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CAMDEN CITY NJ–On
December 23, 2019
, Special State Investigator/Acting Camden County Detective Michelle Chambers-Larsen was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. Sergeant Chambers-Larsen began her law enforcement career in 1995 as a Probation Officer. Later, in 2001, Sergeant Chambers-Larsen was hired by the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office and assigned to the Grand Jury Unit. During her 18 years at the CCPO, Sergeant Chambers-Larsen has proven herself to be a dedicated and diligent detective, working hard each day to serve the citizens of Camden County. Sergeant Chambers-Larsen has become a very well-rounded detective through her wealth of experience in many units throughout the CCPO, including the Special Prosecution’s Unit, Child Abuse Unit, Major Crimes Unit, Intelligence Unit and the Domestic Violence Unit.
Sergeant Chambers-Larsen will now be assigned to the Domestic Violence Unit. Congratulations to Sergeant Chambers-Larsen. Thank you for your tireless efforts on behalf of the CCPO. Shown here from left to right are Acting Camden County Prosecutor Jill S. Mayer, Special State Investigator/Acting Chief of Detectives Jeffrey Dunlap, Special State Investigator/Acting Camden County Detective Sergeant Michelle Chambers-Larsen, Special Deputy Attorney General/Acting First Assistant Prosecutor Mary Ellen Murphy and Chief of Staff Mike Mangold.
Released Tuesday, December 24, 2019.
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NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, New Jersey, man was arrested this morning after using his Twitter account to threaten to kill agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Carlos Alejandro Tariche, 22, of Edgewater, New Jersey, was arrested by agents of U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and charged by complaint with one count of interstate communications containing threats to injure. He is scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor in Newark federal court.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On Dec. 11, 2019, Tariche used one of his Twitter accounts to post threats to ICE agents: “We need to kill all ICE agents.” He also posted: “Why can’t mass shootings occur at @ICEgov buildings them mfs need to get smoked.” Tariche also used his Twitter account to compare his feelings to that of Elliot Rodger, the individual who carried out a mass shooting at Isla Vista, California, murdering six people and shooting 14 others. Tariche also posted on Twitter: “You might’ve heard I paint houses,” a phrase that refers to murdering people and that was recently popularized by the movie, “The Irishman,” which depicts a mafia hitman.
Law enforcement officers were able to link Tariche to his Twitter account through an investigation of his social media accounts and the locations from where he logged onto his Twitter accounts.
The charge of interstate communications containing threats carries a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of HSI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s charge.
The government is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kendall Randolph of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
By Dave Lemery |
The Center Square
HARRISBURG, PA–To Eileen Norcross, special funds in state budgets have the effect of disguising spending, concealing from the public what state government is actually doing with public dollars, which she calls “fiscal evasion.”
Norcross is vice president of policy research at the Mercatus Center, a free-market oriented public policy research center at George Mason University. She spoke late last week at a news conference in Harrisburg focused on a package of legislation designed to rein in spending.
“The proliferation of special funds are not unique to Pennsylvania, but their growth may be a sign of weak spending discipline,” she said. “The effect is to diminish budget transparency and to give both policymakers and the public a false sense of the true amount of spending, public policy priorities and the taxes necessary to support those programs.”
She noted that Pennsylvania’s total budget spending has grown from $56 billion in 2006 to $84 billion today, a rate of growth that she blamed on special funds.
“The practice of off-budget accounting or the creation of special funds can be problematic, effectively creating a shadow budget that isn\’t subject to the same legislative oversight, debate or rules that apply to the general fund,” she said. “The outcome is a two track general fund budget in which the general fund appears to be flat or declining, while the overall budget grows.”
Rep. Dawn Keefer, R-Dillsburg, is introducing a piece of legislation that would begin to address Norcross’s concerns. House Bill 1991 would ban the creation of new special funds within the budget, which Keefer said is timely because there are currently efforts ongoing to continue creating new special funds.
“The way we have our budget layered with all of these different shenanigans of how to shift money around from one fund to another, or from the general fund to offline spending, is a false sense of our financial picture, and we have completely evaded any kind of accountability that our taxpayers deserve,” Keefer said. “We need to get our fiscal house in order.”
