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The latest stories from The Press of Atlantic City, in case you missed them.
1
Seaspray resident searches for options. So does the new board of the Ocean City condo.
- Bill Barlow
OCEAN CITY — Matthew Patchall has had it with this town.
At least, that’s how he felt Thursday. One of the former residents of the Seaspray condominiums on Bay Avenue near 34th Street, Patchall said his two children were thriving in the local school system. But he, his girlfriend and his two children are now struggling to find options since city officials declared the building unsafe in April.
For a while, they were sleeping in his vehicle, he said, but on a recent night they stayed in a motel in the Rio Grande section of Middle Township.
“I get that they condemned the building, but my home is still safer than my car,” he said.
The city had declared the building unsafe a year ago but allowed it to reopen for the summer on the basis of an engineering report that indicated it was safe for occupancy. The red tags went back up this spring after Patchall’s friend’s leg pushed through the steel landing of the outside stairs of the building, prompting a new look at the structure.
City officials had little to say about the decision by the construction office, and did not confirm that the damaged steps began the new evaluation. City attorney Dottie McCrosson, in an update to City Council at a recent meeting, said the building was allowed to reopen last year with the understanding that significant structural repairs would be undertaken, and those repairs have not taken place.
The red tags will not come off until that work is completed, she said.
“We are appealing the red tag,” said Dave Buckwalter, one of the owners of more than 30 units in the building. “Meanwhile, a bunch of regular, everyday people are prohibited from using property that their engineer has described as safe to occupy for a definite finite time frame as written in the engineering report.”
Buckwalter had been one of the members of the condo board. He is not a member any longer, according to Monica Green of Action Management Group in Medford, Burlington County, the management company for the Seaspray. She said he and the other board members were removed before a new election, therefore they do not speak for the Seaspray.
Buckwalter did not confirm that he is off the board.
“What we really need is some positive press,” Green said in a Thursday interview, adding the new board is doing what needs to be done to address the situation.
Bernadette McCarthy is the new president of the condo board. She said she could not discuss the condition of the building or plans, citing legal advice.
But Green did offer some details, including that the board will look at every possible option, including renovating the building and selling it for redevelopment. The decision to sell will involve all of the owners, she said.
Several engineering reports, over the course of years, raised concerns about the structure, saying there needed to be significant investment in addressing structural deficiencies, while little beyond basic maintenance and cosmetic repairs were ever performed.
Different sources present much different pictures of the situation, and what has led to the building being shut over safety concerns. Dennis Block, one of the owners and an attorney who wants to see the building sold, has been deeply critical of the former board members, alleging they did not have nearly enough money on hand to address the structural issues with the building.
Block was also Patchall’s landlord. Patchall said Block had not been charging him rent, allowing him to stay in the second-floor unit after he did some work for Block on another unit.
At first, he said, it was going great. His children loved the school district and were thriving there. But now he is searching for a place to stay just as the more affordable winter rentals in the area enter their lucrative summer rental market.
There are some year-round rentals, he said, but Ocean City appears entirely out of his range. He has worked as a chef in a Cape May restaurant for the past 15 years. He has had a tough time finding a place anywhere in the county in his price range that will be big enough for his family.
“At the going rate, they all want about $1,100 a room,” he said. A search for apartments on a real estate website turned up one studio apartment in Middle Township at $1,200 a month, and several far more expensive choices, as high as $11,000 a month for a three-bedroom unit in Wildwood.
The Seaspray, originally built as a motel in the 1960s, became a condo complex in 1980, with each unit individually owned. Patchall described it as his best option, for a while at least.
“That’s not my summer home. I don’t have that luxury. I live paycheck to paycheck,” he said.
Last time, the city said those displaced by the building’s closure would receive help finding a new home. The property management company at the Seaspray said their understanding was that was happening again.
But Patchall told a different story. He said he has met with the city several times and came away with a series of phone numbers for different agencies, but they had not been able to help him. His niece is also a year-round resident of the Seaspray.
“She’s in the same boat,” he said.
On Friday morning, Patchall said he had gotten a call from Ocean City, saying they had arranged to cover the cost of two weeks in a hotel in town. After that, he said, he was set to move to a place in Dennis Township within his price range.
His children will be able to finish the school year in Ocean City, with the expectation that they will start in a new district in September.
Ocean City spokesperson Doug Bergen clarified Friday that the city had connected Patchall with the organization OCNJ C.A.R.E., a volunteer group formed in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy that has helped community members in crisis after house fires and other emergencies.
Bergen said it was the outside group that helped Patchall find a temporary place to stay and in securing a permanent home. He said the city worked with each of the year-round residents of the Seaspray to find somewhere to stay after the building was shut down, and his understanding is that everyone had somewhere to stay as of Friday.
There are further complications. The person whose leg pushed through the stair landing? Buckwalter and others have suggested that was an act of vandalism, although it would be difficult for the most determined vandal to punch through a steel landing if it was in good condition.
In separate interviews, both Patchall and the management company mentioned that police investigated the matter and found that no vandalism took place.
Patchall said it was his friend, coming up for a visit, whose leg got stuck in the landing. He said the stairwell is badly rusted, and added he was angry about the matter because his girlfriend and children had just used that stairway.
He said his friend is about 320 pounds.
Some other owners suggested to Patchall that he was just trying to help his landlord, Block, which he denies.
“I want to make clear I rent from Mr. Block. That’s it,” he said. “I’m being blamed for doing this on purpose. Do you really think I would do this, knowing I would be out of the building?”
2
Egg Harbor City man charged with Egg Harbor Township thefts
- Press staff reports
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP — An Egg Harbor City man was arrested after he was linked to three separate thefts in the township, police said Monday.
This month and last, police received reports from victims who said their personal belongings were stolen while shopping at stores on the Black Horse Pike in the Cardiff and Farmington sections of the township. In some cases, the offender used the victim’s bank cards to attempt purchases at other local businesses, police said in a news release.
Detective Robert Sheppard investigated and identified the suspect as Vincent Saxon, 56. On May 16, Sheppard obtained court-approved arrest warrants for Saxon charging him with theft, credit card theft and related offenses, police said.
On May 19, Saxon was arrested by Atlantic City police. He was sent to the Atlantic County jail.
Police urged shoppers to remain vigilant and aware of their surroundings to better deter thieves.
