A rabbi in Ocean County is being sued by a woman who claims he sexually assaulted her when she came to him for financial help, then defamed her on a website and in fliers he posted near her children’s school.
New Jersey
Does the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission have the capacity to handle Real ID demand?
3-minute read
Starting May 2025, your driver’s license won’t be enough for air travel
This week, after years of delays, the Transportation Security Administration announced that federal agencies will begin enforcement of REAL ID requirements on May 7, 2025.
Fox – 5 DC
With the federal Real ID program launching in less than two months, New Jersey residents looking to upgrade their licenses may be running into some problems.
Despite launching a “Real ID Thursday” initiative to make more appointments available, the state’s Motor Vehicle Commission currently has no appointments available for residents in any county north of Monmouth County before Real ID takes effect on May 7.
That includes appointments at physical agency locations as well as MVC’s mobile unit.
The only appointments for any kind of upgrade available at agency locations as of Thursday — about 50 slots — were at the mobile unit site in Lawrenceville or at locations in the southern half of the state — for those who have licenses expiring within the next three months and are trying to upgrade.
Agency spokesperson Bill Connolly said the “demand for Real ID now is extraordinarily high ahead of the start of federal enforcement in May.”
“The MVC has repeatedly added and reallocated appointments to better meet that demand over the past several months,” he said, noting that “Real ID Thursdays” added more than 43,000 appointments and more mobile unit appointments will be available as the agency coordinates with local hosts. The opportunity to book these additional appointments started last week.
Connolly also said about 3,000 new appointments for Real ID upgrades are added each business day at 7 a.m. and that “appointments are regularly added as customers cancel or modify their appointments.”
“While the MVC is processing record numbers of in-person transactions, especially Real IDs, we will continue to evaluate our operations and look to offer additional opportunities for our customers to get a Real ID,” he said.
The next appointment at each of the 28 licensing centers for those looking to upgrade and have a license or identification card expiring in the next three months as of Wednesday evening were:
- Lawrenceville: May 13, 2:20 p.m.
- Bayonne: May 14, 2:20 p.m.
- Camden: April 16, 11:20 a.m.
- Egg Harbor Township: April 30, 11:40 a.m.
- Delanco: April 22, 9:40 a.m.
- Eatontown: May 6, 12:40 p.m.
- Edison: May 7, 1:40 p.m.
- Elizabeth: May 20, 8 a.m.
- Flemington: April 28, 8:40 a.m.
- Freehold: May 2, 11:20 a.m.
- Lodi: May 28, 10:40 a.m.
- Manahawkin: April 28, 11 a.m.
- Newark: May 30, Noon
- Newton: May 13, 10:20 a.m.
- North Bergen: May 20, 12:40 p.m.
- Oakland: May 27, 11:20 a.m.
- Paterson: May 7, 12:20 p.m.
- Rahway: May 7, 10:40 a.m.
- Randolph: May 14, 2 p.m.
- North Cape May: April 8, 2:40 p.m.
- Runnemede: May 2, 1 p.m.
- Salem: April 9, 8:40 a.m.
- South Plainfield: May 5, 10:20 a.m.
- Toms River: April 29, 12:20 p.m.
- Vineland: April 9, 8:20 a.m.
- Washington: April 30, 1 p.m.
- Wayne : May 19, 11:20 p.m.
- West Deptford: April 15, 1:40 p.m.
Real ID: What to know
According to the TSA, as of January 2024, only about 56% of the licenses and government issued identification cards in use around the country comply with Real ID. In 34 states that number is less than 60% and in 22 states is less than 40%.
In order to get a Real ID, residents should check REALID.nj.gov to make sure they bring all the required documents — two proofs of residential address, one verifiable Social Security number and identity documents that add up to six Real ID Points — to their appointment.
The state started issuing the Real ID in September 2019. The deadline was initially October 2020 but was pushed back to October 2021 due to the pandemic. The federal government opted to push it back again to May 2023, as new COVID-19 variants continued to wreak havoc on motor vehicle agencies throughout the country. In 2022, officials delayed it a third time, to May 2025.