Also introduced at the news conference was Rep. Andrew Lewis’s House Bill 1990, which would establish a Council on State Finances made up of administration officials and lawmakers of both parties to work on the annual state budget process in the open, instead of the current process that takes place behind close doors.
Rep. Tim O’Neal’s House Bill 1989, meanwhile, would dictate that surplus funds at the end of each fiscal year would automatically be deposited into the state’s rainy day fund. O’Neal noted that Pennsylvania lawmakers have received praise for adding $300 million to the rainy day fund this year, but he said that amount was nowhere near sufficient.
“The reality is, with the current budget in the rainy day fund, the Commonwealth can only operate for 3½ days,” O’Neal said. “We are on the verge of financial peril. And this is in one of the best economies that any of us have seen in our lifetime.”
Acting as emcee at the news conference was Rep. Seth Grove, R-York, the chairman of the House’s new Government Oversight Committee. He introduced House Bill 1988 to return 17 special funds with $2.08 billion back to the general fund, and he said that the four bills were key to the state becoming more responsible with taxpayer dollars.
“This financial reform package of legislation will reduce the state borrowing, improve our credit rating and strengthen the commonwealth rainy day fund,” he said. “These four common sense reforms are smart and innovative solutions House Republicans have been championing.”
published here with permission of The Center Square
TRENTON (Dec. 24, 2019) – One lucky ticket matched all five numbers drawn winning the $140,963 Jersey Cash 5 jackpot from the Monday, Dec. 23, drawing. The winning numbers were: 10, 22, 23, 25 and 40 and the XTRA number was: 04. The retailer will receive a bonus check for $2,000 for the winning ticket sold. That ticket was sold at Jay’s Food Mart, 358 Herbertsville Rd., Brick in Ocean County.
Acting Executive Director James Carey announced that there were 286,462 tickets purchased for the drawing. By adding XTRA, for an additional $1.00 per play, winners are able to multiply their non-jackpot prizes by the XTRA number drawn. For correctly matching four of the five numbers drawn, 39 ticketholders won $543 each and 13 others won $2,172 each with the addition of XTRA. Moreover, for correctly matching three of the five numbers drawn, 1,789 ticketholders won $14 each and 355 others won $56 each with the addition of XTRA. Lastly 4,456 ticketholders each won $2 for correctly matching two of the five numbers drawn with the addition of XTRA on their purchase.
(Camden City, NJ) – The Camden County Freeholder Board has launched a new initiative aimed at addressing persistent homelessness. Recognizing the incredible generosity of the community, Hearts and Hands for the Homeless is aimed at
funneling charitable giving to effective organizations and volunteer opportunities while discouraging panhandling and other forms of solicitation.
Years of destigmatization has helped to generate compassion for those suffering from homelessness and has stimulated a renewed interest in helping the homeless population. The Freeholder Board is encouraging that giving to be done in ways that address the issue on a broader scale than for just one person.
“Sometimes what an individual does as an effort to help does little to solve the underlying problem of homelessness. In fact, public feedings and giving to panhandlers often serves as a vehicle that enable the homeless to remain in crisis rather than seek the help that they need,” said Freeholder Carmen Rodriguez, liaison to the Department of Health and Human Services. “While we want to recognize the incredible generosity and compassion that motivates giving, we also want to encourage our homeless population to connect with professional agencies to get more, long-term help so as to permanently end homelessness.”
Advocates for homelessness prevention have found that when panhandlers can count on spontaneous giving by members of the public, they become less likely to seek professional services and more likely to remain homeless. For this reason, individual acts of generosity on the street often fuel a cycle of homelessness and hunger.
Hearts and Hands for the Homeless is designed to redirect charitable interests aimed at helping the homeless toward opportunities to volunteer or give strategically, and to shift perceptions regarding which forms of outreach are most impactful. By reorienting individuals away from direct intervention and instead to supporting shelters, food kitchens, and other professional services, we can do more to effectively address homelessness than by relying on individual acts of kindness.
