COLLEGE PARK, Md., Oct. 13 (ZFJ) — A vigil held by UMD Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) on McKeldin Mall on Monday, Oct. 7, took place without incident.
On Sept. 1, the University of Maryland, College Park, attempted to limit all demonstrations on campus on Oct. 7 after thousands of people wrote objecting to SJP’s permit to protest on that day. The significance of Oct. 7, 2023, is that it was the day when Hamas militants stormed into nearby Israeli towns from the blockaded Gaza Strip to kill and take hostage hundreds of civilians.
COLLEGE PARK, Md., Oct. 5 (ZFJ) — A federal judge ordered the University of Maryland, College Park, to allow UMD Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) to proceed with their demonstration on Monday, Oct. 7.
On Sept. 1, after significant outcry over UMD granting a permit to SJP to use McKeldin Mall for an “interfaith vigil,” the university announced that demonstrations would be prohibited on campus on Oct. 7, and that a “university-sponsored Day of Dialogue” would be held instead.
COLLEGE PARK, Md., Oct. 5 (ZFJ) — Dr. Dominique Mwepu, 53, was fatally struck by a car on Monday, Sept. 30, according to the Montgomery County Police Department.
At about 7:55 p.m., county police officers from the 5th district and fire rescue personnel responded to reports of a collision involving a blue Honda Prelude and a pedestrian at the intersection of Frederick Road and High Point Drive.
Mwepu sustained life-threatening injuries and was pronounced dead on the scene.
COLLEGE PARK, Md., Sept. 6 (ZFJ) — The University of Maryland, College Park, will not allow any student group protests on Oct. 7, 2024, following controversy over a pro-Palestinian protest planned for that date.
The University System of Maryland said in a press release on Sunday, Sept. 1, that special campus events—those requiring approval or permitting—will be suspended only on Oct. 7 in favor of a “university-sponsored Day of Dialogue” to promote reflection instead.
Aug. 25 (ZFJ) — The New Jersey Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has revised its use-of-force policy to “increase the likelihood of peaceful resolutions to encounters between police and barricaded individuals,” Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said in a statement.
The change in policy, which had last been changed in December 2020, comes weeks after the July 28 shooting of Victoria Lee, who was killed while threatening cops during a “mental breakdown.
METUCHEN, N.J., Aug. 22 (ZFJ) — Walid Beshai, 36, of Bayonne, was arrested by Metuchen police at his residence on Wednesday, Aug. 14, in connection with a fire in the borough on June 27, 2024.
Patrol officers responded to the scene of a fire on June 27, 2024, at about 1:30 a.m., according to an affidavit of probable cause submitted to the court by police. Three residents were removed from a two-family residential structure, and a garage that contained one of the victim’s vehicles was actively on fire.
EDISON, N.J., Aug. 11 (ZFJ) — Andrew “Dean” S. DeNicola, 55, band director at John P. Stevens High School for 50 years, died on May 20, 2024, after many years of battling heart disease.
“His devotion toward music, the band program, and his students was unparalleled, and anyone who had the pleasure of getting to know Andy knew he was having fun and living his life to the fullest,” wrote the Central Jersey Music Educators Association on Instagram.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This news report contains graphic details of the police-involved shooting and vulgarities that could be offensive or disturbing to some readers.
Aug. 19 (ZFJ) — Body camera footage of the fatal shooting of Victoria G. Lee, 25, of Fort Lee, by Fort Lee Police Officer Tony Pickens, Jr., during a mental health call on July 28 was released by the N.J. Attorney General’s Office (OAG) on Friday, Aug.
EDISON, N.J., Aug. 13 (ZFJ) — Someone just had the front of their house unexpectedly power washed. A 30-inch water main was broken by contractor work on Woodbrook Drive, said Edison Mayor Sam Joshi on social media on Monday, Aug. 12.
The water lines are operated by the Middlesex Water Company.
Residents shouldn’t have water flow disrupted because the broken line is separate from the ones used for residential distribution, according to Joshi.
EDISON, N.J., Aug. 12 (ZFJ) — Retired Edison Firefighter Raymond Tibok, 58, of Edison, died peacefully on Thursday, Aug. 8, at JFK Medical Center.
He was born in Perth Amboy and a lifelong resident of Edison. He served Edison as a firefighter for 30 years before retiring in 2022.
Tibok graduated from John P. Stevens High School in 1984.
“He loved fishing, working on cars, and playing southern rock with his guitar.
