BREAKING: Arrests made in connection with fatal carjacking outside Short Hills mall

BREAKING: Arrests made in connection with fatal carjacking outside Short Hills mall (via NJ.com)

MILLBURN — Four men have been arrested in the fatal shooting of a Hoboken lawyer during a carjacking outside the Mall at Short Hills on Sunday, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s office. A press conference has been scheduled for 9 a.m. this…

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Gramiccioni And Golden: Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over

Monmouth County Police Departments have been given grants to target drunk or impaired drivers this holiday season as part of a statewide “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” initiative, warned Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni and Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden.

The “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” initiative focuses on mobilizing police departments across the state during the holiday season in an effort to raise awareness about the dangers of drunk and impaired driving through concentrated enforcement activities. The 2012 holiday season “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” initiative resulted in 1,555 Driving While Intoxicated arrests statewide, with 42 of those arrests taking place in Monmouth County, between December 7, 2012 and January 2, 2013.

“The statistics are sobering enough. The holidays are a time to create lasting memories with your family and friends, not destroy family and friends who will be forced to recall the horrific death of a loved one who wasn’t sober and got behind the wheel of a vehicle,” Gramiccioni said.

“No family should have to face the death of another family member during the holiday season, or any time of the year for that matter. The message is clear: ‘Don’t Drink and Drive’, so the ‘Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over’ initiative should simply resonate with anyone who operates any motor vehicle this holiday season,” said Golden.

For the cost of a dinner or another round, get a ride home.  You might be drunker than you think:

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Christie nominates Cliff Moore to the Monmouth County Tax Board

Cliff Moore

Governor Chris Christie has nominated Clifford J. Moore, III of Hazlet to the Monmouth County Board of Taxation.

If confirmed by the State Senate, Moore will replace Daniel M. Kelly of Little Silver on the board.  Kelly resigned last month due to professional commitments.

Moore is the president of the Keyport Bayfront Business Cooperative , past president of the Northern Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, and co-chair of the Hazlet Business Owners Association Economic Development Committee. Moore ran for Hazlet Township Committee, as a Democrat, last November.  He is an owner of seven business in Hazlet and Keyport.

The Monmouth County Board of Taxation is comprised of four Republicans and three Democrats. Moore is taking a Democratic seat. The party of the incumbent governor holds the majority.

Matthew S. Clark, the Monmouth County Tax Administrator, said that the commissioners have a “broader, taller responsibility” than they have had in years past, as Monmouth is the first county in New Jersey to implement the Assessment Demonstration Program signed into law by Governor Christie in March.   The Assessment Demonstration Program is “true property tax reform,” according to Clark, which includes online appeals and creates assessment precision.  The online appeals process is a shared service that the Tax Board is offering to other counties to generate revenue and reduce the tax burden on Monmouth County property owners.

The commissioners hear tax appeal cases, certify property tax rates, certify the county’s equalization table, oversee the administration of county tax assessments, and certify the annual added assessments from Monmouth’s municipalities.

Commissioners on the Tax Board earn a salary of $18,000 per year.  Clark did not know if new commissioners receive health benefits are part of their compensation.   The Governor’s press office as yet to respond to an inquiry regarding health benefits for tax commissioners.

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Salamat po

By Ernesto Cullari

Over 5,000 people were killed and nearly 2,000 are still missing since Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippines in early November. We can easily recall the devastation and the loss that occurred on the Jersey Shore following Hurricane Sandy. Many of us are still rebuilding lives, homes and businesses. Haiyan was the most violent storm to ever make landfall and only you can begin to imagine their suffering. On behalf of my mother Lee, my step dad Matt and the 27 orphans living under their care in Bohol, the Philippines, I thank you for recently coming to their aid in such a desperate time of need. Street Kids Philippine Missions will continue to meet the needs of these children because of your generosity.

Even before the storm, the Philippines was a place of both beauty and squalor. The Philippine Islands are home to many of the world’s most alluring beaches. Yet not far from the tourist attractions and the luxurious hotels are some of the filthiest shantytowns on earth.

Imagine a neighborhood constructed of trash and debris; with walls and roofs made of cardboard, tin and sheetrock. Pirated electricity from neighboring gated enclaves lights the dark and dingy nights, for the few foolish enough to reroute the current into their hand patched shack. Fires often ravage and raze shantytowns.

