Edison, NJ
Police & Fire
Civilian Shot, Killed During Dispute In Old Bridge: NJ Attorney General Civilian Shot, Killed During Dispute In Old Bridge: NJ Attorney General
Civilian Shot, Killed During Dispute In Old Bridge: NJ Attorney General A civilian was shot and killed by police responding to a dispute call in the Laurence Harbor section of Old Bridge on Monday, authorities said. Officers responded to a 911 call on Woodland Avenue -- a tiny residential street less than a half mile from Cheesequake State Park -- shortly after 3 p.m. April 24, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. An officer shot a civilian who was taken to Old Bridge Medical Center and pronounced dead at 4:47 p.m., the attorney general said. " The identity of the decedent and the officer are not being released at this time," Platkin said late Mon…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Marlton-Evesham, NJ
Police & Fire
Motorcyclist Fleeing Police Dies, Passenger Seriously Injured In South Jersey Crash Motorcyclist Fleeing Police Dies, Passenger Seriously Injured In South Jersey Crash
Motorcyclist Fleeing Police Dies, Passenger Seriously Injured In South Jersey Crash A motorcyclist was killed and a passenger seriously injured in a crash following an attempted police stop in South Jersey, authorities said. The crash occurred on Route 687 West after a Pemberton Township police officer tried to stop the cyclist, who crashed into a civilian's vehicle near the intersection of Davis Street in Pemberton shortly after 5:16 p.m. last Thursday, April 20, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. The as-yet unidentified motorcyclist was killed and a passenger -- also not yet identified -- was seriously injured in the crash, Platkin said. State law and his…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
News
Help Goes To Distraught Knife-Wielding Man After Paterson's First Standoff Since State Takeover Help Goes To Distraught Knife-Wielding Man After Paterson's First Standoff Since State Takeover
Help Goes To Distraught Knife-Wielding Man After Paterson's First Standoff Since State Takeover UPDATE: The first standoff in Paterson since the state attorney general's office took control of the police department ended peacefully last weekend when a distraught man wielding a knife surrendered after 6½ hours, authorities announced. He was immediately placed into a mental health program, they said. Paterson and New Jersey State police worked together to resolve the confrontation with no injuries at NJ TRANSIT's Market Street garage last Saturday, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. No charges were filed, either, because the incident was considered a mental-health crisi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Franklin Township, NJ
News
DUAL BOMBSHELLS: Local NJ Police Chiefs Charged In Sex Cases DUAL BOMBSHELLS: Local NJ Police Chiefs Charged In Sex Cases
Dual Bombshells: Local NJ Police Chiefs Charged In Sex Cases Two New Jersey police chiefs – one retired, the other suspended – are separately charged as sexual predators within their departments. Suspended Manville Police Chief Thomas Herbst continued a pattern of “sexually predatory behavior targeting multiple women over many years,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in announcing the charges on Wednesday, April 12. One victim who worked for the department was sexually assaulted by Herbst both at headquarters and at her home, the attorney general said. Former Howell Township Police Chief Andrew Kudrick, meanwhile, “had an extramarit…

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by Jerry DeMarco
North Hunterdon, NJ
News
NJ Police Officer, Woman Both Wounded, Suspect Dead In Domestic Incident NJ Police Officer, Woman Both Wounded, Suspect Dead In Domestic Incident
NJ Police Officer, Woman Both Wounded, Suspect Dead In Domestic Incident UPDATE: A police officer was shot responding to a domestic incident that left a woman wounded and the gunman dead Saturday afternoon in Warren County, authorities confirmed. Warren County Prosecutor Jim Pfeiffer confirmed that the suspect had shot the woman and then opened fire on officers responding to the 1:15 p.m. April 8 incident just off Hanover Street in Phillipsburg. The gunman then shot and killed himself, the prosecutor said. Both the officer, who was wounded in the leg by a round shot through his car door, and the woman, who was shot in the torso, were airlifted to nearby St. Lu…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Villas-Lower Township, NJ
News
Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Indicted In Health Benefits Scam Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Indicted In Health Benefits Scam
Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Indicted In Health Benefits Scam UPDATE: Less than a week after pleading guilty to federal tax evasion, Wildwood Mayor Pete Byron was indicted by a state grand jury along with two other elected officials in an alleged health insurance scam. Byron, former Mayor Ernest Troiano Jr., and current City Commissioner Steve Mikulski fraudulently participated in the State Health Benefits Program (SHBP), the indictment alleges. In order to be eligible for the benefits, they needed to be full-time employees “whose hours of work are fixed at 35 or more per week” in their elected positions, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin ex…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