“Many people want to help and are doing what they believe is within their reach in order to help individuals in need,” Rodriguez said. “The truth is that the five dollars you were going to give to someone on the street would go much further and help more people if it was given to a charitable organization or agency dedicated to serving the homeless.”
Volunteer and donation opportunities for local agencies who are serving the homeless in Camden County can be found at
www.camdencounty.com/heartsandhands
. A current list of organizations looking for community support includes the Sanctuary Foundation for Veterans in Lawnside; Building Bridges Family Success Center, Center for Family Services in Clementon; and Joseph’s House in Camden City.
Individuals who are in need of services are also encouraged to visit the site or call 2-1-1.
This is not the first initiative launched by the Board to address these challenges. Work Now, a thoughtful and researched approach to discouraging panhandlers and addressing challenges with the chronically homeless launched last year and offers a day’s wage and social services for anyone willing to work.
Individuals who successfully move on to phase two of the program, called Bridge to Work, are provided permanent part-time employment through Camden County College. Graduating to the next level puts participants on firmer ground to find permanent housing and move on to a private employer.
CAMDEN CITY N.J. – A New Jersey resident was sentenced yesterday to 87 months in prison for threatening to murder former U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo and members of the congressman’s staff, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Joseph Brodie, 40, of Millville, New Jersey, was previously convicted in Camden federal court on two counts of making threats to officials, officers and employees of the United States – specifically, for a telephone threat to murder LoBiondo’s chief of staff and an email threat to murder LoBiondo, his chief of staff, his veterans affairs liaison, and all of the other staff of the Mays Landing office. During the sentencing hearing yesterday, the Court determined that over the course of the prosecution, Brodie had obstructed justice and that there also was evidence to show he had intended to carry out his threats.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence presented at trial:
In the spring of 2017, Brodie reached out to LoBiondo seeking assistance with the medical care and treatment that Brodie was receiving from the Veterans Administration. Over the course of the next few months, Brodie spoke and corresponded with the congressman’s Veterans Affairs Liaison and a caseworker, both of whom assisted him with appointments and meetings regarding his medical care. On Sept. 19, 2017, Brodie contacted the congressman’s office and spoke to the chief of staff on the phone. Brodie wanted the chief of staff to arrange a meeting with the congressman, but the chief of staff refused. During this phone call, Brodie became angry and ultimately threatened the life of the chief of staff – calling him “a dead man.”
Approximately an hour and a half later, Brodie sent an email to the congressman’s veterans’ affairs liaison as well as the caseworker, threatening their lives as well as the lives of the congressman and his staff in the Mays Landing Office. In this email, Brodie stated that he wanted to meet the congressman “face to face” and he pointed out “how easy” it was to find the congressman’s Mays Landing Office. Brodie also attached a terrain map of the area, with the area around the congressman’s office enlarged for detail and a red pinpoint location marker on the office. Writing about the map, Brodie stated, “[i]t even shows the environment and surrounding terrain, parking lots, wooded areas, etc., (like the kind a highly trained Combat Infantryman would use)…”
On the same day as the threats, Brodie sent text messages to his fiancée stating: “I threaten the life of a Congressman’s Chief of Staff. I’m pretty sure the Secret Service are going to investigate.” He also wrote that he was “prepared” for any law enforcement officers who might respond to his home. He wrote, “I’ll give them a chance to leave. If not, it’ll be First Blood Part II Type Shit (if you never saw that Rambo movie).” Brodie also wrote, “I won’t surrender. It’s not in me.” The same day, Brodie spoke to his fiancée on the phone and told her that he was going to travel to an address in New Jersey, that he had GPS coordinates in his car, that he was going to kill LoBiondo’s chief of staff, and that there was going to be a “blood bath.”
One week later, in a statement recorded by the FBI, Brodie confessed to having made the phone threat to the chief of staff on Sept. 19, 2017, and to having sent the email threat on Sept. 19, 2017.
The evidence showed that at the time Brodie made these threats, Brodie owned several firearms and a large amount of ammunition at his home.
