Yanick gets 100th hit as Raptors win fourth straight

COLLEGE

VILLE,

Penn.

(

March

, 2020) –

The

Rutgers University-Camden baseball team received strong pitching, a milestone performance and broke open a tie game with a five-run seventh inning on the way to an 8-2 victory here Monday at Ursinus College.

The win was the third in two days for the Scarlet Raptors, who swept a doubleheader from Oneonta Sunday, have now won four straight games and stand at 4-1 overall.

It was the season opener for Ursinus.

The Scarlet Raptors had heroes up and down the lineup, beginning with starting pitcher

Ethan Pritchett,

a junior transfer who was making his second appearance at Rutgers-Camden and his first start. Pritchett hurled five innings of two-hit shutout ball, walking four and striking out nine batters.

Sophomore pitcher

Stephen Brady

picked up the win for his first career decision at Rutgers-Camden. He worked three innings, allowing two hits and one earned run, while striking out three.

The Scarlet Raptors broke a scoreless deadlock in the fourth inning when sophomore designated hitter

Brett Yurgin

hit a leadoff home run to left field.

It was his second home run of the season.

The Bears tied the game in the sixth off Brady, aided by a leadoff triple from senior right fielder Alex Mumme. He scored on an infield error.

Rutgers-Camden unleashed its potent attack in the top of the seventh inning, sparked by a leadoff single from senior catcher

Thomas Gosse.

Gosse stole second and freshman shortstop

Danny Vazquez

was hit by a pitch. Junior center fielder

Billy Eisler

dropped down a sacrifice bunt and, one out later, Yurgin was intentionally walked, loading the bases for dangerous cleanup hitter

R.J. Concepcion.

The junior left fielder ripped a tie-breaking two-run single to left.

Senior first baseman

Matt Yanick

followed by etching his name in program history. Yanick unloaded a three-run home run to left-center field for his 100th career hit. He became the 37th player in program history to reach the century mark

. Ten of those hits are home runs, tying for sixth on the program’s career list with Connor Hall (2012-15). Yanick

will soon have more company

in the 100-hit club,

with Concepcion

on the verge of that milestone

. Concepcion, who went 3-for-4 with one run and two RBIs on the day, pushed his career high total to 96.

The Raptors added their final two runs in the eighth inning after a walk to Gosse and an error on a grounder by Vazquez. One out later, sophomore third baseman

Jesse Gerdes

delivered a two-run double to center.

Ursinus collected its final run in the ninth when Eisler came on to make his first collegiate pitching appearance. He worked one inning, allowing one hit and one earned run.

In addition to three hits by Concepcion, Gosse went 2-for-3. Gosse, Vazquez and Yurgin all scored two runs. Yanick’s three RBIs led the way in that category, while Gerdes and Concepcion had two apiece.

PETS ARE THE BEST: Giving The Gift Of Love

(NAPSI)—Most people would agree, the best gift during the holidays—and all year round—is the gift of love. For thousands of families, that means welcoming a puppy into their home. For those considering getting a new best friend for themselves or someone else, remember that choosing a puppy is a big decision. It’s also one you should think about carefully—for both your sake and the dog’s.

Consumer groups report receiving nearly 10,000 complaints about puppy/dog businesses in just the last three years, with 60 percent of consumers indicating they never got the pets they purchased, received pets that had health or genetic problems, or got no documentation for their pet. Just as concerning, most people don’t know how to make sure they are getting their pet from a reputable breeder and not an inhumane and substandard puppy mill. While everyone is encouraged to look to their local shelters and rescues, roughly a quarter of new pet parents obtain their puppies from breeders, whether because of allergies, size or temperament, or just because they have their hearts set on a particular breed of dog.

Whatever your motivation, you should make sure you know that the organization you use to find your new best friend is legitimate and will secure you a happy, healthy and responsibly bred pet.

To help you avoid scams and find properly raised puppies, here are some important tips from the experts at American Humane—the country’s first national humane organization and the largest certifier of animal welfare in the world—and PuppySpot, a placement service committed to helping responsible breeders place healthy, happy puppies with caring individuals and families:

• INTEGRITY:

Find a source you can trust.

