MAURICE RIVER TOWNSHIP—State police are investigating a fatal crash that took the life of a Wildwood Crest man, Wednesday, Feb. 18. David M. Ferrante, 42, was pronounced dead at the scene after his black Toyota Tundra truck ran off the road and crashed into the treeline on the northbound side of Route 55, milepost 21.4. According to state police, the truck sustained heavy damage. Ferrante was found inside the vehicle when troopers arrived. The accident occurred around 6:19 p.m. Officers from the NJSP Port Norris station responded to the scene. They were assisted by members of the Leesburg and Port ...<< MORE >>

LOWER TOWNSHIP – With strong support from many neighbors – and firm opposition from others – Township Council Wednesday, Feb. 18 unanimously approved an ordinance mandating homeowners connect to township water lines where available.
Mayor Mike Beck said the vote was long overdue, and applauded council members for supporting the measure, which had been requested by the township Municipal Utilities Authority.
MUA officials said the ordinance was needed to ensure the authority had funding to continue to expand the township water service. Otherwise, they said, the authority could spend millions on new infrastructure only to see few homeowners connect. The ...<< MORE >>

Members of the Lower Township Police Department will mark the 15th anniversary of the death of Officer David C. Douglass, who was killed in the line of duty, in a service 10 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 14 at Municipal Hall, 2600 Bayshore Road.
Douglass was fatally shot by a suspect in 1994 when responding to a call about a suspicious person. Police say he chased the suspect when the man turned and shot him. Douglass shot back, hitting the suspect in the hand. Douglass was able to get back to his patrol car to call for help, but did not survive ...<< MORE >>

At least 14 cases of beer and other items that have yet to be inventoried were stolen from the Acme in North Cape May while the store was closed between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Lower Township Police were called to the scene at about 10 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 15 with a report of a burglary. The separate area in the back of the store showed signs of forced entry, and police believe the theft took place between closing on Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday.
Cpl. Kevin Boyle and the Lower Township detective division are investigating.
Police ask anyone with ...<< MORE >>

At about 11:15 p.m., Lower Township Police responded to a call of a possible car burglary on East New York Avenue in Villas only to find a fire had been set inside the car.
The woman who called the police said she saw a tall man in a tan jacket walking away from the property, and that she saw the lights of her car on, as if someone had just opened the door.
Police were able to put out the fire with an extinguisher from a patrol car, and the Villas Fire Company responded to the scene to make certain ...<< MORE >>

SEA ISLE CITY – Sea Isle City police discovered a body in the bay Sunday morning. Tracy Hottenstein, 35, of Conshohocken, Pa., was found dead at approximately 7:50 a.m. The body was located at the Sea Isle City Marina on 42nd Place. Following the discovery, members of the Sea Isle City police Department, the Cape May County prosecutor’s Major Crimes Unit and Crime Scene Unit, the New Jersey State Police Marine Bureau, the Cape May County Sheriff’s K-9 Unit and the United States Coast Guard arrived on the scene to investigate. Taylor said that investigation revealed that Hottenstein was in ...<< MORE >>

WILDWOOD— A joint investigation is being conducted by the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office and the Wildwood Police Detective Division on a suspicious fire that damaged a local apartment. On Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 1:29 p.m. the Wildwood Police Department, Wildwood Fire Department, Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Unit and Cape May County Fire Marshal’s Office responded to 3201 Atlantic Avenue, Key Colony Condos (Unit #206) for a report of extensive fire damage.

Employees of the Wildwood Glass Company discovered the ...<< MORE >>
    	

By NANCY RUMP

UPPER TOWNSHIP – State Police Wednesday identified Joshua T. Fehrle as the victim of a one-car crash earlier this week on Route 631.

Fehrle, 20, of Petersburg, was traveling east on the roadway at milepost 4, near the intersection with Church Road early Tuesday morning, when police say his truck ran off the eastbound shoulder and then struck and became lodged between two trees.

