Month: December 2019

A Holiday Message to Gloucester Township Residents From Police Chief Harkins

As we reflect on the past year, we are honored that we helped make Gloucester Township a great place to live, work, and play.   We look forward to making 2020 an even better year.  We will continue to use cutting edge methods and programs to interact with community members, to make the Gloucester Township Police Department the very best that it can be.

We are excited to meet the challenges, and we will partner with our community to overcome any situation that we encounter.

We are very thankful to all of those residents who have delivered kind words, cards, cookies, and food to the hard working men and women of the Gloucester Township Police Department during this holiday season.  This kindness brings the joy of the holidays to our officers and dispatchers.

On behalf of the men and women of the Gloucester Township Police Department, we want to wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a Happy New Year!  Rest assured that we will be on duty and celebrating the holidays by serving our community.

Thank you for your support!

David J. Harkins

Chief of Police

CNBNews 2008 ARCHIVES: Remembering Sgt. Joe Farley, \”Merry Christmas & Happy NY from Iraq!\”

EDITOR\’S Note: We recently found the letter below from Sgt. Joe Farley. It was sent to the Cleary family 12 years ago by Joe and published on CNBNews on January 1, 2008. The Farley family lived in our neighborhood for decades. We watched Joe grow up from a little tyke into a man. He was one of the good guys that came from our community of Gloucester City, NJ.

Joe was a great representative of our country and the community of Gloucester City.  After graduating from Gloucester City High School he enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Joe passed away from cancer in April 2017.

We are republishing his January 1, 2008 letter to us as a tribute to Joe\’s memory. At the same time, we like to thank all the soldiers serving in some foreign land around the world protecting our country from evil.

Sincerely, The Cleary Family

******

Hi Bill and Connie,

I wanted to write to you much sooner

and no other excuse then work has been very busy and that the NEW unit in charge made us an every remaining unit move out of their living areas and into others across the FOB, plus the INTERNET is slow as usual.

I want to wish you and everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from beautiful FOB Iskan, Iraq!

Well not much longer for me and my soldiers here.

We have our (TOA) Transfer of Authority on the 19th of JANUARY then we will be flying out to (BIAP) Baghdad International Airport from where we will wait a day or two then manifest for a flight and then the whole 127th MPCO will fly to Kuwait and then finally home safe to Rammstein Airbase then a nice lovely 2-hour bus ride to Hanau to Pioneer Kaserne to where we will have a welcome home ceremony.

We should be home hopefully between the 22-23rd  of January with all the traveling and manifesting for flights.

As for all the recent news in my (AO) Area of Operations, I will give you a quick but thorough update of information that you don\’t see or hear about on the NEWS.

On 1 NOV my soldiers and I went to the Al Haleema Primary School (1st-6th Grade) for girls located in Hamiya and conducted a school supply drive.  We distributed school supplies to 50 of the most

underprivileged and to the top 50 students designated by the school headmaster.  We also had the Iraqi Police from the Hamiya Local Police Station assist in the

distribution of school supplies along with the soldiers of my squad. This is a great way to build a strong bond between the people of Hamiya and the IP\’s (Iraqi Police).

Photo: Sgt. Joe at the Al Haleema Primary School

This gets the IP\’s involved in their community and presents a positive image at the same time. Also, this helps improves their IPC skills: Interpersonal communication skills and allows them to interact and get to know the people and show the children that IP\’s are good people and they can be looked up to in a positive manner like role models for a brighter future for Iraq!

This is one of the manyj ob responsibilities as (PTT) Police Transition Team Chief that I have on a daily basis to help the IP\’s here gradually become independent and able to perform the daily duties without any (CF) Coalition Force assistance.

As for the School Supply Drive, we ended up handing out 100 backpacks filled with 4 notebooks, 10 pencils, 5 pens, 2 erasers, 1 pencil sharpener, 24 pack of crayons, toothbrush, and toothpaste, and then each child got to pick an item from a table like art supplies, toys, stuffed animals, puzzles, bubbles, and flip flops and sandals.  It\’s amazing how fast a smile can change your day and make you feel like you are making an impact here.