News
'No Safety Without Trust': AG Takes Over Paterson PD, Pledges Changes In Mental Crisis Policing 'No Safety Without Trust': AG Takes Over Paterson PD, Pledges Changes In Mental Crisis Policing
'No Safety Without Trust': AG Takes Over Paterson PD, Pledges Changes In Mental Crisis Policing “There is no safety without trust,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in announcing a state takeover of the day-to-day operations of the Paterson Police Department and plans to include mental health professionals in responses to barricaded individuals there and statewide. Experience has shown that both moves are absolutely necessary at the moment, the state’s top law enforcement officer said. “There is a crisis of confidence in law enforcement in this city,” Platkin said, speaking outside the Frank X. Graves Jr. Public Safety Complex on Broadway on March 27. “Under these ci…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
News
NJ Attorney General To Take Over Paterson Police Operations, Live Stream Link Here NJ Attorney General To Take Over Paterson Police Operations, Live Stream Link Here
NJ Attorney General To Take Over Paterson Police Operations, Live Stream Link Here “There is no safety without trust,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in announcing a state takeover of the day-to-day operations of the Paterson Police Department and plans to include mental health professionals in responses to barricaded individuals there and statewide. Experience has shown that both moves are absolutely necessary at the moment, the state’s top law enforcement officer said. “There is a crisis of confidence in law enforcement in this city,” Platkin said, speaking outside the Frank X. Graves Jr. Public Safety Complex on Broadway on March 27. “Under these ci…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
News
Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot
Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot Najee Seabrooks gripped two bloody knives, at least one of which he'd been cutting himself with in his bathroom, as a knot of Paterson police officers in tactical gear tried to talk him into surrendering, video released by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office on Thursday shows. Seabrooks, a respected and admired non-violence activist, was in the middle of what family members said was apparently a drug-induced mental health crisis that March 3 morning. He held two knives within view that he refused to let go of and told police that had a gun, which state Attorney General Matthew Platkin…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Cherry Hill, NJ
News
Fugitive Pursued For Woman's Murder Shot Himself At NJ Turnpike Rest Stop, State AG Says Fugitive Pursued For Woman's Murder Shot Himself At NJ Turnpike Rest Stop, State AG Says
Fugitive Pursued For Woman's Murder Shot Himself At NJ Turnpike Rest Stop, State AG Says UPDATE: A man wanted for murder who died in a confrontation with police at a New Jersey Turnpike rest stop pulled the trigger himself, the state's top law enforcement official announced on Thursday. Kyle Foggy, 29, of Cherry Hill had stalked Michele Cruz, 28, before killing her in front of her Camden County apartment around 4 a.m. Feb. 25, they said. Authorities armed with an arrest warrant for murder and weapons possession caught up to Foggy at the Clara Barton Service Area in Salem County three days later, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin confirmed on Thursday, March 9. Foggy …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
News
Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates
Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates The shooting death of a Paterson non-violence activist following a five-hour barricaded standoff with city police has a pained, shaken and angry community demanding answers. Najee Seabrooks was pronounced dead at St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson shortly after the 12:30 p.m. shooting at an apartment near the corner of Mill and Edison streets on Friday, March 3, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin confirmed. Although initial details remained sketchy, all agreed that Seabrooks was in a mental health crisis. Officers initially responded to a report of an emotionally distu…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Egg Harbor Township, NJ
News
Jersey Shore Charter School Leaders Steered $115G Contract To Founder's Side Biz: Indictment Jersey Shore Charter School Leaders Steered $115G Contract To Founder's Side Biz: Indictment
Jersey Shore Charter School Leaders Steered $115G Contract To Founder's Side Biz: Indictment The founder of a Jersey Shore charter school and its business administrator illegally steered a $115,000 contract to the founder’s side business, state authorities charged. Peter Caporilli, 59, of Absecon, and Michael Falkowski, 48, of Point Pleasant, split a single project to build an outdoor learning center at Principle Academy in Egg Harbor Township into two smaller contracts for $40,000 and $75,000, respectively, a grand jury found. They did so to evade public bidding requirements and prevent competing contractors from bidding on the first phase of the job, an indictment returned by the…

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by Jerry DeMarco