3
Testimony at Sen. Bob Menendez's bribery trial focuses on his wife's New Jersey home
- LARRY NEUMEISTERAssociated Press
NEW YORK — A New Jersey businessman rescued the home of Sen. Bob Menendez's wife from foreclosure just as the Democrat allegedly helped him secure a lucrative business relationship with Egypt, a lawyer testifying at his bribery trial said Monday.
Attorney John Moldovan told a Manhattan federal court jury that he was working for the businessman, Wael Hana, in July 2019 when he was asked to pay over $20,000 toward the Englewood Cliffs, Bergen County, home’s mortgage.
Moldovan said Hana provided the money that he delivered to a bank to negate the need for a mortgage foreclosure lawsuit.
Menendez, 70, who has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, moved into the home after the couple married a year later. Hana and Menendez's wife, Nadine, have pleaded not guilty in the case as well, although Nadine Menendez's trial has been postponed until July after she was diagnosed with breast cancer and surgery was required.
In 2022, an FBI raid turned up 13 gold bars and over $480,000 in cash in the home, and a federal agent who led the raid testified extensively about it last week, saying tens of thousands of dollars were found stuffed in four jackets where the senator kept his coats. Other cash was found in bags and in a closet safe.
Prosecutors say the gold bars, cash and a luxury car found in the couple's garage were bribery proceeds.
Lawyers for Menendez have said that the gold bars belonged to his wife and that the senator hoarded cash at home as a reaction to trauma from his family losing everything, except cash, before they fled Cuba — and before he was born.
Moldovan testified that Hana asked him to establish a legal record that the money to pay off outstanding debt on the mortgage was a loan rather than a gift.
In all, Nadine Menendez owed nearly $271,000 on a $320,750 mortgage, Moldovan said.
Prosecutors say the mortgage payment was made just as Hana was securing a monopoly with Egypt to ensure that any meat exported there from the U.S. was certified by Hana's company to prove it was processed in a manner that conformed with Islamic dietary requirements.
Prosecutors say while he was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez took favorable actions toward Egypt to aid Hana, who had been friends with Nadine Menendez for many years. He had to relinquish the position after his fall arrest.
Among the charges lodged against the senator is that he was acting as a foreign agent of Egypt.
The trial, which began last week, is supposed to last at least another month.
4
21st annual Business Persons Plunge to kick off Memorial Day weekend in Ocean City
- Vincent Rapallo
OCEAN CITY— The city will "unlock" the Atlantic Ocean at noon Friday as part of the 21st annual Business Persons Plunge and the city's kickoff to Memorial Day weekend, for which it has planned a number of events.
City and Chamber of Commerce officials will turn a ceremonial wooden key during the free public event on the beach between the Music Pier and Ninth Street. Afterward, the Ocean City High School band will play "Pomp and Circ*mstance" and a banner plane will fly overhead as fully clothed local business owners and employees walk into the ocean.
Also on Friday, a daily Boardwalk flag-raising ceremony will begin3 for the summer. The ceremony, which includes the playing of the national anthem and Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the U.S.A.," will take place every morning at 9 a.m. through Sept. 11.
The Memorial Beach Challenge will take place Saturday. Athletes will compete in a two-mile obstacle course that spans much of the beach on both sides of the Music Pier. The race will begin at 8:05 a.m. and will include a Kids Fun Run.
Proceeds from the Memorial Beach Challenge will benefit the 31 Heroes Project, an organization that creates programs, financial support systems and opportunities for service members, veterans and their families.
The city's Memorial Day service will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at Veterans Memorial Park at Fifth Street and Wesley Avenue. Ralph Galati, a U.S. Air Force veteran, will be the keynote speaker.
The National Moment of Remembrance will take place at 3 p.m. on the Boardwalk. Greg Murphy of Bugles Across America will play taps from the Music Pier to commemorate the moment. Murphy's performance will be broadcast over the Boardwalk public address system.
Jitney service will be available in Ocean City from 5 to 11 p.m. May 24 to 27. Daily jitney service will begin June 21. For more information, visit ocnj.us/jitney.
5
Atlantic City library Director Rynkiewicz to retire; replacement named
- John O'Connor
ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic City Free Public Library Director Robert P. Rynkiewicz will retire at the end of the month after more than 40 years with the library, officials said Monday.
Assistant Director Melissa McGeary was appointed director by the library’s Board of Trustees and will start her new role June 1, the library said in a news release.
Rynkiewicz began working at the library in 1979 as an assistant in the circulation department and headed up various departments before becoming assistant director in 1990 and director in 2016.
Despite funding and staffing challenges due to the casino PILOT bill and the COVID-19 pandemic, Rynkiewicz helped implement several new initiatives and services through its grant writing efforts and community partnerships, the release states.
Some of the library’s accomplishments under Rynkiewicz’s leadership include the Atlantic City Experience historical exhibits at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, upgrading the main library, hiring a full-time social worker, creating initiatives that focus on digital literacy, increasing job training and assistance and improving online access to the library’s archive and material collections, the release states.
McGeary began her career at the library in 2017 as a part-time associate. She became assistant director last May. Her duties have included supervising the circulation department and Richmond Branch, planning adult programs and developing the adult collection of materials.
“I’ve learned a lot during my time at the library, from my colleagues and from the community,” McGeary said. “I have had many fantastic mentors, including Bob Rynkiewicz and former Director Maureen Sherr Frank. I am extremely lucky to have found a work culture that values outside-the-box thinking, which has allowed me to thrive in the roles I’ve held here. I plan to continue the many programs and initiatives that began under Bob, to look for new and innovative ways to engage with the community, and to champion inclusion and barrier-free access.”
6
Limited boil water advisory issued for 21 Atlantic City customers
- John O'Connor
ATLANTIC CITY— A limited boil water advisory has been issued for 21 customers connected to temporary water service on Florida Avenue between Arctic and Fairmount avenues due to the system having not been tested prior to installation, the city's Municipal Utilities Authority said Monday.
The advisory will be in effect until water testing is completed and the results are deemed satisfactory. A potential or actual threat to the quality of the water being provided exists, according to a news release.
Customers in the affected area are instructed to bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow the tap water to cool before using or use bottled water, the release states.
Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, preparing foods, mixing baby formula, food, juices or drinks, washing vegetables and fruit, cooking, making ice, brushing teeth and washing dishes, the release states.
Two cases of water are being distributed to the affected homes, the release states.
