How cold? Arctic air settles over New Jersey — NJ Top News

Here are the top New Jersey news stories for Tuesday:

⬛ Success: These animals are no longer endangered species in NJ

The new year is off to a good start for a couple of our feathered friends in New Jersey.

The Murphy administration has removed the bald eagle and osprey from New Jersey’s endangered species list, following more than 40 years of work to restore these iconic birds to the landscape, according to New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette.

⬛ NJ man gets prison for hidden bathroom camera, sharing videos

A 59-year-old Monmouth County man has been sentenced to prison for using a hidden camera to record female victims — some of them minors — in an Ocean County bathroom.

Michael Mattina, of Matawan, was sentenced to five years in prison for the distribution of child pornography.

He was also sentenced to a four-year term for invasion of privacy, to be served back-to-back.

Mattina pleaded guilty to both charges on July 22, 2024.

⬛ NJ woman mowing her lawn at night goes berserk, loses appeal

BURLINGTON TOWNSHIP — An appellate court has brushed off a New Jersey woman whose neighbor said she threatened to kill him during a bizarre racial tirade.

The decision handed down last month upholds Shakira A. Lasisi's conviction for disorderly conduct in November 2022.

The petty disorderly persons offense was a significant downgrade from the third-degree terroristic threats charge that Burlington Township police had originally filed against her a year before.

⬛ NJ could change how health insurance pays for tests, drugs

Brad Schnure believes the prognosis attached to his cancer diagnosis — instead of being terminal — would have been much brighter if insurance hadn't denied a relatively inexpensive scan about a year prior.

And he's perplexed by the fact that a family doctor from a third-party administrator denied him of an MRI that had been ordered by his neurologist, to see whether or not treatment was working.

"In effect, insurance companies are now middlemen in the doctor-patient relationship," Schnure said. "They're making important decisions about patient care, despite never having seen the patient."

⬛ Arctic air settles over New Jersey

We have a pause in the snow, for now, but very cold air has settled over New Jersey.

NJ 101.5 Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow warns the cold air and breezy conditions could make it dangerous to be outside.

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

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