U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI’s Atlantic City Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark; special agents of the U.S. Capitol Police, under the direction of Chief Steven Sund; officers from the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; and the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae, with the investigation leading to yesterday’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara A. Aliabadi and Jason Richardson, of the Camden office.
Defense counsel: Gina Amoriello, Esquire, Westmont, NJ and Philadelphia, PA
TRENTON (Dec. 24, 2019) – The Pick-6 drawing on December 23 produced seven winners of $3,790 for matching five out of six white balls drawn. One of those tickets was purchased with XTRA, multiplying the prize to $7,580. The $5 million drawing will be held Thursday, December 26, 2019.
The winning numbers for the Monday, December 23, drawing were: 04, 11, 13, 25, 42 and 49. The XTRA Multiplier was: 02. By adding XTRA for an additional $1.00 per play, winners are able to multiply their non-jackpot prizes by the XTRA number drawn.
Acting Executive Director James Carey announced that there were 530,737 tickets purchased for the drawing and of those sold, thousands were prizewinners! For correctly matching four numbers, 437 ticketholders won $53 each and 107 others won $106 each with the addition of XTRA. Moreover, for correctly matching three numbers 8,573 ticketholders won $3.00 each and 1,279 others won $6 each with the addition of XTRA. Lastly 9,587 ticketholders each won $2.00 for correctly matching two numbers with the addition of XTRA on their purchase.
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
The State Filed Eight NRD Lawsuits in 2019, Twice the Number Filed in 2018
Handy & Harman Complaint
Sherwin-Williams Complaint
NRD Sites Poster
NRD Fact Sheet
TRENTON –
Continuing to hold New Jersey’s polluters accountable, Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Catherine R. McCabe today announced the filing of two new Natural Resource Damage (NRD) lawsuits, one against The Sherwin Williams Company and the other against Handy & Harman Electronic Materials Corp.
The complaint against Sherwin Williams arises out of the company’s operations at sites in Gibbsboro, Voorhees Township and Lindenwold in Camden County. The State alleges that Sherwin Williams manufactured oil-based paints, lacquers and varnishes, and in the process discharged industrial wastes into the ground, into nearby Hilliards Creek and into other surrounding creeks and lakes.
The complaint against Handy & Harman arises out of its operations of an etching and surfacing facility in Montvale, Bergen County in the 1980s. During Handy & Harman’s ownership, the complaint alleges, hazardous substances – including the chemical TCE (trichloroethylene) – were discharged on the property, resulting in the contamination of groundwater and the closure of nearby drinking water wells.
Today’s NRD lawsuits mark another step in Attorney General Grewal and Commissioner McCabe’s efforts to revitalize New Jersey’s environmental enforcement program. After eight years in which the State did not file any new NRD actions, the State has now filed 12 NRD actions in two years. In 2019 alone, the State filed eight such actions, including the two filed today.
“As Attorney General, I have been committed to holding polluters accountable for the legacy of contamination they left in our state,” said Attorney General Grewal. “Too many companies have treated the public’s natural resources like private dumping grounds, despite the health risks to our residents and the harms to our environment. That is why we’ve spent the past two years making polluters pay for the damage they caused, efforts that continue with today’s lawsuits. I am proud of the twelve natural resource damage actions that we filed in just two years, and I know that we are only getting started.”
“Today’s two lawsuits continue DEP’s unwavering commitment to go beyond the cleanup of contaminated sites to requiring the restoration or compensation for the damage to our precious natural resources,” said DEP Commissioner McCabe. “Enforcing our state’s laws against past abuses helps put us on track toward a cleaner, healthier future for all New Jerseyans.”
Sherwin Williams
The Sherwin Williams Company for decades operated a paint manufacturing plant and conducted related operations at multiple sites across Gibbsboro, Voorhees Township and Lindenwold. From the mid-1800s until the 1970s, Sherwin Williams and its predecessors manufactured a variety of paint products, including dry colorants, lacquers, varnishes, resins and both oil-based and water-based paints. As part of its operations, the company used and stored thousands of gallons of hazardous materials such as lead oxide, zinc oxide, lead chromate, and sulfuric acid.