• SUSPICIOUS PHOTOS:

Don’t be swayed by a fancy website or puppy photos that look like stock photos that are perfectly posed, don’t look real, or are found on multiple websites.

• PRICING:

If the price looks too good to be true, it generally is. People should avoid buying from a company that says it will transport a dog by air if the full purchase price seems to be less than or similar to the price of a flight.

• WIRING MONEY:

Never wire money to anyone you have met only online and avoid major money wiring companies and mobile payment service apps.

• BAD GRAMMAR OR MISSPELLINGS:

Be sensitive to strange language choices in puppy listings or communications. The vast majority of scammers are from foreign countries.

• BOGUS STORIES/EXCUSES:

Scammers often come up with complicated reasons they need immediate wire transfers or can’t deliver the puppy to you based on current events. Be on alert for bogus stories or excuses for why more money is requested after initial payment.

• REFUSAL TO SUPPLY DOCUMENTATION:

A responsible breeder, shelter or rescue organization will provide registration, vaccination and veterinary health records on request. Refusal to supply medical records or pedigree documentation is a red flag.

Bringing a new best friend into your home should be a positive and joyous experience. By following these guidelines and using diligence and common sense, you and your family may avoid unnecessary heartache and find the healthy, happy puppy of your dreams.

Learn More

For further information, please visit

www.AmericanHumane.org

and

www.PuppySpot.com

NJ State Trooper Charged with Allegedly Receiving Child Porn from Another Trooper

Andrea V. Knox, who is assigned to Troop D at the Moorestown station, has been suspended, according to the New Jersey State Police

TRENTON — A State Police trooper faces criminal charges after she allegedly received images of child pornography in a sexually explicit text exchange with another trooper.

Gloucestercitynews.net graphic files

Andrea V. Knox, of Mount Holly, failed to report her fellow trooper had shared child pornography, “despite her duty as a police officer to enforce and uphold the laws,” the state Attorney General’s Office said Tuesday.

Knox, 35, was charged Tuesday with official misconduct and possession of child pornography, the agency said in a statement. Knox, who is assigned to Troop D at the Moorestown station, has been suspended, the statement said.

The other trooper, Jeffrey Reitz of Williamstown, was charged with distribution of child pornography.

Reitz, 48, previously was indicted in December 2019 on two counts of possession of child pornography. Those charges were related to a separate exchange of texts with a different woman, the statement said.

“During those exchanges, the woman proposed that Reitz sexually assault a young girl and sent him a sexually explicit photo of the girl,” the Attorney General’s Office said.

It had described the girl as the woman’s 5-year-old daughter.

A criminal complaint in that case alleges Reitz responded to the child’s photo by texting “NICE!” and making a reference to sexual arousal.

That exchange occurred in December 2014, but investigators only learned of the images when the mother’s phone was seized “much later” during a separate investigation of the Gloucester City woman.

Additional images of alleged child pornography were found in an iCloud account that belonged to Reitz, the statement said.

Further investigation of the iCloud account revealed alleged text exchanges between the troopers that allegedly included sexually explicit conversations about an underage girl, it said.

According to the statement, Knox asked Reitz for details about sex acts he’d like to perform on the child during a text exchange on Aug. 27, 2018.

“The following day, the pair had another sexually explicit text exchange, during which Reitz sent Knox photos of people at a nudist location,” the statement said.

The images included photos of two exposed girls, it said.

“Knox failed to report that Reitz shared items of child pornography with her,” the statement said.

Reitz has been suspended since his arrest in April 2019.

The troopers were charged after an investigation by the Financial and Cyber Crimes Bureau of the state’s Division of Criminal Justice.

Camden County Progressive Groups Picket Norcross Rally held at CC College

Blackwood, NJ February 29, 2020–A coalition of progressive groups picketed the Norcross Rally luncheon today, calling for state leaders to demand changes to New Jersey’s electoral structures, ethics reforms and real progressive change. The luncheon, which is a fundraiser for Congressional incumbent Rep Donald Norcross, brought together unelected power broker George Norcross, his brother the Congressman Donald Norcross, Governor Phil Murphy and Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It cost $2800 per person to attend the event on the Camden County Community College campus.

