New Jersey
New Jersey school bus aide awaits verdict in student death trial
SOMERVILLE, N.J. — The fate of a former school bus aide charged in the death of a special needs student is now in the hands of a New Jersey jury.
Amanda Davila took the stand Thursday in her trial for aggravated manslaughter after a safety harness strangled 6-year-old Fajr Williams on a bus she was monitoring.
Davila, 27, told jurors she’s remorseful and suffering from PTSD linked to the fateful bus ride to Claremont Elementary School in Somerset in July 2023.
“I feel bad for what happened, and I am so sorry that it did happen, and I made a mistake,” Davila testified.
Davila testified she wasn’t solely responsible for the seatbelt harness around Williams, who used a wheelchair, and that no one ever told her to adjust it.
Jurors watch surveillance video of special needs student’s death
Jurors watched video from the bus showing Williams sliding down in her wheelchair and her harness getting wrapped around her neck. As Williams was struggling, prosecutors said Davila was wearing earbuds and checking social media on her cellphone.
“I was scrolling through apps to go onto Instagram and texting,” Davila testified.
In her defense, Davila claimed her employer allowed her to sit in the middle of the bus and did not properly train her. Her attorney blamed the deceased student’s older sister who put the harness on.
“She died because her own mother didn’t properly, or delegated, fastening her into the wheelchair,” attorney Michael A. Policastro said, “and that is not responsibility of Amanda.”
“It is heartbreaking and it’s disturbing”
During closing statements, the prosecution also showed video of police interrogating Davila. At the same time, Williams’ mother was slumped over, crying. Prosecutors called Davila a liar, claiming she broke policy by using her phone, and said she failed to watch Williams and secure a bus latch to prevent the wheelchair from moving, despite receiving training over seven years.
“It is heartbreaking and it’s disturbing to keep reliving it and to have to physically watch my daughter suffer due to negligence,” said Najmah Nash, Williams’ mother.
“The cellphone is more important than the child,” Somerset County First Assistant Prosecutor Michael McLaughlin told the jury.
Jurors will resume deliberations on Monday. The charges against Davila carry a 10-year prison sentence.
New Jersey
Monmouth County high school among best schools for athletes across NJ
New Jersey has many schools that offer a great education for students interested in sports.
Student-athletes seeking the best schools with leading sports programs have options in the Garden State, says Niche.com.
The online platform for rankings and review rounded up the top New Jersey schools with the best high school sports programs based on analysis of key statistics and millions of reviews from students and parents using data from the U.S. Department of Education.
In addition these rankings based on the number of state championships, student participation in athletics and the number of sports offered at the school.
One school from Monmouth County made the list in the number 6 spot.
Red Bank Catholic
Red Bank Catholic is a private Catholic high school in Monmouth County and offers students extracurriculars that include an award winning athletic program with 28 varsity sports. The institution also ranked in the top 5 list for Best Private High Schools in Monmouth County.
Here’s why RBC made the list:
- Sports: grade A+
- Clubs & Activities: grade A+
- Academics: grade A
- College Prep: grade A minus
- Teachers: grade B+
- Diversity: grade B minus
Red Bank Catholic overall Niche grade: A
Top 10 High Schools for Athletes
This list is was compiled from Niche.com and includes private and public schools across New Jersey.
- Delbarton High School
- Bergen Catholic High School
- Seton Hall Preparatory High School
- Saint Peter’s Prep
- Don Bosco Preparatory High School
- Red Bank Catholic High School
- Haddonfield Memorial High School
- Westfield Senior High School
- Ramapo High School
- Northern Highlands Regional High School
New Jersey
Isolated snow showers, wind gusts up to 35 mph in N.J. forecast for Sunday
Rain will continue through tonight across New Jersey before a cold front passes through Sunday morning, followed by wind gusts up to 35 mph and the chance of isolated snow showers.
The heaviest rain tonight is expected along the southern portions of the state where 1 and 1.5 inches rainfall totals are possible, according to the National Weather Service.
Most other areas of New Jersey should receive around 1 inch of rain, with the northwest portions of the state picking up 0.5 to 0.75 inches.
Once the rain ends between 6 and 9 a.m. Sunday, conditions should remain cloudy and foggy until a cold front passes through late Sunday morning into early Sunday afternoon.
Temperatures will drop into the upper 30s to low 40s Sunday morning as cold air moves in behind the first cold front.
A secondary cold front will cross New Jersey late Sunday afternoon accompanied by a period of rain and snow showers.
The isolated snow showers are possible mainly from 7 to 11 p.m., the weather service said. Snow accumulations are not expected in New Jersey.
Winds of 15 to 20 mph on Sunday afternoon are expected to increase to 25 to 35 mph by sunset.
Monday’s forecast calls for mainly clear skies with temperatures in the upper 30s to low 40s and winds gradually diminishing.
Tuesday will be milder with above-normal temperatures and mainly clear to partly cloudy skies, with a slight chance of some rain showers possible.
Wednesday’s temperatures will remain above normal with partly cloudy skies and a slight chance of rain showers as a cold front approaches from the west.
A potential coastal storm could impact New Jersey with snow on Thursday and Friday, though significant uncertainty remains regarding the exact track and timing of the system, the weather service said.
Some forecast models suggest a significant winter storm while others indicate the system will remain offshore.
A colder air mass is forecast to move into New Jersey by late next week and into the following weekend.
Current weather radar
New Jersey
NJ officers surprised with Eagles playoffs tickets for saving boy who fell through ice
Officers in Gloucester County, New Jersey, got a big surprise on Friday morning.
A representative from Dunkin’ gave them free tickets to this weekend’s Eagles playoff game as a huge thank you for their courageous actions last weekend.
It was a tense scene in Woolwich Township when officers used ropes and went into a frozen body of water to save a child who had fallen through the ice.
“As soon as he started screaming that he couldn’t feel his hands, I just went out there and tried to go get him,” Sgt. Joseph Rieger said. “Immediately thought of my own son and what I would have done with my own son- just go out and get him as soon as I could.”
The boy was screaming and was not able to grab onto the rope that the officers had thrown to him.
“I try to get him the rescue rope but he can’t hold it because his hands aren’t working. So I go to grab him out of the awter and we both go into the water. So I was able to stand up and throw him on top of the ice and start breaking my way back,” Rieger explained.
The team was able to get the 13-year-old out of the frozen water with no one getting hurt.
Then, Dunkin’ showed up to the police department for Law Enforcement Appreciation Day and praised their actions by giving them tickets to Sunday’s Eagles playoff game against the 49ers.
“This is my job. It was what I signed up to do so getting this kind of attention, I’m not used to it. I’m very appreciative and very excited,” Rieger said.
The officers said that if there’s anything to take away from this story, it’s to stay off of the ice.
Thankfully, the boy they saved is doing just fine and stopped by the police department earlier this week to thank them.
“It was awesome. It was nice to see that he was safe. He learned his lesson. He was very appreciative,” Rieger said.
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