Free Republic

Election officials in Sussex County, New Jersey discovered more than 1,600 uncounted ballots from the July 7th primary election. According to Board of Elections Administrator Marge McCabe, the ballots were discovered in a "mislabeled" box in a "secure area," the New Jersey Harold reported. The ballots were reportedly counted and reported to the New Jersey Attorney General's office. McCabe said the new ballots didn't change any of the election results in any of the races. “The Board of Elections is confident that all ballots received have been processed and the security of all the ballots has remained in place,” McCabe...

'Mr. Keller had such disdain for President Trump that it enraged him that someone was displaying a Trump flag' New Jersey police said that a man faces charges of criminal mischief and harassment for repeatedly throwing trash onto the lawn of a Sussex County home where a Donald Trump flag was posted. “I think you know why,” Richard Keller, 58, reportedly told police when they asked why he had thrown garbage onto the lawn, according to a local news outlet. “Because of that flag.”

History and geology come together at this spectacular destination in Sussex County, showcasing one of nature’s best-kept secrets in the most amazing way. Photo by Michael Kucinski Mining takes on a whole new meaning in the tiny town of Ogdensburg — just a stone’s throw from the “Fluorescent Mineral Capital of the World” in Franklin — where one museum houses more than enough evidence to back up the lofty title. Upon descent into the Earth’s depths in rural Sussex County, an underground world concealed from the masses comes to light, its marvelous features a true hidden gem. Wandering through...

The annual Fireman’s Parade is a big deal in Franklin, New Jersey. But there’s a bit of controversy after volunteer firefighters from Sussex County included a Trump 2020 banner in the Color Guard. The banner included the words, “Keep America Great.” Local Democrats are furious. The Sussex County Watchdog reports that the volunteer firefighters have received death threats. And some citizens are calling for the volunteers to be fired. “Evidently, their loathing of Donald Trump is more dear to them than the safety of their own children,” the Watchdog reported. The New Jersey Herald reports someone filed a complaint with...

Without a single campus, faculty or student body to its name, the 3-year-old partnership of Catholic schools that’s flourishing in northwestern New Jersey can hardly be considered an “academy.” But even if it’s more virtual than physical, the Catholic Academy of Sussex County is having a huge impact on the governance and administration of education in that corner of the state, and could well serve as a model for other parochial school systems that face extinction. Like many Catholic school districts, the one in Sussex County found itself in trouble. Two of its four elementary schools were in danger of...

A former student-teacher at a Sussex County elementary school would be sentenced to four years in prison if she pleads guilty to having sexual relations with one of her students, under a plea bargain offer made today. Lindsay Massaro, 25, was given until Feb. 14 to accept the offer, which would require her to plead guilty to one count of second-degree sexual assault. Superior Court Judge N. Peter Conforti, sitting in Newton, told Massaro that she could face up to 46½ years in prison if she is convicted of all of the six charges against her, including first-degree aggravated assault....

Saturday, July 25, 2009 STAR-LEDGER STAFF An unlicensed driver who struck and killed a 72-year-old Newton woman in a hit-and-run collision in Morristown in December was sentenced yesterday to three years of probation and fined $500. The Dec. 13 incident occurred around 6:30 p.m. when Andy Maguino, who was driving a delivery car for a local pizzeria, hit Alice Myers as she was walking across Mount Kemble Avenue near Doughty Street, authorities said. Myers died several hours later at Morristown Memorial Hospital. Much to the dismay of Myers' family, Maguino, a 30-year-old native of Peru who authorities say is in...

Jennifer and Jason Bott knew immediately there was something terribly wrong with their newborn daughter. "Something in my heart said something was wrong," said Jennifer Bott, 31, whose daughter, Emily, was born with slightly misaligned eyes and "cloudy" corneas, a condition that was initially a mystery to the young Vernon parents -- as well as to their doctors. "We were on such a high, to be parents again, and this was like a slap in the face. They didn't alert us of any problems until the next day," added 32-year-old Jason Bott. The Botts eventually learned their daughter, now 20...

"Thrill killer" Jayson Vreeland, who is serving life in prison for his role in the "pizza murders" in Sussex County a decade ago, lost his last-ditch bid for a new trial or a reduced sentence yesterday. Superior Court Judge Thomas Critchley, sitting in Newton, denied Vreeland's petition for post-conviction relief, which is a routine legal tactic available only after all regular appeals are exhausted. Vreeland, 27, choked up when he told the judge he regretted the killings, and that "I was a kid ... on one night I made a stupid, stupid mistake. "I don't take away anything that happened...

Enos "Cy" Harker, cantankerous holdout and local legend, lived alone in a 200-year-old stone farmhouse perched on 150 hilly acres in the state's northwest corner. As the final farmer clinging to his original land in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, he was feisty enough to fight the government long after the Tocks Island Dam project had vanquished most locals. Even as he approached his 90s, he refused to sell his section of historic Old Mine Road in Sandyston, Sussex County, to the park service, friends and family said. He was still brawny enough to carry five-gallon barrels full...