When a passing driver came upon the scene, the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames, police said. Authorities are still trying to determine why Fehrle’s truck left the roadway. The accident was reported ...<< MORE >>

Lower Township Police reported on Feb. 10 extensive spray paint in the Villas section of the township.
According to police, the calls started coming in at about 5:30 a.m. Sunday, with reports of cars, garage doors, sidewalks and other property being vandalized with orange and green spray paint, sometimes with obscene language.
Officers on patrol also saw properties that were vandalized.
Areas with vandalism  reported included West Pacific Avenue, Millman Lave, Florida Avenue, Delaware Avenue, West Miami Avenue, West Jacksonville Avenue and St. John’s Avenue.
The incident is being investigated by Ptl. William McPherson and the Lower Township detective division. Police ...<< MORE >>

By NANCY RUMP

UPPER TOWNSHIP – State Police are investigating the death of the driver of a motor vehicle that crashed and burned early this morning on Route 631.

According to Sgt. Robert Bauers of the Woodbine barracks, post-mortem testing is being done on the body today to determine exactly who perished in the fiery car wreck. Police have yet to release the sex of the individual. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accident was reported to police at 3:58 a.m. Bauers said another driver came across the burning vehicle but had no way to put it out.

Troopers at the ...<< MORE >>

WEST CAPE MAY – The regional SWAT team and dogs from the sheriff department’s K-9 unit joined Cape May Police in a raid of a residence on 6th Avenue in West Cape May Jan. 31.
Three people, two women and a man, face drug charges, according to Cape May police.
Cape May Police announced on Feb. 5 that the raid was the result of a cooperative investigation with local detectives and the Gangs, Guns and Narcotics Task Force on the county level. Police say officers seized cocaine, Xanax tablets and marijuana.
Arrested at the scene were Pedro Blackshear, 39, Barbara Matthews, 52, and Mary Chapman, 40, all of West Cape May.
According to police, Blackshear was charged with possession of cocaine, possession of prescription drugs and possession with the intent to distribute in a school zone. He was sent to county jail with bail set at $25,000.
Police say Matthews was charged with possession of cocaine and was also sent to county jail, with bail set at $15,000, and Chapman was charged with possession of marijuana and cocaine.
Det. Victor DeMusz of the Cape May police department led the investigation.

        

By NANCY RUMP

DENNIS TOWNSHIP - State Police have confirmed an earlier report about an accident involving a school bus carrying members of Wildwood High School’s basketball team.

According to Trooper Robert Varnadore of the Woodbine barracks, the driver of the school bus, registered to Motor Coach Industries/Sheppard School Bus of New Jersey, has been issued a summons for careless driving. He was found to be at fault for the accident, Varnadore said. Neither the bus driver, the driver of another vehicle involved nor any of the 23 students on the bus were injured, he said.

The accident occurred at 3:50 p.m. on ...<< MORE >>

BURLEIGH— Students and faculty at Cape Christian Academy were evacuated from the building after a report of a chlorine leak around 9:43 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 3. When police arrived, they found that a science experiment yielded a chemical reaction, causing teacher, Kenneth Hand, to need medical assistance. Hand and the other teachers were able to evacuate the classrooms without incident, and the students were relocated to a separate building. Hand was transported to Cape Regional Medical Center by the Middle Township Rescue Squad.
The Cape Christian Academy was closed for the remainder of the day by school administrators. The Cape ...<< MORE >>

Wildwood High School’s basketball team bus was in an accident Tuesday afternoon as The Leader went to press. Sports editor Brian Cunniff was able to confirm through a school official that the accident was on Route 47 – the location was not divulged -- as the freshman, jayvee and varsity teams headed for games at Gloucester High School. The school official said the accident was minor in nature and there were no injuries. All of the games were postponed and the students were in the process of returned to the school. ...<< MORE >>

Lower Township police announced Jan. 29 that aggravated assault charges were filed in a late-night attack Saturday, Jan. 24 that left a clerk at the Villas 7-11 unconscious and badly hurt.
Detectives identified a suspect from video and photos from the store’s surveillance cameras. Police say the video shows the clerk being knocked out, and that the attacker continued to strike him as he lay on the floor.
Sergio Cortina, 21, of Cove Avenue in North Cape May was charged with one count of aggravated assault and one count of endangering a victim/failure to render aid. Both are third degree ...<< MORE >>

