MORRIS COUNTY — A twenty-seven-year-old Denville man was arrested after his vehicle overturned in the front yard of a home on Old Boonton Road, according to the Denville Police Department.
Officers from the Denville Police Department responded to the area of Old Boonton Road on Friday, September 11, at approximately 10:42 p.m. for a reported motor vehicle crash.
Upon arrival, officers found a vehicle that had overturned in the front yard of a house on Old Boonton Road. The driver, later identified as Jonathon Monaco, was located outside of the vehicle.
During the course of the investigation, officers observed signs indicating that Monaco had been operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. He was subsequently arrested and charged with the following:
Driving While Intoxicated (N.J.S.A. 39:4-50)
Failure to Maintain Lane (N.J.S.A. 39:4-88)
Careless Driving (N.J.S.A. 39:4-97)
Reckless Driving (N.J.S.A. 39:4-96)
Editor’s Note: The charges outlined in this publication are merely accusations, and the defendant and/or defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
I write as Chairman of the America First Republicans of New Jersey, and as someone who got his start in Republican politics with the Morris County Young Republicans. In 2024 I was chosen by the Trump campaign as a statewide New Jersey Delegate to the Republican National Convention. I write because what is happening to the Morris County Republican Committee is not a local problem. It is a statewide problem, and Republicans across New Jersey should be paying attention to it.
Morris County was for decades among the most dependable Republican county in this state. It is not anymore. In 2025 the party lost ground in towns Republicans had held for a generation, including Mine Hill, Wharton, Rockaway Township and Boonton, and lost legislative ground alongside it. Those are not national headwinds. That is a county organization failing at the only job it has.
The public filings show why. As of the Q2 2026 ELEC reports, the Morris County Republican Committee held $9,852 in cash on hand. The Morris County Democratic Committee held $88,971. In the county Republicans are supposed to own, our own party is outgunned nearly nine to one.
The committee has also been borrowing from its own officers to keep the doors open. Filings show $9,500 repaid to Chairwoman Laura Ali for a loan she made to the organization she leads, and $7,500 owed to the party’s general counsel to cover rent on the county office. An organization that cannot raise the money to pay its own rent does not have a fundraising problem. It has a leadership problem.
And while the committee has been short of cash, party money has gone to a media outlet the chairwoman herself owns. Under no circumstance should a county chairman be signing checks from the party treasury to her own business while asking volunteers to give their time for nothing.
None of this is rumor and none of it is opinion. Every figure comes from ELEC filings and Morris County Clerk results that anyone can look up. A group of Morris County Republicans has put it all in one place, with the source documents shown alongside the numbers, at savemcrc.com. I would ask every Republican in Morris County to spend ten minutes there and draw their own conclusions.
Here is mine. Laura Ali should resign as Chairwoman of the Morris County Republican Committee. She is mentally unfit for the role and only exists to serve as a puppet for the corrupt interests that ultimately serve New Jersey Democrats.
Her entire record has been nothing but failure after failure. There is quite literally nothing positive that can be referenced regarding her performance as Chairwoman. She has had years to build an organization that can raise money and win elections, and the filings and the ballots both say she has not done it. Every month she stays is another month Morris County Republicans spend outraised, outorganized, and asked to pretend otherwise. Resigning would be the one decision available to her that puts this party ahead of herself.
And if she will not step aside, the committee members who knock the doors and staff the polls should be prepared to replace her at the first opportunity they have. This organization belongs to them. It is long past time they acted like it. We will never save New Jersey unless we save Morris County. The entire state is watching what comes next.
Yours truly,
Mike Crispi Chairman, America First Republicans of New Jersey Former Board Member, Morris County Young Republicans 2024 RNC Delegate for President Donald Trump
Todd Smith of Todd Smith Consulting, who produces the Royce Report TV program.
PARSIPPANY — A workshop aimed at helping nonprofit organizations strengthen their operations, Nonprofit Power Day, will be held Thursday, October 8, at the Parsippany Police Athletic League.