My motto has been: Winning the hearts and souls of Iraq ONE smile at a time.

We also conducted another School Supply Drive on DEC 26 at the Al Yarmok Primary School for boys in Hamiya.  We used the same concept a utilized the IP\’s and this time around we ended up helping 400 students.

Each student received 4 pencils, 2 pens, 1 notebook, toothbrush/paste and then got to pick an item from a table: Matchbox cars, action figures, nerf footballs, crayons, and art supplies. Then the top 2 kids from each class also received a soccer ball. We handed out a total of 30 soccer balls to the children to include 6 for their athletic department for the kids to play during recess and gym classes.

I actually had soldiers from my other squads asking me if they could come out on Patrol and take part this time around after out last drive. It\’s nice to see there are others out here willing to forget we\’re here in IRAQ and try to do something positive for a good cause. I know for sure these positive images will not only last in each young soldier\’s memories but also in the little children we reach out and touch every day we do something that leads this society in the right direction.

Like always we finish the school supply distribution then get all the children together and take photos. They really get excited and smile and are really grateful.

Well if a picture can tell a thousand words these images can tell more and last a lifetime. (click on photo to enlarge)

This is a reason sometimes its worth tying up your boots and strapping 40 lbs of gear on and driving thru IED infested roads just so you can show these people here that we\’re the GOOD guys and not all of us are here for the god damn oil that our greedy government claims their not here for. I also thru the help of my interpreter speak to all of the students and stress the importance of getting an education and that the more knowledge each of them acquires the more POWER they will have in the future in turning their society in the right direction.

For those who don\’t know most Iraqi children unless in a very big city like Baghdad don\’t really have the option to just get an education, they have to help at home with farming and with what ever hard labor that\’s going to help put food on the table for them to survive. This is a really poor society for the most part and they live in very crude dwellings that we would find unlivable and unsuitable for our families. Hopefully one day the Government of Iraq can get their stuff together and be a

successful Nation like it was before the SADDAM era.

Photo: Make funny faces!

Our next and final push before we leave Iraq starts on JAN 2nd. We are doing a, Iraqi Police recruiting drive at the Iraqi Army Compound located on FOB ISKAN. There will be over 500 of the (CCP) Concerned Citizen Program coming thru and being screened for possible Iraqi Police candidates.

They must bring all their documents then go thru a process were we scan their

EYES and FINGERPRINTS into a database to ensure their not on a BOLO List and not barred.

Then each recruit then takes a reading and writing test in Arabic. Then speaks with an Iraqi Police officer. Then it goes to me and my SQUAD conducting the (PT Test) Physical Fitness portion. Each of the recruits has to complete 20 pushups, 20 sit-ups, 5 pull-ups, run 100 m sprint and then 1500 m run for time. I know it sounds like our Police academy. After 5 fun days of this, we will start to train and OJT the incoming MPs that are going to replace us. We call this the RIP Process Relief in Place.  We do our LEFT and RIGHT seat drives meaning we take them out the first few times and they are the passengers then we let them drive and we sit back and

monitor their abilities.

Well that\’s about it from here. Please let me know if there is any more I can do before I leave Iraq. Just let me know if you would like something. I will enclose some photos of the School supply drives below. I am hoping to be home in Gloucester City sometime around the 22-23 if FEB too visits my Pop-Pop and Aunt Cass and rest of my family on Block Leave.

One last thing could you please update my INFO from the SOLDIERS serving in IRAQ…I am a SSG US Army and (MP) Military Police. They list me as a PFC in the Marines. I\’m not a Jarhead. GO ARMY!

HAPPY NEW YEARS!