WHITESBORO— A Whitesboro man was found with a head injury, lying in the street after police responded to an emergency call Monday night. Members of the Middle Township Police Department arrived at the 300 block of Allen Street in Whitesboro around 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 26 after receiving a 9-1-1 call of a fight in progress. The caller said there were about 30 individuals involved.
The victim, John D. Smith, 18, had a visible head injury and was able to tell officers he was struck in the head with a rock by an unidentified black male. The suspect fled the scene ...<< MORE >>

CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE – Cape Bank announced today that Herbert Hornsby has stepped down as its President and CEO, to be succeeded by Michael Devlin. Hornsby was the longtime President of Cape Savings Bank before its merger with Boardwalk Bank in January 2008. He oversaw the evolution of Cape Savings Bank from a mutual to a stock organization, whose acquisition of Boardwalk Bank created the largest banking organization headquartered in Cape May and Atlantic Counties. The merged entities took the new name “Cape Bank,” and today the bank includes 18 branches and holds approximately $1.1 billion in ...<< MORE >>

By NANCY RUMP

SEAVILLE - Upper Township fire officials believe an acetylene tank is to blame for an early morning blaze Thursday in Seaville that started with an explosion in a residential neighborhood. A local state trooper is being credited with alerting occupants inside the home and getting them out.

According to Seaville Fire Chief Rob Spiegel, the tank exploded inside a garage at a home at 6 Edwards Terrace. The garage caught fire shortly after 3 a.m. Jan. 22.

Staff Sgt. Robert Bauers of the Woodbine barracks said Det. Sarg. Mike Kane, who lives in the area, saw the fire, notified the ...<< MORE >>

Cape May Court House – Freeholder Director Daniel Beyel announced today that the Cape May County 2009 Budget scheduled to be introduced on Tuesday, January 27th will be introduced on February 10th. Since the Local Finance Board has revised the 2009 filing deadlines for local and county governments, the county’s auditor has recommended that the county delay introducing this year’s budget. Director Beyel said, “Although we will have our public budget workshop as scheduled this Friday, January 23 at 4 p.m. with the intention of closing budgetary gaps, we will hold off introducing the 2009 ...<< MORE >>

WILDWOOD— Police have arrested six Cape May County residents involved in an armed robbery at the Wildwood Wawa on Pine Ave, Monday, Jan. 19. Bruce Pearson, 25, of Villas; Amy Bianchino, 31; Ashley Funk, 24, of Cape May Court House; Daniel Maniscalco Sr., 23, of North Cape May; and Kairi Brooks, 24, also of North Cape May were arrested in the early afternoon on Tuesday, Jan. 20. Robert Peterson, 28, of Wildwood, was arrested later in the day after a search warrant was executed at his residence.
At 11:30 p.m. police were called to the Wildwood Wawa after a 26-year-old male ...<< MORE >>

SEA ISLE CITY - A three-story condominium in Sea Isle City was in danger of falling into the bay Monday after part of a bulkhead collapsed. A portion of a condo on 82nd Street fell into the water around 10:45 a.m., officials said. The city cordoned off the area and later city inspectors condemned two residences and declared them uninhabitable. The two residences were situated directly next to the bay. A part of one condo's deck fell into the bay after the bulkhead apparently collapsed. Water was running underneath part of one home on the corner of 82nd Street. ...<< MORE >>

MIDDLE TOWNSHIP— With the help of a township resident, police have located 15-year-old Jessica Coyle. The juvenile had run away from her Cape May Court House residence on Tuesday, Jan. 6. She was last seen getting off a Middle Township School Bus at West Lena Street in Whitesboro. On Jan. 8, at about 5 p.m., Jessica was located in the Whitesboro area as a result of the “One Call System” utilized by the Middle Township School District. A telephone message was sent to all families within the district providing information of the juvenile runaway and requesting assistance in locating the juvenile.  ...<< MORE >>

