The Star-Ledger News

Local NJ politics, crime & Statehouse coverage from The Star-Ledger

• Obama taps governors for strategy on economy
PHILADELPHIA -- Promising quick action to relieve building pressure on state budgets, President-elect Barack Obama told the nation's governors yesterday he wants their help in designing and enacting a recovery plan that would stimulate the economy "from the bottom up."

• More Afghans call big families an unaffordable ideal
DHARAIM, Afghanistan -- Mohammed Hatem stood proudly over his wife, Saily Nisa, as she rested on a narrow bed in the rural health facility with a pink veil over her face. The woman was preparing to deliver the couple's fifth child.

• In remote areas of Afghanistan, childbirth can be fatal
FAIZABAD, Afghanistan -- When Azada went into labor re cently high in the Hindu Kush mountains, it started an odyssey that would last 72 hours and cover 60 miles of forbidding terrain.

• Pick 6 Lotto jackpot grows to $11.5 million
There were no top prize winners in last night's Pick 6 Lotto drawing, New Jersey Lottery officials said.

• In spite of Burress, Giants keep eyes on ball
LANDOVER, Md. -- The word of the day was "distraction," and it was a bigger presence in the visiting locker room at FedEx Field than any 350-pound offensive lineman.

• Land of desolation
ARGU, Afghanistan -- A punishing seven-year drought has decimated the farmland and livestock of this predominately agrarian society, jeopardizing the welfare and livelihood of more than 1 million Afghans. Further devastation is almost certain this winter.

• Talent, friends get singer out of jail
Words usually flow for John Forté, a hip-hop singer-songwriter who has released two solo albums and worked with such eclectic collaborators as the Fugees, Herbie Hancock and Carly Simon.

• Corzine pays Katz relative $362,500
To avoid a potentially messy court fight, Gov. Jon Corzine has paid $362,500 to the brother-in-law of labor leader Carla Katz, his former girlfriend.

• DOWNTOWN VS. THE DOWNTURN
At the Grub Hut in Manville, they offer frequent-diner cards.

• Looking for Zarinsky's kin
The body of Robert Zarinsky will remain in the morgue at Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point while state Department of Corrections officials try to find a family member to claim it for burial, corrections spokesman Matt Schuman said.

• Murder of rabbi, wife echoes in Jersey
BY MARK MUELLER AND JULIE O'CONNOR They met as teenagers, finding a common bond in the love of study and the love of faith. Both went on to become rabbis in Judaism's ultra-Orthodox Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

• East Orange blaze leaves two dead
A 56-year-old woman and her 37-year-old daughter died yesterday in a three-alarm fire that destroyed two East Orange homes and left more than a dozen people homeless.

• He dared to dream long before Obama
WASHINGTON -- It was a chilly November day in Newark and Donald Payne was reflecting on dreams, both his and those of black America.

• COMMANDOS ATTACK IN MUMBAI
MUMBAI, India -- Security forces this morning assaulted a Jewish center in Mumbai where Muslim militants were believed holed up with possible hostages. Black-clad commandos dropped from an Indian helicopter as sharpshooters opened fire on the five-story building.

• South Brunswick radio station to give voice to local outrage
Kulraaj Anand spent part of his Thanksgiving Day trying to line up leaders of New Jersey's Asian Indian community for an on-air vigil on his radio station today to condemn the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

• NJ Transit's actions drive food vendor totally nuts
John Ellis is a train guy, an NJ Transit conductor for 19 years now, and has all the qualities of a good conductor. He's amiable, organized and keeps his balance when things get rocky, like they are now.

• Terrorists strike in India's largest city
MUMBAI, India -- Teams of terrorists armed with assault rifles and grenades stormed luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, hospitals and a crowded train station last night in coordinated attacks across India's financial capital, killing at least 82 people, injuring hundreds and taking Westerners hostage, police said.

• The news from Mumbai sickens loved ones in N.J.
For four hours yesterday, Pradip Kothari sat before the television in his Edison home, transfixed and horrified by the images flashing before him.

• EMBRACING DONNNA
Donna and Brian Garland of Hopatcong are thankful for many things this Thanksgiving, not the least of which are the help and support of family and friends.

• Thrift: An old practice for new hard times
When the stock market tanks, economists invariably call it a "cor rection," as if everything that took place before was in error.