After the deadline, standard driver’s licenses or non-driver identification cards can no longer be used to fly within the U.S. A passport is also a valid form of identification for domestic travel.
No one is required to get Real ID. A standard driver’s license or non-driver identification card can still be used to drive in New Jersey, but it will no longer be a valid form of federal identification. Passports can be used as identification when flying domestically.
The REAL ID Act, which was enacted following the 9/11 Commission’s recommendation, established minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards for the purpose of boarding federally regulated commercial aircraft, accessing certain federal facilities and entering nuclear power plants.
Katie Sobko covers the New Jersey Statehouse. Email: sobko@northjersey.com
From Camden and Cherry Hill to Trenton and the Jersey Shore, what about life in New Jersey do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know.
The borough of Lawnside in Camden County will be honored with a historical marker from the New Jersey Historical Commission as part of the state’s Black Heritage Trail.
A ceremony unveiling the marker will take place at 10 a.m. Friday at Lawnside Borough Hall on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Road.
Marsharee Wright, aide to Lawnside Mayor Mary Ann Wardlow and long-time resident, said everyone is thrilled about the marker unveiling.
“We’ve invited the entire community and neighboring towns to come share the celebration with us,” Wright said.
Linda Shockley, president of the Lawnside Historical Society, said it’s “an extreme honor” for the borough to be included in the state’s program, especially as Lawnside is amid a year-long celebration of its centennial.
“It really lifts our profile and hopefully more people will understand and know what Lawnside is about and what it means in the nation,” Shockley said.
Lawnside was one of six sites selected in Camden County in 2024, including “The Point,” a historic Black neighborhood in Haddonfield. Its marker was unveiled last June.
During the ceremony, the borough’s history will be showcased, along with the original documents signed by Gov. A. Harry Moore in 1926, which made way for the borough’s creation.
Though there are many Black enclaves in South Jersey, the borough is the state’s only incorporated antebellum Black community. First known as Free Haven, and later Snow Hill, it was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Peter Mott built a three-floor dwelling in 1844 that was once part of sprawling farmland where he helped slaves escape.
Mott’s house, now owned by the Lawnside Historical Society, serves as an Underground Railroad museum.
See the Roxbury warehouse scouted by ICE as possible deportation site
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were in Roxbury recently apparently scouting a Rt. 46 warehouse as a possible migrant deportation facility.
Federal officials are considering abandoning plans for a controversial immigration detention facility in Roxbury, New Jersey, according to a June 18 report by The New York Times, prompting local leaders and state officials to declare a victory after months of legal and political opposition.
The proposed facility, a warehouse property purchased to serve as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, faced intense criticism from local residents, environmental advocates and elected officials who argued the site was unsuitable for housing detainees.
In a joint statement issued Thursday, Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said the Department of Homeland Security appeared to be backing away from the project following legal challenges that halted development.
“Today the New York Times is reporting that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is backing down on its mass detention center in Roxbury,” the statement said. “That is a big win for public safety, for the township of Roxbury, and for New Jersey.”
According to the Times report, the Roxbury facility is one of seven ICE is planning to dispense with by transferring ownership to other federal agencies or selling them.
Opponents argued the warehouse was designed as a logistics facility and lacked the infrastructure necessary to support a large detention center. They also raised concerns about the potential strain on local water and sewage systems and the impact on environmentally sensitive land surrounding the site.
State officials said they joined Roxbury Township in court to challenge the project, contending that federal plans violated local regulations and posed risks to the community.
“DHS’s plans were always illegal,” the statement said. “The Roxbury warehouse is a logistics center fit for packages, not thousands of people.”
Rep. Rob Menendez said in a statement on Thursday: “We are working to confirm reporting that ICE is abandoning its Roxbury warehouse plans, but if true, this would be big news. From day one, we have fought to stop this facility, bringing together thousands of New Jerseyans in opposition. Now we are on the cusp of an important win for our state.”