MIDDLE TOWNSHIP— The Middle Township Police Department is asking for the public’s help in locating a 15-year-old female runaway from the Cape May Court House section of Middle Township. The runaway, Jessica Coyle, has been missing since Tuesday when she was last seen getting off a Middle Township School Bus at West Lena Street in Whitesboro. Jessica is a Hispanic female, 5’2”, 130 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes, with olive complexion. She was last seen wearing a blue polo shirt, black pants with a black belt and brown Uggs. Jessica is known to frequent the Whitesboro and Wildwood area. 
Anyone ...<< MORE >>

WILDWOOD— Five juveniles and one adult were arrested as the result of an investigation into a string of recent burglaries and criminal mischief in the first ward of the city. It is believed that the juveniles were connected to the recent fire that occurred at the Doris Vernon Apartments on Jan. 4.
On Tuesday, Jan. 6, interviews were conducted by members of the Wildwood Police Department detective division and investigators from the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office with several of the suspects. Each of the five juveniles were arrested and charged with juvenile complaints for arson, failure to report a ...<< MORE >>

As the first order of business on the agenda for Lower Township Council Jan. 5, after Mike Beck is sworn in as mayor and Kevin Lare as the new council member at large, council is set to vote on naming Anthony Monzo the township solicitor.
Monzo had served as township solicitor for 10 years when he was replaced by Paul Baldini in 2007.
Beck is set to return to township government as an independent after a strong win in a three-way race for the mayor’s seat in November, joined by his running mate Lare. The Monday swearing in will mean ...<< MORE >>

A security guard at the Sea Pointe in the Diamond Beach section of Lower Township discovered two apparent burglars with a flat panel television and two bottles of liquor, Lower Township police reported Dec. 30.
Police say officers responded to the property on Sea Pointe Boulevard after a call came in from a security firm. Security guard Kenneth Alloway investigated a noise when he saw two teenage men carrying the television. When he confronted the two, a struggle began, he told police, with one detained and another fleeing the area.
The suspect he detained was identified as Christopher Stone, 19, of ...<< MORE >>

Lower Township police say a Villas woman attacked her husband with a hammer on Dec. 29. He was airlifted to the Cooper Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition, while she faces charges of aggravated assault.
According to police, a call came in about a domestic violence incident in the 300 block of Tampa Avenue in Villas.
When Ptl. Patrick Green arrived on scene, he was met by a man who was bleeding profusely, and said that his wife had hit him in the head with a hammer, according to a report from police.
Laurie Tester, 36, was ...<< MORE >>

TRENTON— State Attorney General Anne Milgram intends to appeal the Nov. 19 Avalon v. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ruling by the state Appellate Division. Lee Moore, a press officer for the Office of the Attorney General, confirmed on Thursday, Dec. 18 that there is a petition for certification filed with the New Jersey Supreme Court indicating that intent. In the recent ruling, the appellate court sided with the borough of Avalon and invalidated the DEP's public access requirements under the Shore Protection Program. The borough of Avalon first challenged the rules in the Superior Court in November 2007, citing that they were vague and easily misinterpreted. Avalon received support from other government entities with its lawsuit against the NJDEP. The borough of Stone Harbor, Avalon’s seven-mile island neighbor, andCape May County, were present as friends of the court during the September arguments. The Attorney General’s office is not commenting on the grounds for the appeal at the time. “It is our hope that the Supreme Court will grant our petition,” Moore said.<< MORE >>

NORTH CAPE MAY – No one was hurt in a three-hour standoff Tuesday afternoon, which started when a man threatened to “blow his head off,” according to police.
Police received a 911 call from a relative of the man at about noon Dec. 16, who said the man threatened to harm himself with a firearm in a home in the 300 block of Beach Drive, along the Delaware Bay. The call originally came in to Cape May police, and was patched through to Lower Township.
Police made contact with the man, whose name is being withheld by The Gazette, who ...<< MORE >>