Regional Briefs – August 24, 2015

NJ Town Official Fired for Poisoning Bird’s Nest

WEST MILFORD, N.J. – A high-ranking West Milford official was fired Friday for spraying a robin’s nest with pesticide, killing two chicks, The Record reported. Carlos Luaces, the public works superintendent, was deemed to have “been compromised” by the animal cruelty charge. He faces five years in jail.

Town Creates Fund for Family of Tot Killed on Red Wagon

SOUTHAMPTON, N.J. – Southampton officials set up a trust fund on Friday to help the Martinez family whose toddler son was fatally hit by a vehicle while riding a red wagon, The Associated Press reported. Mayor James Young called it a “tragedy for all.”

NY Targets Young Adults for Mental Health Treatment

ALBANY – New York’s Office of Mental Health is expanding a program intended to provide services to youths, among whom schizophrenia symptoms often first emerge. OnTrackNY serves 160 youths at sites in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Yonkers. They want to reach another 175 people.

Elderly Man Test Driving New Car Hurt in Head-On Crash

CLAY, N.Y. – An 85-year-old man was hospitalized late Thursday after a collision during a test drive, The Associated Press reported. Edward Cusato was in the Kia with a salesman when Taylor Wood-Frederick, 19, crossed the center lane and struck them head-on.

Mistrial After Jurors Watch Defendant Beaten on Break

TROY, N.Y. – A judge declared a mistrial Thursday, a day after two jurors on their lunch break witnessed the defendant in their case get beaten with a chair, the Times Union reported. Jerome Johnson, charged with illegal possession of a weapon, suffered a concussion.

Woman Dies After Being Ejected From Moving Car

BROOKLYN – A 29-year-old woman was killed Thursday night when the door of the car she was riding in flew open during a sharp turn and she was ejected onto a Sunset Park street, The Associated Press reported. Danielle Arronsen was in the rear seat of an SUV when the driver made a turn on 5th Avenue.

This article appeared in print on page 5 of the August 24th, 2015 edition of Hamodia.