For more information or updates, call 609-345-3315, email cservice@acmua,org or visitacmua.org.
7
Wildwood Crest to discuss bayfront project
- Bill Barlow
WILDWOOD CREST— Plans for drainage and flood control work along the west side of the borough are on the agenda for a Board of Commissioners meeting set for 5 p.m. Wednesday at Borough Hall, 6191 Pacific Ave.
Work is expected to begin in October, according to borough officials, who said more details on the proposed project will be discussed at the meeting.
Borough engineer Marc DeBlasio is set to discuss the project, which includes upgrades to outfall lines and valves, street-end raising and new bulkheads.
“The public is encouraged to attend the meeting, particularly those who live on or near the borough’s bayfront,” reads an announcement of the meeting.
For those who cannot attend in person, the meeting will be shown live on the Wildwood Crest YouTube channel and the Wildwood Crest Facebook page. The meeting can also be attended remotely via conference line by dialing 888-363-4734 and using access code 9699020.
For more information, call the borough clerk’s office at 609-729-8040.
8
Senate passes Polistina bill to name Route 42 interchange after HERO Campaign namesake Elliott
- John O'Connor
The state Senate on Mondayunanimously approved a bill sponsored by Sen. Vince Polistina, R-Atlantic, to name an interchange of Route 42 after a naval officer whose death led to the creation of a local designated-driver program.
The interchange between Route 42 and Interstate 295 will be known as the Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange, according to a news release from Senate Republicans.
“Ensign Elliot exemplified true leadership and served this country with honor and distinction,” Polistinasaid. "In recognition of his service, this bill would formally commemorate his legacy by naming this newly built interchange as the Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange."
Elliott was killed by a drunken driver in Salem County on July 22, 2000, two months after he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy.
The new connection between 42 and 295 is expected to improve traffic conditions on local routes and will provide a more direct route for travelers, the release states.
"Our family wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to Senator Polistina for sponsoring this bill," said Bill Elliott, CEO of the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers. "The Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange will represent more than a convenient new gateway to the Jersey Shore. It also will save lives, and would have saved our son’s if it had been available the night he was killed by a drunken driver while traveling home for his mother’s birthday on an undivided highway in July 2000."
9
Old Navy, Crumbl Cookies among seven stores coming to Millville
- Vincent Rapallo
MILLVILLE— Irgang Group announced Monday a series of new leases at the Union Lake Crossing shopping center that total 46,000 square feet, bringing the lease rate for the property to 98%.
New to the property will be Old Navy, Skechers, Inspira Health, Rally House, Five Guys, Crumbl Cookies and Poke Bros.
Summer openings are expected for Inspira Health, Skechers, Rally House, Crumbl and Poke Bros, while Old Navy is expected to open in the fall.
Five Guys has already opened its location at the property, its first in Cumberland County.
The new signings join ShopRite, Kohl's/Sephora, Target, Ross Dress for Less, PetSmart, Staples, Boot Barn, Famous Footwear, Party City, Five Below, Buffalo Wild Wings, Sonic, Moe's Southwest Grill, AAA, Charles Schwab, Fun City Adventure Park and Cato Fashions at Union Lake Crossing.
Irgang Group CEO Mark Irgang said that since acquiring the property in November 2021, Irgang has executed leases on nearly 108,000 square feet of property. Seventy-two percent of the property was leased when Irgang acquired the shopping center.
10
Residents ask to testify in lawsuit vs. Atlantic City Housing Authority
- Michelle Brunetti Post
ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic City Housing Authority Executive Director Tom Sahlin is due to testify June 5 for the first time in a lawsuit over conditions at Stanley Holmes Village, and a lawyer for the residents is asking for a date when some of her plaintiffs can testify.
“We believe that their testimony would create a fuller record, with greater context, and allow us to present a more complete picture as to how the Housing Authority’s actions have affected our clients,” Olga Pomar of South Jersey Legal Services wrote in a May 15 letter to Atlantic County Superior Court Judge John Porto.
The court will wait until after Sahlin's testimony to decide if he needs to hear from plaintiffs, Porto said in a response Monday posted on the Superior Court's eCourts system.
The June 5 hearing is on a motion to enforce litigants’ rights. Pomar is asking the judge to enforce orders he had given to the authority dating back many months.
About 130 residents of the 420-unit complex are suing over a lack of heat and hot water, frequent gas leaks, mold and pest infestations, water intrusion and more.
Last month during a hearing, Porto said he cannot set any more deadlines for the authority to make improvements at Stanley Holmes, after it missed earlier deadlines, until he hears from Sahlin under oath.
“This court needs to hear some competent evidence in the form of testimony from an ACHA representative ... about order compliance and why previous orders were not complied with,” Porto said.
Among deadlines missed were those requiring the authority to provide plans for replacing the heating system at Stanley Holmes, for giving residents in the lawsuit court-ordered 25% rent abatements, and for replacing all old gas lines under Stanley Holmes.
In her recent request, Pomar asked for a separate date for her clients to testify, to avoid having residents having to return to court on multiple occasions, which would be difficult for those who have jobs, limited mobility or other issues.
In all but one hearing in the case over the past year and a half, Housing Authority attorney Rick DeLucry of Cooper Levenson has been the only attendee representing the authority.
At a hearing in October, Housing Authority consultant Mike Brown of the 360 Group in Philadelphia testified about advice he gave the authority, but no board member or staff member has ever testified in the case.
The authority recently hired an engineering and architectural firm, DeLucry said last month, so it is now in a position to begin moving on the heating system and more. But he acknowledged the firm has not yet completed its analysis to say when the authority can go to bid and install a new heating system or meet other deadlines.
DeLucry acknowledged he perhaps should not have agreed to past deadlines.
“The truth is we didn’t have the ability. ... I agreed to deadlines perhaps unwisely or precipitously,” DeLucry said. “We didn’t have the ability to deliver given that everything ... required an engineer we didn’t have.”
Pomar is asking the judge to set a detailed schedule for selecting by the end of May and installing by Oct. 1 a new heating system at Stanley Holmes.
She also asked the judge to order the authority to pay residents some amount weekly until it follows court orders, as a way to compel compliance.
“This court doesn’t want these residents to undergo what they have experienced the last two winters,” Porto said. “Whether it is inaction, inactivity, whether there is some paralysis with regard to analysis, whether it is budgetary issues ... this court is going to enter an order and oversee its enforcement.”
