We had a fun visit with his class, who asked questions and munched happily on pizza.

Kyle Dhyne’s nominating students, Isabella and Liam Pero, are now in the running for a $2000 scholarship Lite Rock will give to one of the students who nominates a deserving South Jersey teacher this school year.

For being selected as the Lite Rock Teacher of the Month, Mr. Dhyne wins a membership to Island Gym and Fitness.

Lite Rock Teacher of the Month nominations should only be about 100 words in length and are a great way of recognizing teaching excellence,  so consider entering in a nomination if you know of a teacher who is making a real difference in your child’s life.

You can hear audio from my visit to Mr. Dhyne’s second grade class by clicking on the link…

The lite Rock Teacher of the Month for May is Christopher Connolly, a history teacher at Mainland… Regional High School in Linwood.

Connolly was nominated by his student David Wilson, who was impressed with his teaching style and his help in choosing a school curriculum.

David Wilson is now in the running for a $2000 scholarship Lite Rock will give to one of the students who nominates a deserving South Jersey teacher this school year.

Lite Rock will visit Mr. Connolly’s class with a Lite Rock pizza party.  Mr. Connolly wins a membership to Island Gym and Fitness for his selection as the Lite Rock Teacher of the Month.

Lite Rock Teacher of the Month nominations should only be about 100 words in length and are a great way of recognizing teaching excellence,  so consider entering in a nomination if you know of a teacher who is making a real difference in your child’s life.

Click the link to hear my conversation congratulating Mr. Connolly on becoming the Lite Rock Teacher of the Month.

League President Bob Everett says the 21-member board will discuss the events of Thursday night in which 43-year-old Thomas Murphy slapped the teen umpire after he was ejected from the game between Murphy’s Mets and the Dodgers. Everett says that the process will be accelerated as it is obvious from all accounts what happened on the league’s Moorage Complex Field M2.

Everett says he has tried unsuccessfully to speak with Murphy but did receive a text saying he has retained a lawyer. Police found Murphy at his home and charged him with simple assault and another for simple assault at a sporting event in the presence of children under the age of 16, Smith said. He was released on a summons

He is not expected to attend Friday’s hearing.

Everett wrote on the League’s Facebook page that as President,  “I am given the exclusive power to appoint all managers and coaches, upon which time the board then approves such appointments. I can assure you that for as long as I am president this person will NEVER be appointed again, in case there was any doubt.”

He says Murphy did not have any major problems in the past. “All coaches have get caught up in the heat of competition but nothing like this.”

Berkeley Police Detective Sgt. Jim Smith   got into an argument with the unidentified umpire over a call made in the basepaths and was ejected. “When the umpire walked away, the coach smacked him in the ear,” Smith said.

Players on the Mets are age 10-12. Everett says Murphy has two boys who play in the League and they are welcome to continue playing.

Sorting Things Out

The League has also called a mandatory meeting of all coaches & managers on Saturday morning.

Everett, who was coaching another game and did not witness the incident said,  “We’re still trying to sort out some of it out but it seems pretty clear there was an argument over a call…and for some unexplainable reason (Murphy) assaulted the umpire.”

He says the incident has will be dealt with “promptly, quickly and appropriately” in accordance with League rules. “It”s pretty well established we don’t stand for this in our league” and says that parents, coaches and players all go through training to deal with various situations.

Everett  hopes everyone needs to “take a step back”  and reminds parents, “It’s just a kids game. It’s really pretty simple”

Everett says this is Murphy’s first year with the Mets and has been a coach for 5 or 6 years in the Berkeley program.

Listen to Jason’s conversation with Bob Everett

In a statement on the League’s Facebook page, Everett wrote:

“The incident at our league tonight was inexcusable. While we have a process we must follow, the manager is suspended immediately pending a league disciplinary hearing. Our league goes above & beyond what most leagues do in training and educating our coaches & parents on appropriate behavior. Unfortunately, for some folks these lessons just don’t take. This will be addressed quickly, severely and appropriately.”

“The umpire that was assaulted is an outstanding young man that does a fantastic job for our league. He handled himself in an incredibly mature and responsible manner. Fortunately he was not injured by this stupid attack.”

Kevin Williams contributed to this story.

Source: Berkeley Little League Manager Charged For Slapping 17-Year-Old Umpire [AUDIO]

A message on the U Mass Dartmouth website instructs student to “evacuate campus immediately.”

Tsarnaev  is a student at the school, about an hour’s drive south of Boston. Students say he lived on the third floor of a campus dormitory. Harry Danso, who lives on the same floor, tells the Associated Press he saw him in the dorm hallway this week and Tsarnaev was calm.

CNN reports a helicopter carrying a number of law enforcement landed on campus.

