Year in review: April 2015

Governor Chris Christie pardoned Shaneen Allen, the single mother from Philadelphia who was arrested on gun possession charges in Atlantic County in 2013.

Senator Bob Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges. Menendez stepped down as ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

State Senator Joe Kyrillos endorsed former Florida Governor Jeb Bush for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination.

Brookdale Community College President Maureen Murphy applied for the top job at Blinn College in Bryan, Texas.  She didn’t get it.

The year in review: 2015

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Year in Review: March 2015

Victor “Buddy” Amato photo via dogsdeservebetter,org

The Monmouth County Board of Freeholders voted to sell the two county owned nursing homes.

FEMA announced it would review every Hurricane Sandy related flood insurance claim.

SPCA Chief Buddy Amato retired six months earlier than planned after being sued for sending sexist and racist text to agency employees.  MMM reported that Amato’s accuser, Suzanne DesMarias, has a long history of suing her employers for harassment and work related injuries.

MMM reported that the Monmouth Democrats would consolidate their resources in the 11th Legislative District in an attempt to unseat Assemblywomen Mary Pat Angelini and Caroline Casagrande.

A federal jury in Trenton cleared the Monmouth County Correctional Institution of any wrongdoing in the death of a 22 year inmate who became violent after being refused the use of a cell phone.

The year in review: 2015

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Year in review: February 2015

Fire fighter Pat Breen and Freeholder Lillian Burry inspect the devastation in Ocean Grove. Feb 7, 2015. Photo by Bob Burlew

Fort Monmouth was designated as an Ebola quarantine site.

Mater Dei Prep was slated to close.  The community raised $1 million to save the school.

While in New Hampshire, Governor Chris Christie criticized Governor Maggie Hassan for appearing to be more focused on running for her next job than on governing the state she was elected to lead.

Christine Giordano Hanlon was nominated to replace M.Claire French as Monmouth County Clerk.

Locals remembered Brian Williams’ early exaggerations.

A fire destroyed four businesses and seven apartments in Ocean Grove.

In reaction to 50 Shades of Grey, Tommy DeSeno wrote that sex is the same for everyone, like eating, and that we shouldn’t talk about it so much.

Belmar’s Home By Summer campaign raised $50K in two weeks to assist the last two borough residents who were displaced by Hurricane Sandy get back into their homes.

The year in review: 2015

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Year in review: January 2015

JANUARY

In Atlantic Highlands, an ongoing rift within the local GOP became public when Republican Councilman Lou Fligor nominated Democrat Roy Dellosso to be Council President, catching Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, who was on hand to swear in Republicans Jack Archibald and Peter Doyle in to their new council terms, off guard.

Archibald and Fligor went on to a primary fight to replace retiring Mayor Fred Rast at the GOP standard bearer. Archibald beat Fligor in June but lost badly to Democrat  in November Rhonda “Randi” Le Grice and turned over control of the borough’s government to the Democrats.

Mike Halfacre started the year taking the Polar Bare Plunge in Asbury Park and ended the year with two new jobs.

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Keansburg Man Convicted Of Armed Robbery, Kidnapping While Impersonating A Cop

Steven P. Rinck

Steven P. Rinck, 49, of Seabreeze Way in Keansburg has spent the past four Christmases in jail.  Given his conviction returned by a Monmouth County jury this week, he is likely to spend the next twenty Christmases locked up as well.

On October 21, 2012 Rinck gained entry to a to a Seeley Ave home by claiming he was a NJ State Police Trooper armed with a handgun and a search warrant.  He stole cash and drugs from the male resident and a friend with bad timing who arrived during the robbery.

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this holiday week: December 25, 2015-January 3, 2016

This is our last list of things to do in Monmouth County of 2015 and our first of 2016, with activities listed throughout the week.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous 2016.  ~Art

By Greg Kelly

Courtesy of Teddy Bears by the Shore

Friday, December 25

• Merry Christmas

Saturday, December 26

• Guild of Creative Art ‘15 All-Member Holiday Exhibit (Shrewsbury) – MORE INFO
• Beautiful Childhood Portraits Exhibit (Freehold) – MORE INFO
• 19th Century New Jersey Chairmaking Exhibit (Freehold) – MORE INFO
• Black Suburbia at The Saint (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

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Halfacre named Executive Director of NJ Beer Wholesalers Association

Michael I. Halfacre

Michael I. Halfacre, the former Director of the NJ Division Alcoholic Beverage Control, has been named the Executive Director of the Beer Wholesalers Association of New Jersey, effective January 4, 2016.  He will remain Of Counsel to Genova Burns, the law firm he joined upon leaving the ABC last summer.  Halfacre is replacing Robert J. Pinard, who is retiring after directing the trade association since 1992.

“Michael Halfacre brings an outstanding record as a legal professional, as well as his regulatory background, that will be vital to leading the Beer Wholesalers Association of New Jersey,” said Mark Kramer, President of Kramer Beverage and Chairman of the associations Executive Committee.

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Marine Pilot who flew Obama and Christie post Sandy says Christie’s his guy

The Marine One pilot who flew President Barack Obama and Governor Chris Christie after Hurricane Sandy met Christie at a campaign stop in New Hampshire yesterday, according to coverage at NJ.com

Lt Col Peter Reitmeyer said, after meeting Christie and getting his autograph on a photo he took of the governor and Obama in 2012, that he would vote for any Republican over Hillary Clinton and that right now, Christie is his guy.

VIDEO:

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Freehold Bomb Threat Was Domestic Terrorism Hoax

Monmouth County authorities arrested Jessee Carroll, 22, of Middletown on Friday and charged him with making bomb threats at the AMC theater complex at Freehold Raceway Mall on Monday December 14 and again on Friday the 18th.

Carroll is being held in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution on $200,000 bail with no 10% option as set by Superior Court Judge Honora O’Brien Kilgallen.  Should he make bail, Carroll is ordered not to return to the scene of the crime or any other movie theaters.

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A Very RAINEy Christmas

Slideshow photos by Tamara Woolley and Art Gallagher

Giving has been the gift for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of RAINE Foundation volunteer over the last three weeks as they gave their time and effort to ensure over 400 families and an estimated 2600 children from throughout Monmouth County have Christmas gifts this holiday season.

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