NJN News; Tuesday February 11, 1997

A killer's release raises hometown fears and questions. What are your top 10 complaints about the DMV? We've compiled our list. A New Casino Association will come without a Trump player. And the tuna speaks. The Jets New Coach talks about his plans. Those stories, a big birthday and... The charelles in our studios all on NJN News this Tuesday, February 11th. Major funding for NJN News is made possible by Grants from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, which believes that an informed citizen relieves to a healthy democracy.

PSENG committed to serving customers, strengthening the business community and investing in New Jersey's future. First Union serves the financial needs of individuals and businesses from Connecticut to Florida. HIP Health Plan of New Jersey dedicated to providing quality health care to employees of large and small businesses, as well as individuals for two decades. And by Bell Atlantic, the heart of communication in partnership with public television, serving to inform and lighten and educate the citizens of New Jersey. From NJN, the New Jersey Channel, the Emmy Award-winning NJN News with Kent Manahan, Dick Forney with Business, and Jerry Henry with Sports. Good evening. After 17 years behind bars for murder, Charles Chucky Mills is a free man tonight. He was released this morning and is believed to be at home in Sussex County this evening, where residents are concerned.

As Michael Aaron reports, his release also raises questions about prison terms and parole. The science says welcome to Sparta, but this one-time resort town built around a man-made lake is not welcoming back one of its wayward sons. Charles Chucky Mills is probably Sparta's most notorious murderer. Realtors, you know, we're pretty vulnerable, and we'd like to keep the picture in the office so everybody's aware of what he looks like. For yourselves or for your customers? For everybody. 22 years ago, at this shopping center, Mills and an accomplice abducted 22-year-old Denise James, took her to a secluded area, raped her, and shot her in the head. You know, I would be lying if I didn't tell you. Mills is certainly capable of horrible, horrible acts. People in Sparta are not happy about the killer's return, especially women. Well, I know it's what I ran the paper, but I have a daughter that goes to school around here, and I don't like it. Mills was expected to return to his parents' home in this quiet neighborhood.

Sparta police say they don't know if he's dangerous, but they'll take precautions. We've gotten a large amount of phone calls, but I can assure you that we will do our job. But as of today, he's a free man, and that's our system, and we can operate within it. Under today's criminal code, a murderer like Mills would do a minimum of 30 years, but Mills was convicted under the old code in effect before 1980. Then you could get a life sentence like his and be out after 12 and a half years. Mills' release comes as Trenton lawmakers are considering a bill that would require inmates to serve at least 85% of their sentence. Mills could actually become an argument for either side. Opponents of the bill say it will allow hardened criminals to return to society with no parole supervision, like Mills. Supporters say it will end the travesty of short sentences for vicious killers, like Mills. In general, I think the concept of having criminals, particularly violent criminals, serve at least 85% of their time, is a very good policy, and we ought to pursue it, and we are pursuing it in the state. The family has not given our comments in 17 years, and we really...

There's many, many learned people in this world that make these decisions, and we abide by whatever they decide. Okay, that's all I can tell you. What did you think they said about it? What did you think of what they said about your brother, though? Oh, you heard what the... That's the beautiful thing about America. It's freedom of speech. You can say what you want. You believe what you want. Michael Aaron, NJN News, Sparta. Former Jersey City Mayor Gerald McCann says he'll run for the city's top job again. McCann was forced from office after being convicted of looting money from a Florida savings and loan, and evading taxes. He spent 26 months in prison. He's maintained his innocence all along. And tonight, Mayor Brett Shundler says that he'll announce that he'll seek a second-term in office. Well, the state is cracking down on consumer fraud against the elderly. Attorney General Peter Venero is recommending statewide registration of all home repair and telemarketing businesses. He also wants all home health care rates to undergo criminal background checks before being licensed. As we reported to you last night, Acting Transportation Commissioner John Haley has ordered the state motor vehicles director to submit a top 10 list of consumer complaints by the end of this week.

