Here's the stories you'll be talking about on the New Jersey 101.5 Morning Show on Friday:

⬛ Restaurant hires sex offenders? Owner defends amid local outrage

🔴 Keansburg residents outraged after discovering convicted sex offenders working at popular Jersey Shore restaurant.
🔴 Rumors in Keansburg include misinformation about the owner and teen nights
🔴 An active investigation connected to the restaurant may be underway

KEANSBURG — A high-end restaurant’s liquor license is under state investigation after online community groups recently revealed that the owner’s husband and two employees are all sex offenders.

The Beach Gallery opened last year as a proud woman-owned business in this Bayshore community, offering a rooftop bar with drag brunches and karaoke nights. Now, its Instagram page and website are dark and the location is listed as temporarily closed on Google after a firestorm of online comments denouncing the restaurant’s ties to no less than three men with sordid histories.

Not all of the comments on Facebook are true or accurate, said Janna Epstein-Jerinsky, who told New Jersey 101.5 that she is the sole owner of The Beach Gallery. Her husband, who was in fact convicted of sex crimes almost 15 years ago, is not involved in the business, she says.

Epstein-Jerinsky is also pushing back against the online mob. She defended the hiring of ex-cons as both a matter of law and a desire to give people second chances.

"I believe deeply that if someone has paid their debt to society, they deserve the opportunity to move on and build a new, productive life. The Beach Gallery was designed to be an example of a place that grants that chance, and I view this commitment to opportunity as a source of pride," she said Thursday.

Yet it appears the dream is done; on Thursday evening, a new post on The Beach Gallery website says the restaurant is closing permanently.

⬛ Grieving families call teen Jeep murder suspect ‘coward’

🚨Two Cranford teens, best friends, were struck and killed while riding an e-bike
🚨 A 17-year-old Garwood boy is charged with two counts of first-degree murder
🚨 Families call him a “coward” and claim police ignored prior harassment

CRANFORD — The families of the two teens killed by a Jeep on Monday afternoon called the 17-year-old murder suspect a deranged "coward" who knew exactly what he was doing.

The juvenile from Garwood was charged Wednesday with two counts of first-degree murder. Prosecutors say he rammed his Jeep into an e-bike with the two best friends on Burnside Avenue in Cranford.

Loved ones have identified the victims as Isabella Salas and Maria Niotis

Neighbors told ABC 7 Eyewitness News that one of the girls had a restraining order against the driver after he harassed her at school and that he often sat in his vehicle outside her home. Maria Niotis' uncle was blunt about it on his Facebook page, stating that the driver followed her home from school every day. He said police did nothing about it despite being told many times.

⬛ NJ county bans e-bikes and scooters in parks after death

⚠️ NJ lawmakers push for stricter e-bike laws after deadly crash in Scotch Plains
🚫 Union County bans e-bikes and scooters from parks effective immediately
💔 13-year-old boy’s tragic death sparks urgent safety reforms statewide

SCOTCH PLAINS — New Jersey lawmakers are calling for stricter regulations of electric bicycles following recent accidents involving such bikes, including a fatal one in Union County.

Last week, a 13-year-old boy was struck and killed by a landscaping truck in Scotch Plains while riding an e-bike.

At a press conference on Wednesday by State Senate President Nicholas Scutari and other local leaders on the steps of Scotch Plains Town Hall, Union County Commissioner Kimberly Palmieri-Mouded announced that Union County will take immediate action to protect residents from the dangers posed by e-bikes and scooters.

Effective immediately, motorized vehicles, including e-bikes and scooters, are prohibited in all Union County parks, according to an executive order that was issued.

⬛ NJ man lived off dead parent for 17 years

💰 Mercer County man admits to stealing $256K in VA benefits over 17 years
💰 The man continued cashing checks after his mother died in 2008
💰 Faces up to 10 years in prison; sentencing set for January 2026

A Mercer County man has admitted to cheating the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs out of more than $256,000 in benefits for years, Acting U.S. Attorney and Special Attorney Alina Habba announced.

The man, Mark Stratton, 67, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty on Sept. 25 before U.S. District Judge Robert Kirsch in Trenton federal court.

According to documents filed in the case, the VA provided disability benefits to Stratton’s father, which passed to Stratton’s mother after his father died.

Those benefits were deposited directly into a joint bank account held by Stratton and his mother. When she died in 2008, the benefits were supposed to stop.

⬛ Shore firefighter accused of stealing $17K from fire company

💲Jersey Shore fire company treasurer accused of stealing $17K for personal use
💲Prosecutors say the firefighters altered records to hide withdrawals and purchases
💲Once hailed a hero for a 2021 rescue, he now faces theft charges

HAMILTON (Atlantic) — The treasurer for a Jersey Shore fire company has been charged after admitting to using the department's funds for several thousand dollars' worth of personal purchases.

Matthew C. Robison Jr., 28, from the Mays Landing section of Hamilton, was assigned the position for Reliance Hose Co. 1, also known as the Mays Landing Fire Department, in January 2024. He had full access to the bank department accounts, Atlantic County Prosecutor William Reynolds said.

Police advised the department's executive board of the spending in August. Atlantic County investigators found that Robison had transferred and withdrew approximately $17,000 by altering purchase descriptions and deleting debit lines in QuickBooks before submitting the reconciliation reports for tax purposes.

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