The event, subtitled “Practical Strategies for Growth,” will focus on funding, leadership, cybersecurity and resilience. It will begin at 12:00 p.m. at the Police Athletic League, 33 Baldwin Road, and lunch will be provided.
Attendees will learn how to find and pursue grant funding, build a stronger and more sustainable organization, and protect their mission from cyber threats.
The event will feature Bob Michie of MetroMSP, a cybersecurity firm; Dennis Miller of Dennis C. Miller; and Todd Smith of Todd Smith Consulting, who produces the Royce Report TV program.
A special presentation will be given by the Ion Bank Foundation, which has awarded more than $14 million to community organizations since 1998.
Copyright 2026 Zoomus Marketing, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission from the publisher.
Overall view of the Morris County 9/11 Memorial during the ceremony as keynote speaker Dennis Letts, a retired U.S. Secret Service agent who led evacuation efforts at Ground Zero, talks about his experience that day. Photo by Karen Mancinelli
PARSIPPANY — Twenty-five years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the families of victims joined first responders, public officials and neighbors on Sunday evening at the Morris County 9/11 Memorial in Parsippany-Troy Hills to remember the 64 county residents killed and reflect on the courage and compassion Americans displayed during one of the darkest days in the nation’s history.
“A quarter of a century has passed, but the pain of that day does not simply vanish. It lives quietly in the background of our lives,” said Commissioner Director Stephen H. Shaw, as he delivered a welcome address. “That is why we are here. It is our responsibility — our solemn duty — to ensure the next generation understands what happened, who was lost, and how Americans responded.”
Justin Musella, Parsippany resident Dennis Letts, a Secret Service Medal of Valor recipient, share his firsthand experience as the keynote speaker who was at the World Trade Center that day, and Joe Hathaway
The keynote was delivered by Dennis Letts, a retired United States Secret Service executive and Tunnel to Towers Foundation ambassador who was working at the World Trade Center when the attacks began. Letts helped evacuate thousands from the towers, later assisted Fire Department of New York (FDNY) paramedics at 7 World Trade Center and helped evacuate civilians from Lower Manhattan aboard a New York Waterway ferry after the towers collapsed. For his actions, he received the United States Secret Service Medal of Valor.
While Letts described the destruction and loss of life he witnessed, including the death of a Secret Service colleague, he said foremost in his memory is the way people responded to one another.
Director Stephen Shaw welcomes attendees to Morris County’s 25th Annual 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony. Photo by Karen Mancinelli
“In the midst of unimaginable chaos, I was witnessing extraordinary humanity,” Letts said, describing the thousands of people making their way down the World Trade Center stairwells.
“September 11 revealed the very worst of humanity. But it also revealed something even greater. The extraordinary capacity of ordinary people to do extraordinary things … The image of people coming down those stairs has stayed with me ever since,” Letts added. “They were frightened. Many were injured. Yet almost every person was helping someone else.”
Letts said that spirit extended beyond first responders to ordinary people.
Retired Morris County Fire Marshal James Davidson strikes a bell after the name is read of each Morris County resident who died on September 11, 2001. The bronze plaque of the poem, “A Day Like No Other” by Mark Viglione, is behind him. Photo by Karen Mancinelli
“People simply saw a need and they acted. People like the first responders here tonight. In the midst of unimaginable tragedy, I witnessed extraordinary goodness,” said Letts. “This is the America I remember from September 11th.”
He also recalled the unity that followed the attacks, when Americans set aside many of the divisions that had separated them and came together to help one another. That spirit of service, he said, has always been one of America’s greatest strengths.
“When everything else has been stripped away, what remains is character, courage, compassion and service to others,” said Letts. “Those were the qualities that carried America through one of the darkest days in its history.”
