Murphy on drone frenzy: It will pass

Here are the top New Jersey news stories for Friday:

⬛ Prosecutor: NJ police sgt. had ghost guns, cocaine, meth in car

David Ringkamp (inset) is indicted on 22 charges (Middletown Police via Facebook, MiddletownNJ.org)

FREEHOLD – A Middletown police sergeant has been accused of committing crimes related to multiple forms of abusing his authority and possession of three illegal drugs, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced Thursday.

David Ringkamp, 43, was indicted by a Monmouth County grand jury on 22 charges, Santiago said.

⬛ School bus hits two cars, crashes into pharmacy

Wayne school bus hitting a building 12/19/24 (Wayne police)

WAYNE TOWNSHIP — A school bus hit two stopped cars and then plowed into a pharmacy Thursday morning.

Wayne police said the school district's bus was headed north on Black Oak Ridge Road (Route 202) and struck two vehicles in the left turn lane at the intersection with Pompton Plains Crossroad just before 7:30 a.m. The bus then turned hard to the left in a semi-circle, struck a traffic signal and went into the building housing Black Oak Pharmacy, according to police.

⬛ Big retailer plans 'going out of business' sales at all NJ stores

Big Lots South Plainfield (Google Maps)

Another large retailer in New Jersey has announced it will launch going out of business sales at all remaining stores.

In November, Big Lots received court approval for the sale of its assets and business operations to Nexus, an affiliate of Nexus Capital Management.

The sale was expected to close in early December — but on Thursday, Big Lots said that deal did not seem to be happening, after all.

⬛ Popular NJ summer festival cancelled in 2025

NJ Festival of Ballooning (Craig Allen and Canva)

Hate to burst your balloon, but The New Jersey Lottery Festival of Ballooning will not happen in 2025, according to a message on the festival’s website. This marks the second year in a row the popular festival has been cancelled.

“Many issues still loom large over the industry, such as spiraling costs (including concert talent, an area where a small independent producer can no longer successfully complete), logistical challenges, not to mention, an increasingly unpredictable Mother Nature,” according to the website message.

It was also announced the Atlantic City Air Show would also not return in 2025.

⬛ FAA issues rules aimed at grounding drones in NJ

FAA/Townsquare Media illustration

As controversy continues to swirl around mysterious drone sightings around New Jersey, the Federal Aviation Administration has issued sweeping new rules in an apparent attempt to prevent drones from flying over dozens of New Jersey locations.

The restrictions impact all unmanned aircraft (drones) and are in effect immediately and will last until at least Jan. 17, but could be extended or expanded.

New Jersey’s funniest Santa Fail photos provided by NJ101.5 readers

Thank you to everyone who submitted their silly pics!

Merry Christmas!

Gallery Credit: Kylie Moore

Here's a taste of the NJ pizza joints Dave Portnoy has reviewed

Dave Portnoy, commonly known as El Presidente, is the founder of Barstool Sports. Somewhere along the way, he decided to start reviewing local pizzerias, and the concept took off. This isn't the entire list, but it's a small sample to get you started.

Gallery Credit: Joe Votruba

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