New Jersey

Dumped by Essex Dems, assemblywoman will run with Fulop – New Jersey Globe

Published

11 months ago

March 27, 2025

Dumped by Essex Dems, assemblywoman will run with Fulop – New Jersey Globe

Assemblywoman Garnet Hall (D-Maplewood) has changed her mind and will seek re-election to a second term in the State Assembly on a slate with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Steve Fulop using his “Democrats for Change” slogan.

Hall had initially decided not to run again after losing party support at the Essex County Democratic convention on Saturday. She was outpolled by Newark West Ward Democratic Municipal Chairman Chigozie Onyema and Assemblywoman Cleopatra Tucker (D-Newark), a nine-term incumbent.

Just yesterday, Hall issued a statement announcing she was bowing out.

“I accept the result of the Essex County Democratic Convention and the will of district leaders across the 28th legislative district,” Hall said.

At the convention, Onyema received 141 votes at the convention, with Tucker finishing second with 120 votes. Hall received 64 votes. A screening committee had recommended Onyema and Hall.

Onyema and Hall won the Union County Democratic screening committee endorsement earlier this week, giving them the organization slogan in Hillside. Hillside made up about 13.5% of the votes cast in the 2023 primary.

Hall, seemingly a weak incumbent with about $17,000 in her campaign warchest, could benefit by aligning herself with Fulop, who has endorsements of Democratic mayors in South Orange and Hillside. Still, this is an uphill fight for her.

She emerged as the leading candidate just three days after Rep. Mila Jasey (D-South Orange) announced her retirement in 2023. The 65-year-old Maplewood Democrat became deputy county clerk in 2018 after a private sector career. She had been the Democratic municipal vice chair.

With county organization lines in place at the time, Hall acquired the Assembly seat without the convention process that began this year; she was the pick of party leaders and not the Democratic county committee in Maplewood and South Orange.

Then-Maplewood Township Committeewoman Jamaine Cripe, former Maplewood Mayor Frank McGehee; and former Maplewood Township Committeewoman India Larrier had also been considered for the post after Democrats decided that the open seat in the newly-drawn district should go to Maplewood.

In the primary, Hall was the top vote-getter with 8,520, followed by Tucker at 8,237. McGehee, who mounted an off-the-line bid, finished third with 4,025.

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New Jersey

Devils Out to Rattle the Leafs | PREVIEW | New Jersey Devils

Published

1 hour ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Devils Out to Rattle the Leafs | PREVIEW | New Jersey Devils

THE SCOOP

The Devils began their season-high seven-game homestand with a decisive victory over the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night. The win was their second consecutive victory after picking up a win in St. Louis earlier in the week.

There’s not a lot of runway left in the season, and stringing together a run of victories is at the top of their minds. New Jersey is 11 points out of the final Wild Card spot, and 13 out of third in the Metropolitan Division. Tuesday will mark the Devils final game before the NHL Trade Deadline, which is on Friday at 3 p.m.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are having a down year, based on where the expectations were set heading into the season. The Leafs have struggled to gain any traction in their season and sit just two points ahead of New Jersey with 64. Toronto is 12 points out of third in the Atlantic Division, and nine points out of a Wild Card spot.

The Leafs have a tendency to give up an abundance of shots to their opponents, ranking first in the league in shots against, per game with 31.8, which bodes will for a Devils team that averages 29.4 shots per game, ranking sixth in the league. Despite their overall struggles, the Leafs do have the league’s fourth-best penalty kill, working at an 83.1 percent efficiency.

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New Jersey

Former Lumberton, New Jersey, mayor Gina LaPlaca pleads guilty to 2025 DUI, sentenced to treatment program

Published

13 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Former Lumberton, New Jersey, mayor Gina LaPlaca pleads guilty to 2025 DUI, sentenced to treatment program

A former mayor in Burlington County, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to DUI and child endangerment charges after a 2025 traffic stop, according to prosecutors.

Lumberton Township committee member Gina LaPlaca, 46, was indicted last spring on child abuse charges after county prosecutors said she was observed driving drunk with her young child in the car, while serving as the township mayor.

Police arrested her at her home after reviewing video from a witness showing her swerving out of her lane and nearly hitting a utility pole. Lumberton police discovered her blood alcohol concentration was .30%, over three times the legal limit of .08%.

On Monday, LaPlaca was sentenced to three years in a diversionary program for first-time offenders after pleading guilty to driving under the influence and a fourth-degree child abuse charge. As part of the plea deal, LaPlaca will avoid jail time as long as she abides by the terms of the program.

Under the terms of the Pretrial Intervention or PTI program, she must attend regular Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and comply with any requirements set by the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency.

Judge Craig A. Ambrose also ordered LaPlaca to have an ignition lock device on her car that will prevent it from starting up if the driver has consumed alcohol. She said in court she had already installed one in October 2025, the county prosecutor’s office said.

If LaPlaca violates the terms of the PTI program, she could be prosecuted for the child abuse charge.

LaPlaca completed an intensive treatment program in May 2025 and said in a statement that she is “fully committed to my recovery” and is doing the “daily, intentional work” that comes with it. She apologized to Lumberton residents while acknowledging a private struggle with alcohol addiction that was no longer private.

“The weight of my actions is something I carry deeply,” she said in a statement shared on social media. “What I did was wrong. It was dangerous. It was inexcusable. I drove while intoxicated with my child in the car — a choice that could have caused irreversible harm. That reality is something I will live with, and learn from, for the rest of my life.”

LaPlaca served as mayor through 2025 but remains on the township committee. Terrance Benson was sworn in as mayor of Lumberton this year.

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New Jersey

Newark-bound United flight returns to LA airport for evacuation after reported fire

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Newark-bound United flight returns to LA airport for evacuation after reported fire

NEWARK, New Jersey — A United Airlines flight headed to Newark, New Jersey returned to the Los Angeles airport Monday about 40 minutes after taking off for an emergency evacuation after a reported fire, authorities said.

All flights at the LAX International Airport were ordered to remain on the ground for about half an hour during the flight’s return and evacuation, according to advisories from the Federal Aviation Administration. No injuries were reported.

The flight, which was en route to Newark Liberty International Airport returned to LAX to address an issue with one of the engines, the airline said in a statement. There was no mention of a fire, but the LA Fire Department said it responded and there was a fire that was contained as of an hour after the plane’s landing.

The flight took off at 10:43 a.m., began to turn around at about 11 a.m. and landed again at 11:19 a.m., according to flight tracker FlightAware.

The LA Fire Department said they assisted with the evacuation of more than 250 passengers and crew. Passengers exited the plane on the taxiway using slides and stairs and were taken to the terminal, the airline said.

The airplane was a Boeing 787-9, a variant of the popular line of 787 Dreamliner long-haul aircraft.

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