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The Asbury Park City Council voted Wednesday evening to allow indoor dining beginning on June 15, a move in direct violation of New Jersey executive orders related to COVID-19. On June 3, Gov. Phil Murphy signed Executive Order 150, which allows outdoor dining on June 15, subject to health and safety protocols. But Asbury Park went a major step forward by allowing diners to eat inside. Reached on Twitter, Deputy Mayor Amy Quinn confirmed a report by The Coaster breaking the city’s decision. Quinn said the governing body passed a resolution allowing indoor dining in accordance with the issuance of...

TRENTON, N.J. – It’s still unclear whether New Jersey schools will be physically open in the fall. Remote or not? Your kids will have some decidely far-Left new mandatory topics to learn about, and you won’t have the ability to opt out. As first reported by the education blog NJ Left Behind, the New Jersey State Board of Education adopted new curriculum standards on Wednesday which include, among other revised items, for the instruction of 8th graders in “vaginal, oral, and anal sex.” On the same day, the Murphy Admistration announced that compulsory climate change would be a part of...

Camden dissolved its police department to root out corruption. The city's crime rate was among the worst in the US. Within nine square miles and among nearly 75,000 residents, there were over 170 open-air drug markets reported in 2013, county officials told CNN. Violent crime abounded. Police corruption was at the core. Lawsuits filed against the department uncovered that officers routinely planted evidence on suspects, fabricated reports and committed perjury. After the corruption was exposed, courts overturned the convictions of 88 people, the ACLU reported in 2013. So in 2012, officials voted to completely disband the department -- it was...

Newark, N.J. ‘To all the jackasses out there who we now have to carry—get with the program,” Gov. Phil Murphy fulminated on Twitter April 6. “We know who you are and we will not relent until we have 100% compliance.” On May 2 he added: “ATTN KNUCKLEHEADS: KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE #FlattenTheCurve.” But New Jersey relented on Saturday as thousands massed in the streets of Newark, the state’s most populous city. While many protesters did avail themselves of masks, standing 6 feet apart—as per the state’s oft-repeated guidelines—was impossible. Mr. Murphy’s prohibition on “outdoor gatherings” was still in effect, although...

LGBTQ activist groups and Planned Parenthood are applauding the New Jersey State Board of Education’s approval of their “gold standard” sex ed standards. LGBTQ activists Garden State Equality and abortion business Planned Parenthood announced in a joint statement Wednesday they are pleased their recommended public school sex ed standards, modeled after the National Sexuality Education Standards for grades K-12, were approved. “The new guidelines and educational requirements feature an updated, more comprehensive curriculum that includes expanded content topics, including LGBTQ identities and consent,” the press statement said.

Gov. Phil Murphy warned Thursday that it’s still too early for indoor businesses like gyms and salons to reopen as the coronavirus outbreak continues to slow in New Jersey. Murphy was asked to respond to social media groups attempting to organize businesses for a coordinated defiance of the coronavirus closures on Monday, June 1. “I would just say to folks: You’re playing with fire,” he said at his daily coronavirus briefing in Trenton. “It has to be done the right way and at the right time,” Murphy added. “And I think we’re going to, if you bear with us over...

A Paterson NAACP leader said the recent city council vote-by-mail election was allegedly so flawed that the results should be thrown out and a new election ordered. “Invalidate the election. Let’s do it again,” said Rev. Kenneth Clayton said amid reports more that 20 percent of all ballots were disqualified, some in connection with voter fraud allegations. “These kinds of acts make people not want to vote anymore. They feel disenfranchised, disconnected that their votes don’t count, and that is not fair to people," he said. Rev. Clayton said the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) will...

It was the call heard 'round the world. A May 2 virtual meeting meant for Trenton officials to discuss fighting the devastating coronavirus in the Capital City devolved into a mudslinging free-for-all of homophobic slurs and insults. **SNIP** But things escalated to new heights on May 2, when West Ward Councilwoman Robin Vaughn unloaded on East Ward Councilman Joe Harrison and Gusciora during a conference call for the local leaders to discuss the city’s response to the coronavirus. In her rant, Vaughn called Gusciora a "pedophile,” a “woman” and a “bitch a**,” among a flood of expletives. When Harrison tried...

A state judge set a May 29 hearing date for arguments over whether Gov. Phil Murphy acted properly in barring high school graduation ceremonies and deciding which businesses were essential and therefore could operate during the coronavirus outbreak. An order to show cause issued Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Francis Hodgen in Ocean County stems from a joint lawsuit filed last week by several businesses and individuals in Toms River opposed to executive orders issued by Murphy in his attempt to contain the spread of the deadly virus, including E.O. 103 on March 9, declaring a state of emergency. The...

