Creek, Biamonte said. Rutigliano got out and ordered him to the ground several times, but Yepez – who has a prior arrest history -- fought …