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Courts begin to hear long-stalled eviction cases
New Jersey’s eviction moratorium for middle-income renters ended Wednesday, with courts starting to hear some of the 83,800-plus residential eviction cases landlords have filed since the start of the pandemic. But there is no tidal wave of people losing their homes and getting booted onto the street. Yet. Instead, the process started with settlement conferences. […]
N.J. pols won’t act on abortion bill, despite Murphy’s urging and Texas ban
After a near-total abortion ban went into effect in Texas Wednesday, alarming abortion rights advocates who fear the Texas law foreshadows a U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Gov. Murphy called on the Legislature to act to protect abortion rights in New Jersey. But Democratic leaders in the state Senate and Assembly said they will […]
State watchdog scolds Newark for $5.4M ‘illegal’ ice rink upgrade
The Office of the State Comptroller accused the city of Newark Wednesday of illegally awarding a no-bid, $5.4 million contract to a private, New Jersey Devils-related firm to renovate a public ice rink, with investigators saying this was the third time since 2008 the city broke state laws intended to protect taxpayer dollars and avoid […]
N.J. prisons get so-so grade on pandemic response — but still the best in the U.S.
A civil rights group that graded prisons nationwide on how they handled the COVID-19 pandemic gave New Jersey a ‘C’ — and blasted the response of correctional facilities around the country as “a shameful failure.” New Jersey’s mediocre grade was the best in a bad showing by all states, which are “failing on even the […]
Reformers eye N.J.’s top court in push for shorter prison terms for juvenile offenders
When Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver recently signed a new law intended to divert juvenile lawbreakers away from prison, a long line of legislators gave speeches to declare there are no disposable children in New Jersey and kids who make mistakes deserve a second chance. But reformers say that’s not true in New Jersey for juveniles […]
Groups demand protections for transgender inmates in county jails
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and Garden State Equality on Thursday urged officials running jails in New Jersey’s 21 counties to house inmates by their gender identity, not the gender they were assigned at birth. The civil rights groups, which made their plea in a letter to the state’s jail wardens, noted […]
Thousands of Afghan refugees expected at McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst military base
Thousands of refugees fleeing Taliban rule in Afghanistan will begin arriving this week at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, Biden administration officials said in a press briefing Tuesday afternoon. At least 25,000 refugees will be sheltered at the Burlington County military base and three other facilities — Fort Bliss in Texas, Fort Lee in […]
Midwives ask state to end physician oversight as home births rise
Jillian Bostock gave birth to both of her babies at home with the help of a midwife, dodging the constant cervical checks, needle jabs, and beeping machinery that come with a hospital birth. “Hospitals are full of interventions. At home, I don’t have to fight for bodily autonomy,” said Bostock, of Wall Township. She wants […]
Hunger crisis may loom as emergency food assistance ends
As pandemic protections like eviction and foreclosure moratoriums near their end, pundits and policymakers have warned about the expected impact on homelessness. But advocates for New Jersey’s poorest residents warn that federal emergency food assistance provided during the pandemic will go away soon too, and a recent bump in food stamp benefits won’t help enough […]
As childhood hunger rises, calls grow for free meals in schools for all
Before the pandemic, Angeline Dean arranged a field trip to the Trenton Statehouse for students — mostly kids of color — to see lawmakers who looked like them in action. The community organizer hoped the trip would inspire them to dream grand futures for themselves. One child had a question. “He asked: ‘Will there be […]
N.J Supreme Court says courts should collect jury demographic data
New Jersey’s top court ruled Monday a convicted attempted arsonist failed to prove the trial court’s primarily virtual, hybrid jury-selection process deprived him of a jury representative of his diverse community. The case represents one of the first challenges to whether a defendant can get a fair trial when the pandemic has pushed so much […]
Newark still tops among New Jersey’s biggest cities
Newark is keeping its crown as New Jersey’s biggest city, surpassing the 300,000 mark in total population for the first time in four decades, according to numbers the U.S. Census Bureau released Thursday. The Brick City saw its citizenry soar 12% in the past decade to 311,549 residents, according to the new figures. Leaders of […]