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

⬛ Paul Caneiro murder trial covers lavish spending on lady friend

☎️ Jurors heard a chilling 911 call describing the discovery of a body amid a Colts Neck house fire
💼 A former companion testified about lavish trips, money, guns, and Paul Caneiro’s spending
🔥 Surveillance footage and timelines tied vehicle movements to both NJ crime scenes

FREEHOLD BOROUGH — After a long weekend, the Paul Caneiro quadruple murder trial launched into its second week on Tuesday, as jurors quickly heard a grim 911 call from Colts Neck.

They also heard testimony from the lady friend whom Paul Caneiro paid to vacation with extensively, both internationally and domestically.

Caneiro is charged with murder in the gruesome 2018 slayings of his brother Keith Caneiro and Keith's 45-year-old wife, Jennifer, and two children, 11-year-old Jesse and 8-year-old Sophia, at their Colts Neck home. Keith was shot five times, while his wife was shot in the head and stabbed in the torso. The children were left to die in their burning home with knife wounds.

Investigators also accused Caneiro of setting his own Ocean Township home on fire with his own family still inside. They survived.

Prosecutors said Caneiro, his brother's business partner, was motivated by mounting financial woes. Caneiro has maintained his innocence.

Shared trips to Colombia, Las Vegas, North Carolina, Boston and New York were all picked up by Paul Caneiro, Yisel Restrepo testified through Spanish interpreters.

Restrepo said she first met the married defendant at a restaurant in Asbury Park, and last shared a meal with him for her daughter’s birthday just “two or three” days before Nov. 20, 2018.

Paul Caneiro, of Ocean Township, also paid for Restrepo’s Audi SUV lease, she said in Monmouth County Superior Court.

⬛ Activists rage as Murphy takes action on key immigration bills

🔴 Murphy signs Safe Communities Act shielding immigrants from ICE arrests.
🔴 Immigrant advocates furious after Murphy pocket-vetoes two key bills.
🔴 Republicans cheer vetoes, calling them proof that opposition stopped what they say were dangerous laws.

TRENTON — Among his last actions as governor, Phil Murphy signed a new law to protect unauthorized immigrants and then upset immigrant rights organizations.

On Tuesday, the outgoing Democrat signed into law the Safe Communities Act.

It prevents federal immigration authorities, namely U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, from making arrests at sensitive locations. Those places include schools, hospitals, shelters, houses of worship, and courthouses.

“Today, we reaffirm our longstanding commitment to ensuring the people of New Jersey – particularly our immigrant families – are safe, secure, and supported in navigating their daily lives easily and confidently," Murphy said.

However, Murphy did not take action on two other bills championed by activists. He said the bills went too far, legally, and would have been challenged in the courts. His pocket veto means lawmakers will have to start over the processes on those pieces of legislation if they want Gov. Mikie Sherrill to sign them into law.

The first bill (A6310) would have codified the state's Immigrant Trust Directive. Created in 2018 by former New Jersey Attorney General Grubir Grewal, it limits the assistance that local and state police can give to ICE.

The other bill, called the Privacy Protection Act (A6309), would prevent the collection of certain personal information, such as immigration status, place of birth, and Social Security number.

⬛ New Jersey plastic utensil law explained: What to know

☑️ Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law limiting single-use utensils unless requested
☑️ Lawmakers slashed proposed fines after backlash from Republicans
☑️ One diner owner warns the rule will raise costs and frustrate customers

Gov. Phil Murphy is done — but restaurants better be careful about sticking a plastic fork in him.

In the final hours of his term, Gov. Phil Murphy signed one of the most controversial bills on his desk. The legislation prohibits restaurants, food trucks, hospitals, schools and arenas from providing single-use utensils or condiment packets unless requested by a customer. Online ordering sites and apps would have to default to "no utensils or condiments."

Murphy signed the bill without comment.

The bill passed the state Senate with the support of state Sen. Declan O'Scanlan, R-Monmouth, who initially had objected to proposed fines of $1,000 to $2,500. O'Scanlan said the bill's sponsors reduced the fines.

"Would I rather have no bill? Probably. They reduced the fines by 90%, so that's pretty dramatic," O'Scanlon said. "If they're going to reduce the price by 90%, I have to be prepared to acknowledge that with some level of support."

The first offense now gets only a warning, the second offense is $100, and subsequent offenses are $250 each.

Peter Gromitsaris, owner of the Ewing Diner, bluntly calls it "another stupid law" that comes with more costs he will have to pass on to his customers.

⬛ Air freshener, leaves expose GWB toll cheats

💲3 traffic stops on the GWB found drivers with nearly $46K in unpaid tolls
💲Cashless tolling has sparked creative plate obstruction schemes
💲Authorities recovered $18M in evaded tolls in 2024

Three seemingly uneventful traffic stops on the George Washington Bridge for obstructed license plates led to the discovery of drivers with nearly $46,000 in unpaid tolls and fees.

The stops are significant in that all Port Authority crossings have gone cashless making it relatively easy for the thousands of users to potentially skip the toll and not be noticed. The Port Authority says it has invested in "advanced technology to identify, track and intercept persistent toll violators. $18 million in evaded tolls was recovered in 2024 with 850 vehicles impounded and 90 arrested.

In the past, toll violators have gotten creative by flipping their license plates or covering them with shields that block detection. This time, two of the vehicles from New Jersey kept it simple by using leaves or, in the third case, packaging from an air freshener during their 659 combined trips across the GWB.

⬛ Sherrill uses emergency powers to halt rate hikes, push nuclear

⚡ Electric bills frozen
🏛️ Emergency powers invoked
🔌 Nuclear power back on table

NEWARK — Making good on a campaign promise to tackle rapidly rising utility costs on day one, New Jersey’s new governor declared a statewide emergency on electric bills and froze rate hikes on her first day in office.

During her inaugural address, Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed an executive order aimed at stopping looming increases in household power bills and another to expand energy production in New Jersey. The actions mark one of the most aggressive uses of emergency authority on utility pricing in state history.

"I’ve heard you, New Jersey – we are facing an affordability crisis. You want costs to come down," Sherrill said in a message posted to her Facebook page during her inauguration. "This is just the beginning."

The first executive order offsets pending electric rate hikes and uses existing state funds to offset increases scheduled to hit consumers in June. The order directs the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to pause or modify utility actions that could further raise bills and to review utility business models to ensure they are focused on lowering costs for ratepayers.

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

The New Jersey 101.5 Morning Show airs from 6 - 10 a.m. on New Jersey 101.5.

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You can reach him at eric.scott@townsquaremedia.com

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