Looking For A New Car

Connecticut Police are looking for a 1999 green Honda Civic with Massachusetts license plates 116 GCl7. Boston Police believe the suspect may be driving that vehicle.

At a noon hour press conference, Governor Duval Patrick said that he and other officials are aware of details they can not divulge and asked residents to remain inside although people who reported for work can return home.

Massachusetts State Police say that “60 percent of the search is done but there is still more work to be done.”  Boston Mayor Menino was defiant and promised “We are not going to let the terrorist win over.

Lockdown Continues

Amtrak announced the suspension in service at the request of law enforcement according to a press release. Service on the Northeast Corridor had been suspended between Boston and Providence since this morning.

Service is operating normally between Washington D.C. and New York Penn Station.

The Boston Red Sox have postponed tonight’s game at Fenway Park and the Bruins have called off tonights game against Pittsburgh as the shelter-in-place continues.

“Losers” For Nephews

Government officials say Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev traveled to Russia last year and returned to the U.S. six months later.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they couldn’t publicly talk about an investigation in progress. One says that Tsarnaev traveled out of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

One official said there are no known ties at this point to Chechen extremist groups.

The suspects’ uncle, Ruslan Tsarni of Montgomery Village, Md., said Friday that 19-year-old Dzhozkar Tsarnaev should turn himself in to police and ask for forgiveness. He described his nephews as “losers” and said his family is ashamed. “It is an atrocity, we are shocked,” he told reporters gathered in his front yard.”

Tsami says he respects and loves the United States because “this country gives everyone a chance.”

Cab service in the city of Boston has been restored.

Police recovered a bullet-riddled grey Honda CRV that was the vehicle hijacked by the suspects and was involved in a shootout with slain MIT police officer Sean Collier. The sequence of events is not clear.

Shelter In Place

A shelter -in-place remains in place for the city of Boston as a massive manhunt continues around Boston.

Residents of  Boston along with Watertown, Newton, Waltham, Belmont, Cambridge and the Allston-Brighton neighborhoods of Boston are being told to stay where they are and not leave their homes.

The MBTA has shut down its entire system as the manhunt continues for Tsarnaev.

Boston Children’s Hospital has locked down their main campus in the Longwood section meaning patient appointments are cancelled and inpatients will not be discharged.

The University Of Massachusetts Dartmouth, located south of Boston, was put on lockdown after the school discovered one of the suspects was a student at the school.

Killed In The Line Of Duty

Police have also identified the MIT police officer killed by gunfire with the suspects as Sean Collier, 26 of Somerville. Colleagues described his to  WCVB TV  as “one of the best” and father to  a 6-month-old child. He was found shot in his car near Vassar & Main Streets near the MIT campus.

[button href="http://tunein.com/radio/Boston-Police-Fire-and-EMS-Scanner-s146109/" title="AUDIO: Live Boston Police Scanner" align="center"]

Bloomberg News report bombing victim Jeff Bauman played a key role in identifying the suspects. His brother Chris says that when his brother woke up at the hospital under heavy medication following surgery he requested a paper and pen and wrote, “‘bag, saw the guy, looked right at me.”

He later described to investigators a man he says dropped a bag at his feet that went off two minutes later.

Jeff Bauman lost both his legs below the knees and was in a photo showing him being pushed in a wheelchair by a bearded man.

One Brother Killed

Boston Police confirmed earlier that one of the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing is dead, identified as 26-years-old  Tamerlan Tsarnaev and a manhunt is on for his brother as part of a tense night of police activity that left a university officer dead on campus.

Their father, Anzor Tsarnaev, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press from the Russian city of Makhachkala that his younger son, Dzhokhar, is “a true angel.”

“Dzhokhar is a second-year medical student in the U.S. He is such an intelligent boy. We expected him to come on holidays here,” the father said.

Bomb Next To A Victim?

Fox News’ Megyn Kelly tweeted that colleague Rick Leventhal reported about a photo the FBI had of Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev placing a bomb next to 8-year-old victim Martin Richard on the sidewalk.

Martin’s family attended the family to cheer on his father Bill Richard’s run in the Marathon according to WHDH TV.  Martin’s 7-year-old sister Jane suffered a major injury to her leg while their mother Denise had emergency surgery on her brain. She also lost a leg.  Another child was not injured.

Listen to audio from the Watertown shooting

The Associated Press contributed to this story

Source: Manhunt For Marathon Suspect Puts Boston, School On Lockdown [VIDEO]

This month’s Lite Rock Teacher of the Month nomination was a first in my time with the station handling the Teacher of the Month promotion.