• Fugitive tried to disappear in sleepy Georgia
After gunning down his wife, her cousin and a would-be rescuer in a Clifton church, Joseph Pallipurath dumped his pistol, abandoned his Jeep and stepped aboard a bus with the hopes of fading into obscurity, said authorities who nabbed the accused fugitive early yesterday.

• Closings for the Thanksgiving holiday
HOLIDAY CLOSINGS Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. It is a federal and state holiday in New Jersey. Post offices will be closed; there will be no regular mail delivery. State and local government offices and courts are closed. Financial markets and stock markets will be closed. Banks are closed. Public schools are closed. NJ Transit trains will operate on a weekend/major holiday schedule. There will be no service on the Monclair-Boonton line. Newark Light Rail and the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will be on a weekend schedule; River LINE will operate on a Sunday schedule. Holiday bus schedules vary, depending on route. To accommodate customers traveling to and from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, NJ Transit will add extra trains on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley, Morris & Essex and Port Jervis lines. For full details on all service changes and list of extra trains to Newark Liberty International Airport, go to njtran sit.com or call (973) 275-5555. PATH trains will operate on a holiday schedule, running every15 minutes between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

• An act of courage, then deadly gunfire
Dennis John Malloosseril didn't know the man shouting in the church vestibule had a gun, friends and authorities said.

• Suspect arrested in Georgia
NEW YORK -- A California man accused of driving to New Jersey and fatally shooting his estranged wife and another man inside a church on Sunday has been captured in Georgia.

• What a cancer doctor will (or might not) tell you
John Natale remembers his doctor's words as if they were spoken just yesterday.

• FRIEND TO THE HUNGRY FACES LEAN TIMES
Jean Webster is on a mission from God.

• Closings for the Thanksgiving holiday
HOLIDAY CLOSINGS Thursday is Thanksgiving Day. It is a federal and state holiday in New Jersey. Post offices will be closed; there will be no regular mail delivery. State and local government offices and courts will be closed. Financial markets and stock markets will be closed. Banks have the option to close. Public schools will be closed. NJ Transit trains will operate on a weekend/major holiday schedule. There will be no service on the Monclair-Boonton line. Newark Light Rail and Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will be on a weekend schedule; River LINE will be on a Sunday schedule. Holiday bus schedules vary, depending on route. To accommodate customers traveling to and from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, NJ Transit will add extra trains on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley, Morris & Essex and Port Jervis lines. Several "advance trains" will operate 5-10 minutes ahead of selected regularly scheduled trains. Customers traveling to Newark and New York are encouraged to arrive at least 10 minutes before departure. Eight additional trains will depart New York between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tomorrow, starting at noon, extra trains departing New York Penn Station, Newark Penn Station and Hoboken Terminal will provide early get-away service on the Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley, Morris & Essex, Pascack Valley and Port Jervis lines. Additional buses will provide early get-away service on select routes from the Port Authority Bus Terminal starting around 1 p.m. Due to early get-away service, the following trains will not operate tomorrow: the North Jersey Coast Line train 2311, the 5:46 p.m. de parture from Hoboken, the Pascack Valley Line train 1633, the 5:55 p.m. departure from Hoboken, the Port Jervis Line train 59, the 6:08 p.m. departure from Hoboken. Northeast Corridor trains 3173 and 3973 will be combined. The combined train will depart New York at 6:13 p.m. and cover the same stops as 3173 and 3973. For full details on all service changes and a list of extra trains, go to njtransit.com or call (973) 275-5555. PATH trains will operate on a holiday schedule, with trains running every 15 minutes between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

• Pick 6 Lotto jackpot grows to $11 million
There was no top prize winner in last night's Pick 6 Lotto drawing, New Jersey Lottery officials said.

• JETS VS. GIANTS? MAYBE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Now you can dare to dream a little bit. Now you can circle Feb. 1, 2009, on your calendar, start stocking up on beer and chips, and imagine what might happen that night in Tampa.

• Saving some cash tops itinerary for holiday travelers
Jami Schlicher is looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with her family in the Midwest, enjoying the animated talk around the dinner table, feasting on the giant turkey, corn casserole and cinnamon rolls for dessert.