“For the price of one lunch with the Norcross Brothers here at Camden County Community College, you could almost attend an entire year of full time study. Are you kidding me?” Said

Susan Druckenbrod, of South Jersey Women for Progressive Change

“Representative Norcross is attempting to steal the progressive label, but is anything but progressive on a number of key issues. He is bad on the environment- he takes money from Covanta, one of the worst examples of environmental injustice in our country today. He aligns himself with anti-environmental organizations criticized by Greenpeace and other progressive groups. Norcross has a record of not supporting public education in favor of school privatization, and he is also the recipient of tens of thousands of dollars in defense contractors.” Noted

Kate Delany, President of the South Jersey Progressive Democrats.

“Unlike Bernie Sanders whose small dollar donors make up over 50% of his campaign funds, a tiny 1.75% of Norcross’ donors are small dollar; he is a favorite of corporate interests. Norcross is in Congress in a deep blue district, because his brother is the most powerful man in NJ, not because he is some kind of progressive hero. Why would Nancy Pelosi come here of all places, for a fundraiser? What about the swing districts?”

“Donald Norcross pretends to be the candidate for the common man, but these high dollar donations are out of reach for most people. Instead of small donors supporting him, Rep Norcross is influenced by big money donors, and that is out of step with this progressive district.” Said

Gary Samuels, Camden City resident and community organizer.

“Donald and George Norcross are two sides of the same coin. It’s a good cop/ bad cop routine. George pulls the strings and Donald executes the plan. The Economic Opportunity Act, which awarded over a billion dollars to Norcross connected companies is the clearest example of this.” Said

Crystal Evans, a resident and community organizer in Gloucester Township. “

We are frustrated that otherwise good Democratic leadership is hobnobbing with someone who is likely under FBI criminal investigation and his brother who has followed his marching orders. The national conversation is highlighting how we need change in political leadership- and that starts here in the Democratic Party, the party we are part of, the party we believe in, and the party we love and would love to improve.”

“Speaker Pelosi has successfully called out Donald Trump for the same behavior— from speaking poorly about immigrants, to using public government for personal and private gain. Why won’t she do the same for the Norcross family? George has spoken about immigrants in a racist way; he leverages his political power to gain public contracts. Pelosi has stood up to Trump’s undermining of national elections, and here in NJ, George Norcross is an unelected power broker who uses his muscle to put the thumb on the scale of our elections in the form of the Line and other mechanisms.” Said

Chris Emrich, Elections Director of South Jersey Progressive Democrats.

\’I am my brother’s and my sister’s keeper\’

Steven B. Brooks

FEB 2020

Topsham, Maine–

There have been times when those participating in Corey E. Garver American Legion Post 202’s Winter Classic in Topsham, Maine, have slid on ice trying to run to first base, broken through a crusty layer of snow running down a fly ball, or even disappeared into a fluffy, four-foot pile of the white stuff attempting to dive for a ball in foul territory.

Not ideal conditions for softball, but that doesn’t matter at all to those who have been taking part in the annual fundraiser – some for all six years of its existence. From sub-zero temperatures to snow drifts lining the field adjacent to Post 202, the conditions don’t matter as much as the event’s cause: raising money to help end the veteran homelessness issue in Maine.

The motto for the event, which took place on Feb. 22 this year, is concise and to the point: “We play in the cold so that veterans don’t have to live in the cold.”

“That’s all this is about,” Post 202 Commander Nancy Laffin-Gillespie said. “Yes, we’re having fun. It’s a unique thing playing in the snow. But the reality is people live in the cold. Everybody here knows the reason why they’re here is to keep people out from the cold.”

The idea for the Winter Classic came from former Post 202 Commander Nik Hamlin, who helped save a nearly defunct Post 202 in 2013 and now is a member of American Legion Post 158 in Lisbon to be closer to home. But Hamlin doesn’t like to take credit for a vision that has grown bigger every year.

“I can’t take credit for this event because it’s a community event,” Hamlin said. “I can’t do this without everybody. When it comes to tackling any kind of issues that affect society, it’s going to take the community to do it.”