During the ceremony, Commissioner Tayfun Selen explained that the county unveiled a bronze plaque addition to the county’s 9/11 Memorial bearing a poem written by Mark Viglione about his uncle, FDNY Firefighter Thomas Sabella. He was a member of Ladder Company 13 and was killed while responding to the attacks. Sabella’s sister, Loretta Viglione, has participated in the county’s remembrance ceremonies for many years and read the poem during Sunday’s ceremony.
Members of the audience, some too young to remember that day, hold candles as they listen to the names of the Morris County residents who died. Photo by Karen Mancinelli
Commissioner Christine Myers connected the evening’s candle-lighting ceremony to a moving performance of “Danny Boy” by musicians Darren O’Neill, Patricia Lazzara and Merynda Adams. Myers noted that the traditional Irish ballad had been the subject of a public dispute when it was banned from a religious funeral in Rhode Island just two months before the attacks.
But the ballad took on a different meaning after September 11.
“It is a kerfuffle that disappeared in the smoke of the Twin Towers, the carnage at the Pentagon and wreckage in a Pennsylvania field — as did so many other issues that had been dividing our nation,” Myers said. “In the face of the attacks, we Americans came together to mourn our dead, to deliver justice and to promise that we will never forget.”
As candles were lit, Commissioners Doug Cabana and Tom Mastrangelo read the names of the 64 Morris County residents who died on September 11. Retired Morris County Fire Marshal James Davidson struck a bell following each name.
The ceremony began with a procession led by State Senator Anthony M. Bucco and Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon up Hanover Avenue, accompanied by local police, fire and emergency medical personnel and the United States Naval Cadet Sea Corps of Picatinny Arsenal. United States Representatives Tom Kean Jr. and Analilia Mejia carried bouquets of red, white and blue flowers which they placed at the memorial.
The Police Pipes and Drums of Morris County played as Morris Township Police Chief Robert Shearer handed a folded American flag to Letts for the presentation of colors. Sheriff Gannon then led the Pledge of Allegiance.
The ceremony also included an invocation by the Reverend Herman Scott of Calvary Baptist Church; a benediction by Rabbi Moshe Rudin of Adath Shalom; musical tributes by the Morris Choral Society and O’Neill, Lazzara and Adams; a 21-gun salute by the Morris County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard; and “Taps” by Larry Schillings, New Jersey state director of Bugles Across America.
Deputy Director John Krickus closed the ceremony by connecting remembrance with the county’s responsibility to prepare for future emergencies.
“The role of county government is critical during a crisis. While we cannot predict the future, we are as prepared, trained and equipped as any suburban county in the nation for an emergency response,” Krickus said. “I can’t think of a better way to honor those we lost, and those first responders we lost on 9/11, then to ensure the first responders in our county today have the training, equipment and support they need so when they go on call they come home to their families.”
As a generation without any memory of September 11 comes of age, Letts urged those young people to take responsibility for preserving the history and lessons of that day.
“Learn it. Remember it. Tell it. And carry its lessons forward,” Letts said.
The Morris County 9/11 Memorial was created in the aftermath of the attacks through the work of county officials, employees, volunteers and victims’ families and was dedicated in September 2003. It incorporates three pieces of steel recovered from the World Trade Center, remnants of Flight 93 and soil from the Pentagon. The names of all those killed on September 11 are engraved in the red paving stones surrounding the memorial, while the names of the 64 Morris County victims are identified on individual brass plates along the inner wall.
