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After Action Report - Solo Freeping in a small town called Haledon, NJ
September 5, 2004 | LaserLock

Posted on 09/05/2004 3:16:03 PM PDT by LaserLock

I arrived in Haledon, NJ at 12:00pm and made two signs. The first:-
NJ Peace Action
Hates America
You love communism and so does Jane
freerepublic.com

and the second sign read as:-
NJ Peace Action
Your friends at code pink
already admitted they love communism
Why don't you!!
freerepublic.com

I checked the parade route and how many people were from the NJ Peace Action group. The parade was to march down 5 blocks make a right turn for two block and then march another five blocks, make a right turn and march two more blocks. There were only two adults with two kids from NJ P.A. I find it disgusting that they would put themselves into a parade where they have no business being in.

I went over to a police officer and told him that I was there to only protest NJ.P.A. and that I support the policemen and fireman etc. He said you can stand anywhere on the route. I stayed near the beginning of the route. When the "left" read my signs they were surprised that I said they were communists. I decided to follow them as they marched. I walked on the sidewalk as they were marched in the street. A few people looked at my signs and didn't know what to make of it. I explained who the NJ Peace Action group was, a communist organization and that they didn't belong in the parade. Two people agreed. A police officer on a bicycle asked me to keep my distance from the "leftists", he didn't want any trouble. I said okay.

As I made the first right turn a gentleman approached me and asked what was I doing. He was from the museum that was sponsoring the parade and was afraid I was going to cause trouble. "It was just a small parade". I told him why I was there and that all I was doing was protesting the NJ Peace Action group. He wasn't listening. The same officer on the bicycle came by and saw that this man was talking to me and told me that he didn't want any trouble, that I made my point with some people already and would I please leave. I said okay and then left.

I believe that whoever read my signs and heard my explanations was troubled about a possibility that they were unknowingly "mostly" lending support to a front group whose foundation was firmly linked to supported and financed by a communist organization.

Indeed, a troubling question to a trusting hardworking person who has no way (yet) of getting background information as to what's being dished up to them... LOL

Don't we all know how true this was before we learnt to wield the internet.


TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; US: California; US: Connecticut; US: District of Columbia; US: Florida; US: New Jersey; US: New York; US: Pennsylvania; Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: aar; freep; haledon; njpeace; njpeaceaction
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1 posted on 09/05/2004 3:16:03 PM PDT by LaserLock
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To: LaserLock

There you go stirring it up again! L0L


2 posted on 09/05/2004 3:21:13 PM PDT by mylife (The roar of the masses could be farts)
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To: LaserLock

Excellent work!


3 posted on 09/05/2004 3:21:41 PM PDT by Chani
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To: LaserLock

Congrats! Lock on and fire away!


4 posted on 09/05/2004 3:24:09 PM PDT by Syntyr
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To: Coleus

Ping!


5 posted on 09/05/2004 3:29:26 PM PDT by Clemenza (You've gotta love living, because dying's such a pain in the a-s! --- FA Sinatra)
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To: LaserLock

Great work. NJPA tends to be a bit rabid.


6 posted on 09/05/2004 3:38:11 PM PDT by Doctor Raoul (KERRY IS A POODLE: #1 He's French, #2 He's A Rich Woman's Pet, #3 He Won't Protect You)
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To: LaserLock

Great job..your effort and initiative are commendable...But ya gotta get catchier signs...Ya know, somethign that "grabs" people...less wordy. I understand this was a local march, and your signs had a specific target, but next time,..with 15 minutes notice here, you'll get a lot of very good suggestions...


7 posted on 09/05/2004 3:40:16 PM PDT by ken5050 (Bill Clinton has just signed to be the national spokesman for Hummer..)
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To: LaserLock

Thanks for your effort.


8 posted on 09/05/2004 3:49:10 PM PDT by austingirl
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To: austingirl

OUTSTANDING


9 posted on 09/05/2004 3:52:12 PM PDT by Viet-Boat-Rider (((KERRY IS A NARCISSISTIC LIAR, GOLDBRICKER, AND TRAITOR!)))
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To: LaserLock

My goodness, you little rabble-rouser, you! I guess today was a GOOD day.


10 posted on 09/05/2004 3:55:47 PM PDT by no more apples (God Bless our troops)
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To: no more apples
How do you spell solo FReep? C-a-j-o-n-e-s. Well done!
11 posted on 09/05/2004 4:03:33 PM PDT by Entropy Squared
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To: LaserLock

You brave person!


12 posted on 09/05/2004 4:17:35 PM PDT by Moonmad27 (Vote for GWB in November - we MUST win.)
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To: LaserLock
You should look into what the law is in your area regarding requiring to have a permit to protest.

In DC it is 24 i believe. IOW a solo FReep you don't need no steenkin' permit.