The nomination was submitted by Jennifer Pero, the mother of twins, both in the second grade class of Kyle Dhyne.  As a parent of two children in Mr. Dhyne’s class, who would be better qualified to tell us what an excellent teacher he is?

Mr. Dhyne was selected because of his “funny, kind and caring” approach to the classroom, according to Mrs. Pero’s nominating e-mail.

Isabella and Liam Pero are now in the running for the $2000 scholarship Lite Rock will give to one of the students who nominates a deserving South Jersey teacher this school year.

Lite Rock will visit Mr. Dhyne’s class with a pizza party courtesy of Carluccio’s Coal Fired Pizza, authentic Italian food, 1200 New Road in Northfield. Kyle Dhyne wins a membership to Island Gym and Fitness for his selection as the Lite Rock Teacher of the Month.

Lite Rock Teacher of the Month nominations should only be about 100 words in length and are a great way of recognizing teaching excellence,  so consider entering in a nomination if you know of a teacher who is making a real difference in your child’s life.

Click the link to hear my conversation congratulating Mr Dhyne on becoming the Lite Rock Teacher of the Month.

Christie has proposed in the past a 10-percent income tax cut over three years, but a deal with Senate President Sweeney fell through last year.  The proposal Christie will make today not only revives the tax cut, but also restores the earned income tax credit.

The Governor talked about the proposal with New Jersey 101.5′s Jim Gearhart & Eric Scott.

The plan calls for increasing the state’s earned income tax credit to 25 percent of the federal level from the current 20 percent, where it’s been since Christie reduced it from 25 percent in 2010. But he also calls for implementing a bigger move aimed at the middle class and some higher earners.

At the end of a four-year phase-in, households earning up to $400,000 would receive an income tax credit equivalent to 10 percent of their property tax bill. The credits would be refundable and capped at $10,000.

Qualifying homeowners would get a $100 credit for the second half of 2013, then 4 percent of their property taxes next year, 8 percent in 2015 and 10 percent in 2016 and thereafter.

The governor also calls for gradually increasing the refund for renters — currently $50 — to $200 by 2015.

The conditional veto, which is essentially a call to action for lawmakers, does not lay the cost of the credit or what changes might be made to his budget proposal to accommodate it.

The nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services said this month that the state government could miss revenue estimates by $302 million in the budget year that ends June 30 and could be another $335 million short in the next fiscal year. The administration has said the state’s finances are in better shape than that.

Last year, Christie struck his budget deal with state Sen. President Stephen Sweeney, a Democrat who is his partner on many major initiatives and his sparring partner on others. Last week, Sweeney said publicly that he was open to a tax cut in the coming year, though one was not in the budget proposal Christie has put forth.

Christie’s new plan makes a few changes from the one he and Sweeney agreed to last year. For one, it would benefit higher-income households. Under last year’s plan, only households making up to $250,000 would have been eligible for the credit for homeowners.

The other major difference is a “circuit-breaker” provision that lets the Legislature scrap the cuts if they’re not affordable.

“This improves upon the bipartisan agreement we reached last year but was ultimately rejected by some legislators, who now have no reason to stand in the way of a responsible tax relief plan,” the governor says in the conditional veto.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Source: Christie Announces Middle Class Tax Cut [AUDIO]

The cast from the St. Joseph High School in Hammonton production of “Anything Goes” dropped by the Lite Rock Morning Show today to perform a song from the musical.

The play, which features the music and lyrics of Cole Porter, is being presented this weekend in the St. Joseph Elementary School gym, at 133 North Third St. in Hammonton.

Showtimes Friday and Saturday (4/11-12) at 7:30pm and Sunday (4/14) at 3:00pm. See more information @ www.stjoek12.org

Here is the cast of “Anything Goes” singing “Bon Voyage” on the Lite Rock Morning Show.

The purse, wallet and cell phone belonging to Hillsborough native Paige Aiello were found on the George Washington Bridge, but Port Authority detectives did a search of the Hudson River nearby and found nothing.

“My wife is not holding up very well at all. Yesterday for me, I was literally on the mat, and wasn’t getting up,” says Chris Aiello, Paige’s father.

He says it’s possible his daughter has suffered an emotional breakdown, because she’s very success-oriented and competitive.

If that is the case, he is sending a message to his daughter.

“You’ve done nothing wrong, you’re upset, just please call out. Get a phone from somebody, please call us and we’ll get you wherever you are. Just please contact us.”

Aiello points out kids that have a self-imposed pressure today have to be looked after, as opposed to the kids that maybe don’t do that well, and it’s apparently common-place for young women to feel emotional pressures at this age.

He’s also asking member of the public in New Jersey to be on the lookout for his daughter, who is 5’3, 106 pounds.

