Tag: new jersey

Second teen accused of sparking NJ wildfire that has torched 15K acres in Pine Barrens

A second teenager is accused of sparking the massive wildfire in New Jersey’s Pine Barrens.

A 17 year-old boy was charged with aggravated arson and hindering apprehension Wednesday for helping to ignite the fire that has burned more than 15,000 acres, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office. He is not being identified because he is a minor.

Police say the teen helped Joseph Kling, 19, set wooden pallets on fire and that he lied to police about how the fire started.

Kling was arrested last week and charged with aggravated arson. He now faces an additional charge of hindering apprehension.

New Jersey firefighters battled the fierce blaze in the southern part of the state that took days to contain, and was thought to be the largest wildfire in the Garden State in the last 20 years.

A column of smoke was first spotted from the Cedar Bridge Fire Tower in Barnegat Township on April 22, and the fire quickly spread out of control, forcing the evacuation of 5,000 residents, and cutting electricity to 25,000 Garden Staters.

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Affluent New Jersey city considers controversial ordinance that would fine or jail homeless people for sleeping outside

A tony New Jersey city is considering approving a controversial new ordinance that would fine or jail homeless people found sleeping in public spaces.

Summit Councilman Jamel Boyer, a Republican, introduced the ordinance last Tuesday, claiming it serves to “preserve the safe and accessible use of public property for all residents, pedestrians and businesses.”

The ordinance in Summit would prohibit the homeless from camping in public areas, including parks, sidewalks, alleyways, and benches.

If approved, anyone found violating the ordinance would face a fine of up to $2,000 “and/or imprisonment or community service for a term not to exceed ninety days,” the order says.

A similar ordinance was presented in Morristown, NJ, in February but was struck down following massive backlash from the community and advocacy groups, NJ.com reported.

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New Jersey’s First Islamic City: Muslim Politicians Seize Power in Paterson, Declare It ‘The Capital of Palestine in America,’ Raise Islamic Flags, and Advance Sharia

“Because of our unity, we have three Muslim councilmembers sitting on the council at the same time. And because of our unity, one of our brothers, who was the councilman of the Sixth Ward, is now representing us in the 35th legislative district.” — Councilman Shahin Khalique

A shocking transformation is unfolding in Paterson, New Jersey, where local officials are rapidly reshaping the city into an Islamic stronghold. Once a beacon of American industry and blue-collar resilience, Paterson has become a case study in how unchecked Islamic immigration, demographic shifts, and political pandering can erode a city’s original identity.

Islamic Officials, Islamic Agenda

Muslim elected leaders with deep ties to radical Islamic organizations are prioritizing Islamic identity over American values, steering Paterson away from its historical roots. Every policy change, symbolic gesture, and political appointment moves the city closer to becoming an Islamic enclave.

Hilal Lighting Ceremony: A Symbol of Islamic Dominance

The latest development? The Hilal Lighting Ceremony, a city-endorsed event marking Ramadan, held in the heart of “Little Palestine”—Palestine Way. This was no mere religious event but a thinly veiled political rally for Palestinian nationalism.

Officially renamed in 2022, Palestine Way cements Paterson’s transformation into a de facto Palestinian enclave, complete with flags, street signs, and businesses mirroring the very nations many residents supposedly fled. The area is home to an estimated 15,000 Arabs, dominated by Palestinian presence. Main Street, now a mile-and-a-half-long strip lined with Palestinian flags, Arabic signs, and halal restaurants, is more than cultural representation—it is a territorial claim.

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‘Completely Crazy’: NJ Hospitals Ask Parents to Identify Newborns’ Sexual Orientation

A New Jersey hospital system is asking parents of newborns to designate their infant’s “sexual orientation” in a questionnaire mandated by state law.

The document from Inspira Health titled “Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Questionnaire” features several disturbing sections, the New York Post reported on Saturday.

