The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
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Trenton NJ, Statement from Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin Regarding Precautions Being Taken in New Jersey in Response to the Attacks in Israel:
As we worry about loved ones abroad, we know that members of our Jewish community throughout the country, and here in New Jersey, are worried for their safety as they continue to celebrate the High Holidays.
Continue reading Precautions Being Taken in New Jersey in Response to the Attacks in Israel
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Orange NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Consumer Affairs (“the Division”) today announced that the State Board of Medical Examiners (“the Board”) has revoked the license of an Essex County physician who had sexual relations with a cognitively impaired patient who bore his child in 1986.
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Paterson NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced that about three and a half pounds of suspected fentanyl powder and over 1,000 suspected fentanyl pills were among the narcotics seized when a search warrant was executed in Paterson. The drugs seized have a street value of nearly $1 million, and the suspect is alleged to have been distributing drugs in bulk.
Continue reading Major Drug Mill Raided in Paterson Nearly $1 Million Worth of Drugs Seized
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Trenton NJ, Governor Phil Murphy, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, and New Jersey State Police Superintendent Colonel Patrick Callahan announced that as of Monday, July 17 the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) Port Security Section (PSS) has officially taken over the regulatory and law enforcement duties previously held by the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor (WCNYH) within New Jersey. The WCNYH was formed in 1953 under a bi-state compact between New Jersey and New York.
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced the initiation of a traffic stop pilot program that will involve all members of the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) who regularly conduct motor vehicle enforcement actions in an effort to reduce motor vehicle fatalities, increase officer and roadway safety, and reduce concerning racial and ethnic disparities identified in motor vehicle enforcement actions taken by the New Jersey State Police. The Office of the Attorney General has engaged a team of independent researchers to work with leadership from across several Divisions within the Attorney General’s Department of Law and Public Safety (LPS) to develop interventions that will be piloted throughout the NJSP and across the state in coming months.
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Paterson NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced a new indictment against Shelim Khalique, the operator of a pair of Paterson school bus companies who had been previously indicted in June 2020 for allegedly using unqualified drivers to operate school buses and misleading public-school districts. On Wednesday, June 28, 2023, the state grand jury returned a superseding indictment in the case that includes charges stemming from the role that Khalique, 53, of Wayne, played in continuing to operate school buses in Paterson, and elsewhere, with unqualified drivers — even after his original indictment — through another company. The superseding indictment adds a new count of second-degree theft of services stemming from tens of thousands of dollars in outstanding tolls those buses allegedly racked up with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.
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Newark NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced that four defendants were arrested and charged after they tried to flee from law enforcement in a stolen vehicle in Newark, resulting in several collisions as well as injuries to three officers and one of the suspects.
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Consumer Affairs today announced action taken by the Bureau of Securities to stop Abra, a California-based crypto company, and its associated entities from violating New Jersey’s Uniform Securities Law in connection with the sale of interest-bearing crypto accounts that have raised over $116 million nationwide, including from investors with nearly 300 New Jersey-based accounts.
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today issued two firearms-related directives to law enforcement. The first is a directive aimed at collecting anonymous information on processed permit to carry handgun applications in order to guide data-driven policymaking and resource allocation, as well as publicly provide information that is in the public’s interest, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s year-old decision expanding the right to carry a firearm in public. The second is an amendment to a 2008 Attorney General directive to expedite the submission of ballistics evidence gathered at crime scenes to forensic labs in order to increase the probability of solving gun crimes.
Continue reading New Jersey Attorney General Continues to Target Legal Gun Owners Over Criminals
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MANCHESTER TOWNSHIP NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced today that a suspect has been arrested on numerous charges in connection with a fire that gutted a house and anti-Semitic graffiti spray-painted on several homes in Manchester Township late Tuesday, June 6, and into the early morning on Wednesday, June 7, 2023.
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Elmwood Park Nj, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, and Interim Director Derek Nececkas today announced charges against 14 individuals in the takedown of alleged chop shop operations linked to the theft of more than 35 vehicles throughout the state. The charges are the result of a five-month investigation conducted by the New Jersey State Police (NJSP), with assistance from the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ), Passaic County Sheriff’s Office, the Paterson Police Department, and other federal, county, and local law enforcement agencies.
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced a former case worker for the New Jersey Department of Children and Families pleaded guilty after he made unwanted sexual advances toward women and tried intimidating women under investigation or supervision of DCF into engaging in unwanted sexual conduct with him.
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Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Consumer Affairs announced that the Bureau of Securities (the “Bureau”) issued a Cease and Desist Order to stop an investment scheme purportedly powered by artificial intelligence and endorsed by Elon Musk. The website for TruthGPT Coin has since been taken down. The Bureau issued the enforcement action in coordination with several states bringing actions against Horatiu Charlie Caragaceanu and his organizations, The Shark of Wall Street and Hedge4.ai (collectively, “Respondents”).
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Montclair NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced charges against a Montclair State University (MSU) student who was arrested at his residence on the school’s campus in Essex County, NJ, for allegedly possessing and creating Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Material (CSAEM) involving children he contacted online. The arrest is the result of an investigation led by the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) Cybercrime Bureau/Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Taskforce.
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Trenton NJ, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced that a campaign manager for a would-be candidate in the 2021 governor’s race is facing election fraud charges after allegedly filing nearly 2,000 bogus petitions in an attempt to get his candidate on the ballot for the Democratic primary.