Not everyone who is poor or destitute lives in shantytowns. Entire families live on doorsteps, street benches, inside cardboard boxes erected on sidewalks. Many of these are former sales clerks, teachers or small business owners. In the Philippines, there are only rich and poor. Corruption, addiction, cronyism and the mindset of those who have lived under multi-generational poverty have seen to it that the middle-class does not grow roots and flourish.

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N.J. Assembly approves ban on public release of mugshots before conviction

N.J. Assembly approves ban on public release of mugshots before conviction (via NJ.com)

TRENTON — The state Assembly today passed a bill to ban the public release of mugshots of people who have been arrested in New Jersey, but have not yet been convicted. The bill (A3906), fast-tracked during the Legislature’s lame-duck session, passed…

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Christie Presser Live At 1PM (or there abouts)

Governor Chris Christie will be announcing some more personnel changes for his coming second term. The press conference is scheduled for 1PM and can be viewed live here:

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Deal in place to pave the way for DREAM Act

Deal in place to pave the way for DREAM Act (via NJ.com)

Democrats in both houses of the legislature are prepared to accept a change to the DREAM Act removing state aid in an effort to shepherd the bill, which would allow children of illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates, into law. Assembly sponsor…

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this weekend, December 20-22, 2013

SPONSORED BY SEASTREAK

By Greg Kelly

Friday, December 20

* Free Family A Cappella Holiday Concert (Highlands) MORE INFO

• A Christmas Carol (Ocean Grove) – MORE INFO

• Scrooge at Spring Lake Community Theatre – MORE INFO

• A Shop Around The Corner at First Ave. Playhouse (Atlantic Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Handel’s Messiah (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Wearable, Usable, Functional Art Show & Sale (Belmar) – MORE INFO

• Happy Holidays One-Act Plays at The Grange Playhouse (Howell) – MORE INFO

• Club MAC with Miss Maria & Friends (Middletown) – MORE INFO

• Community Christmas Caroling (Atlantic Highlands) – MORE INFO

• Nicole Atkins at The Stone Pony (Asbury Park) – MORE INFO

• A Wind in The Willows Christmas at TRT (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

• Meet Kathy Wakile at Monmouth Mall (Eatontown) – MORE INFO

• Wind in the Willows at Algonquin Arts Theatre (Manasquan) – MORE INFO

• Yoga for Adults (Red Bank) – MORE INFO

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Highlands Council Votes To Give DeBlasio His 6th Government Job

The Highlands Borough Council passed a resolution last night, in a 3-2 vote, to appoint Patrick DeBlasio to be the borough’s Chief Financial Officer effective May 1, 2014. DeBlasio is the CFO of Carteret, North Plainfield, and Keansburg. He is the treasurer of the Carteret Board of Education and the tax collector in Highlands.

In Carteret, DeBlasio also serves as a member of the Parking Commission.

The 40,000 salary that comes with the appointment will bring his total compensation from his six jobs to $284,606. All of DeBlasio’s jobs provide a pension. The borough plans to hire him an assistant for an undetermined salary.

Governor Chris Christie earns $175,000, as do U.S. Senators and Members of Congress. State Cabinet Officers earn $141,000. Superior Court Judges earn $165,000

The borough did not advertise the position or explore a shared services agreement with another town, as Mayor Frank Nolan and Councilman Chris Francy advocated. Rather, they voted to hire DeBlasio on the recommendation of retiring CFO Stephen Pfeffer, according to Council President Rebecca Kane and Councilwoman Tara Ryan’s remarks explaining the hire when they moved and seconded the resolution.  Pfeffer earns $69,580 as CFO in Highlands and $157,738 as the CFO of Tinton Falls.

During the public portion of the council meeting, Kane said she would reevaluate the decision after one year. However Borough Attorney Bruce Padula said that the appointment is for a four year term.  DeBlasio would be tenured after the initial four years.  Kane’s term on the council expires in June, due to a referendum passed by Highlands voters in November making the borough’s election non-partisan.  She is expected to run for another term.

In his remarks opposing DeBlasio’s appointment, Nolan said, “We are often the laughing stock of Monmouth County. This is one of the reasons why.”

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Gov. Christie speaks at drug court ceremony, volunteers at soup kitchen

Gov. Christie speaks at drug court ceremony, volunteers at soup kitchen (via NJ.com)

PATERSON — Donning an apron and plastic gloves, Gov. Chris Christie helped serve lunch at a community kitchen today, after speaking at a drug court graduation ceremony. “It’s all interconnected,” Christie said, standing in the cafeteria at Eva…

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