The form asks parents to identify their baby as “Male; Female; Transgender” or “GenderQueer” and tacks on another option called “Additional gender category/Self-described.”

Parents are further pressed to choose from the options of “Lesbian or gay; Straight or heterosexual; Bisexual; Self-describes” or “Questioning/Unsure” when describing their newborn.

Speaking with the Post about the questionnaire, New Jersey State Sen. Holly Schepisi (R-Bergen) said there is a lack of logic regarding the issue. “To be handed that sort of form […] has no medical value, it makes no sense.”

A New Jersey mother of two likewise told the newspaper, “That form is completely crazy, and anyone who would dictate a baby’s sexual orientation probably has an agenda. If I was told to fill this out, I’d rip it up in front of them. It feels like we’ve entered ‘The Twilight Zone.’”

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Red alert in New Jersey! China could be spying on your tolls through E-ZPass.

Did you think paying tolls in New Jersey was just a routine task? Think again! The New Jersey Turnpike Authority, in a move reeking of leftist negligence, just handed out an 11-year lawsuit contract for the E-ZPass system to a Singapore-based company with alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Yes, you read that right: while you’re shelling out cash to cross a bridge, Beijing might be spying on your license plate. Thanks, incompetent progressives!

The company in question is ST Electronics, a subsidiary of the Singaporean giant ST Kinetics, and several conservative lawmakers have already sounded the alarm.

Why? Because behind this facade of modern technology lurks suspicious connections to the CCP, a dictatorship that not only oppresses its own people but has tentacles in every corner of the globe.

While the left embraces their fantasy of a borderless world, China is rubbing its hands with glee over our data.https://twitter.com/seanhannity/status/1889661565512667263

Let’s be real: this isn’t some tinfoil-hat conspiracy theory from lunatics. Republican Senator Tom Cotton has already warned that Asian companies like this are often puppets of the Chinese regime, collecting data for its global surveillance machine.

And here in New Jersey, the Turnpike Authority handed them the keys to the highway—literally—without batting an eye. Where were the Democrats? Probably whining about climate change while ignoring this very real threat.

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New Jersey Governor Proposes Marijuana Tax Hike

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) wants to hike a special tax on cannabis from $2.50 to $15 an ounce to fund social service and violence intervention programs with tens of millions of dollars in new revenue.

“In just five years, cannabis has gone from destroying lives—in the form of excessive criminal sentences—to helping save lives,” Murphy said in his budget address Tuesday.

Murphy’s plan comes about two months after the state Cannabis Regulatory Commission hiked the tax from $1.24 to $2.50 an ounce in December.

The tax, known as the social equity excise fee, is paid by cannabis cultivators. The money goes to a dedicated fund for social equity programs and investing in communities hurt by marijuana prohibition, and another portion is allocated to programs to divert youth from cannabis.

As of August 2024, the tax has brought in more than $6 million, which is all sitting unspent, according to the cannabis agency. That money must be allocated by the Legislature and governor under the state’s cannabis legalization law.

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Dozens Of New Jersey Marijuana Businesses Push To Legalize Home Cultivation, Despite Resistance From Governor And Legislative Leaders

Dozens of New Jersey small marijuana businesses and advocacy groups are calling on the state legislature to allow adults to cultivate their own cannabis at home—seemingly contradicting repeated claims from the governor and legislative leaders that the reform could undermine the evolving legal marketplace.

And as Gov. Phil Murphy (D) is set to term out at the end of the year, activists are drawing attention where his potential successors stand on the issue as well.

The more than 50 businesses and advocates, which formed a collective known as the New Jersey Home Grow Coalition last year, signed an open letter to Senate President Nicholas Scutari (D), rejecting the idea that the market needs more time to mature before people can be permitted to grow their own plants for personal use.

Unlike most other states that have enacted cannabis legalization, New Jersey continues to prohibit home cultivation for adults or medical marijuana patients.