But we weren't waiting for the official word. Statehouse correspondent Jim Hooker talked with motorists today and came up with a preview top 10 list. For an agency that seems to rank right up there with a post office or the phone company for having a chair of consumer-oriented gripes, it shouldn't come as a surprise that there's no shortage of complaints at DMV agencies. What may surprise you is the number of people we spoke to who had few complaints, if any. You have any top complaints about the DMV? No, I don't really. I think we were served very quickly and very politely. But we came to hear what top state officials are likely to learn about DMV shortcomings. So here's our top 10 list. To turn over the car as a gift, we had to both be present to sign the title over. But we weren't given that information over the phone. So at number 10, misinformed DMV workers. I was given like five notices in the mail a couple months ago and they were assessing me like $100 per point and there was like five or six points that I've never gotten.

Number 9, incorrect mailings. At number 8, two few open inspection lanes, and number 7 of our survey, two few hours of operation. Is this spent two hours waiting here when I think under the old system it would have been an hour. So at number 6, and privatization. Freeze. $43, I think that's a bit much. Number 5, high fees. That first girl wasn't Cartier's. The second one was. Number 4, the occasional rude worker. Your tires are not up to par. You gotta go home and get a new one. Number 3, picky inspectors. At number 2, too much paperwork. And number 1 on our top 10 list of consumer complaints. The long lines. The lines could be shorter. You guessed it, long lines. Okay, so you've heard our top 10 list of DMV complaints. But we'll all have to wait until at least Friday to see how it measures up with the state's ranking. Reporting from the Lawrenceville DMV office, I'm Jim Hooker.

The Defunct Casino Association, the main lobbying group for casino gaming in Atlantic City is being resurrected. A move is underway to unify the resort town's 13 casinos after a split over who controlled and set policy for the association. But the move to unify the casinos apparently didn't include Donald Trump. Ken St. John reports. The breakup of the casino association came after Donald Trump who had four votes in the association joined forces with valleys who owned the valleys grand and valleys Park Place casino. The alliance gave them together six votes in the association. Casino owners paid dues for each casino owned, which gave them one vote per casino. The valleys Trump partnership allowed them to send policy against legislation that would give reimbursement to Steve Wynn for cleanup of the eight track. Wynn plans to build a mega casino under the proposed new association rules. The number of votes an operator would have would change.

Each casino company only gets one vote, which means that some of the casino companies that have more than one casino here cannot dominate the industry. The other major change is there won't have to be a unanimous vote for the association to set policy. It used to have to be everybody was was on the same page. Now the new association will will allow some dissension within its ranks. While Alan Marcus spokesman for Donald Trump says Trump properties will not be joining the new association. Marcus says it's best they represent their own interest in Atlantic City. Meanwhile, it's also rumored that Hilton, which now owns valleys, may not be joining either. Mark Juliano, president and COO of Caesars, who is working on the new casino association, would not comment on camera today. But a spokesperson says they are working on the bylaws for the new association and feel it's premature to comment until those bylaws are adopted. Meanwhile, just what does a unified casino association mean for the residents of New Jersey? The casinos have a revenue fund, which contributes 8% of all casino wins to state programs. Tax relief for the elderly, pharmaceutical programs, things of that nature.

As for Steve Winne, Marange Resorts has been participating in the process. spokesman Skip Branson says it will be good to have some sort of an organization that represents all casinos. A meeting on the new casino association is scheduled for later this week. Can St. John, NJN News, Atlantic City. The Wizard of Menlo Park is celebrated across the state today. That story just ahead. Why Governor Whitman went a milking today in Warren County? And in our Health Watch report, a U.S. study shows this mineral may help prevent certain types of cancer. Stay tuned. Okay, we're in a wide shot. If you have a comment, call NJN News at 1-800-Jersey-1. Or our email address, NJN News at al.com. What some think is part of the future of education is actually already happening.

And early this morning, students in three different parts of the state took part in distance learning. On tonight's education agenda, Rich Young introduces us to satellites, television, and learning. From the farm, direct to the classroom. The Governor and Agriculture Secretary Arp Brown turned into teachers this morning. They joined former Pete Free Warning, giving dozens of fourth graders a lesson in running a dairy farm. The students here learned first-hand all about cows, especially how they produce milk. But these kids were not the only ones getting a lesson. As part of a distance learning project, this classroom on a farm was beamed by satellite to dozens of other fourth graders,