Laffin-Gillespie said the post is in the right community to make something like the Winter Classic a success. “We are very lucky here in the state of Maine. Our veteran community is amazing,” she said. “We all come out together and try to help in any way we can for any veteran problems.”

Each year the money raised has gone to a local or state program that includes among its mission eradicating veteran homelessness. This year’s funds went to Maine Veterans In Need, a non-profit that consist of members of the Maine American Legion, the Bureau of Maine Veteran Services, the Department of Veterans Affairs and other service organizations.

Teams were asked to donate $200, but many upped that donation. Additional funds raised and donated, along with a raffle and 50-50 drawing, brought this year’s total raised to more than $4,500 – triple what the event raised in 2019.

While Hamlin was pleasantly surprised by the donation total, “I feel if I wasn’t able to (donate that amount) this whole thing would feel hollow,” he said. “To be able to do that … I can see the fruits of my labor. I can see where the money goes. I can see those affected by it. I owe it to the people that come here to donate it to a place that’s a good place to accomplish the mission.”

Post 202 has thrived in part because while embracing traditional American Legion programs, it also takes a unique approach to carrying out its other missions – such as the Winter Classic.

“What we found with this is you can do it in a fun way,” said Department of Maine Commander Matthew Jabaut, a member of Post 202. “Too many times our events are maybe a little too solemn or a little too formal. If you can do a lot of cool, good, serious work in a fun way, it’s able to reach people, and then people really want to get active and engaged and be part of that. And then there’s that good feeling when you leave … and you’re not just having fun to have fun. You’re also doing it for a good cause.”

Laffin-Gillespie transferred to Post 202 around two years ago because of what the post has been able to accomplish over the past six-plus years. “I really like this post has a good grasp on the mission of The American Legion,” she said. \”It has a good grasp on veteran issues that need raised (and) that people need to be educated on. And we make progress in trying to help these problems.”

One of those problems is veteran homelessness, which has dropped considerably in part due to the efforts of Maine Veterans In Need, but still remains an issue in a state with a long, brutal winter season. “Veterans, especially when they’re transitioning, can fall into a lot of holes. I, myself, was a couch surfer for a while when I got out,” Laffin-Gillespie said. “Having a place that’s your home – your own home – means a lot. That’s why it’s important to me that I can help any veteran that I can. If this helps them to get a hotel room for five days just to get them off the street … that’s great.”

Those who participate in the Winter Classic share the same sentiment. Russ Taylor, a longtime member of the Sons of The American Legion and the current SAL Squadron 86 commander, has been a part of four of the six years of the Winter Classic, playing on a team consisting of American Legion Family members from Post 86 in Gray, Maine. Every year Post 86 has fielded a team for the event.

“We’ve never done very well, but we have fun and it’s for a good cause,” Taylor said. “We can go play in the snow for one day (and) a homeless veteran doesn’t have to live in the cold – that’s why we do it.\”

Team Grateful, which plays out of Lovell, Maine, has won the past two Winter Classics. But while the squad celebrated after its most recent championship, that’s not what motivated the squad to drive 90 minutes each way to play at Post 202.

Rich Massey, a member of Team Grateful, has participated in five Winter Classics with his team. “I think the biggest reason I do this is I didn’t serve,” he said. “This is how I try to pay it back: doing stuff like this and contributing any way I can. We love this, and we’ll be back every year.”

The double-elimination tournament started at 10 a.m. and wrapped up at around 5:30 that evening. Music played throughout the day, while those attending could get assistance from the Department of Veterans Affairs’ mobile Vet Center, which was set up outside the post.

Also in Post 202’s parking lot was a trailer converted over to

temporary homeless veteran housing

by Charles E. Sherman Jr. Post 36 Legionnaires Ed Harmon and Arthur Richardson. The Winter Classic gave participants and spectators a chance to check out the trailer, which is intended to be a prototype for a larger future fleet of similar trailers.

Harmon said it’s important to work together to end veteran homelessness. “It’s going to take a team to solve this issue,” he said. “It won’t just be one individual.”