SSG Joseph Farley

127th MPCO

RELATED:

HI FROM IRAQ

U.S. Army Sergeant Joseph Farley, Decorated Iraq War Veteran and former Gloucester City Resident, Loses His Nine Year Battle With Cancer

(VIDEO) Be on the Lookout for the Spotted Lanternfly

TRENTON, NJ (December 2019)–The State of New Jersey is warning the public once again about the dangerously invasive spotted lanternfly. It has been found  in Camden, Cape May, Gloucester, Hunterdon, Mercer, Burlington, Salem, Somerset and Warren counties. State officials say that Cape May and Gloucester counties are among the newest additions to the list.

Spotted Lanternfly Background

• Detected on September 22, 2014 in Berks County Pennsylvania

• Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) is a plant hopper, Lycorma delicatula (white) belonging to the family Fulgoridae in the order Hemiptera (true bugs).

• Makes use of over 70 different plant species, including fruit trees, ornamental trees, woody trees, vegetables, herbs and vines. Strongly prefers the invasive “Tree of Heaven”

Damage

• Like most hemipterans, SLF feeds on plants using their sucking and piercing mouthparts to extract plant sap.

• Adults and nymphs feed on phloem tissues of young stems with their piercing and sucking mouthparts and excrete large quantities of liquid (honeydew).

• Feeding creates weeping wounds

• Honeydew facilitates the growth of sooty mold

• Weeping Sap attracts activity from hymenopteran such as wasps, hornets, ants, bees etc.

• Impacts quality of outdoor life for everyone

MORE INFORMATION HERE

THREE KINGS CELEBRATION JAN. 6

CAMDEN CITY, NJ

January 6th from 2 PM to 5 PM at the Kroc Center for food, live music, and gifts for the children for the Three Kings Day Celebration. This event is presented by the Camden County Board of Freeholders, Camden County Department of Constituent Services Office of Hispanic Affairs.

For further info please call (856) 225-5312.

The Salvation Army Kroc Center

1865 Harrison Avenue, Camden, NJ, 08105, United States

Monday, Jan 6th, 2020 @ 2:00 pm

–

5:00 pm

Norcross, Booker, Hayes Introduce Legislation to Support Childcare for Student-Parents

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Congressman Donald Norcross (NJ-01) this week joined Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (CT-05) and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) to introduce H.R. 5475, the Preparing and Resourcing Our Student Parents and Early Childhood Teachers

(PROSPECT) Act. This important legislation would invest heavily in federal grants supporting childcare for student-parents at community colleges and Minority Serving Institutions (MSI’s).

There are over 4 million college students in the United States who are raising children while attending school. Although the number of student parents has been on the rise, the share of community colleges and four-year institutions with campus child care has been in decline. In New Jersey, 46 percent of all residents live in a child care desert, according to the

Center for American Progress

. The PROSPECT Act would help New Jersey students enrolled in community colleges fight costly barriers to degree completion and make sure more young people have the tools they need to learn and succeed.

“Today, many student-parents are forced to choose work over their education because they cannot afford child care,”

said Congressman Norcross, a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor.

“Access to quality, affordable child care for college students impacts the strength of our economy and the diversity of our workforce. The PROSPECT Act will help provide student-parents with a level playing field. South Jersey is a leader in higher education, and this legislation will ensure that parents, their children and educators are afforded the resources and opportunities they need to succeed.”

“I was a student-parent while I pursued my bachelor’s, master’s, and graduate degrees. I know first hand the struggles of being a young parent, while trying to study and earn a degree,”

said Congresswoman Hayes,

a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor

. “The PROSPECT Act would provide student-parents with much-needed assistance, which removes one more barrier to success. I thank Senator Booker and Congressman Norcross for joining me in this effort to support student-parents.”

“Today’s college students are faced with realities that are very different than the idyllic assumptions we have of them,”

said Senator Booker.

“Millions are raising kids and have enrolled in college to improve their life circumstances for their children, but too many are forced to drop out because quality child care is unavailable or unaffordable, leaving them without a degree and saddled with student debt. This legislation will address this crisis by investing in campus child care and infant-toddler educator preparation programs, making our college campuses better equipped to help today’s students succeed.”