The New Jersey man who has gotten national attention for opening his Bellmawr gym in defiance of the state’s shutdown orders is now facing some backlash after word circulated online that he also broke the law 13 years ago in an incident that cost a young man his life. Ian A. Smith was a 20-year-old Stockton University student in 2007 when he drank 10 to 12 beers and in the morning ran a stop sign, killing Kevin Ade, 19, of Galloway Township, according to 6ABC reports at the time. He pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter and was sentenced to five...

“This fund will be for the defense of Atilis Gym Bellmawr and all of its members. Frank and Ian were served with summons today. Now Governor Murphy is threatening Atilis Bellmawr staff AND members with summons and fines up to $1,000 per person. The Atilis Bellmawr Attorney Kevin Barry will be representing all of our staff and members who incur any charges. This fund is to support our efforts to reopen. From the bottom of our hearts we thank every one of you for supporting us through this tough time- and we are thankful for any funds donated to...

Even as New Jersey gradually reopens, residents will be asked to wear face coverings and practice social distancing until there’s a vaccine or effective treatment for the coronavirus, Gov. Phil Murphy stressed Tuesday. “This is the reality,” Murphy said during his daily coronavirus briefing in Trenton. “We’re not mandating you wear a mask, but we are strongly encouraging you to do that, and staying apart from people. I think that’s the new norm.” Murphy has started scaling back his near-lockdown orders in recent days as signs continue to show the COVID-19 outbreak in New Jersey is slowing and the economy...

ELLMAWR, N.J. (CBS) — At least one person was arrested after leaving Atilis Gym in Bellmawr on Tuesday. This comes as the gym’s owners were charged again today for violating Gov. Phil Murphy’s stay-at-home order. The charges are not yet known for the person who was arrested. Atilis Gym opened at 8 a.m. again, after receiving a warning from Gov. Phil Murphy Monday that they were in violation of New Jersey’s stay-at-home order. Bellmawr police tell CBS3 the owners have been charged for the second day in a row, but no further information is available at this time. On Monday,...

“Social distancing ambassadors” will be prowling popular New Jersey boardwalks this summer to make sure beachgoers don’t get too close. The teams will be dispatched donning special vests to Wildwood, Ocean City and other summer hangouts through Cape May County’s new coronavirus campaign, “Six Feet Saves Lives.” “As public places begin to reopen it is important to continue to take proper precautions, such as wearing a mask, washing hands frequently, and social distancing,” said Kevin Thomas, Cape May County Health Officer, in a statement.

Trenton Councilwoman Robin Vaughn on Saturday let loose a stream of expletives and homophobic insults against the New Jersey city's mayor, who is gay, after a disagreement between the two about funding for nonprofit organizations during a conference call, according to a report. In audio obtained by The Trentonian, Vaughn, other members of the Trenton City Council and Mayor Reed Gusciora were discussing efforts to manage the city during the coronavirus pandemic when Vaughn and Gusciora got into a confrontation on "do-nothing" charity organizations getting city money and launched into an angry tirade over the phone. "The concern as to...

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy will announce Monday that all public and private schools in the state will remain closed for the rest of the academic year, POLITICO has learned. Murphy will make the announcement at his daily briefing — scheduled for noon in Trenton — alongside state Education Commissioner Lamont Repollet, according to a statement from the governor’s office obtained by POLITICO. “This is a difficult decision and I know that many students, parents, and staff would like to be able to return to school,” Murphy said in the statement. “However, I have been unwavering on the message that...

Freep this poll, saying we need to open NOW!!!! http://newjersey.news12.com/story/42091505/news-12-poll-when-should-the-economy-reopen?fbclid=IwAR3OWH680a_oL7GftkNkmoXUALH7swqbfe9h5JnhMBLA50uZh-lhjh2J-rE

New Jersey is facing a financial disaster due to loss in revenue and spike in expenses related to the coronavirus outbreak that could be just weeks away, Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday. “Right now, it’s pouring,” Murphy said, shortly after announcing he was ordering all public and private schools closed for the rest of the academic year. “We are on the brink of having to make very tough and, quite frankly, very unpalatable decisions." Murphy has previously warned of “historic” public worker layoffs without federal assistance. Murphy rescinded an executive order Monday from last year tasking the state treasurer to...

In hometown of Allendale, James Comey is no 'nut job,' but principled career man

A professor at a New Jersey university is blaming President Trump and his supporters for the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, claiming it’s their fault African-Americans have been dying at a disproportionate rate. “F--- each and every Trump supporter. You absolutely did this. You are to blame,” was among the comments – several of them containing profanity -- posted on Twitter this week by Brittney Cooper, an associate professor in the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Rutgers University. In another post, Cooper wrote that she and other African-Americans suspect that recent efforts to reopen the country following...