Star ledger force report

For years, there have been stories that men in ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in New York City were sometimes kidnapped or beaten to persuade them to provide the required permission for their wives to obtain a religious divorce.More than a decade ago, a Brooklyn rabbi sued another rabbi, claiming that he had been abducted and tortured for this reason, but the case was dismissed, the New York Times (reg. req.) reports.Now the feds have lent their weight to such claims. After a sting operation, they have criminally charged 10 individuals, including two rabbis, with participating in an alleged scheme to force reluctant husbands to provide religious divorces to their wives, the Star-Ledger reports.The claimed torture-for-hire plot involved the use of stun guns, knives and handcuffs.The criminal case is being pursued in Trenton, N.J., and all 10 defendants were ordered held without bail when then appeared in federal court there on Thursday. The articles don’t include any comment … [Read more...] about 2 rabbis among 10 charged in claimed kidnap-and-torture plot to force religious divorces

A man well-known on the Web as “Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker” has been arrested in Philadelphia and charged in the homicide of Joseph Galfy Jr., a 73-year-old New Jersey lawyer who was found dead at his home in Clark earlier this week.Caleb Lawrence McGillvary, 24, was arrested at a bus terminal early Thursday evening, WPVI reported.A NJToday.com article includes a photo of the suspect that shows a distinctive tattoo he has on his neck. McGillvary reportedly calls himself “homefree” instead of homeless, and relies on the kindness of strangers for food and shelter.McGillvary leapt to Internet fame several months ago after he was credited in a Fresno Bee report with having used a hatchet he had in his backpack to stop a vicious California attack after a man from whom McGillvary had accepted a ride attacked an individual unknown to McGillvary. The attacker, who was knocked out by McGillvary, was criminally charged (and has since pleaded not guilty by reason … [Read more...] about Hitchhiking YouTube star arrested in homicide of NJ attorney

He always seemed to cry whenever his perennially highly ranked University of Kansas teams came up short in the NCAA tournament. When he finally won his first national championship in 2005 after leaving Kansas for his alma mater, the University of North Carolina, the waterworks were out in full force—this time for joy and relief instead of frustration and failure.But he choked up again in late October after UNC won a meaningless preseason exhibition game against lower-division school Fayetteville State. And this time his reasons had nothing to do with what happened on the basketball court: Williams was publicly responding to a report from former U.S. homeland security adviser and current Washington, D.C.-based Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft partner Kenneth Wainstein detailing rampant academic fraud at UNC involving numerous football and basketball players.“There hasn’t been a day in my life that I haven’t been extremely concerned about doing things the right … [Read more...] about Meet the lawyers behind high-profile investigations

Back in September, when reporters for the Record in Bergen County, New Jersey, heard that traffic on the George Washington Bridge near Fort Lee seemed worse than usual, North Jersey Media Group general counsel Jennifer Borg and her staff of reporters faced the difficult task of convincing a government in damage-control mode to live up to its obligations under the state’s public disclosure laws.Now, as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s political star seeks to escape from the cloud caused by the traffic jams—as well as allegations of political payback and withholding information—he can thank Borg, Record reporter Shawn Boburg and several of Boburg’s colleagues at the paper for putting him there.A strong advocate of open and transparent government, Borg is the paper’s primary force when it comes to seeking public records under New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act. She frequently uses litigation to force government agencies to comply with … [Read more...] about Newspaper counsel takes on New Jersey governor over ‘Bridgegate’

An autopsy has determined that blunt force trauma caused the death of a 73-year-old New Jersey lawyer found dead in his home on Monday.Authorities are labeling the death of Joseph Galfy a homicide, report the New Jersey Star-Ledger and MyCentralJersey.com. Galfy was a former municipal attorney for Green Brook and a partner in the Rahway law firm Kochanski, Baron and Galfy. His body was found in his Clark home after he did not show up for work and phone calls went unanswered.Clark Mayor Sal Bonaccorso told the Star-Ledger there were no signs of forced entry to Galfy’s home, and there was no evidence anything was taken. “We are safe. Don’t panic. This is one of those incidents [that is] not a reflection on the safety of the community,” he said.The community of 15,000 residents had one other slaying within the past year. Vera Pecoraro was found dead at home with her throat slashed last July. The Star-Ledger described her as “a 74-year-old matriarch of a … [Read more...] about Death of New Jersey lawyer is ruled a homicide