11
Egg Harbor Township resident accused of stealing SUV in Northfield
- Vincent Rapallo
NORTHFIELD— An Egg Harbor Township resident was arrested Saturday morning for allegedly stealing an SUV.
Patrolman Brenden O'Brien was on patrol just before 10 a.m. when he noticed Martes D. Robinson driving a white Chevrolet Trailblazer with multiple equipment violations, police said Monday in a news release. O'Brien pulled over the vehicle near Roosevelt Avenue and Second Street.
O'Brien confirmed the vehicle was stolen after checking its registration, police said. Robinson was charged with receiving a stolen motor vehicle and sent to the Atlantic County jail.
Robinson also waslisted as wanted by the Atlantic County Sheriff's Office for failure to appear in court on aggravated assault and weapons charges, police said.
Citing an increase in motor vehicle burglaries and thefts over the past few weeks, police urged residents to lock their vehicles and remove their keys from inside.
12
NJ chief justice again urges against giving Senate power to name appellate judges
- Nikita Biryukovnewjerseymonitor.com
New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner on Friday again urged against a nascent proposal to amend New Jersey’s constitution to remove his authority to directly appoint appellate judges from the Superior Court bench and give that power to the governor and Senate.
In remarks delivered at the State Bar Association’s annual conference, Rabner warned the plan could leave appeals courts short-staffed and lacking the expertise needed to check the work of trial court judges.
“The Appellate Division and the selection process both work well. There does not appear to be a problem that needs fixing, let alone a problem so serious that it requires us to ask the citizens of New Jersey to amend the State Constitution,” Rabner said in the address.
Any such move would need to be approved by the Legislature and voters, and is also opposed by the bar association.
The proposal follows years of crushing judicial vacancies that grew severe enough to pause civil and divorce trials in seven counties. Those trials have since resumed, most recently in Passaic County.
Sen. Raj Mukherji (D-Hudson), the proposal’s chief sponsor, praised the chief justice’s choices on court staffing but said he worries a future chief justice would be less even-handed.
“He has indeed done a laudable job in selecting highly qualified and talented Appellate Division judges,” the senator said. “The concern remains that we’re the only state in the union where such breathtaking power is entrusted to one person, so what happens if it’s the wrong person?”
In New Jersey, the chief justice holds a specific seat on the Supreme Court, and the state’s top judge is directly appointed into the position rather than elected by their peers.
New Jersey’s process for appointing appellate judges is indeed unique among the states. While governors in four other states appoint at least some judges, subject to the approval of another body — in New Jersey, the state Senate — no others allow their high court’s chief justice to unilaterally appoint the members of its appeals court.
The chief’s direct appointment powers have insulated the Appellate Division from the vacancies that have plagued the trial courts, and Rabner in his address said he consults with high-ranking judges in intermediate and trial courts before elevating jurists to a 10-week trial on the appellate bench.
Mukherji said temporary appointment powers similar to those the chief justice exercises on Supreme Court vacancies could prevent an empty bench.
“Chief justice raises good points about the logjam potential, although you could solve for that by affording him the right to temporarily fill vacancies from the Superior Court,” he said.
Mukherji signaled that any changes to how New Jersey’s appeals judges are appointed wouldn’t come quickly.
“I do agree with his remark that the constitution should not be amended lightly, but rather after careful discussion and deliberation,” he said. “I’m glad that a discussion is taking place. That doesn’t mean this is or should be moving tomorrow.”
North Dakota is the only other state where the Supreme Court selects non-interim appeals judges, though in that state, the choice falls to the entire three-member high court.
Only two states — California and Kansas — allow governors to nominate appeals judges subject only to the advice and consent of another body, and Kansas is the only state that leaves appellate confirmations to the state Senate.
California’s confirmations are handled by a state judicial appointments commission, which is staffed by the chief justice of the California Supreme Court, the most senior state appellate judge, and the state attorney general.
Assisted appointment — where governors select judicial nominees from a list prepared by an outside body, most often a nonpartisan commission — is the most common method of appointing appellate judges. Nineteen states use it, some alongside an advice and consent component.
Twelve states elect appellate judges in nonpartisan elections, while eight hold partisan races to fill their intermediate courts. Some states require judges to run new campaigns for additional terms, while others only require they participate in yes-or-no retention elections.
Six states do not have an intermediate appeals court — appeals in these states usually go directly to the state’s high court, with some exceptions — and Virginia’s appellate judges are elected by both chambers of the state’s Legislature.
This story first appeared on the New Jersey Monitor.
13
Mays Landing bicyclist dies in crash on Black Horse Pike
- John O'Connor
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP— A bicyclist died Friday night after being struck by an SUV on the Black Horse Pike, police said.
Arthur Herz, 61, of Mays Landing, entered the westbound lanes of the pike near milepost 45.5 at 8:22 p.m. when he was hit by a 2014 Jeep Cherokee driven by Luca Scotto, 21, of Blackwood, Camden County, police said Saturday in a news release.
Herz was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Scotto was transported to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Mainland Campus in Galloway Township, with minor injuries.
The pike was shut down for four hours while the scene was investigated and cleared, police said.
