The HOWELL Times
Vol. 22 - No. 1
In This Week’s Edition
MICROMEDIA PUBLICATIONS
JERSEYSHOREONLINE.COM
Leggio Slated Young Anglers Test Their Luck At Annual Fishing Derby To Face Filosa In Mayoral Race
BREAKING NEWS @
Photo courtesy Howell Township Over 85 participants joined in this year’s Fishing Derby.
jerseyshoreonline.com
Community News Pages 8-11
Inside The Law Page 16
Dr. Izzy’s Sound News Page 14
Classifieds Page 18
June 8, 2024
The derby merged two similar events into a single, family-friendly day.
By Alyssa Riccardi HOWELL – A beautiful, sunny Saturday at Echo Lake welcomed local fishing lovers to enjoy nature and fish for a good cause. Over 85 participants joined in the 20th annual Baxter’s Fishing Derby and 3rd annual Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs Fishing Derby. In 2023, the Howell Township Recreation Department decided to combine
two of their popular events: Baxter’s Fishing Derby (usually held in October) and Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs (held on the fi rst Saturday in June). This year, the event was extra special as they memorialized the 20th anniversary of the event dedicated to Robert Baxter III. “The Baxter’s Fishing Derby/Hooked on Fishing, Not (Fishing - See Page 4)
How An Ocean County Child’s Death Made International News By Stephanie Faughnan BARNEGAT - An estimated 500 children die at the hands of their parents every year in the United States. The 2021 tragic death of Corey Micciolo, a fi rst-grade student from Barnegat brought this statistic close to home. A jury convicted his
father, 32-year-old Christopher Gregor, of child endangerment and aggravated manslaughter after a month-long trial. But why did this particular case capture international attention? Photo courtesy Asbury Park Press One key factor was the involve- Christopher Gregor is led out of court after his ment of Dr. Michael Baden, a conviction for child endangerment and aggravated (News - See Page 3) manslaughter of his six-year-old son.
By Stephanie Faughnan HOWELL – Preliminary primary election results indicate John Leggio will likely be the Republican candidate for Howell mayor in November. He is set to face Democrat Matthew Filosa, who ran unopposed in yesterday’s primary. Leggio currently leads by 66 votes with 1,884 votes secured. Ian Nadel follows with 1,818, and Fred Gasior has 535. Ten write-ins are also part of the preliminary tally. Nadel is the township’s current deputy mayor, and Gasior is a sitting councilman. It takes a few weeks for county officials to certify the election. The anticipated outcome of the Republican primary is noteworthy. Leggio did not interview with the local county committee for their endorsement and self-funded his campaign. Gasior, initially chosen by Howell Republican County committee members, also self-funded his campaign but was not awarded the party line. Instead, the Republican party line went to Nadel. It remains unclear if local Republican party officials will support Leggio in the November race. “It’s important every vote gets counted,” said Howell Municipal Chair Joe DiBella. “Until we have a certified outcome, we’ll wait for the results.” “It’s clear Deputy Mayor Nadel and Mr. Leggio are locked in a close race,” DiBella added. “Hopefully we’ll have official results soon.” One factor that may have contributed to Leggio’s projected win is the potential impact if one of the two sitting council members became mayor. Nadel or Gasior’s seat would then need to be filled by someone nominated by Republican county officials. Ironically, this has everything to do with why Leggio didn’t screen in the first place. When Thomas Russo resigned as Deputy Mayor in 2021, Leggio was among three Republican candidates presented to the council as potential replacements. The GOP controlled the seat due to Russo’s affiliation. The four remaining council (Race - See Page 4)
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