in classrooms in Jersey City, and here in Pennsylvania. This lesson on farming is now part of what these kids are now learning about different regions, including New Jersey. But rather than just teaching from a book, there's a live interaction between students and a real farmer. Where do you get the hate and grass in the winter? While most of these kids have never been to a dairy farm, this offered an opportunity to have their questions answered live. Is it better than a classroom? Yeah. How come? Because you get to see real cows and all. You get to see the actual movement and the people doing milk and all this stuff. A little more exciting? Yes. It's better than just seeing it in a regular classroom and learning that. I guess so. How come? Because I get to talk to you. It just gives them a feeling of being more real to them. It's not just something they're reading out of a book. Distance learning projects are currently used in limited ways across the state. But as educators seek to find new ways of creative learning, this is one option many say they'd like to use in the classroom.

Rich Young and JN News, Penn Salkin. In tonight's health watch, Selenium. No, it's not a jeopardy stumper, although it could be. It's a mineral. And as health and medical correspondent Sarah Lee Kessler tells us, there's a lot of excitement about a new study that says a diet rich in Selenium can prevent certain cancers. Selenium is an essential mineral found mainly in fish, shellfish, meat, especially organ meat, whole grain cereals and milk. Arizona scientists thought it could protect against skin cancer. They tried to prove it. They didn't. But as a secondary endpoint, they found that it protected against lung, colorectal and prostate cancer. Dr. David Greenblath is director of radiation oncology at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood. We spoke about the Selenium study, which appeared in a recent journal of the American Medical Association. Is this just the latest mineral of the month?

I don't think so. I think this study is a well designed study. The results have been impressive. Were you surprised by the findings? Frankly, yes, it was. It was 37% reduction in the number of new cancer cases in the Selenium group and a 50% reduction in cancer mortality. Findings that can't be ignored when you consider the raw numbers. Prostate cancer will kill an estimated 42,000 American men this year. Lung cancer, 94,000 men and women. There will be 27,000 deaths from colorectal cancer. We're set to go ahead with the radiation implant. Dr. Greenblath's specialty is prostate cancer. Will this study change in any way the advice you give your patients or your protocol? Not at the current time, however, once a confirmatory study is done, it might. That is, in fact, the next step. A new round of Selenium studies will begin later this year using the mineral available in tablet form for cancer prevention and treatment.

Sarah Lee Kessler, NJN News, Ridgewood. Coming up on NJN News in our business report, retraining New Jersey's workforce, looking for solutions to the need for skilled labor in the state. Dick Point, a special report continues. Dr. Greenblath, NJN News, Ridgewood. How to dry up those sinuses, huh?

Everybody wants to do it. Decided it was a dry nose. I'll tell you, I never knew it was so popular to have a dry nose. The battle between the maker of Claretin and the maker of rival Selden and hisdomines is getting nastier than a cold in February. The maker of Selden's Somerset County-based Herkst has sued, sharing plow, over claims it's sharing makes, and it's advertising for its drug Claretin. A federal judge has ordered Madison Bay's sharing to modify its ads, which highlight a food and drug administration move to withdraw its approval of Selden because of possible serious interactions with other commonly prescribed drugs. You know, color forms, toys, a favorite of toddlers and preschoolers. Color forms is headquartered in Bergen County, and it's being sold to a company called Toy Biz, for an amount which was not disclosed. Color forms, games will be added to Toy Biz's line of toys based on Marvel comic characters. When the term skilled worker is you, who's most often we think of technical abilities or specialties in operating certain types of equipment, but sometimes entering the skilled labor pool only requires learning English. In part two of our special report on the state's skilled labor shortage,

we look at what's being done to retool new Jersey workers. So different widths and flexibility. One source of skilled labor for New Jersey business is immigrants, who come to this state every day with a technical skill required, but are not able to communicate properly in the workplace. One of the unique programs that we're doing here at Fallsstrom Company to maintain our competitiveness is give our employees the opportunity to enhance their English skills. There was a time when the unemployment system discouraged people from returning to school to upgrade their job skills. In fact, until 1992, you could be denied your state unemployment benefits if you returned to school. But now, classrooms like this one at Mercer County Community College in Trenton are seen as part of the solution to the labor dilemma. There are many people who come to us with immediate needs, unemployed, undreemployed, people who need to retrain and get immediately back in the workforce. So we have programs that are geared just to do that.