But the Winter Classic started with one person: Hamlin. And it’s a cause that gets him emotional at times. Prior to the start of this year’s tournament, he shared with the participants the story of Navy veteran Russell Wilson, who died this winter in his sleeping bag near railroad tracks in Brunswick.

“We’re here to stop that. We’re here to make that (stuff) never happens again,” Hamlin said, his voice breaking a bit. “Help me make sure that never happens again. It takes a community to save a community.

\”I am my brother’s and my sister’s keeper.”

SOURCE THE AMERICAN LEGION

If You Want to Succeed on Instagram, Listen Up

(Gloucestercitynews.net)(March 1, 2020)–Here\’s the problem when it comes to social media marketing. A lot of people are under the impression that they have to just post the right content and everything will be fine.

Well, on an absolute level, this is 100% correct. There is nothing to debate. There is nothing to discuss. This is absolutely spot on.

But there are a lot of details to explore. There are a lot of gaps there.

What content? When do you post these materials? Who do you address this to? How do you position this content? I can go on and on. The list is actually quite long.

While we can talk about basic truisms, like you have to buy Instagram likes or social proof so you can get an organic critical mass going, you have to read between the lines. You have to dig deeper. This requires an overall day to day strategy. Simply buying social proof from places like

buzzvoice.com

isn’t going to be enough.

Now, please understand that this is very different from an overall holistic strategy. I\’m not talking about that. I\’m not talking about your big picture strategy or 30,000 bird\’s eye view perspective.

There\’s a place for that. It\’s absolutely important, but we\’re talking about day to day practical tasks that you need to do every single day for your Instagram marketing account to be successful.

So, what are these daily activities that you need to take care of? Well, first of all, you need to make sure that you use the right hashtags.

Now, how do you know which hashtags to use? Well, it\’s very simple. You mix and match.

You experiment with different hashtags that you lifted from other places. You can reverse engineer your competitors\’ hashtags. Wherever they come from, make sure you experiment and see which hashtags are actually delivering solid value.

How do you know? Well, you can call people to action. You can run little contests. Whatever the case may be, get your followers themselves to supply the hashtags through some sort of feedback so you can see if you are on the right path.

The second thing that you need to do is call people to action in terms of your content. Ask them, \”Is this the kind of content that you want?\” If not, please suggest the right content.

Offer them some sort of incentive. Here\’s the secret: it doesn\’t have to be money.

You have to understand that on the internet, especially on social media, symbolic or purely non-monetary incentives work as well, if not better, than monetary incentives.

You don\’t have to spend one red cent. Just get people to believe that they are getting value. Oftentimes, the perception of value is more important than the actual value. When your fans believe they are getting value, they spread the word about you. This is one of the cheapest and most sustainable ways to

grow your Instagram following

The third thing that you need to do is to constantly pay attention to your competition. This is the great thing about Instagram. Everything is transparent.

So, if you see that your competitors are up to something and they\’re experimenting with different types of postings as well as different types of media and hashtags and descriptions, sit up and pay attention. See if you can copy some of that and improve what you\’re doing.

By sticking to these three daily, highly practical tasks, you will be able to take your account to the next level in terms of reach and effectiveness.

JEROME BY DAVE WOLFE

ARTIST Dave Wolfe

Vol. 6 No. 35 (March 1, 2020)

Editor\’s Note: Each Sunday morning we post a weekly comic strip provided by cartoonist Dave Wolfe. (click image to enlarge)

A message from South Jersey Political Chairs

Dear U.S. House Candidate:

As leaders of the Democratic Party, we respectfully request that you sign the following campaign pledge

o disavow support in any form from the corrupt Callaway organization in Atlantic City.

Craig Callaway has a long and shameful history of interfering in honest and fair elections. As Atlantic City Council President, he disgraced his office by taking thousands in cash bribes leading to a federal conviction and a 40-month prison sentence.

Then, one of Callaway’s political allies, former Camden City Councilman Ali Sloan-El, was

convicted of taking tens of thousands in cash in brown bags from an undercover FBI agent

in the same pay-to-play redevelopment scheme that rocked South Jersey.

