Do you encounter reckless drivers in Hoboken?

A few days ago – a pedestrian was killed right outside Hoboken. The driver was arrested (various DWI charges), plus it was already a rainy morning on top of it. While that was apparently a blatant criminal act in bad weather, what about simple reckless drivers in Hoboken?

One Hoboken resident who is a parent with children – details a precarious vehicular situation he was in this past weekend that did NOT involve inclement weather or booze.

Letter: Focus on bad drivers instead of parking tickets

“This past Mother’s Day weekend, I was at the corner of 14th and Sinatra, ready to head west on 14th with my two and four year-old children. I looked both ways, reminding the kids the same, and as we took our first step into the crosswalk, a black sedan comes speeding up Sinatra, blowing right through the stop sign and turns left at what had to be 30 miles an hour. If not for such a bright, clear day, I might have taken more steps into the cross walk. And perhaps been hit, or worse, my kids.

This is not a parking lot stop sign, mind you, but a official one. The driver then sped to the front of the Zeni Nail Salon on 14th and Hudson.

I picked up my kids in each arm, and ran to the nail salon to confront this dangerous driver.

A fairly young guy, he seemed completely blasé about the fact that he blew through a stop sign in a heavily pedestrian area, and could have killed myself or either of my small children. He seemed to care NOT ONE BIT when confronted with a rattled parent at the danger he puts people in.

The rage at his self-important attitude also fueled my anger at the town for wasting an awful lot of manpower chasing down parking violators when they could make a whole lot more money giving out tickets to jerks like this who put residents in danger.

I’m not saying that late at night, when the streets are empty, you can’t do a slow roll through a stop sign if you are aware of your surroundings, but this was the middle of a Sunday with lots of people out enjoying the afternoon.

And just so he could make a nail appointment!

Why is it that the city has no desire to monitor some very dangerous corners? Basically every stop sign near Maxwell Place, the Shipyard and the Hudson Tea Buildings are a danger zone. Will the town be satisfied if some kid on a bike or a parent walking legally gets mowed down?

Just two weeks ago a mother and child were hit-and-run by a driver near the Brandt school.“

Agree or disagree?

Technorati Tags: DWI, Entitlement, hit and run, Hoboken, New Jersey, NJ, pedestrians, Reader Mail, Reckless drivers, stop signs, Texting

DWI accident leaves one pedestrian dead near Hoboken

This past weekend – 24 year old Ron Hill Jr. from Jersey City was stuck and killed by a DWI driver in a black Jeep right outside Hoboken (between Cliff Lofts and the Sky Club).

Luis Garcia, a 22 year-old male out of Brooklyn, New York was charged with DWI, leaving the scene of an accident and vehicular manslaughter. He was tested with a BAC % of 0.13, and is being held on a bail of quarter million dollars. He was arrested by Hoboken police after a brief search.

Hoboken resident Lucas – who lives in the Sky Club – witnessed the entire ghastly scene from his balcony around 3am Sunday morning.

When light is green – Paterson / Paterson Plank is dangerous!

Lucas described the scene as he saw it.

“The jeep came down Paterson Plank at a high rate of speed, and jumped the curb near the tracks and killed the guy on the sidewalk. Afterward, the car skidded way across the tracks and struck at car about to make a right from Marshall Street. While I called the police, the driver of the car he struck got out and attempted to chase him down, to no avail. The wet roads were most certainly a factor on top of the DWI.”

The medical examiners took the body about six hours after the accident, and both the roads and light rail were closed. This is quite scary, considering I walk to see friends who live up the road all the time.”

Can safety be improved? Or is it just luck of the draw?

I asked Lucas if he believed the safety in this area could be practically improved or not.

He said with two traffic lights and a pedestrian crosswalk in place – that proper protocol has already been followed. He mentioned that if they possibly re-locate the crosswalk closer to the Sky Club – it might be clearer conditions, but when the lights are green – cars still speed around the blind turn regardless.

So maybe it’s one of those terrible situations where someone was in the “wrong place at the wrong time.” But that makes you wonder, why do people drive from Brooklyn to Jersey City to get smashed? What’s so great around here anyway?

And if this can serve as a firm reminder – that despite this being an inclement weather, alcohol-infused accident – you should still be VERY aware of your surroundings at all times. I see too many people absorbed in their technology while traversing busy intersections, not paying attention to signals – or even worse – other inattentive drivers.

Technorati Tags: Brooklyn, Cliffs Lofts, Drunk Driving, DUI, DWI, Hoboken, Jersey City, Luis E. Garcia, Luis Garcia, New Jersey, NJ, Pedestrian safety, Ron Hill, Ron Hill II, Sky Club

Have you seen Paola Terrazas?