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'; } } } else { if (this.id == sOriginID_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f) { // Origin found. Begin displaying assets bFoundOrigin_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = true; } else { // Origin found is false. Skip asset // Fail-safe in case origin is not present in set. This can be removed when origin is fixed. if (bFirstRun_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f == true) { // Stored first id sFirstID_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = this.id; bFirstRun_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = false; } else if (this.id == sFirstID_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f) { // We've started again. Force origin sOriginID_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = sFirstID_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f; bFoundOrigin_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = true; } // end Fail-safe } } // Append engagement assets to container oEngagementContainer_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.append(sHTML_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f); // Stop traversing asset array if (iDisplayCount_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f >= iMaxDisplay_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f) { bStop_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = true; return false; } }); // Include block_id on newly added list items oEngagementContainer_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.find('.engagement-item.original').each(function() { var sHref_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = scrubURL($(this).find("a.centered-content-link").attr("href")); if(sHref_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f!="javascript:void(0)"){ // Add content discovery tracking sHref_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f += '#tncms-source=endcard-gallery'; // Add to image and headlines links $(this).removeClass('original').find("a.centered-content-link").attr("href", sHref_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f); } }); // Check next URL if (sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f && bStop_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f == false) { // if origin hasn't been found yet and we hit next_url. Trigger the set to pull in again. if (bFoundOrigin_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f == false) { // No origin yet. Call the populate function __tnt.engagement.assets["3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f"].populate(sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f); } else { // Append sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f to engagement set oEngagementContainer_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.append('
'); if (iDisplayCount_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f < iMaxDisplay_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f) { // Get next url and request more assets __tnt.engagement.assets["3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f"].populate(oEngagementMore_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.data('next-url')); } } } // Add total count to container if (bStop_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f == true) { // Add total count to container oEngagementContainer_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.attr("data-engagement-total", iDisplayCount_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f); // Remove engagement loading spinner oEngagementSpinner_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f.remove(); return false; } } else { // Empty asset set returned. Go back in for a real set if(__tnt.engagement.assets["3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f"].attempts<2){ if(sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f==null||sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f==""){ sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f = "/news/local/south-jersey-digest-may21/collection_3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f.html"; } __tnt.engagement.assets["3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f"].populate(sNextUrl_3d3b53fc_16f8_11ef_b657_b7c9fc913e5f); __tnt.engagement.assets["3d3b53fc-16f8-11ef-b657-b7c9fc913e5f"].attempts++; } } }); } } // Rewrite URL for preview // TODO move to one location function scrubURL(sURL) { if (typeof sURL != 'undefined'){ return sURL; } }
Seaspray resident searches for options. So does the new board of the Ocean City condo.
- Bill Barlow
OCEAN CITY — Matthew Patchall has had it with this town.
At least, that’s how he felt Thursday. One of the former residents of the Seaspray condominiums on Bay Avenue near 34th Street, Patchall said his two children were thriving in the local school system. But he, his girlfriend and his two children are now struggling to find options since city officials declared the building unsafe in April.
For a while, they were sleeping in his vehicle, he said, but on a recent night they stayed in a motel in the Rio Grande section of Middle Township.
“I get that they condemned the building, but my home is still safer than my car,” he said.
The city had declared the building unsafe a year ago but allowed it to reopen for the summer on the basis of an engineering report that indicated it was safe for occupancy. The red tags went back up this spring after Patchall’s friend’s leg pushed through the steel landing of the outside stairs of the building, prompting a new look at the structure.
City officials had little to say about the decision by the construction office, and did not confirm that the damaged steps began the new evaluation. City attorney Dottie McCrosson, in an update to City Council at a recent meeting, said the building was allowed to reopen last year with the understanding that significant structural repairs would be undertaken, and those repairs have not taken place.
The red tags will not come off until that work is completed, she said.
“We are appealing the red tag,” said Dave Buckwalter, one of the owners of more than 30 units in the building. “Meanwhile, a bunch of regular, everyday people are prohibited from using property that their engineer has described as safe to occupy for a definite finite time frame as written in the engineering report.”
Buckwalter had been one of the members of the condo board. He is not a member any longer, according to Monica Green of Action Management Group in Medford, Burlington County, the management company for the Seaspray. She said he and the other board members were removed before a new election, therefore they do not speak for the Seaspray.
Buckwalter did not confirm that he is off the board.
“What we really need is some positive press,” Green said in a Thursday interview, adding the new board is doing what needs to be done to address the situation.
Bernadette McCarthy is the new president of the condo board. She said she could not discuss the condition of the building or plans, citing legal advice.
But Green did offer some details, including that the board will look at every possible option, including renovating the building and selling it for redevelopment. The decision to sell will involve all of the owners, she said.
Several engineering reports, over the course of years, raised concerns about the structure, saying there needed to be significant investment in addressing structural deficiencies, while little beyond basic maintenance and cosmetic repairs were ever performed.
Different sources present much different pictures of the situation, and what has led to the building being shut over safety concerns. Dennis Block, one of the owners and an attorney who wants to see the building sold, has been deeply critical of the former board members, alleging they did not have nearly enough money on hand to address the structural issues with the building.
Block was also Patchall’s landlord. Patchall said Block had not been charging him rent, allowing him to stay in the second-floor unit after he did some work for Block on another unit.
At first, he said, it was going great. His children loved the school district and were thriving there. But now he is searching for a place to stay just as the more affordable winter rentals in the area enter their lucrative summer rental market.
There are some year-round rentals, he said, but Ocean City appears entirely out of his range. He has worked as a chef in a Cape May restaurant for the past 15 years. He has had a tough time finding a place anywhere in the county in his price range that will be big enough for his family.
“At the going rate, they all want about $1,100 a room,” he said. A search for apartments on a real estate website turned up one studio apartment in Middle Township at $1,200 a month, and several far more expensive choices, as high as $11,000 a month for a three-bedroom unit in Wildwood.
The Seaspray, originally built as a motel in the 1960s, became a condo complex in 1980, with each unit individually owned. Patchall described it as his best option, for a while at least.
“That’s not my summer home. I don’t have that luxury. I live paycheck to paycheck,” he said.
Last time, the city said those displaced by the building’s closure would receive help finding a new home. The property management company at the Seaspray said their understanding was that was happening again.
But Patchall told a different story. He said he has met with the city several times and came away with a series of phone numbers for different agencies, but they had not been able to help him. His niece is also a year-round resident of the Seaspray.
“She’s in the same boat,” he said.
On Friday morning, Patchall said he had gotten a call from Ocean City, saying they had arranged to cover the cost of two weeks in a hotel in town. After that, he said, he was set to move to a place in Dennis Township within his price range.
His children will be able to finish the school year in Ocean City, with the expectation that they will start in a new district in September.
Ocean City spokesperson Doug Bergen clarified Friday that the city had connected Patchall with the organization OCNJ C.A.R.E., a volunteer group formed in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy that has helped community members in crisis after house fires and other emergencies.
Bergen said it was the outside group that helped Patchall find a temporary place to stay and in securing a permanent home. He said the city worked with each of the year-round residents of the Seaspray to find somewhere to stay after the building was shut down, and his understanding is that everyone had somewhere to stay as of Friday.
There are further complications. The person whose leg pushed through the stair landing? Buckwalter and others have suggested that was an act of vandalism, although it would be difficult for the most determined vandal to punch through a steel landing if it was in good condition.
In separate interviews, both Patchall and the management company mentioned that police investigated the matter and found that no vandalism took place.
Patchall said it was his friend, coming up for a visit, whose leg got stuck in the landing. He said the stairwell is badly rusted, and added he was angry about the matter because his girlfriend and children had just used that stairway.