The PROSPECT Act is endorsed by the following organizations: American Federation of Teachers (AFT), CLASP, Education Reform Now – Advocacy, Generation Hope, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), National Black Child Development Institute, National Women’s Law Center (NWLC), Public Advocacy for Kids, UNCF, UnidosUS and Zero to Three.

“Representative Jahana Hayes’ bill addresses two essential family needs – the cost of child care, and the need to meet the appetite children have to learn and thrive,”

said

Randi Weingarten, President of American Federation of Teachers.

“Children are always learning, particularly in the months and first few years of life, which means finding ways to help nurture this learning will help the children who receive that.  At the same time child care costs pose an undue burden for working parents that immediately hamstring kids whose parents work to earn a living. Child care for infants and toddlers costs parents roughly 60 percent more than child care for a 3- or 4-year-old. Finding and affording child care is even harder for parents who are in college themselves. Rep. Hayes’ Preparing and Resourcing Our Student Parents and Early Childhood Teachers Act takes bold steps to address the reality that in today’s economy, most parents are working parents, and many are also in school. It will make infant and toddler child care more affordable and accessible on college campuses, enabling student parents to finish their degrees and access a better a better life for their families. By funding high-quality child care programs with well prepared and compensated early childhood educators, this bill helps parents and educators address take care of themselves, and their families.”

“In 1999, I started as a full time freshman and teen mother at the College of William & Mary, struggling to find childcare for my three-month-old daughter while adapting to the new world of college and the academic rigor of a prestigious school,”

said

Nicole Lynn Lewis, Founder and CEO of Generation Hope. “

I founded Generation Hope in 2010 to ensure young, parenting college students have all of the supports that I lacked, and the PROSPECT Act builds upon this work in an innovative way by providing childcare and opportunities for students across the country who are working incredibly hard to become college graduates.”

“Every student deserves a fair chance at completing a college degree and pursuing their American Dream,”

said Dr. Michael L. Lomax, President and CEO of UNCF.

“This is something that HBCUs know all too well given their unique mission and continued efforts to ensure that our neediest of students are not ignored. The PROSPECT Act builds on the invaluable approach lead by HBCUs to make sure students with children are also taken care of and able to achieve their dreams. UNCF is proud to support such common-sense legislation and urges Congress to act swiftly and pass the PROSPECT Act.”

“Latinos are enrolling in college in record numbers. But support services are needed to help them finish on time, such as expanded access to quality early childhood education for student-parents,”

said

Eric Rodriguez, Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at UnidosUS.

“The PROSPECT Act will lift up entire families by expanding child care at college campuses, helping with college completion and providing young children a strong start in early education and life.”

The World Lottery Association Recertifies New Jersey Lottery

for Level 4 Responsible Gaming Certification

TRENTON (Dec. 20, 2019) – In 2016, the New Jersey Lottery was only the third state lottery in the nation to be awarded a World Lottery Association Responsible Gaming Level Four Certification, the highest level of international recognition in the

gaming industry. The Lottery has been recertified by the World Lottery Association in 2019 for continued efforts to incorporate responsible gaming best practices into its every day operations.

The World Lottery Association Responsible Gaming Principles and Framework Certification Program outlines lotteries\’ level of commitment to corporate social responsibility and responsible gaming. New Jersey Lottery received the recertification of its Level 4 distinction for its commitment to continued review and ongoing development of extensive responsible gaming efforts.

“I am proud of New Jersey Lottery’s efforts to incorporate responsible gaming messages into all areas of communication and our work toward continued enhancements of the Responsible Play Program,” said New Jersey Lottery Acting Executive Director James A. Carey, Jr. “We are pleased that the extensive review by the World Lottery Association of our responsible gaming initiatives and continued commitment has earned the New Jersey Lottery recertification of the prestigious Level 4 Responsible Gaming Certification.”

