Back the Blue gear modeled by Jack, Luke and Willis Kratz outside Middletown Town Hall
The Kratz family of Middletown, Kimberly, Willis and their sons Jack and Luke are expressing their support of local law enforcement by raising funds through the sale of Back The Blue gear.
$5 from every sale of a Back The Blue shirt, hoodie, facemask gaiter, fleece jogger or backpack goes to support the Middletown Police Department’s K-9 Unit or the Police Explorers.
A July 11 house party on West Front Street in Middletown is believed to be the source of a COVID-19 outbreak among Township area teenagers, according to an announcement by the local health department.
The Middletown Township Department of Health and Social Services is currently investigating a cluster of approximately 20 COVID-19 cases in young adults ages 15 to 19.
Officer Thomas Foster, center, in a 2016 photo. Photo via Middletown PD facebook page
Middletown Police Officer Thomas E. Foster, 33, was charged with fourth degree falsifying records, according to an announcement this morning by Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.
Foster, who has been on the Middletown Police force since August 18, 2014, has been suspended without pay, according to an announcement by the Middletown Police Department.
Jada Tulloch and Luke Farrell, Middletown High School North seniors. Photo courtesy of Luke Ferrell
By Luke Ferrell
Middletown, it’s time that we have a conversation about race. Merriam-Webster defines a conversation as “an oral exchange of sentiments, observations, opinions, or ideas”. Let’s “exchange” ways to make our community a better place without “exchanging” hate or negativity. I’d like to explain why even the “fifth safest city in America to raise a child” (SafeWise, 2016) cannot be excluded from hearing stories of overcoming racial adversity.
Jada Tulloch, the 2020 valedictorian of Middletown High School North, said she “had a great experience in Middletown public schools” and that she “wouldn’t have it any other way” in an interview with Sophia Haber Brock of Sophia Directs published on May 24.
May 2020 was a deadly month at the Care One at King James long term care facility in Middletown.
On May 1 there were no positive cases of COVID-19 reported at the facility. By June 1, there was 90 positive cases reported among the facility’s 100 residents and 44 of the 154 staff members tested positive. 17 residents died, according to documents obtained by MMM.
Middletown Mayor Tony Perry announced that his wife Alannah is pregnant. The first child of the couple is due in August, the mayor said during a Quarantine Edition interview with Sophia Haber Brock.
In the 19 minute interview with Brock, a 10th grade student at Middletown High School North, Perry also discussed juggling his full time employment with Hackensack-Meridan Health with being mayor, the Township’s interaction with County, State and Federal officials in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and he praised the selfless work on New Jersey’s medical workers and first responders.
Deputy Mayor Tony Fiore will not seek a 5th consecutive term on the Middletown Township Committee.
In a February 29 email to Middletown’s Republican leadership, Fiore said, “My recent expanded responsibilities at work (which include many nights of travel) coupled with my most important responsibilities as a husband and father, will make it impossible for me to continue to serve the Committee the only way I know how, at 110%.”
“The Township is in better shape than it was when I came into office 12 years ago,” Fiore said in a phone interview. “That’s what I’m most proud of.”
First elected in 2008 in the wake of Operation Bid Rig, the investigation by Chris Christie’s U.S. Attorney’s Office that resulted in the indictment and convictions of many Monmouth County elected officials including a Middletown Township Committee member, Fiore has been the driving force in reforming Middletown’s municipal government.
Thomas A. Farzan, 30, was charged with Arson and Resisting Arrest after purposely setting his Cherry Tree Farm Lane family’s home on fire, according to Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.
At approximately 5:42 p.m., on March 4, the Middletown Township Police and Fire Departments responded to a fire at 161 Cherry Tree Lane. Upon arrival, authorities observed smoke billowing from the home. Upon attempting to find an entry point to the home, officials noticed a male standing near the back door. Upon questioning, Farzan attempted to flee police and after a brief struggle, was arrested.