NEWTON — The town is reviewing the merits of an anti-illegal immigration ordinance that, if passed, would become the second of its kind in the state. The law would deny businesses permits and city contracts for five years for employing illegal immigrants and fine landlords up to $10,000 for allowing them to rent. It also would make English the town's official language. "I have nothing but respect for people who come here legally and work hard," said Newton Councilman Philip Diglio, who presented councilmembers with a draft of the ordinance at Monday's public meeting. "I have nothing against any particular...

NEW JERSEY — An administrator at a private high school has threatened students with suspension unless they erased all personal profiles and blogs from the Internet. Rev. Kieran McHugh, Principal of Pope John XXIII Regional High School in Sparta, N.J. banned students from accessing social networking sites such as MySpace.com, citing student safety as his primary concern, according to the Daily Record, a newspaper serving the northern New Jersey community. Web sites such as MySpace.com allow users to post biographical information and pictures in personal profiles. These profiles help users communicate with others who share similar interests. "I don't see...

Bill Van Keuren shouldn't have had any trouble selling his family's house. It's a three-story colonial with a formal dining room, thick mahogany doors, leaded-glass windows and an enclosed porch. A spring-fed lake is just steps away, past two tennis courts and a hot tub. The house sits on 145 acres of pristine Sussex County woodlands in a naturist resort. It is priced very attractively at $395,000. Still, it has languished on the market for more than a year, even as its price has been reduced from $450,000. How can such a home defy the roaring real estate market in...

Seven flags line the street in front of an ordinary Wantage home. The flags commemorate an extraordinary event: Seven high school graduates deciding together to pledge the next stage of their lives to the armed services. Three of them ship out today. "I looked at both options. I even looked at colleges. But I wanted to serve in the Navy, and I can always go to college afterward," said Aaron McCarty of Wantage. McCarty will be joining the Navy as a tribute to his grandfather, who served in that branch. The rest of his friends will be joining the Marines....

Picture this: Fluorescent rocks It could be argued that New Jersey is the rock capital of the world - just ask any Springsteen fan.But did you know that the Garden State is also the fluorescent rock capital of the world, long regarded as the "Promised Land" of fluorescent minerals by rock collectors worldwide?Stuart Schneider has written a book about it called "Collecting Fluorescent Minerals." He has an extensive collection of fluorescent rocks, with more than 800 species from around the world, but mostly his rocks are New Jersey-grown.The photography darkroom in his basement has been converted into a mineral room,...

A Wantage dairy farmer has become the first Sussex County farmer -- and only the fourth ever from New Jersey -- to be named a winner in the 49th annual National Outstanding Young Farmer competition. He also is the first dairy farmer in New Jersey to win the award, said Lynne Richmond, a spokeswoman with the New Jersey Department of Agriculture. "The recognition means a lot to me. I was just happy to be there," said Jeff VanderGroef, who operates the 337-acre Havendale Farm, one of the largest dairy farms in New Jersey. VanderGroef, 37, received the New Jersey 2005...

A Sussex County woman saved her 5-year-old son from a capsized canoe in chilly lake waters before slipping beneath the surface and drowning Sunday, state police said. The body of Debbie Snook, 33, was pulled from Culvers Lake about two hours after the 12:40 p.m. incident. She was pronounced dead at the scene. ``She stayed up long enough to save her son,'' Mary Grace Lattig, a neighbor of the woman, told The Star-Ledger of Newark. ``It's so cold, the ice just left the shore a couple days ago.'' State police said the child, Dylan Snook, and his father, Chris Snook,...

DEP official: Bruin wasn't trying to eat Vernon hiker By Rob Jennings, Daily Record A 400-pound black bear that pounced on a Vernon hiker was not trying to eat her, New Jersey's top environmental official said Tuesday in refuting a description by his spokesman about Sunday's apparent attack in Wawayanda State Park. Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell added that he "had no reason to doubt the victim's account" of being chased and pulled down by the bruin on the Wingdam Trail. The trail remained closed Tuesday evening, with the bear on the loose and unlikely to be...

<p>He was a 400-pound hulking young bruin officials described as "predatory," looking for a meal.</p> <p>She said he came up behind her on a trail in Wawayanda State Park in Sussex County, chased her down and tackled her.</p> <p>She said she did the only thing she could. She threw a hard elbow at his snout, and caught him flush, stunning the bear and giving her time to escape.</p>

Either click here or hit the link in the thread's header but the basic story is that in northwest New Jersey, the Democrat's guy running for state senate TWICE won the "Pretty Penis" contest at an East Village gay bar. I'm thinking, Stand Up For Morrison is a good starting suggestion. He could run with Gore under the slogan, "Stiff and Stiffer", a take off on "Dumb and Dumber".