Ali Sloan-El has since made new allies. Just last year he partnered with Susan Altman, who runs a Trenton dark money group that fights against disclosing secret donors. They, along with Kate Delany and other fake Democrats, tried infiltrating the Democratic primaries in South Jersey with Trump Republicans, convicted felons, deadbeats, and petition forgers. The County Prosecutor’s Office even investigated the petition forgeries, leading to disqualifications for some of Altman’s candidates.

Why would Altman recruit Republicans in a primary election against Democrats? Simple: because she was a lifelong Republican. This means Altman didn’t participate in primaries to support Al Gore for President, Jim McGreevey for Governor, Frank Lautenberg for U.S. Senate, Jon Corzine for U.S. Senate or for Governor, Cory Booker for U.S. Senate, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton for President, not including numerous other federal, state, county, and local Democrats seeking elective office. She didn’t even bother voting against Chris Christie for Governor. And even worse, she just bragged about showing support for Cory Booker’s primary opponent.

The story gets much worse for Craig Callaway. He was convicted in state court for blackmail and sentenced to three more years in prison in a repulsive scheme of arranging for a prostitute to provide sexual favors to his Council rival, an elderly widower, and videotaping the encounter in a rented motel room. He used the video footage to try to force his rival to resign from public office, but the plot backfired when his victim took the threat to law enforcement. It made national news.

Callaway’s syndicate of allies have even more documented instances of immoral, illegal, and reckless behavior that is unbecoming of our Party — from knife fights, assaults, harassment, threats, and stalking to outright voter fraud — strong-arming voters in poor communities of color to allow Callaway cartel soldiers to vote by mail on their behalf.

Unfortunately, this is not just behavior from many years ago. In 2017, Callaway staged his post-prison political comeback by masterminding the mayoral election of Frank Gilliam, an official who brought shame and disgrace to our region once again by stealing over $87,000 from a kid’s basketball program. That’s yet another Callaway associate led away in handcuffs, further contributing to the embarrassing legacy of Atlantic City mayors.

Like Craig Callaway, Altman wants to interfere with our primary selection process the same way they did last year.

We call on all candidates to disavow partnering with career criminals and fake Democrats like Susan Altman and Kate Delany in this primary.

Allowing the Callaway Crime Cartel and their Trenton dark money allies to determine the man or woman to run against traitor Jeff Van Drew cannot be an option.

Their conduct does not belong in our party and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms. Sign this pledge affirming that you will not accept direct or in-kind donations, organizational support, endorsements, or provide payments to them or their affiliated entities.

Please post this signed pledge on your social media sites.

Thanks for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Wyatt Earp – Ocean

Brendan Sciarra – Cape May

Steve Caltabiano – Salem

Steve Errickson – Cumberland

James Beach – Camden

Fred Madden – Gloucester

Joseph Andl – Burlington

Campaign Pledge

I, the undersigned candidate for Congress in New Jersey\’s 2nd Congressional District, sign this pledge affirming that I will not accept direct or in-kind donations, organizational support, endorsements from, or provide payments to, Craig Callaway or his affiliated entities.

State Launches Clean Up of Illegal Dumping Area Along Assunpink Creek

TRENTON – Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Catherine R. McCabe today joined Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora, other city officials and volunteers to launch a community project to remove materials from a large illegal dumping site in Trenton as part of the DEP’s statewide

environmental justice efforts.

This is the first phase in the cleanup of the Amtico Square site and results from concerns residents raised at an environmental justice listening session held by Commissioner McCabe and the city last fall.

“This cleanup is a direct, tangible response to concerns I heard from residents during an environmental justice listening session and is a great example of putting into practice environmental justice principles to improve quality of life for disproportionately burdened communities,” Commissioner McCabe said. “The City of Trenton and Mayor Gusciora have been constructive and dedicated partners in this effort, from the listening session to the eventual conversion of this site to public use. As is our goal with all environmental justice projects, we will continue to revitalize our communities and protect public health to make New Jersey stronger and fairer. I am grateful for the strong partnerships and community support for their collaboration to transform this eyesore and public safety hazard into a community asset.”

