Senator Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth County) today issued praise to the Supreme Court Committee on Municipal Court Operations, Fines and Fees for their comprehensive report which, after a 16 month investigation, “revealed a number of significant concerns where aggressive reform is needed. Many of those issues identified by the Committee undermine both the administration of justice and the independence of the Municipal Courts.”
“In law enforcement and judicial systems, profit is the mortal enemy of justice,” Senator O’Scanlon said. “We must take real steps towards reforming municipal court and ticketing procedures. Policing for profit is an unacceptable practice that tarnishes the reputation of all our upstanding police officers and often results in devastating consequences for petty infractions.”
“Municipal Courts should be about the administration of justice, not a profit center to plug holes in local governments’ budgets,” O’Scanlon continued. “In the twenty-five years since our Courts were last reformed, too many towns have come to rely on fines to fund their municipal operations and too many local judges have turned into de facto tax collectors. This is not justice and it has to stop.”
Assembly members Eric Houghtaling and Joann Downey
The phones were ringing off the hook at Assembly members Eric Houghtaling and Joann Downey’s Ocean Township office after Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso’s July 5th robocall informing 11th legislative district voters of Houghtaling and Downey’s support for Governor Murphy’s massive tax increases and his cuts to school funding for local school districts.
In an interview with FoxNews’s Shannon Bream on Friday night, New Jersey Congressman Chris Smith called for the Russian officials who have been indicted for meddling in American elections to be red noticed by Interpol. A red notice is a request by the Justice Department to the international law enforcement agency to locate and arrest an individual for the purpose of extradition.
Former Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno appeared on the Tommy G Show yesterday during which she said that the $2 billion in spending increases and $1.5 billion in new state taxes are insane but that no one should be surprised.
Guadagno said that moderate Democrats who are now calling for spending cuts “sound like Republicans, that’s what we’ve been saying all along!”
By Renee B. Swartz, Chair, Monmouth County Library Commission
With summer in full swing, beaches full, ocean and pools inviting, Monmouth County is fortunate in having alternative entertainment, from music and song to dance and drama at the Library Headquarters in Manalapan and all of the Monmouth County Library’s 12 other branches.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly (OSCEPA), an assembly of over 300 lawmakers from 57 countries in Europe and North American adopted “Implementing Trafficking-Free Communities,” a comprehensive resolution to combat human trafficking sponsored by Congressman Chris Smith, during their 27th annual session yesterday in Berlin.
Based upon best practices developed in the United States under Smith’s Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, the resolution encourages governments to implement multiple best practices simultaneously to significantly reduce trafficking in a community over the course of a year.
The U.S. Coast Guard has issued a warning to mariners and beachgoers from the Jersey Shore south to the southern Outer Banks in North Carolina of hazardous weather and sea conditions caused by Tropical Storm Chris. Read the rest of this entry »
Asbury Park Democrat Chairman Giuseppe Joe Grillo, Deputy Mayor Amy Quinn, Tommy DeSeno and Mayor John Moor. photo via facebook
The Asbury Park City Council, using government letterhead, made a declaration opposing a religious belief. Government can no more denounce a religious belief than they can endorse one, without violating the 1st Amendment Establishment Clause. They then went on an illegal bullying campaign against a Pastor. So caught up in a mob-induced false narrative of gossip, they ignored that the Pastor was bringing financial relief to the Westside black community, something all City Councils failed to do for 50 years.
I hope everyone had a safe and fun Fourth of July holiday!
I was happy to spend part of the holiday walking in the annual Ocean Grove Fourth of July Parade. As always, I had a great time walking the route and seeing everyone dressed in their best patriotic clothing while holding American flags. It is truly a wonderful parade and I look forward to next year’s celebration!
As everyone is aware, we have experienced hotter than normal weather lately. Heat wave or not, I always advise those who plan on spending time outdoors in the heat to be prepared. Heat-related deaths and illnesses are preventable.