• Forgotten patron of Newark culture
Hardly anyone gives a second thought anymore to the towering old faded hulk of a building on Newark's Broad Street with the word Griffith carved over the entrance, the doors locked and the 17 floors vacant and wrecked.

• Spending slump brings no joy to the retail world
'Tis the season for retail work -- if you're lucky enough to find it.

• Spending slump brings no joy to the retail world
'Tis the season for retail work -- if you're lucky enough to find it.

• Christie proved himself a man of convictions
Christopher Christie had done this before.

• Farmer is named Star-Ledger opinion editor
John Farmer, longtime national political reporter and columnist for The Star-Ledger, will become editor of the paper's opinion pages, Editor Jim Willse announced.

• A GENEROUS HEART'S LOST RING
In the 56 years John Griggs has been married, he's broken his wed ding ring and had his high school ring stolen.

• Reduced sentence asked in spy case
A lawyer for a former Philippines National Police officer serving six years for possessing national defense secrets asked a federal appeals court panel in Newark yesterday to reduce his sentence by up to half.

• Warren County public official sentenced for diverting funds
A former Warren County township committeeman and school board member was sentenced yesterday to three years in prison for using his position as chairman of the Blairstown Township municipal building project to divert more than $46,000 to a "dummy corporation" he created.

• Man accused of threat on girlfriend cleared to be with her
A mediator who is accused of threatening to kill his live-in girlfriend is free to have contact with her, a judge ruled yesterday, and the woman says she feels safe with him.

• Comcast will close its CN8 network
CN8, the East Coast regional television network run by Comcast Cable, will shut down by year's end, resulting in the loss of local news programs and sports coverage for millions in New Jersey.

• Plainfield man admits robbery and bias count in attack on teen
A Plainfield man pleaded guilty yesterday to yelling a racial slur at a teenager, pummeling the youth and taking his bike, because the boy was white.

• A Jewish-Muslim effort to dispel fears and biases
Mehdi Eliefifi, a Muslim, remembers the first time he and a Jewish law partner went out to lunch, decades ago.

• Man gets 30 years for machete attack
Heron Garcia-Nicholas awoke one morning last summer, grabbed a machete and began striking out. He seriously injured his sister, her 3-year-old daughter and 5-month-old son.

• Third man charged in Lakewood slaying
Ocean County authorities yesterday charged a third man in the fatal shooting of a Lakewood woman with connections to a gang-related murder trial.

• Raid nets drugs and 2 suspected traffickers
A pair of suspected gun-toting drug traffickers in Orange have been arrested and jailed after a raid found them with nearly $23,000 worth of heroin, 17 grams of marijuana, narcotics distribution equip ment, and three weapons, including a machine gun, Police Director John Rappaport said yesterday.

• Perot firm buys Tellurian of Newton
A Newton-based medical internet service provider has been purchased by an information technology company founded by former independent presidential candi date Ross Perot.

• Saving the Red Bulls' season
A few weeks from now, when his wild ride to the top of the soccer world is over, Danny Cepero will allow himself to think about his rise as the unexpected star of the Red Bulls.

• Pain of economy overriding pleasures of smoking
A smoker since she was a teenager, Maribeth Santillo has tried to quit more times than she can count.

• A student of history who likes to look forward, too
Annette Gordon-Reed is a history professor, so it takes a while to get her to talk about herself.

• Pick 6 Lotto jackpot rises to $10.75 million
There was no top prize winner in last night's Pick 6 Lotto drawing, New Jersey Lottery officials said.

• State: Pension fund took $23B hit
New Jersey's pension fund has lost more than $23 billion this year, dropping to its lowest level since 2003 as a collapsing financial market battered its investments, a state report showed yesterday.

• JERSEY'S 6% JOBLESS RATE
Vance Stroud knows times are tough. Yesterday the 56-year-old computer programmer was back at the Bergen One-Stop Career Center in Hackensack, hoping to land a temporary job. His last job ended two months ago.

• 1 person out of 11 goes hungry in N.J.
Even in one of the wealthiest states in America, one of every 11 New Jerseyans goes to bed without enough to eat, according to a report released yesterday by the Food Research and Action Center in Washington, D.C.

• No hotel space for big day in D.C.
WASHINGTON -- When you start doing Inauguration Day math, things just don't add up.