He said his friend is about 320 pounds.
Some other owners suggested to Patchall that he was just trying to help his landlord, Block, which he denies.
“I want to make clear I rent from Mr. Block. That’s it,” he said. “I’m being blamed for doing this on purpose. Do you really think I would do this, knowing I would be out of the building?”
Egg Harbor City man charged with Egg Harbor Township thefts
- Press staff reports
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP — An Egg Harbor City man was arrested after he was linked to three separate thefts in the township, police said Monday.
This month and last, police received reports from victims who said their personal belongings were stolen while shopping at stores on the Black Horse Pike in the Cardiff and Farmington sections of the township. In some cases, the offender used the victim’s bank cards to attempt purchases at other local businesses, police said in a news release.
Detective Robert Sheppard investigated and identified the suspect as Vincent Saxon, 56. On May 16, Sheppard obtained court-approved arrest warrants for Saxon charging him with theft, credit card theft and related offenses, police said.
On May 19, Saxon was arrested by Atlantic City police. He was sent to the Atlantic County jail.
Police urged shoppers to remain vigilant and aware of their surroundings to better deter thieves.
Testimony at Sen. Bob Menendez's bribery trial focuses on his wife's New Jersey home
- LARRY NEUMEISTERAssociated Press
NEW YORK — A New Jersey businessman rescued the home of Sen. Bob Menendez's wife from foreclosure just as the Democrat allegedly helped him secure a lucrative business relationship with Egypt, a lawyer testifying at his bribery trial said Monday.
Attorney John Moldovan told a Manhattan federal court jury that he was working for the businessman, Wael Hana, in July 2019 when he was asked to pay over $20,000 toward the Englewood Cliffs, Bergen County, home’s mortgage.
Moldovan said Hana provided the money that he delivered to a bank to negate the need for a mortgage foreclosure lawsuit.
Menendez, 70, who has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, moved into the home after the couple married a year later. Hana and Menendez's wife, Nadine, have pleaded not guilty in the case as well, although Nadine Menendez's trial has been postponed until July after she was diagnosed with breast cancer and surgery was required.
In 2022, an FBI raid turned up 13 gold bars and over $480,000 in cash in the home, and a federal agent who led the raid testified extensively about it last week, saying tens of thousands of dollars were found stuffed in four jackets where the senator kept his coats. Other cash was found in bags and in a closet safe.
Prosecutors say the gold bars, cash and a luxury car found in the couple's garage were bribery proceeds.
Lawyers for Menendez have said that the gold bars belonged to his wife and that the senator hoarded cash at home as a reaction to trauma from his family losing everything, except cash, before they fled Cuba — and before he was born.
Moldovan testified that Hana asked him to establish a legal record that the money to pay off outstanding debt on the mortgage was a loan rather than a gift.
In all, Nadine Menendez owed nearly $271,000 on a $320,750 mortgage, Moldovan said.
Prosecutors say the mortgage payment was made just as Hana was securing a monopoly with Egypt to ensure that any meat exported there from the U.S. was certified by Hana's company to prove it was processed in a manner that conformed with Islamic dietary requirements.
Prosecutors say while he was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez took favorable actions toward Egypt to aid Hana, who had been friends with Nadine Menendez for many years. He had to relinquish the position after his fall arrest.
Among the charges lodged against the senator is that he was acting as a foreign agent of Egypt.
The trial, which began last week, is supposed to last at least another month.
21st annual Business Persons Plunge to kick off Memorial Day weekend in Ocean City
- Vincent Rapallo
OCEAN CITY— The city will "unlock" the Atlantic Ocean at noon Friday as part of the 21st annual Business Persons Plunge and the city's kickoff to Memorial Day weekend, for which it has planned a number of events.
City and Chamber of Commerce officials will turn a ceremonial wooden key during the free public event on the beach between the Music Pier and Ninth Street. Afterward, the Ocean City High School band will play "Pomp and Circ*mstance" and a banner plane will fly overhead as fully clothed local business owners and employees walk into the ocean.
Also on Friday, a daily Boardwalk flag-raising ceremony will begin3 for the summer. The ceremony, which includes the playing of the national anthem and Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the U.S.A.," will take place every morning at 9 a.m. through Sept. 11.
The Memorial Beach Challenge will take place Saturday. Athletes will compete in a two-mile obstacle course that spans much of the beach on both sides of the Music Pier. The race will begin at 8:05 a.m. and will include a Kids Fun Run.
Proceeds from the Memorial Beach Challenge will benefit the 31 Heroes Project, an organization that creates programs, financial support systems and opportunities for service members, veterans and their families.
The city's Memorial Day service will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at Veterans Memorial Park at Fifth Street and Wesley Avenue. Ralph Galati, a U.S. Air Force veteran, will be the keynote speaker.
The National Moment of Remembrance will take place at 3 p.m. on the Boardwalk. Greg Murphy of Bugles Across America will play taps from the Music Pier to commemorate the moment. Murphy's performance will be broadcast over the Boardwalk public address system.
Jitney service will be available in Ocean City from 5 to 11 p.m. May 24 to 27. Daily jitney service will begin June 21. For more information, visit ocnj.us/jitney.
Atlantic City library Director Rynkiewicz to retire; replacement named
- John O'Connor
ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic City Free Public Library Director Robert P. Rynkiewicz will retire at the end of the month after more than 40 years with the library, officials said Monday.
Assistant Director Melissa McGeary was appointed director by the library’s Board of Trustees and will start her new role June 1, the library said in a news release.
Rynkiewicz began working at the library in 1979 as an assistant in the circulation department and headed up various departments before becoming assistant director in 1990 and director in 2016.
Despite funding and staffing challenges due to the casino PILOT bill and the COVID-19 pandemic, Rynkiewicz helped implement several new initiatives and services through its grant writing efforts and community partnerships, the release states.
Some of the library’s accomplishments under Rynkiewicz’s leadership include the Atlantic City Experience historical exhibits at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, upgrading the main library, hiring a full-time social worker, creating initiatives that focus on digital literacy, increasing job training and assistance and improving online access to the library’s archive and material collections, the release states.
McGeary began her career at the library in 2017 as a part-time associate. She became assistant director last May. Her duties have included supervising the circulation department and Richmond Branch, planning adult programs and developing the adult collection of materials.