The memorial’s water, bridges, concrete blocks and flowers carry additional meanings of healing, connection, family, hope and peace. The site has hosted Morris County’s annual remembrance ceremony every year since its dedication, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 64 Morris County residents lost on September 11, 2001, were Donald Leroy Adams, Margaret L. Benson, John Paul Bocchi, Martin Boryczewski, Dennis Buckley, Cecile M. Caguicla, Liam Callahan, David G. Carlone, James Leslie Crawford Jr., Joseph DeLuca, Captain Robert Edward Dolan, Antoinette Duger, Gregg J. Froehner, Alayne F. Gentul, Debra Lynn Fischer Gibbon, Paul Stuart Gilbey, Gayle R. Greene, Eileen Marsha Greenstein, Gary Robert Haag, Timothy Robert Hughes, Anthony P. Infante Jr., Jason Kyle Jacobs, Joon Koo Kang, Lucille King, Angela R. Kyte, Robin Blair Larkey, Thomas V. Linehan Jr., Sean Patrick Lynch, Simon Maddison, Alfred Russell Maler, Christian Hartwell Maltby, Hilda Marcin, William J. Martin Jr., Philip W. Mastrandrea Jr., William A. Mathesen, Robert D. Mattson, Patrick J. McGuire, Martin Paul Michelstein, Seth Allan Morris, Peter C. Moutos, Alexander Napier Jr., Michael O’Brien, Michael John Pescherine, Thomas H. Polhemus, David Alan James Rathkey, Richard C. Rescorla, Antonio Augusto Tome Rocha, James Romito, Steven Harris Russin, Thomas Sabella (brother of Parsippany resident Loretta Viglione), Maria Theresa Santillan, Matthew Carmen Sellitto, Karen Lynn Seymour-Dietrich, Barbara A. Shaw, Francis Joseph Skidmore Jr., Michael C. Sorresse, Thomas S. Strada, Edward W. Straub, Kenneth J. Swenson, Dennis Gerard Taormina, William R. Tieste, Peter Guyder Wallace, Matthew David Yarnell, Mark Zangrilli, and Kenneth Albert Zelman.
MORRIS COUNTY — District 15Fifteen will host a series of Sunday artisan markets this fall, featuring local makers, shopping, food and live music at the luxury community.
Brilliant Conventions is organizing four markets, held Sundays, September 20, October 4, October 11 and October 18, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at District 15Fifteen, 1515 Route 10 East in Parsippany.
The markets are free to attend, with free parking available, and are pet friendly.
Organizers said spaces are still available for local makers and food vendors interested in participating. Those interested can email [email protected] or visit linktr.ee/brilliantconventions for more information.
Photo for illustration purposes only. The actual incident may not reflect the photo.
FAIRFIELD — A 24-year-old Morristown woman was arrested on charges of hindering apprehension after police said she gave officers a false name during a traffic stop on Route 46 West.
The Fairfield Police Department said Officer Matthew Iatesta was patrolling Route 46 West near Plymouth Street at approximately 10:22 p.m. Sunday, September 13, when he observed a gray Honda Civic traveling with an inoperable rear brake light and conducted a motor vehicle stop.
After stopping the vehicle, Officer Iatesta approached the driver, later identified as Candie House, 24, of Morristown. Police said House told the officer she did not have her driver’s license with her and provided a name for him to look up in an attempt to confirm her identity.
Further investigation revealed House did not possess a valid driver’s license and had allegedly provided officers with a false name in an attempt to hinder their efforts to determine her true identity, police said. She was subsequently placed under arrest.
House was issued the following summonses:
Driving Without a License (N.J.S.A. 39:3-10)
Maintenance of Lamps (N.J.S.A. 39:3-66)
Hindering Apprehension (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-3)
The hindering charge was placed on a summons with a mandatory court date at Fairfield Municipal Court on November 5.
The case was handled by Corporal David Lagan, the department’s public information officer, under the authorization of Chief Anthony Manna.
Editor’s Note: The charges outlined in this publication are merely accusations, and the defendant and/or defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Destinn McKnight, 31, of East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP — A man formerly of Parsippany-Troy Hills has been sentenced to 16 years in New Jersey State Prison for his role in a fatal two-vehicle crash on Route 80, according to Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll and Acting Chief of Detectives Mark Castellano.
The Honorable Ralph E. Amirata, J.S.C. handed down the sentence on Friday, September 11, for Victor Peters, 46. The sentence is subject to the No Early Release Act, meaning Peters must serve 85 percent of the term before becoming eligible for parole.
A jury convicted Peters on Wednesday, July 22, following a five-day trial, finding him guilty of first-degree Aggravated Manslaughter (N.J.S.A. 2C:11-4) and second-degree Vehicular Homicide (N.J.S.A. 2C:11-5).
