Casino smoking ban on hold — NJ Top News

Here are the top New Jersey news stories for Friday:

⬛ Another delay — Lawmakers can't advance Atlantic City smoking ban

TRENTON — Bus loads of casino workers trekked to the New Jersey Statehouse on Thursday to witness something they had been waiting to see for years: a legislative vote on a bill to completely ban smoking inside Atlantic City's gaming halls.

That vote never actually happened.

But those who made the trip did get to hear from the casino industry, which believes a 100% ban on smoking would significantly hurt the resort city.

⬛ Deadly outbreak: Fresh fruit recall expands in NJ

The Food and Drug Administration has expanded the recall of whole fresh cantaloupe as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report more people have fallen ill.

CDC officials say you should avoid eating cantaloupe chunks and fruit mixes with cantaloupes at restaurants and grocery stores if their source and brand is not known.

⬛ Rutgers loses big donors over antisemitism worries at NJ school

Two Rutgers University alumni have stopped generous donations to the school amid their concerns over how recent anti-Semitism has been handled on campuses.

Marvin and Eva Schlanger have contributed more than $130,000 to their undergraduate alma mater over the past 10 years, according to tax filings cited in a report by WHYY.

The nonprofit Eva and Marvin Schlanger Family Foundation is based in Florida, where the New Jersey natives now reside.

⬛ NJ healthcare companies still impacted by cyberattacks

Investigations continue into cyberattacks on networks for two separate New Jersey healthcare systems.

Pascack Valley Medical Center in Westwood and Mountainside Medical Center in Montclair were hit by a ransomware attack sometime during the Thanksgiving holiday period.

Capital Health Capital Health, with three hospitals in Hopewell and Trenton and offices around Mercer, Burlington and Bucks counties, acknowledged a network outage it believes to be caused by a cybersecurity attack on Tuesday.

⬛ NJ woman beaten over burrito, lawsuit says

A New Jersey woman says she was "beaten senseless" after complaining her burrito "tasted funny."

Leticia Rivera is suing Taco Bell, alleging she suffered severe and lasting injuries at the hands of three Taco Bell workers in Newark.

In a lawsuit filed earlier this month, Rivera says she went into a Taco Bell restaurant on Broad Street in Newark and ordered a burrito. When she bit into it, she says it "tasted funny."

⬛ Lots of free coffee opportunities at QuickChek in December

There’s nothing like doing holiday shopping all bundled up in a coat, scarf, gloves, and a hot cup of coffee in your hand. The only thing that could make it better would be a FREE cup of coffee, right?

QuickChek wants to help customers get into the holiday spirit by offering free coffee every Friday during the month of December.

During this promotion, QuickChek Rewards members can get a free self-serve coffee, any size, hot or iced, customized to their liking with various milk options like dairy, almond, and soy, and toppings like cocoa powder, cinnamon, or marshmallows.

Start your day with up-to-the-minute news, traffic and weather for the Garden State.

New Jersey's First News with Eric Scott is the longest running news program in New Jersey. Eric Scott began hosting the program in 1991.

It airs live on New Jersey 101.5 each weekday morning from 5:30 - 6 a.m.

New Jersey's First News with Eric Scott is the winner of the prestigious National Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Newscast.

Eric Scott is the senior political director and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at eric.scott@townsquaremedia.com

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.