The detention center was expected to become part of the federal government’s broader immigration enforcement and detention network. However, the project became a flashpoint in New Jersey, drawing opposition from both local officials and residents concerned about public safety, environmental impacts and the facility’s compatibility with surrounding land uses.
Federal officials have not publicly confirmed whether the property will be sold or formally removed from consideration. The Department of Homeland Security has not commented on the reported change in plans.
Opponents vowed to continue monitoring the situation until the project is officially terminated.
“This isn’t a partisan issue,” the statement said. “We’re grateful for our partnership with the Roxbury community as we keep DHS’s feet to the fire to ensure this facility is never opened.”
New Jersey
NJ rabbi faces lawsuit for sexual assault after giving financial aid | The Jerusalem Post
Avraham Appel, of Jackson, abused his position as a trusted community leader to sexually assault and exploit the woman, an Israeli immigrant who came to him as a single mother struggling to pay bills, according to the lawsuit, filed in the Superior Court of Ocean County.
Appel is a prominent rabbi and Rosh Kollel, or head of a Jewish institute for advanced Talmudic study, who is based in Lakewood and Jackson, according to court papers filed January 5.
Appel did not respond to calls to his home and cellphone seeking comment on the lawsuit.
The woman claims she confided in one of her children’s schoolteachers in early 2020 that she was in significant financial distress and having trouble paying for daycare.
The teacher suggested she contact Appel, according to the suit.
In February 2020, Appel arranged to meet with the woman at a local Starbucks.
“During that meeting, Appel presented himself to (the woman) as a rabbi, mentor, advisor, and friend whom (the woman) could trust, confide in, and depend on,” the lawsuit states.
Appel, who had experience in real estate, allegedly offered the woman an opportunity to solicit investments on his behalf and to “draw,” or advance, money against future commissions.
Rabbi issues payments to woman after alleged sexual assault
In June and July 2022, Appel issued six payments to the woman, totaling $20,000 and characterized as advances or loans. He also provided the woman with “financial assistance” so she could buy groceries and pay medical expenses and water bills, according to the suit.
The lawsuit claims most of the money was meant to buy the woman’s silence after he attacked her on June 1, 2022.
The suit alleges Appel visited the woman while she was alone at home and sexually assaulted her as she pleaded for him to stop.
“Appel was abusive and unrelenting. The more (the woman) pled for mercy, the more aggressive Appel became,” the suit alleges.
Before leaving her home, he allegedly ordered her to delete Ring camera footage that showed him arriving.
In the months after the assault, Appel “forced himself upon” the woman and took sexual advantage of her on other occasions, the suit claims.
Appel also allegedly bombarded the woman with demands for sexual acts and sent her a barrage of text and WhatsApp messages containing crude and graphic sexual content.
“I want to squeeze your breasts,” one text allegedly said. In another, he sent the woman a photo of his penis, the suit alleges.
In July 2024, the woman met with another rabbi and shared evidence of the sexual assault and “other incidents involving Appel,” the suit claims.
Woman offered $50,000 for therapy after sexual assault
Appel later contacted his attorney and the two offered the woman $50,000 to cover her future therapy expenses.
The money would be available only if the woman signed a release of any claims related to the assault and agreed to keep all incidents between them confidential, according to the suit.
The woman refused to accept the money or sign the agreement, the suit says.
Appel then launched a campaign to destroy the woman “personally and professionally,” according to the lawsuit.
On December 15, 2025, the woman became aware of a website with her photos that claimed she was “a danger to all Jews,” and warned the public to stay away from her, according to the complaint.
The website disclosed the woman’s address, claimed she stole money, and characterized her as a “thief.”
Moreover, Appel and possibly others posted signs smearing the woman. The signs were posted at public locations throughout the community, including the school her two children attended, the suit alleges.
The lawsuit claims sexual assault, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation, and conspiracy.
The complaint also alleges Appel breached his duty as a rabbi to conduct himself with loyalty and in good faith.
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