13 posted on 09/05/2004 4:37:14 PM PDT by sauropod (Hitlary: "We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good.")
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To: LaserLock; firebrand; Clemenza; JulieRNR21
As I made the first right turn a gentleman approached me and asked what was I doing. He was from the museum that was sponsoring the parade and was afraid I was going to cause trouble. "It was just a small parade".  >>

And he wasn't concerned with the communists being there?  I wonder how they, the NJPA, knew about the parade and nobody else?

 

American Labor Museum
Botto House National Landmark

click sign for labor museum and e-mail address

Inform Police Department that constitutional rights were taken away from citizens.

Borough of Haledon, NJ

MUNICIPAL CLERK: Allan R. Susen, RMC
973-595-7766

14 posted on 09/05/2004 6:08:39 PM PDT by Coleus (Roe v. Wade and Endangered Species Act both passed in 1973, Murder Babies/save trees, birds, algae)
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To: LaserLock

Thank You, thank you and thank you!!!!!!


15 posted on 09/05/2004 6:10:35 PM PDT by sweetiepiezer (We have to stop Kerry for our grandkids sake!!!!!!!! GO W)
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To: LaserLock; Coleus
BRAVO BUMP.......... for your solo FREEP.

However, it appears that your civil rights may have been violated. You have a right to free speech and since you were not causing a disturbance....you should have been permitted to continue your peaceful walk along the sidewalk.

Did you tell the police officer that you were stopped by the museum person? Since you had done nothing wrong IMHO you should have been allowed to continue.
16 posted on 09/05/2004 6:33:47 PM PDT by JulieRNR21 (I trust NOBODY BUT BUSH! Take W-04....Across America!)
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To: JulieRNR21; LaserLock
Civil and Constitutional rights were violated in Haledon.  Seems the whole town is messed up.

Haledon police chief is stepping down

 
Thursday, July 1, 2004

HALEDON - Police Chief Harold Engold Jr. is leaving his post, effective today, citing personal reasons and discounting the effects of 18 months of rifts in the ranks and lawsuits against him by both his sergeants.

Last autumn, at the instigation of Mayor Ken Pengitore and Councilman Ayman Mamkej, Engold brought disciplinary charges against Sgt. James Len and testified against him at a disciplinary hearing. The council later dismissed the charges.

In May, Engold was named in a discrimination lawsuit that Len, who is homosexual, brought against the Police Department and borough officials. In June, Mohamed Abaza, the department's other sergeant, sued Engold and others on charges of discrimination based on his religion and ethnicity.

Engold, 51, declined to comment on the suits Wednesday. But he said infighting within the department played no part in his decision to retire. "I would have left some time ago if that were the case," he said.

He said he is leaving for personal reasons. With teaching degrees in health, physical education, and criminal justice, Engold said he plans to look for work as an adjunct community college professor and school gym teacher. He will spend time in Florida, helping to care for his 103-year-old grandmother. He may retire there eventually.

Engold and the Borough Council are still working out details of his departure. But he said Wednesday that he would go on vacation beginning today and then go on terminal leave in mid-August, using up accrued sick, personal, and compensatory days. His retirement becomes official Dec. 31. Engold has not filed for his pension, said Matt Golden, a spokesman for the state Treasury Department. Benefits will be based on his $83,756 annual salary.

He will still be on the payroll until the end of the year because of the accumulated time. Engold plans to appoint Lt. Robert Franco as the officer in charge until Pengitore and the council decide how to fill the position. Pengitore said he could promote Franco or Louis Mercuro, the department's other lieutenant, or bring in an outsider.

Pengitore said he was considering naming an outside officer to restore order to a department "in turmoil" that is characterized by "a lack of leadership" and a "lack of respect for authority" by members of the force.

"There are options, of course, to promote from within," Pengitore said. "You'd always like to do that, of course, because it gives people incentives to be professional and to do a good job. But with all the nonsense that's going on and the lack of cohesiveness among the ranks, sometimes you think about the other options."

If the council chooses to hire a retired police officer, it would likely create a civilian police director position because accepting a sworn position would mean forfeiting pension benefits.

In keeping with family tradition, Engold served 28 years in the department, the past 18 months as chief. His grandfather, Paul Engold, was a Haledon policeman for 37 years and served as chief for the last five before retiring in 1966. His father, Harold Engold Sr., was a special police officer in Haledon. While cleaning out his grandmother's home, Harold Engold Jr. found photos of his grandfather during his days as a motorcycle officer astride an Indian bike.

When Harold Engold first started, officers making motor vehicle stops had to call the state police to run license plate numbers and check for outstanding warrants. Now patrol cars are equipped with mobile data terminals.

Councilman Domenick Stampone, who has known Engold since he was a boy, called him "the face of the Haledon Police Department" and said he was sorry to see him go.

