Wednesday, 24 February 2021
www.TheObserver.com
Vol. CXXXIII, No. 42
ON THE INSIDE Belleville & Kearny schools each score two new electric school buses from state grant. BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD • EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY
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JABLONSKI TO LEAD HUDSON VICINAGE
By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com
T
he Hudson County judge whose rulings were instrumental in keeping the Keegan Landfill closed during a protracted battle between the Town of Kearny and the NJSEA will become the head of the Hudson County Courts in six weeks. Chief Justice Stuart Rabner announced that Superior Court Judge Jeffrey R. Jablonski, of Kearny, will lead the Hudson Vicinage, effective April 1, 2021, succeeding Judge Peter F. Bariso Jr., who is retiring after 16 years on the bench, the last nine as assignment judge. “Judge Jablonski is a wise and thoughtful jurist who is poised to continue the culture
Photo by Barbara B. Goldberg
Judge Jeffrey R. Jablonski, right, is seen swearing in Kearny Second Ward Councilman Peter Santana. Jablonski has been appointed Assignment Judge for the Hudson Vicinage by the state’s Chief Justice, Stuart Rabner.
of excellence in the Hudson Vicinage fostered under Judge Bariso’s leadership. I
Hudson CO charged with 2 counts of murder: ECPO By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com A Hudson County Corrections Officer has been charged in connection with a double homicide that took place in Newark Feb. 16, 2021, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II and Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose announced Feb. 17.
The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office’s Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force, which includes detectives from the Newark Police Department, continue to investigate a double homicide that occurred shortly after 9 p.m., where on Tuesday, Feb. 16, a woman suffering from an apparent gunshot wound was found at See HCCO, Page 19
am confident that Hudson County, and the judiciary as a whole, will be well served un-
der his stewardship,” Rabner said. Jablonski has served as
presiding judge of the chancery division in the Hudson Vicinage since 2018. He was appointed to the bench on March 5, 2013, by Gov. Chris Christie, serving first in the civil division, where he was supervising judge of the special civil part, before being selected as the complex litigation judge. He was reappointed by Gov. Phil Murphy and received tenure on the bench on Feb. 13, 2020. Prior to his judicial career, Judge Jablonski was in private practice from 1997 to 2013, focusing on family law, real estate, civil litigation, as well as criminal trial and appellate defense. He worked for the Office of the Public Defender from See JUDGE, Page 19
Celebrating 150 years of Belleville’s Chinese heritage
Belleville Historical Society President Michael Perrone adjusts the scales on a 35-foot dragon on loan from the Asian-American Dragon Dance Association of Pequannock. Dragons, normally carried by 10 people in a parade, are part of the Chinese New Year exhibit at the Belleville Public Library which is commemorating the 150th anniversary of the first Chinese New Year celebrated in Belleville in 1871.
COMING SOON! KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR OUR NEXT PROMOTION!