The crash occurred at approximately 2:33 a.m. on Sunday, February 2, when law enforcement responded to a two-vehicle collision on Route 80 West in Rockaway Township. Investigators determined that a Mercedes SUV driven by Peters had been traveling east in the westbound lanes and struck a 2024 Ford pickup truck traveling west.
The driver of the pickup truck, Destinn McKnight, 31, of East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, died at the scene. McKnight was the sole occupant of the vehicle.
Peters, the sole occupant of the Mercedes, sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Morristown Medical Center for treatment. He exhibited signs of impairment at the scene, which led to the charges against him.
Prosecutor Carroll credited the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the New Jersey State Police for their work on the investigation. Assistant Prosecutor Alyssa DiSturco and Assistant Prosecutor Alexander Bennett tried the case in court.
MORRIS COUNTY — Joe Hathaway, the Republican nominee for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, will host a series of four town halls this fall to discuss the issues facing district families, highlight what his campaign describes as Democratic Congresswoman Analilia Mejia’s socialist positions and record in Congress, present his own platform for working New Jersey families, and answer questions directly from the community.
The town halls are scheduled as follows:
Wednesday, September 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Madison Community House, 25 Cook Avenue, Madison
Tuesday, September 29, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Randolph Senior Center, 36 Calais Road, Randolph
Tuesday, October 6, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Roseland VFW, 52 Eisenhower Parkway, Roseland
Wednesday, October 21, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Rockaway Township Senior Center, 19 Mount Hope Road, Rockaway Township
PARSIPPANY — Cheshire Home, a Florham Park-based nonprofit that provides residential rehabilitation for young adults with spinal cord injuries and other neurological conditions, will host a Bingo Night fundraiser on Thursday, November 12, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Parsippany Police Athletic League, 33 Baldwin Road.
A happy hour will run beforehand from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., with guests welcome to bring their own beverages.
Tickets cost $40 and include ten games of bingo, with four boards per game. The evening will also feature prizes and a 50/50 cash raffle.
Proceeds from the event will support the programs and services Cheshire Home offers to residents with spinal cord injuries as they continue their journey toward independence.
Registration is available online at www.cheshirehome.org/bingo.
Dr. Joseph Murphy of Suburban Chiropractic Center in Chatham will present “How to Prevent Back Pain in Your Daily Work, Leisure and Life” on Wednesday, October 28, at the Library of the Chathams.
CHATHAM — The Kiwanis Club of the Chathams and Madison will present a three-part Community Talks series at the Library of the Chathams this fall and winter, featuring free presentations on local history, health and public policy.
All three programs will be held at the library, 214 Main Street, beginning at 6:30 p.m., and will include audience questions, discussion and refreshments. The talks are free and open to the public, though registration is requested.
The series begins Wednesday, September 30, with “The History of the Revolutionary War in Chatham and Madison,” presented by Scott Spelker, Madison’s town historian and a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty. The talk will cover local encampments, military movements, notable residents and the strategic importance of the area during the American Revolution, when Madison was known as Bottle Hill. Registration is requested by Monday, September 28.
The second program, “How to Prevent Back Pain in Your Daily Work, Leisure and Life,” will be held Wednesday, October 28, and presented by Dr. Joseph Murphy of Suburban Chiropractic Center in Chatham. Murphy will offer practical tips to help prevent back injury and pain during sports, leisure activities, daily work and household chores. Registration is requested by Monday, October 26.
The final talk, “Affordable Housing in New Jersey,” will be held Wednesday, December 9, and presented by Justin Strickland, an Army combat veteran, former Pentagon federal official and Chatham Borough Councilman. The presentation will address questions about affordable housing in New Jersey.
Residents may attend one, two or all three programs. Late registrations will be accepted as space permits. Registration is available at tinyurl.com/KiwanisCommunityTalks, or by emailing [email protected] with questions.