FACE OF DEFENSE: Coast Guard swaps summer buoys with seasonal winter buoys on Chesapeake Bay

BALTIMORE — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter James Rankin has finished replacing the summer buoys with seasonal winter buoys on the Chesapeake Bay, Friday.

Throughout the month of December the crew replaced 66 summer buoys and removed the Francis Scott Key buoy in preparation for the winter season. The seasonal buoys are kept in until late February or early March.

Ice and snow have the potential to damage, displace and submerge the large summer buoys, which would leave the channel unmarked and could create a substantial hazard to mariners. Displaced buoys could misguide boaters, which might result in groundings or allisions with partially-submerged buoys.

“The summer hulls run the risk of snow and ice attaching to the cages above the water, which would pull the buoys under the ice, under the water and create a significant hazard to navigation for passing ships,” said Chief Warrant Officer Christopher Runt, aids to navigation officer at Sector Maryland-National Capital Region. “Winter hulls are designed to ride better in the ice and don’t have surfaces for the ice to attach to.”

The James Rankin is a 175-foot Keeper-class buoy tender homeported at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore.

Related:

Face of Defense

American Hero

CNBNews Tips and Snippets

CNBNews Point of View

BREAKING NEWS

published Gloucestercitynews.net | Dec. 24, 2019

AG Grewal Sues Companies for Selling Large Capacity Ammunition Magazines into NJ

Some Refused To Turn Over Evidence of Prior Sales

Elite Aluminum Complaint

22MODSFORALL Complaint

TRENTON

– Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal today filed suit against two separate out-of-state companies which previously sold illegal large capacity magazines (LCMs) to undercover state investigators in New Jersey, and which have failed to comply with state subpoenas demanding the records of their New Jersey sales.

New Jersey law prohibits the possession and sale of firearm magazines that are capable of holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition. LCMs allow a shooter to fire an unusually high number of bullets at a time, without requiring the shooter to even pause and reload. As a result, violence that involves LCMs can result in more shots fired, persons wounded, and wounds per victim than other gun attacks.

Although both Elite Aluminum of Holly Hill, Fla., and 22Mods4All of Longwood, Fla., appear to have discontinued sales of LCMs into New Jersey after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Attorney General Grewal, both companies have refused to turn over documents showing their prior sales into the state, despite receiving a subpoena.

This investigation predates, and is unrelated to, the attack in Jersey City last week.

“Large capacity magazines are illegal in New Jersey, which is why I’m continuing to file suits against LCM companies that sell their products to our consumers,” said Attorney General Grewal. “The companies we’re going after today have repeatedly stonewalled and withheld evidence from investigators, despite a subpoena. These lawsuits serve as yet another warning to the industry: hide the extent of your unlawful sales from our investigators, and we will see you in court.”

“New Jersey banned the possession and sale of LCMs because of their devastatingly lethal capacity, and because of the role such products have played in tragedy after tragedy around the country,” said Division of Consumer Affairs Acting Director Paul R. Rodríguez. “Not only do we allege that these companies put New Jersey residents at risk by selling dangerous, illegal weapons into the state, exposing purchasers to criminal liability, they have now failed to comply with our investigation. These two sellers have had ample warning and time to cooperate. Their time has run out, and we’re taking them to court.”

Filed in Superior Court in Essex County, the State’s lawsuits against Elite Aluminum and 22Mods4All each include two counts. The first count addresses alleged violations of the Consumer Fraud Act that occurred when the companies offered and sold LCMs to New Jersey buyers despite the fact that possessing an LCM is a fourth-degree crime in New Jersey punishable by up to 18 months in prison and fines of up to $10,000. The second count centers on the failure of both sellers to comply with a subpoena for records documenting their sales activities in New Jersey dating back five years.

The sales information was first requested in cease-and-desist letters sent to both vendors by Attorney General Grewal on January 7, 2019.

The Elite Aluminum cease-and-desist letter came in the wake of the company’s sale and delivery of eight 30-round LCMs to an undercover Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) detective through three separate transactions in 2018.