"I think that someone like Harold Engold, who has devoted his entire career to one department, should be remembered with honor for his service, despite whatever difficulties he's encountered during his time as chief," Stampone said.

"Let's be perfectly frank, it's not been a fun place to work for the last year and a half. ... What little cohesiveness there is left is the result of his commanding the respect of the other officers."


Haledon councilman pleads guilty in move to speed appeal

Thursday, June 10, 2004

A Haledon councilman pleaded guilty to drunken driving in municipal court Wednesday, but he said he will appeal the case in state court.

Councilman Ayman Mamkej, 40, told the court he was driving while intoxicated in Haledon on Nov. 6, when he was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and refusing to take two Breathalyzer tests.

Michael Baldassare, his attorney, said outside court that Mamkej pleaded guilty to hasten a Superior Court appeal of Judge George A. Cluff Jr.'s decision on the attorney's pretrial motions to have the case dismissed.

"We thought that this was the best way to expeditiously restore his reputation and to show the arrest for what it was, which was retaliation," Baldassare said.

He said he will file an appeal immediately.

Mamkej maintains that Sgt. James Len, the Haledon police officer who arrested him, did so to get back at him for instigating disciplinary charges against him.

Len had been charged with disciplinary violations stemming from an incident last August when he was allegedly outside the borough for four hours while on patrol duty. The Borough Council dismissed charges against Len in March.

Len has since sued Mamkej, the borough, the Police Department and Mayor Ken Pengitore for discriminating against him, including bringing the disciplinary charges, because he is homosexual. In May, Haledon Mayor Ken Pengitore sued Len and the Borough Council for its decision to dismiss the charges against the officer.

Len, dressed in uniform, sat next to Bloomingdale municipal Prosecutor Richard Kopleton while Mamkej entered his plea. The trial was held in Bloomingdale's municipal court to avoid a conflict of interest in Haledon.

Cluff sentenced Mamkej to the minimum penalty - $610 in fines and a 180-day suspension of his driver's license. He then issued a stay of the sentence pending appeal, meaning it will not go into effect until the case is resolved at a higher court or if Mamkej fails to file an appeal within 20 days.

Cluff ruled in pretrial hearings that Len was justified in stopping and arresting Mamkej for driving under the influence of alcohol. But the judge said he believed the testimony from two officers that there was animosity between the sergeant and councilman. He said Wednesday that an appeal of his rulings in the case is appropriate.

"There are certainly some issues that perhaps deserve the attention of Superior Court," Cluff said.

Mamkej embraced the judge's comments.

"Clearly the record shows that there are some serious appellate issues, indicated by the judge as well as my attorney, and therefore that is why we opted to put in a conditional plea of guilty in order to expedite the matter to Superior Court because of the seriousness of the appellate issues," he said.

Mamkej was convicted of drunken driving in 1986 and of refusing to submit to chemical testing during a motor vehicle stop in 1984, Motor Vehicle Commission records show.

May 27, 2004
bullet Gay officer in Haledon sues town officials
A Haledon police officer filed suit in state Superior Court on Wednesday against the borough, the Police Department, the mayor, and a councilman, charging they failed to promote him and created a hostile work environment after learning ...

May 27, 2004
bullet Gay cop is suing boroughofficials
A Haledon police officer filed suit in state Superior Court in Paterson on Wednesday against the borough, the Police Department, the mayor and a councilman, charging they failed to promote him and created a hostile work environment afte ...

May 13, 2004
bullet Judge sides with cop in arrest
A Haledon police sergeant had sufficient cause to pull over a borough councilman and arrest him for driving under the influence, a judge ruled Wednesday.

March 22, 2004
bullet Charges for officer dismissed
HALEDON - The Borough Council has dismissed disciplinary charges against a police officer.

March 20, 2004
bullet Charges against officer dropped
The Borough Council has dismissed disciplinary charges against a police officer accused of neglecting his duty.

March 19, 2004
bullet Official going to trial in DWI case
The attorney for a Haledon councilman charged with drunken driving failed to prevent the case from going to trial Thursday but succeeded in getting the personnel file of the arresting police officer admitted into evidence.

17 posted on 09/05/2004 6:48:33 PM PDT by Coleus (God gave us the right to life and self preservation and a right to defend ourselves and families)
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To: Coleus

LOL....quite a mess in this town!


18 posted on 09/05/2004 7:35:26 PM PDT by JulieRNR21 (I trust NOBODY BUT BUSH! Take W-04....Across America!)
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To: LaserLock

Keep an eye on the museum guy. Never let a commie rise in power!


19 posted on 09/05/2004 9:57:27 PM PDT by TaxRelief
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To: LaserLock

Thank you for the report. You deserve a round of applause!


20 posted on 09/05/2004 10:42:55 PM PDT by MistyCA
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