According to today’s lawsuit, Sherwin Williams for many years discharged a “substantial amount of hazardous substances and industrial chemicals” into the ground and surface water. According to the complaint, the contaminants discharged include lead, arsenic and other heavy metals, as well as a variety of potentially harmful chemical compounds and waste paints. At one point in the plant’s history, the complaint notes, locals in and around Gibbsboro, Voorhees and Lindenwold rechristened Hilliards Creek as “Rainbow Creek,” because the water would take on different colors “depending on the color of the paint that Sherwin Williams was manufacturing and/or disposing of on a given day.”
The complaint alleges that Sherwin Williams spent decades knowingly contaminating the environment, and consistently “ignored orders” from DEP to address the pollution it had created. The complaint also asserts that the company “repeatedly issued misleading or inaccurate statements … to downplay its responsibility for the contamination.”
Given the company’s noncompliance with DEP orders, the complaint continues, DEP was forced to refer the sites over to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which placed two of the sites on the National Priorities List as Superfund sites decades ago. The EPA, working with DEP, is overseeing that remediation. DEP is now seeking damages for that prior pollution. The State’s seven-count complaint alleges violations of New Jersey’s Spill Act, Water Pollution Control Act, and Solid Waste Management Act, as well as common law claims involving public nuisance, trespass and negligence. As part of this filing, the State is seeking punitive damages.
Handy & Harman
From 1970 until 1986, Handy & Harman Electronic Materials Corp. and its predecessor conducted metal etching and surfacing operations at a three-acre property located at 20 Craig Road in Montvale, Bergen County. Operations included the cleaning of electrical components through a degreasing process that relied on the solvent TCE.
According to the complaint, TCE was stored in a pair of 500-gallon, above-ground storage tanks located behind the facility, with waste TCE stored in drums located throughout the property.
According to the lawsuit, “numerous” discharges of TCE occurred both inside and outside the plant during its operating years. As a result of the contamination, several drinking water wells operated by the Borough of Park Ridge were impacted, which led to these drinking wells’ closure decades ago.
In December 1986, Handy & Harman entered into an Administrative Consent Order with DEP requiring that the company investigate and remediate environmental contamination at the site. Since then, investigation and remediation activities have taken place both on the property and at impacted drinking water wells surrounding the property.
Through today’s action, DEP seeks to recover damages for the prior injuries to natural resources, as well as for the cleanup and removal costs that have been incurred by the State in the past and that are likely to be incurred going forward.
The six-count complaint alleges violations of the Spill Act, Water Pollution Control Act, and Solid Waste Management Act, and common law claims involving public nuisance, trespass and negligence. (The complaint names other defendants as well, including Steel Partners Holdings, which acquired all outstanding shares of Handy & Harman.)
Environmental Enforcement Program
Under the leadership of Attorney General Grewal and Commissioner McCabe, the State has significantly strengthened its environmental enforcement program. In particular:
The State filed 12 NRD lawsuits in the past two years, including its first such actions in a decade, and including eight in 2019 alone. The cases involved:
Exxon-Mobil, for pollution at its Lail facility in Gloucester County
The manufacturers and distributors of a toxic family of chemicals known as “PFAS” (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances); and
E.I. DuPont de Nemours, including for pollution in Pompton Lakes and at its Chambers Works site.
Filed fourteen environmental justice lawsuits, encompassing a range of urban and rural communities across New Jersey, in December 2018 and November 2019.
Filed other enforcement actions against polluters, including those responsible for:
A solid waste dump in Vernon Township, Sussex County (Feb. 2019);
A solid waste dump in Plumsted Township, Ocean County (Aug. 2019); and
Odor pollution in the Ironbound section of Newark (Sept. 2019).
Filed lawsuits against the federal government to:
Successfully prevent offshore drilling off the New Jersey coast;
Prevent the Trump Administration from rolling back critical federal rules that address climate change, clean air, and clean water; and
Ensure that the federal government takes steps required by law to reduce the ozone pollution entering New Jersey.