These signs are all over the city of Hoboken – for a missing 17 year old girl named Paola Terrazas.

She’s 4′ 8″ in height and has wavy blonde hair. You can call (973)405-7751 if you have information about her whereabouts.

Unfortunately – the sign does not indicate where she lives, or where and when she was last seen or known to be. Hopefully she is found soon and we don’t end up with another wacky story like the girls in Cleveland that were held captive for a decade.

Technorati Tags: Hoboken, Missing, Missing Girl, New Jersey, NJ, Paola Terrazas, Signs

How embarrassing is Hoboken with all the water main breaks?

3/30/2013 update:

Water main breaks in Hoboken are tiring. Scott sent these photos in from 8th & Jefferson today.

[Click to continue reading the rest....]

Technorati Tags: 14th Street Viaduct, 14th Willow, 8th & Willow, boil water advisory, Hoboken, New Jersey, NJ, Water Main Break

NYC cabs to Hoboken – still taxi disputes well into 2013

To this day – and almost every single day since Hoboken411 began tracking, Hoboken police respond to at least one “taxi dispute” which takes place between the driver of a NYC cab and his passenger(s).

Usually, these taxi disputes are caused by the fact that the fare suddenly realizes that they don’t feel like paying the agreed-to amount once they’ve arrived in Hoboken (because they’re too cheap, drunk, entitled or arrogant).

However, one Hoboken411 reader is noticing that NYC cabbies are starting to jack up the cost of a ride from Manhattan to Hoboken (especially on weekends) where fares are now upwards of $80 or more! That costs more than a ride to one of the local airports!

As you can read in previous revisions to this story after the break – there is still no real “standard fare” from NYC to Hoboken, and there really needs to be one to prevent the confusion, mis-communication and taxi disputes.

And I’ll say it again: I believe the fares to Hoboken from New York should be PRE-PAID to avoid such a hassle. I mean, you pay to get on the subway or bus, why not taxi cabs too? What is so difficult about this – and why has almost zero progress been made?

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Hoboken Photo of the Day: NYC taxi zooming by

And I wanted to share this photo I recently took of a NYC cabbie driving south towards the PATH station from a building uptown.

You ever see those cheesy “stock” pictures they put in some of picture frames sold at stores? Well – this reminded me of one of them – hence today’s Hoboken Photo of the Day!

Click to see previous NYC taxi issues in Hoboken…

Technorati Tags: cab, Cost, disputes, disturbances, Fare, Fare Disputes, Hoboken, New Jersey, New Jesey, NJ, NYC, NYC to Hoboken, Pre-paid, Recent Incidents, Ride, Standardized, taxi, Taxi Cabs, Taxi Disputes, Taxi Disturbances

Patrick Ricciardi pleads guilty

Former management information systems specialist for the city of Hoboken pleaded guilty today for intercepting communications meant for the mayor of Hoboken and top city officials and passing some of those communications on to other officials, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Patrick Ricciardi, 46, of Hoboken, entered a guilty plea – before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court – to an Information charging him with accessing a computer without authorization, interception of wire and electronic communications and disclosure of intercepted wire and electronic communications.

According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Ricciardi was a longstanding employee of the city of Hoboken and worked as the chief information technology officer for the mayor’s office. As part of his job duties, Ricciardi was responsible for keeping the city’s network running and had access to email accounts within the city’s computer system and other aspects of the city’s computer network.

In April 2011, Ricciardi created an archive file on his work computer to intercept and store all emails sent to and from the mayor and certain of the mayor’s employees. Neither the mayor nor any other city employee authorized the storage of the emails or the creation of the file.

During his guilty plea proceeding, Ricciardi admitted he used his access to set up the email accounts of the mayor and two of the mayor’s top lieutenants so all of their incoming and sent emails would be sent to the archive folder.

He also admitted that he read some of the emails in order to spy on the mayor and her assistants, and forwarded them to other current and former city officials.

Ricciardi is scheduled to be sentenced on July 1, 2013, before Judge Salas. Each of the three counts carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI’s Cyber Crimes Task Force, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge David Velazquez, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Intrater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section in the Office’s Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.

READ THE FULL SET OF CHARGES ON PATRICK RICCIARDI HERE.

[Click to continue reading the rest....]

Technorati Tags: Dan Bryan, Dawn Zimmer, Emails, FBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Hoboken, investigation, Juan Melli, New Jersey, NJ, Patrick Ricciardi, politics, Rumor Mill, transparency