“I’ve learned a lot during my time at the library, from my colleagues and from the community,” McGeary said. “I have had many fantastic mentors, including Bob Rynkiewicz and former Director Maureen Sherr Frank. I am extremely lucky to have found a work culture that values outside-the-box thinking, which has allowed me to thrive in the roles I’ve held here. I plan to continue the many programs and initiatives that began under Bob, to look for new and innovative ways to engage with the community, and to champion inclusion and barrier-free access.”
Limited boil water advisory issued for 21 Atlantic City customers
- John O'Connor
ATLANTIC CITY— A limited boil water advisory has been issued for 21 customers connected to temporary water service on Florida Avenue between Arctic and Fairmount avenues due to the system having not been tested prior to installation, the city's Municipal Utilities Authority said Monday.
The advisory will be in effect until water testing is completed and the results are deemed satisfactory. A potential or actual threat to the quality of the water being provided exists, according to a news release.
Customers in the affected area are instructed to bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow the tap water to cool before using or use bottled water, the release states.
Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, preparing foods, mixing baby formula, food, juices or drinks, washing vegetables and fruit, cooking, making ice, brushing teeth and washing dishes, the release states.
Two cases of water are being distributed to the affected homes, the release states.
For more information or updates, call 609-345-3315, email cservice@acmua,org or visitacmua.org.
Wildwood Crest to discuss bayfront project
- Bill Barlow
WILDWOOD CREST— Plans for drainage and flood control work along the west side of the borough are on the agenda for a Board of Commissioners meeting set for 5 p.m. Wednesday at Borough Hall, 6191 Pacific Ave.
Work is expected to begin in October, according to borough officials, who said more details on the proposed project will be discussed at the meeting.
Borough engineer Marc DeBlasio is set to discuss the project, which includes upgrades to outfall lines and valves, street-end raising and new bulkheads.
“The public is encouraged to attend the meeting, particularly those who live on or near the borough’s bayfront,” reads an announcement of the meeting.
For those who cannot attend in person, the meeting will be shown live on the Wildwood Crest YouTube channel and the Wildwood Crest Facebook page. The meeting can also be attended remotely via conference line by dialing 888-363-4734 and using access code 9699020.
For more information, call the borough clerk’s office at 609-729-8040.
Senate passes Polistina bill to name Route 42 interchange after HERO Campaign namesake Elliott
- John O'Connor
The state Senate on Mondayunanimously approved a bill sponsored by Sen. Vince Polistina, R-Atlantic, to name an interchange of Route 42 after a naval officer whose death led to the creation of a local designated-driver program.
The interchange between Route 42 and Interstate 295 will be known as the Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange, according to a news release from Senate Republicans.
“Ensign Elliot exemplified true leadership and served this country with honor and distinction,” Polistinasaid. "In recognition of his service, this bill would formally commemorate his legacy by naming this newly built interchange as the Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange."
Elliott was killed by a drunken driver in Salem County on July 22, 2000, two months after he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy.
The new connection between 42 and 295 is expected to improve traffic conditions on local routes and will provide a more direct route for travelers, the release states.
"Our family wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to Senator Polistina for sponsoring this bill," said Bill Elliott, CEO of the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers. "The Ensign John R. Elliott Memorial Interchange will represent more than a convenient new gateway to the Jersey Shore. It also will save lives, and would have saved our son’s if it had been available the night he was killed by a drunken driver while traveling home for his mother’s birthday on an undivided highway in July 2000."
Old Navy, Crumbl Cookies among seven stores coming to Millville
- Vincent Rapallo
MILLVILLE— Irgang Group announced Monday a series of new leases at the Union Lake Crossing shopping center that total 46,000 square feet, bringing the lease rate for the property to 98%.
New to the property will be Old Navy, Skechers, Inspira Health, Rally House, Five Guys, Crumbl Cookies and Poke Bros.
Summer openings are expected for Inspira Health, Skechers, Rally House, Crumbl and Poke Bros, while Old Navy is expected to open in the fall.
Five Guys has already opened its location at the property, its first in Cumberland County.
The new signings join ShopRite, Kohl's/Sephora, Target, Ross Dress for Less, PetSmart, Staples, Boot Barn, Famous Footwear, Party City, Five Below, Buffalo Wild Wings, Sonic, Moe's Southwest Grill, AAA, Charles Schwab, Fun City Adventure Park and Cato Fashions at Union Lake Crossing.
Irgang Group CEO Mark Irgang said that since acquiring the property in November 2021, Irgang has executed leases on nearly 108,000 square feet of property. Seventy-two percent of the property was leased when Irgang acquired the shopping center.
Residents ask to testify in lawsuit vs. Atlantic City Housing Authority
- Michelle Brunetti Post
ATLANTIC CITY — Atlantic City Housing Authority Executive Director Tom Sahlin is due to testify June 5 for the first time in a lawsuit over conditions at Stanley Holmes Village, and a lawyer for the residents is asking for a date when some of her plaintiffs can testify.
“We believe that their testimony would create a fuller record, with greater context, and allow us to present a more complete picture as to how the Housing Authority’s actions have affected our clients,” Olga Pomar of South Jersey Legal Services wrote in a May 15 letter to Atlantic County Superior Court Judge John Porto.
The court will wait until after Sahlin's testimony to decide if he needs to hear from plaintiffs, Porto said in a response Monday posted on the Superior Court's eCourts system.
The June 5 hearing is on a motion to enforce litigants’ rights. Pomar is asking the judge to enforce orders he had given to the authority dating back many months.
About 130 residents of the 420-unit complex are suing over a lack of heat and hot water, frequent gas leaks, mold and pest infestations, water intrusion and more.
Last month during a hearing, Porto said he cannot set any more deadlines for the authority to make improvements at Stanley Holmes, after it missed earlier deadlines, until he hears from Sahlin under oath.
“This court needs to hear some competent evidence in the form of testimony from an ACHA representative ... about order compliance and why previous orders were not complied with,” Porto said.
Among deadlines missed were those requiring the authority to provide plans for replacing the heating system at Stanley Holmes, for giving residents in the lawsuit court-ordered 25% rent abatements, and for replacing all old gas lines under Stanley Holmes.
In her recent request, Pomar asked for a separate date for her clients to testify, to avoid having residents having to return to court on multiple occasions, which would be difficult for those who have jobs, limited mobility or other issues.