“Programs like these showcase the continued partnership between Trenton and state government,” said Mayor Gusciora. “We’d also like to thank our partners at the New Jersey DEP and United by Blue for coordinating and funding this site cleanup. We have many stakeholders working to create a 100-plus acre park at the Assunpink Greenway, and we’re very excited about our future plans for these formerly vacant brownfield sites.”

Commissioner McCabe and Mayor Gusciora were joined in launching the cleanup of Amtico Square by volunteers with the East Trenton Collaborative and Isles Inc. community groups, members of Trenton City Council, the city’s public works department, the Bridgestone Corp. and United by Blue, a socially conscious organization that works to protect the environment and has helped coordinate similar cleanups in the region.

This initial phase is focusing on removing materials dumped illegally on the property in recent years, including debris from housing demolitions, tires, and large household items such as furniture, mattresses and appliances. The property also has numerous piles of bricks and concrete, most resulting from the demolition of a large building at the site. These piles will be addressed as part of future long-term cleanup.

The city is providing heavy equipment and workers. United by Blue has agreed to pay for the hauling and disposal of household items collected at the site. Bridgestone Corp. has also agreed to take tires to be recycled.

United by Blue is committed to protecting the health of waterways through trash and debris removal projects, including an effort last year to protect the Delaware River through a cleanup of trash and large debris on

Burlington Island

, part of the DEP-coordinated South Jersey Scrub. The group provides safety precautions to volunteers participating in these cleanups.

“We have developed an expertise for organizing logistically challenging cleanups such as the Amtico Square cleanup,” said United by Blues’ High Yields Cleanup Coordinator Megan Platt. “A project like this brings together private and public entities to meet a collective goal of cleaning our water and the surrounding environment. In this case, we\’re intercepting debris before it has the chance of making it into Assunpink Creek – a tributary of the Delaware River.”

“Isles has been a long-term partner in the East Trenton Collaborative. During that time, we’ve worked with other organizations and residents to clean-up and improve public space by building gardens, beautifying parks and vacant lots, and planting street trees,” said Jim Simon, Deputy Director of Community Planning for Isles Inc. “We are also committed to making this East Trenton Collaborative neighborhood and other neighborhoods safer by addressing home health hazards and helping turn blighted properties like Amtico Square into community assets by engaging residents in a brownfields planning process.”

The Amtico Square site sits across from the home Gwendolyn Grier has lived in for more than 50 years. She is concerned about the impact dumping there has had on quality of life and health of her neighborhood.

“We’re hoping to get something for the kids, because right now it’s just an eyesore,” she said.

Other key partners are the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, the Trenton Police Department and the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, which are working to gather evidence throughout the process to inform investigations that may lead to prosecution of those responsible for the illegal dumping. Those responsible may face civil and/or criminal charges as well as significant fines.

Located along Assunpink Creek in East Trenton, the Amtico Square site is a 3.5-acre vacant area that once was the site of various rubber factories and other industries. It was most recently used for warehousing.

The building that occupied much of the site was demolished in 2013. The concrete foundation of the building today covers much of the site. Sampling of the ground below the foundation shows slightly elevated levels of contaminants, including metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

The city purchased the site as part of the Assunpink Greenway Brownfield Development Area project that envisions turning brownfield sites such as Amtico Square site into active and passive recreation parkland and a greenway trail along the Assunpink Creek, extending from the Hamilton border to downtown Trenton.

The Murphy Administraton has made addressing environmental justice a priority, launching legal actions against those responsible for pollution in these communities, making environmental justice considerations a priority in the state’s air quality and clean energy initiatives, and helping communities clean up contaminated sites and improve water quality.

In 2018, Governor Murphy signed

Executive Order 23

recognizing that the state’s low-income communities and communities of color have been exposed to disproportionately high and unacceptable levels of air, water and soil pollution, with the ongoing potential for health impacts. The order emphasizes that all communities should receive fair and equitable treatment in decision-making that affects their environment, communities, homes and health.

Achieving these environmental justice objectives is also one of the DEP’s key priority areas, through work that focuses on empowering communities to take action, protects public health and the environment in overburdened communities, and strengthens partnerships among communities, regulated entities and government.