The 22Mods4All cease-and-desist letter came in the wake of the company’s sale and delivery of nine 30-round LCMs to an undercover DCJ detective in two separate transactions, also in 2018.

Attorney General Grewal’s letters called on Elite Aluminum and 22Mods4All to stop advertising, selling and/or shipping LCMs to New Jersey. Both appear to be complying with that portion of the letter, as revealed by subsequent undercover efforts to purchase LCMs from both vendors in 2019.

However, the cease-and-desist letters to Elite Aluminum and 22Mods4All also called on each to provide details of past sales of LCMs to any New Jersey address since January 1, 2014, which would allow the State to identify the extent of the companies’ LCM sales and alleged legal violations.

After neither company complied with the demand for information in Attorney General Grewal’s cease-and-desist letters, the Division issued a subpoena to 22Mods4All in July 2019, and to Elite Aluminum in August 2019.

Neither company has complied with the subpoena. 22Mods4All did not respond at all, while Elite Aluminum failed to supply the demanded documents.

Today’s lawsuit is not the first action by Attorney General Grewal to protect New Jersey residents from illegal firearm products and gun violence filed this year. Among other things, in June, Attorney General Grewal filed suit against a Nevada company – New Frontier Armory – after it ignored a cease-and-desist letter and allegedly sold six LCMs to an undercover state investigator, including a 100-round magazine, a 30-round magazine and a 15-round magazine.

And earlier this year – on March 22 – Attorney General Grewal filed suit against James Tromblee, Jr., owner of the California-based “ghost gun” company U.S. Patriot Armory. The lawsuit alleged that U.S. Patriot Armory violated the State’s Consumer Fraud Act by continuing to advertise, market, and offer for sale ghost guns to New Jersey residents. (Ghost guns are partially-assembled firearms sold with the parts needed to create a fully-operational gun – and often even with the instructions on how to do so.) That same month, Attorney General Grewal announced criminal charges against individuals trafficking ghost guns into the state.

Newark Man Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For Firearms Offense

Related To Shooting Of 5-Year-Old Girl

NEWARK, N.J. – A Newark man was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for being convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Jamar Battle, 31, was previously convicted after a three-day trial before U.S. District Judge

William J. Martini on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The jury deliberated two hours before delivering the guilty verdict. Judge Martini imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:

On the evening of July 4, 2018, Battle was involved in an argument with his girlfriend and was waiting for her outside of her home. After she arrived near her home, Battle fired six shots at the car she had been riding in as it pulled away. He did not hit his intended target, but did hit a 5-year old girl who had been walking with her father after watching a neighborhood fireworks display. The child survived the shooting but suffered a major injury that required immediate medical attention.

Prior to this shooting, Battle had been convicted of six felonies. In 2015, Battle was sentenced to New Jersey State Prison on two firearms offenses and had just been released from prison in May 2018.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Martini sentenced Battle to three years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited law enforcement officers of the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose; special agents of the Department of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Charlie J. Patterson in Newark; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark; and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens 2nd, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.

The government was represented by Senior Trial Counsel Robert Frazer and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Naazneen Khan of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crimes Unit in Newark.

Defense counsel: Michael P. Koribanics Esq., Clifton, New Jersey

Attention Family Caregivers

BLACKWOOD, NJ–This program has been highly beneficial for many family caregivers. Caregivers will learn about stress and its effects, practice stress management techniques, and develop problem solving skills. Some of the strategies include the following: breathing, imagery, humor, massage, meditation and yoga.

Space is limited to reserve a spot contact Rose Candy at: 856-858-3220 or Rose.candy@camdencounty.com

This program will be held every Tuesday from January 7th until March 3rd.

Camden County Senior Services

512 Lakeland Road, Blackwood, NJ, 08012, United States

Tuesday, Jan 7th, 2020 @ 5:00 pm

–

6:30 pm