The Jersey City Independent "

- King Sentencing Postponed: The sentencing of Jimmy King on corruption charges was postponed last week in the wake of a judge’s May ruling that said the Manzo brothers couldn’t be charged under the Hobbs Act, since they were not elected officials. King pleaded guilty last fall. Meanwhile, former deputy mayor and Healy campaign treasurer Leona Beldini is scheduled to be sentenced on corruption charges today in federal court.

- Will Liberty State Park Bus Service Resume? NJ Transit is working with Hudson County officials to restore weekend shuttle service at Liberty State Park; the line was cut last month as part of the transportation agency’s fare hike/service cut package.

- Homeless in JSQ: A homeless man who came to the City Council for help last week says he’s been told that he and dozens of others who sleep in the Journal Square PATH station will be banned from the premises starting next month.

- Heights Man Pleads Guilty: A 44-year-old Jersey City man who ran a high-price call girl service in the Heights pleaded guilty last week to laundering the more than $3 million per year he made pimping out prostitutes and sometimes having drugs delivered to the johns as well.

- Peregrine Falcon Suffers Fall: A young peregrine falcon is on the mend after apparently falling 41 stories on Thursday from where its nest is located on a building near Exchange Place.

- Suspected Groper Arrested: A 34-year-old man who has allegedly been grabbing and kissing kids at a Heights park was arrested after a 34-year-old dad tackled the suspect Saturday and held him until police arrived.

- Hudson Catholic Graduates First Co-ed Class: The 103 students who graduated from Hudson Catholic High School this weekend were part of the first co-ed graduating class in the school’s history.

- Singing Brian O’Reilly’s Praises: Calling the outgoing business administration a “silent champion,” Jersey City Redevelopment Agency executive director Bob Antonicello says in a letter to the Journal that the city’s residents should applaud O’Reilly’s “long and dedicated service to this great city.”

- New Police Dogs: Four Hudson County police dogs have graduated from the K-9 Academy Scent Patrol Class of 2010.

In Statewide News:

- Preparing for State Shutdown: Although everyone in Trenton has been saying they intend on passing a budget before the July 1 deadline, Gov. Christie has ordered his cabinet to begin planning how to shut down state government if the deadline isn’t hit.

- NJ Over-reliant on Property Taxes: An Asbury Park Press analysis of state and local government revenues from 2007 shows that New Jersey derived 42 cents of every tax dollar from local property taxes — $21.5 billion out of $51.4 billion in taxes. This number is higher than most other states.

- Christie Might Not Sign Homebuyer Tax Credit Bill: Gov. Christie says he is hesitant to sign legislation that would give out $100 million in tax credits for homebuyers. The bill waspassed by the legislature last week.

- Green Groups Against Oyster Bed Plan: Environmental groups say they fear the state’s edict issued last week to shut down experimental oyster beds in contaminated waters in several bays and tidal rivers will hurt efforts to restore long-polluted waters along the coast.

- Picking a Friendlier Crowd? Planning documents obtained by the Star-Ledger and interviews with participants show subtle efforts by the Christie administration to build a friendly audience for town hall meetings on his proposed property tax cap.

- New Bill Targets Special Interests: Legislation that would require special interest groups to publicly disclose information about their contributors and expenditures will be considered this week by an Assembly panel.

- Preparing to Deal with the Oil Spill: Monmouth County officials are preparing contingency plans in case oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico reaches the shores here, a migration that is more of a likelihood in the event of a tropical storm or hurricane.

- NJ & Madoff Money: New Jersey has so far refused to refund state income taxes paid by Bernie Madoff victims on investment income that turned out to be an illusion.

- Sheila Oliver, Profiled: The Assembly speaker talks to Gannett about where she and Christie agree and where they part company, making clear that it can’t be “my way or the highway” for the governor.

- ACLU-NJ: The civil liberties organization turns 50 this week.

- Shore Rentals See Uptick: Renters of shore vacation homes who were slow to sign leases at the beginning of the year have reportedly been more eager to book in recent weeks, driving demand ahead of last summer for the peak months of July and August.

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