The DEP is coordinating the Amtico Square cleanup through its Compliance and Enforcement Program and the Community Collaborative Initiative, which assigns DEP experts to work closely with urban communities to develop solutions to long-standing environmental problems.

As part of the first phase of cleanup, a fence will be erected around the site and security cameras set up to deter future dumping. The DEP will be coordinating additional environmental investigations of the site to assist the city in future restoration efforts as it moves forward with its greenway vision.

For a drone video of the site, click

here

For more information on the work the DEP is doing to address environmental justice, visit

www.nj.gov/dep/ej/

For more information on the Community Collaborative Initiative, including an explanatory video, visit

www.nj.gov/dep/cci/

Shenandoah Adams Sr., Arrested For Mortgage Fraud/Defrauding The Orange Library

NEWARK, N.J. – A Union County, New Jersey, man was arrested today by federal agents on charges of mortgage fraud and scheming to defraud the Orange Public Library, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Shenandoah Adams Sr., a/k/a “Shane Adams Sr.,” 54, of New Providence, New Jersey, is charged by indictment with six counts of wire fraud and two counts of making false statements in connection with a mortgage loan. He is scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre in Newark federal court.

According to the indictment:

Adams was a principal of Adams Property Management and Investment Group Limited Liability Company (Adams Property Management), which purchased property on Hilton Street in East Orange, New Jersey, in 2014. The following year, Adams arranged for a close associate (Individual 1) to obtain a $153,562 loan from a mortgage lender to purchase the Hilton Street property from Adams Property Management. Adams knew that Individual 1 did not have the money to pay the balance of the purchase price of $225,000. At the closing on March 25, 2015, Adams directed Individual 1 to issue a fraudulent check in the amount of $90,280.47 (the balance of the purchase price) to give the false impression that Individual 1 had paid the closing balance. Adams reassured Individual 1 that Adams would not negotiate the check. Adams signed a settlement statement, falsely certifying that Individual 1 paid the closing balance and that the settlement statement was a true and accurate statement of all receipts and disbursements made in connection with the sale of the Hilton Street property, when Adams knew that Individual 1’s check was fraudulent. Adams used Individual 1’s loan proceeds to pay off Adams Property Management’s $100,000 mortgage loan to purchase the Hilton Street Property and to obtain a $26,335.30 check for Adams Property Management.

Although Adams reassured Individual 1 that Adams would fund Individual 1’s mortgage payments, by May 2016 Individual 1’s mortgage payments on the Hilton Street property were substantially in arrears. Adams arranged for Individual 1 to sell the property to another associate for a price of $255,000. The closing on that sale commenced on May 31, 2016; the total amount to pay off Individual 1’s mortgage was $210,565.34. On June 1, 2016, Adams and Individual 1 had a telephone conversation with an out-of-state representative of the mortgage servicer for Individual 1’s lender, during which Adams made false and fraudulent statements to induce the lender to reduce the payoff amount. The lender agreed to reduce Individual 1’s payoff amount to $190,000. At Adams’s direction, Individual 1 cashed the check for the amount of the reduction, $20,665.34, and delivered the cash proceeds to Adams.

Adams also was a principal of VH Electrical and Plumbing Limited Liability Company (VH). On March 11, 2015, Adams, on behalf of VH, entered into a contract with the Orange Public Library to replace the library’s HVAC/Chiller unit for a price of $49,000. The project was funded by a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant to the library and Orange.

Before getting the contract with the library, Adams sent the library’s executive director, Timur Davis, two fake quotes purportedly from two vendors to give the false impression that VH would replace the library’s chiller for less than those other vendors. After VH had been hired, Adams sent Davis records to give the false impression that Adams was taking steps to order a replacement chiller. Adams received $40,000 from the library, but did not replace the chiller. Davis pleaded guilty on Feb.13, 2020 to making false statements to HUD in connection with the project.

The charges of wire fraud carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum $250,000 fine. The charges of making false statements in connection with a mortgage application carries a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a maximum potential fine of $1 million.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark; special agents of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christina Scaringi; and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John R. Tafur, with the investigation leading to today’s arrest.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys J Imbert and Cari Fais of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Special Prosecutions Division.

The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Defense counsel: TBD