“Even with our growing industry there’s no hope of access to the clean, consistent, strain-specific medicine that I need for my epilepsy,” Andrea Raible, co-founder of the NJ Homegrow Coalition, said in a press release. “Politicians are concerned with adult use profits while we are concerned with life threatening health conditions and facing prison for plants.”

In the open letter to Scutari, who has broadly championed cannabis reform but has recently resisted calls for home cultivation, the members of the New Jersey marijuana community said “discussions on home cultivation in New Jersey have stalled, attributed to allowing the industry ‘time to mature.’”

“As licensed cannabis operators, stakeholders in the industry, and relevant organizations, we respectfully disagree with this statement. The legalization of medical home cultivation will not negatively impact the legal state cannabis industry,” they said. “We firmly support the immediate legalization of medical home cultivation for patients and caregivers. We also endorse additional legislation to be introduced that allows for the legalization of personal use home cultivation safely and equitably.”

The advocates and stakeholders are voicing support for an amendment to expand a pair of bills seeking to provide for medical cannabis home cultivation, making it so the plant limit would be replaced with an allowance to “allow up to 100 square feet of mature cannabis plant grow canopy area.”

“This would allow patients and caretakers to have the ability to properly pheno-hunt and cultivate an amount that meets individual needs,” they said. “Additionally, this change would mitigate the potential for exploiting the law through the cultivation of massive cannabis plants.”

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Some drones over US bases may have been conducting surveillance: NORTHCOM general

A senior U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) official told members of the Senate that some of the 350 drones that flew over military installations and sensitive areas last year may have been conducting surveillance.

U.S. Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot, who is commander of NORTHCOM and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), was questioned about the drones during a Senate Armed Services Committee Budget hearing on Thursday.

Drones were spotted flying all over the country last year, though most notably in New Jersey. They were also flying over military installations, including Joint Base Langley, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., asked Guillot about the threat the unmanned aircraft pose to military operations, facilities and personnel.

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New Jersey Climate Lawsuit Dismissed with Prejudice: Court Rejects Baseless Claims Against Oil Giants Causing Climate Change

A New Jersey lawsuit accusing major oil companies of contributing to climate change has been dismissed.

The lawsuit, spearheaded by New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin in 2022, targeted industry behemoths like ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66, Shell, and the American Petroleum Institute.

It alleged that their operations exacerbated climate-related damages across the state.

According to the lawsuit:

Plaintiffs assert that Defendants have engaged in a decades-long campaign to discredit the science of global warming, conceal the dangers posed by their fossil fuel products, and misrepresent their efforts to combat climate change.

They claim that despite knowing about the adverse climate impacts of their products since the 1950s, Defendants failed to adequately warn consumers, the public, and decision-makers about these risks.

Defendants are alleged to have engaged in deceptive marketing practices, including promoting fossil fuel products as environmentally friendly or “clean,” while downplaying their role in contributing to climate change.

Plaintiffs contend that these deceptive campaigns have led to an increase in greenhouse gas pollution, resulting in sea-level rise, extreme weather events, and other climate change impacts that have affected New Jersey residents.

The decision, delivered on Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Douglas Hurd, concluded that these legally operating companies could not be held accountable for global emissions.

The dismissal, rendered with prejudice, firmly shuts the door on any possibility of reopening the case.

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White House reveals Trump explanation for NJ drones — and raises even more questions

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that the drones that spooked New Jersey residents last month were “not the enemy,” reading aloud President Trump’s assessment that many were doing “research” — an assertion that generated new questions.

“After research and study, the drones that were flying over New Jersey in large numbers were authorized to be flown by the FAA for research and various other reasons,” Leavitt said, reading Trump’s dictation at her first briefing.

“Many of these drones were also hobbyists, recreational and private individuals that enjoy flying drones. In time, it got worse due to curiosity. This was not the enemy.”

The explanation did not clarify what research was being performed — in many cases near military bases — or detail what “other reasons” were at play.

Some leading politicians have been skeptical of the official explanation that the drones were innocent.

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