8/19/2019 Daily Record front page, Wednesday, March 23, 2016.

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ADVICE............................................9A

CLASSIFIED......................................9B

COMICS..........................................11A

OBITU ARIES ...................................4A

OPINION .........................................8A

SPORTS ............................................4B

TV ...................................................10A

Best inbasketball

All Daily Record Boys Basketball Athlete,

Team of the Year. IN SPORTS, 4B

The Olive & The Stone opens in Chester. IN TABLE, 1B

Democrats in the New Jersey Assembly are con-sidering creating a tax on water to fund a capital pro-gram to replace aging water infrastructure, a source

of lead in drinking water.“We’re looking at potentially a funding source ... po-tentially even a surcharge on water that could be rein-vested back into the infrastructure,” AssemblySpeaker Vincent Prieto told reporters at the State-house Tuesday. “We have to look at that because NewJersey really does have an older housing stock and itis a problem.”

Prieto, flanked by New Jersey Senate PresidentStephen Sweeney, met with reporters to highlighttheir opposition to Gov. Chris Christie’s continued re-luctance to support a $10 million appropriation for along-neglected lead protection program.

While the state budget fight is centered on leadpaint in homes, the threat that lead ingestion repre-sents to New Jerseyans, especially growing children,has grabbed headlines once again after Newark Pub-lic Schools was forced to shut down its water foun-tains earlier this monthbecause of elevated lead read-ings throughout the district.

That story brought home the anxiety felt nation-wide from the lead-contamination crisis in Flint,Michigan’s water system.

An Asbury Park Press analysis of lead test resultspublished last week showed that the presence of leadis pervasive in New Jersey tap water, mostly due tothe age of the state’s housing stock and infrastructure.

“Something has to be addressed. you have watersystems in Newark that are over 100 years old,” Swee-ney said Tuesday. “Our urban areas are really trou-bled and the suburban areas aren’t keeping up either.”

The Democratic leaders called the press confer-ence to tout A -1378, which would restore $10 million to

 Water taxfor lead?N.J. Democratic leaders float idea 

to fund fight against lead in water 

RUSS ZIMMER @RUSSZIMMER

See LEAD, Page 2A

MORRISTOWN - A lawyer who is defending motor-ist Vanessa E. Brown against charges of recklesslykilling Ralph Politi Jr. in East Hanover by drivingdrunk rested his case Tuesday after calling a police of-ficer and an EMT who both testified that Brown did notact or appear intoxicated to them.

Brown, 35, of Parsippany, elected not to testify inher own defense. The jury had heard that she previ-ously was convicted of driving while intoxicated on theGarden State Parkway in Tinton Falls in 2009 and thatin connection with the Politi death, her blood-alcoholcontent was measured at .133 percent, above the 0.08percent at which a driver is considered legally intoxi-cated in New Jersey. The BAC was measured two and ahalf hours after her crash into Politi on M ay 5, 2012.

Closing trial arguments in the heavily-challengedcase are slated to start at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday before

Superior Court Judge Salem Vincent Ahto in Morris-town. The jury is composed of 11 women and two menand right before deliberations, one juror will be ran-domly selected to serve as an alternate.

Brown is charged with aggravated manslaughter, afirst-degree crime punishable upon conviction by up to30 years in prison, and with vehicular homicide, a sec-

ond-degree crime punishable by up to 10 years. Thechief difference between the two charges is the levelof recklessness allegedly shown by the defendant, whois accused of running into Politi, 49.

Defense lawyer Edward Bilinkas had, in particular,been critical of East Hanover police Sgt. John “Jack”Ambrose, who was the only law enforcement officerwho responded to the crash scene at 30 Ridgedale Ave.to say he smelled alcohol on Brown’s breath and thatshe was off-balance, slurred her speech and had blood-shot eyes. Ambrose acknowledged in his testimonythat he was a friend of the victim and personally toldthe Politi family in 2012 that Brown had been chargedwith Ralph Politi’s death.

Bilinkas called two witnesses briefly on Tuesday:Tamara Eick, a Florham Park Rescue Squad memberwho responded to the crash and East Hanover PoliceOfficer Michael Rohllf, the first officer to interactwith Brown at the scene.

Eick last week was a witness for Morris County As-

sistant Prosecutor John McNamara Jr., who elicitedfrom Eick that she smelled alcohol on Brown’s breathwhile riding with her in an ambulance to MorristownMedical Center. On Tuesday, Eick was a defense wit-ness and she said that Brown did not display any char-

Defense restsin crash trial

BOB KARP/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

After calling two witnesses, defense attorney Edward Bilinkas, standing beside Vanessa Brown, rested his case in MorrisCounty Superior Court.

 Vanessa Brown, accused of killing an East Hanover 

man while driving drunk, did not take the stand

PEGGY WRIGHT

@PEGGYWRIGHTDR

See DEFENSE, Page 2A

More than three dozen heroes will be honored nextmonth for their courageous and life-saving actions infires, accidents, and other emergencies over the pastyear.

The public safety professionals and volunteers in-clude police officers, firefighters and emergencymedical technicians, and all will be honored April 28by the 200 Club of Morris County. The ceremonyserves as an informal “year in review” for heroic acts

Dozens honoredby group forsaving lives inMorris County Police, firefighters and EMTs

recognized by the 200 Club

MICHAEL IZZO

@MIZZODR

COURTESY OF HANOVER TOWNSHIP POLICE DEPARTMENT

Hanover Township Police Department Patrolman RobertCarpenter was injured when his patrol car was rear-ended.

See DOZENS, Page 5A

Soldiers and police armed with rifles were amongthe first things Edith Salva saw Tuesday morning asshe arrived in New York Penn Station.

Militarized police officers and National Guardmembers – along with bomb-sniffing dogs – were post-ed at the area’s biggest terminals, stoically eyeingcommuters as they shuffled off to work, stopping theoccasional rider to search a backpack or duffel bag.

It was the result of a bombing halfway across theworld, where a Belgian train station and airport wereturned into a w ar zone after terrorists began a series ofbombings that left more than 30 dead and hundredswounded. The Islamic State group has taken responsi-

Following Belgium attacks, extrasecurity at N.J., N.Y. transit hubs

ASSOCIATED PRESS

A member of the New York National Guard patrols Penn

Station Tuesday in New York.See SECURITY, Page 2A

Police and National Guard patrol

commuter terminals, airports

MIKE DAVIS @BYMIKEDAVIS

ANDREW FORD @ANDREWFORDNEWS