In all but one hearing in the case over the past year and a half, Housing Authority attorney Rick DeLucry of Cooper Levenson has been the only attendee representing the authority.
At a hearing in October, Housing Authority consultant Mike Brown of the 360 Group in Philadelphia testified about advice he gave the authority, but no board member or staff member has ever testified in the case.
The authority recently hired an engineering and architectural firm, DeLucry said last month, so it is now in a position to begin moving on the heating system and more. But he acknowledged the firm has not yet completed its analysis to say when the authority can go to bid and install a new heating system or meet other deadlines.
DeLucry acknowledged he perhaps should not have agreed to past deadlines.
“The truth is we didn’t have the ability. ... I agreed to deadlines perhaps unwisely or precipitously,” DeLucry said. “We didn’t have the ability to deliver given that everything ... required an engineer we didn’t have.”
Pomar is asking the judge to set a detailed schedule for selecting by the end of May and installing by Oct. 1 a new heating system at Stanley Holmes.
She also asked the judge to order the authority to pay residents some amount weekly until it follows court orders, as a way to compel compliance.
“This court doesn’t want these residents to undergo what they have experienced the last two winters,” Porto said. “Whether it is inaction, inactivity, whether there is some paralysis with regard to analysis, whether it is budgetary issues ... this court is going to enter an order and oversee its enforcement.”
Egg Harbor Township resident accused of stealing SUV in Northfield
- Vincent Rapallo
NORTHFIELD— An Egg Harbor Township resident was arrested Saturday morning for allegedly stealing an SUV.
Patrolman Brenden O'Brien was on patrol just before 10 a.m. when he noticed Martes D. Robinson driving a white Chevrolet Trailblazer with multiple equipment violations, police said Monday in a news release. O'Brien pulled over the vehicle near Roosevelt Avenue and Second Street.
O'Brien confirmed the vehicle was stolen after checking its registration, police said. Robinson was charged with receiving a stolen motor vehicle and sent to the Atlantic County jail.
Robinson also waslisted as wanted by the Atlantic County Sheriff's Office for failure to appear in court on aggravated assault and weapons charges, police said.
Citing an increase in motor vehicle burglaries and thefts over the past few weeks, police urged residents to lock their vehicles and remove their keys from inside.
NJ chief justice again urges against giving Senate power to name appellate judges
- Nikita Biryukovnewjerseymonitor.com
New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner on Friday again urged against a nascent proposal to amend New Jersey’s constitution to remove his authority to directly appoint appellate judges from the Superior Court bench and give that power to the governor and Senate.
In remarks delivered at the State Bar Association’s annual conference, Rabner warned the plan could leave appeals courts short-staffed and lacking the expertise needed to check the work of trial court judges.
“The Appellate Division and the selection process both work well. There does not appear to be a problem that needs fixing, let alone a problem so serious that it requires us to ask the citizens of New Jersey to amend the State Constitution,” Rabner said in the address.
Any such move would need to be approved by the Legislature and voters, and is also opposed by the bar association.
The proposal follows years of crushing judicial vacancies that grew severe enough to pause civil and divorce trials in seven counties. Those trials have since resumed, most recently in Passaic County.
Sen. Raj Mukherji (D-Hudson), the proposal’s chief sponsor, praised the chief justice’s choices on court staffing but said he worries a future chief justice would be less even-handed.
“He has indeed done a laudable job in selecting highly qualified and talented Appellate Division judges,” the senator said. “The concern remains that we’re the only state in the union where such breathtaking power is entrusted to one person, so what happens if it’s the wrong person?”
In New Jersey, the chief justice holds a specific seat on the Supreme Court, and the state’s top judge is directly appointed into the position rather than elected by their peers.
New Jersey’s process for appointing appellate judges is indeed unique among the states. While governors in four other states appoint at least some judges, subject to the approval of another body — in New Jersey, the state Senate — no others allow their high court’s chief justice to unilaterally appoint the members of its appeals court.
The chief’s direct appointment powers have insulated the Appellate Division from the vacancies that have plagued the trial courts, and Rabner in his address said he consults with high-ranking judges in intermediate and trial courts before elevating jurists to a 10-week trial on the appellate bench.
Mukherji said temporary appointment powers similar to those the chief justice exercises on Supreme Court vacancies could prevent an empty bench.
“Chief justice raises good points about the logjam potential, although you could solve for that by affording him the right to temporarily fill vacancies from the Superior Court,” he said.
Mukherji signaled that any changes to how New Jersey’s appeals judges are appointed wouldn’t come quickly.
“I do agree with his remark that the constitution should not be amended lightly, but rather after careful discussion and deliberation,” he said. “I’m glad that a discussion is taking place. That doesn’t mean this is or should be moving tomorrow.”
North Dakota is the only other state where the Supreme Court selects non-interim appeals judges, though in that state, the choice falls to the entire three-member high court.
Only two states — California and Kansas — allow governors to nominate appeals judges subject only to the advice and consent of another body, and Kansas is the only state that leaves appellate confirmations to the state Senate.
California’s confirmations are handled by a state judicial appointments commission, which is staffed by the chief justice of the California Supreme Court, the most senior state appellate judge, and the state attorney general.
Assisted appointment — where governors select judicial nominees from a list prepared by an outside body, most often a nonpartisan commission — is the most common method of appointing appellate judges. Nineteen states use it, some alongside an advice and consent component.
Twelve states elect appellate judges in nonpartisan elections, while eight hold partisan races to fill their intermediate courts. Some states require judges to run new campaigns for additional terms, while others only require they participate in yes-or-no retention elections.
Six states do not have an intermediate appeals court — appeals in these states usually go directly to the state’s high court, with some exceptions — and Virginia’s appellate judges are elected by both chambers of the state’s Legislature.
This story first appeared on the New Jersey Monitor.
Mays Landing bicyclist dies in crash on Black Horse Pike
- John O'Connor
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP— A bicyclist died Friday night after being struck by an SUV on the Black Horse Pike, police said.
Arthur Herz, 61, of Mays Landing, entered the westbound lanes of the pike near milepost 45.5 at 8:22 p.m. when he was hit by a 2014 Jeep Cherokee driven by Luca Scotto, 21, of Blackwood, Camden County, police said Saturday in a news release.
Herz was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Scotto was transported to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Mainland Campus in Galloway Township, with minor injuries.
The pike was shut down for four hours while the scene was investigated and cleared, police said.
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