“I have to get the word out,” he says. “I can’t just sit there- laying down. That’s the only hope I have.”

Authorities found a family car that Paige was driving in New Brunswick on Thursday, but so far they have not labeled the case suspicious.

[button href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Find-Paige-Aiello/319392568190358?fref=ts" title="FACEBOOK: Find Paige Aiello" align="center"]

Source: TCNJ Student Paige Aiello Remains Missing [VIDEO/AUDIO]

This weekend’s Doo Dah Parade in Ocean City is highlighted by two events featuring basset hounds – the Board Waddle and the Basset Hound Olympics!

Wednesday morning on Lite Rock, I spoke with Lady Dana, the Basset Hound Lady.  She filled us in on this weekend’s festivities,  the events included in the Basset Hound Olympics and what it’s like to own a basset hound.

Click the link to hear our conversation and look for Lite Rock Friday in Ocean City.

[button href="http://nj1015.com/files/2013/04/04-04-2013.pdf" title="Read The Letter From The St. Peter's Basketball Team" align="center"]

By now, the entire world knows about the abuse fired and disgraced Rutgers basketball coach Mike Rice put his players through, but we have a shocking story today about a former basketball player at St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City, who says he has partial vision loss that could be permanent, and he blames his coach.

The use of pads to simulate contact during basketball practices is standard at some schools. 17-year-old Tommy Papas says his former coach, Todd Decker uses them. Papas says he never had a problem with the use of pads until he was abused with one on Feb. 4, 2013.

“On this particular day at practice, upon seeing the assistant coach hitting the kids to an unsatisfactory amount of force Coach Decker shouted to the other coach, ‘Don’t hit him with the pad easy. Use it like a baseball bat,’” alleges Papas. “Coach Decker himself then swung not using the handles but using it like a baseball bat and attempted to swing at a kid as he went up for a lay-up. The kid dodged it and was thrown out of the drill. I was next in line and as I went up for the lay-up I was hit in the head with the pad just like a baseball bat would be swung.”

Townsquare Media has obtained a legal document signed by a teen who claims to have been an eyewitness. The teen echoes Tommy’s account of the events.

Severe Eye Trauma

There was an immediate black streak in the central vision of his right eye says Tommy. He claims to have told Decker he couldn’t see and was directed to sit down. Papas says there was no trainer at the facility because the team was practicing off site.

He claims his father picked him up and took him to St. Peter’s Prep where a trainer told him everything should get better soon, but if it didn’t he should see a doctor. Tommy says he’s seen several doctors.

“A retina specialist in Jersey City informed me that it was a severe trauma to the eye and it was deep bruising with a force so strong that it caused a liquid discharge in the back of my eye,” says Tommy. “The cells lost may or may not heal and if it’s going to get better it will be better in the next few months.”

Specifically the doctor said if the vision isn’t completely restored by April it is unlikely it would ever be fully restored says Tommy. It is April and Tommy estimates the vision in his right eye is 65-percent at best.

“On presentation he had a macular injury in his retina that most likely came from a significant impact against his head areas,” according to an email from one of Tommy’s doctors.

The next stop for Tommy was the well-respected Wills Eye Institute in Philadelphia. He says he saw a specialist there too and the news wasn’t good.

“I was told by one of the top doctors in the nation that there was no procedure that could help my eye heal and that if it does not get better by April that it’s something I will have to live with for the rest of my life,” alleges Tommy. “The doctor said that it was the equivalent force of a direct punch to the eye. Something he’d seen in bar fights.”

The news was so discouraging Tommy said he left the team. He had been to games and practices, but not playing. He also feels there is some hypocrisy at St. Peter’s.

“I feel if this had happened in a classroom, a similar incident of any kind, disciplinary action would have been taken right away for the teacher,” believes Tommy. “Because we can play it off as an athletic incident nothing gets done and I still can’t see.”

[button href="http://nj1015.com/files/2013/04/THOMAS-PAPAS-DOCUMENTS-1.pdf" title="Read Emails Between Tommy's Parents & The School" align="center"]

Neither Decker nor Athletic Director Rich Hansen has ever apologized to Tommy’s parents claims Papas. He also alleges that Decker told other kids on the team that they were not allowed to talk to Tommy and that has left him feeling isolated and ostracized. Tommy says he always loved St. Peter’s Prep, but he is fairly confident he’ll be in another school next year for his senior year.

Messages left with the St. Peter’s Prep athletic department seeking a response to this story were not returned.

Because of New Jersey’s charitable immunity law, Tommy’s family may not be permitted to file a lawsuit, but his mother, Alexis Moloney says, “We are exploring our legal options.”

Source: Did NJ High School Basketball Coach Cause Player’s Vision Loss? [AUDIO]