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As we close the curtain on Gov. Phil Murphy’s tenure, he leaves behind some big shoes for Gov. Mikie Sherill to step into as her term begins. I often speak with government officials as part of my work who are wary of using their powers to give incarcerated people second chances due to their fear of political blowback. While it would have been easy for Murphy to sit on the sidelines, instead he followed through on his promises to expand access to pardons across the state and help alleviate the collateral consequences of past criminal convictions.

Murphy granted 307 people clemency under his administration — more people than all of New Jersey’s governors in the last three decades combined. We now look to Sherill to continue that good work, because there’s still so much more to be done.

New Jersey must keep making progress on clemency

Despite how successful New Jersey has been in cutting its incarcerated population in half over the past 15 years, this state still has the most racially disparate prison population in the nation. Not only that, New Jersey Department of Corrections’ data shows about 22% of the state prison population is aged 50 or older, which is a drastic increase from just 13% a decade ago. Increased medical costs associated with the aging of New Jersey’s prison population costs the state up to $2 million each year per person, without even including the $300,000 in wages that go to corrections officers. New Jersey must take common sense action to return elderly incarcerated people to their communities and unburden the corrections system from the weight of unnecessarily incarcerating this population. 

Sherill already has tools at her disposal from day one to do something about this. Clemency is an extremely powerful tool that can be utilized to address past and current injustices, safely reduce the prison population, save taxpayer money, and return much-needed mentors to our communities. In fact, clemency is enshrined in the state constitution as a power that provides the governor with broad discretion to grant pardons and commutations to people with criminal convictions. This power is at its most useful when applied to people whose continued criminal convictions or sentences of incarceration no longer serve the interest of justice and are no longer in the interest of public safety for New Jersey’s communities — which is a perfect description for the people aging in our prisons, as recidivism and reincarceration rates for those over 60 in the state has been found to be as low as 3%.

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Murphy leaves behind a strong legacy of mercy and justice that will forever define his years in office. Now Sherrill has an opportunity to continue that legacy by building on Murphy’s clemency initiative and the strong foundation he established. This commitment will help ensure New Jersey continues to set the standard for safely reducing prison populations and that we continue the work to help balance the scales of justice while preserving public safety.

Celeste Trusty is state legislative affairs director for FAMM. She previously served as secretary of the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons.

You’ve heard me on The Judi & EJ Show talk about how much I love grocery shopping at Aldi — and I’ll say it again: I am an Aldi shopper through and through. Our coworker Kyle Forcini is too. We both love the tight selection of quality items, and for staples it’s the best value in Jersey. Of course, when I’m looking for specialty items, I still like to hit ShopRite, Giant, or Acme.

Why I kept driving past Amazon Fresh without stopping

Lately I’ve also been intrigued by the Amazon Fresh stores each time I drive by one. I suppose the intrigue comes from being an Amazon online shopper — you know, when I drive past and say, “oh cool, look at that Amazon supermarket.” But it seems I was just not curious enough to actually go inside. And now… I might not get the chance anyway.

Amazon announces closure of all Amazon Fresh grocery stores

Amazon just announced it’s closing all of its physical Fresh stores nationwide, which includes the ones we have right here in New Jersey. The company says it will continue Amazon Fresh as an online grocery brand, but the brick-and-mortar Fresh and cashier-less Go stores are shutting their doors because Amazon hasn’t been able to “create a truly distinctive customer experience with the right economic model” for expanding these stores.

New Jersey Amazon Fresh locations that are closing

In New Jersey, the Fresh locations that are slated to close include:
Eatontown – 137 NJ-25, Eatontown
Lodi – 2 Memorial Drive, Lodi
Paramus – 30 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Paramus
Woodland Park – 1510 Route 46, Woodland Park

Amazon hasn’t given a lot of details on exact closing dates here, but reports indicate most Fresh and Go stores are expected to be closed by early February 2026 as the company pivots toward other grocery formats.

Could Whole Foods replace Amazon Fresh stores in New Jersey?

Here’s an interesting twist: some of these Fresh stores could be converted into Whole Foods Markets, and Amazon plans to open more than 100 new Whole Foods and related formats in the next few years.

So, while I’ll miss the drive-by curiosity, I’ll likely be sticking with my Aldi route and grabbing specialty items where they’re easiest to find. And who knows — maybe a Whole Foods in one of these spots will give me something new to explore!

What does the new legislation do?

The Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act prohibits the sale of carpets, fabric treatment, cosmetics and food packaging that use intentionally added PFAS. It excludes products that get tainted by PFAS in the manufacturing process. The ban will take effect in January of 2028.

The law also requires cookware manufacturers to include warning labels when PFAS was used to manufacture their products. Penalties for violating the act could range from $1,000 to $25,000.

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection will also use $5 million to research, monitor and eliminate PFAS across the state.

Adams said while he applauds the new measure, he wishes the law went further.

“There are other products that are not covered by this bill that should have PFAS removed from them completely as part of a broader effort to remove PFAS from our environment,” said Adams. “Other states have passed larger-scale bills, but this is a phenomenal start in removing PFAS that, once enforced, will be incredibly beneficial to the health of every Jerseyan.”

Are PFAS-free alternatives available for household products?

There are more than 500 PFAS-free alternatives, according to a 2024 National Library of Medicine paper, and 164 major brands have already committed to removing these toxins from their products.

Do other states ban PFAS products?

New Jersey is the first state in the region to ban products containing “forever chemicals.”

However, more than a dozen states have passed similar legislation.

What products contain PFAS?

A number of household products contain PFAS, including pots and pans, microwave popcorn bags, waterproof clothing and boots, stain-resistant carpet, cosmetics and food packaging.

“These chemicals have become sort of ubiquitous in our home and work environment,” said Dr. Richard Hamilton, chair and professor of emergency medicine at Drexel University College of Medicine. “The problem with PFAS is that the chemicals are present in things that we have purchased many years ago, and they remain there.”

The chemicals can leach into household environments through air or dust, said Robert Laumbach, associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and Justice at the Rutgers School of Public Health.

“Some of those [PFAS] are actually volatile and evaporate into the air, and then others can be particles of dust or the wear products of carpet fibers and so on that can get into the air and then we breathe them,” he said.

The chemicals are used in the manufacturing process because they can make products water and oil resistant, and they don’t break down chemically or by heat, Laumbach said. He said some products don’t intentionally contain PFAS, but are contaminated during the manufacturing process.