We also have grants up to $4,000 that we provide to individuals who can go to school and be trained and upgrade their skills. There's also a site in cyberspace where New Jersey employers and job seekers can meet. The Labor Department has developed through its employment service a database where we have available people with all types of skills. And what we need is the employers who are seeking those job applicants to tap into the database. Come to us, tell us what they need, exactly what they need, and we'll try to match them up. But even without the help of a website, Blas Castro has already found his match. He's in a work training program at Cremens Company in Newark, where he learns more each day about jewelry design and manufacture. His mentor is Tino Martins. You can progress like my coworker Blas. He started here. He had no knowledge of the jewelry whatsoever.

And right now he's doing put a well-designing. There's some things that I know that I try to teach him. And I'm sure one of these days you will be the one teaching me something. Well, Kat, these are just some of the efforts by business government and education working together to keep the state's labor pool competitive. And it's very important that the state does that, because otherwise we'll be at a competitive disadvantage with other states, so I'm told. Looking at the two reports and they were very interesting. It seems that skill today translates into multi-faceted. Right. And adaptable, I think, is the best way to describe it. What business wants is a worker who has multiple skills, as you say, and who can move from job to job. And also demonstrates that they can learn new skills if necessary when their job, other first job ends and they move to something else. All along the way. All right. Thank you, Dick. Still ahead tonight? Well, Wall Street. That's my life. Yes. Okay. Anyway, it was a flight to quality of Wall Street today. I'll explain next or can't well. What else can I say?

Tonight's NJN News Business Report is made possible by Core State's New Jersey National Bank, providing financial services to New Jersey families and businesses. Are you sure you don't want to do this? Big name board. I'd say I couldn't do it. Big name, big board stocks were back in favor today on Wall Street, but high-tech NASDAQ issues continued their sell-off. The Dow industrials rose 51 and a half points to close at the 68-58 level. The MX composite rose nearly one and a half. The NASDAQ composite fell three and two-thirds. About the standard in poor is 500 rows, a little more than four. You see, you probably should have read it because then you messed up the thing. I'm going to make up a lot of time. There you go. Okay. All right. Still to come tonight. A check of the forecast. Did Jerry's here with a look at what's ahead in his poor? As you know, Bill Parcell's is finally introduced as the Jets' New Head Coach, full story next in sports. The Bill's done, Jerry, and today we got to hear from the man.

That's right, Kent. Finally, Bill Parcell's was introduced today as the Jets' New Head Coach, the saga that began with him first being introduced as a consultant, is over. Today's press conference took on the tone of a homecoming. I was born and brought up in Azbury Park, New Jersey. In fact, it started in the oil business down there. Bill Parcell's is in love with Seagirt, New Jersey. There are eight miles apart. In fact, Bill Parcell's love for Seagirt is no secret. He built a home here last summer. Now has Parcell's and the Jersey Shore are once again reunited. As for coaching, Parcell says this is his final stop. He's back with family and friends. All my brothers and sisters are here. And it's important to me. And I have a lot of close friends here. And I just think it's an ideal situation.

I don't think there probably would have been any other place in the country that I would have considered going besides New York. Parcell's takes over a team that went four and 28th the past two seasons. The Jets, on the other hand, gave up four picks to the Patriots over the next three years, starting this season with the third and fourth round picks, the second round pick in 98 and the first round pick in 99. It's a heavy price. This is the Jets organization decision. And I'm grateful that they have that much confidence in me that they would give up those picks to allow me to coach this year. Quite frankly, I thought there was a chance I'd be in a consulting business for a while. But I look forward now to moving on and not worrying about those picks and what they could provide but only what we do have and what that will provide. And that's in tact for at least the next four years. Elsewhere, a trade between the Devils and St. Louis Blues

that brings Veterans Center Peter Zezel to New Jersey in exchange for a defenseman Chris McAlpen and the Devils last pick in the 1999 entry draft. College basketball tonight Rutgers is at home with Loyola of Maryland. And Princeton is at Penn in an Ivy League battle and that's for the first place in the Ivy League. So that's a big game. Big game tonight. All right. Thank you, Jerry. We'll take a look at whether we had a sunny and cold day across New Jersey today. A beautiful morning in Warren County, where a cameraman John Williams caught up with this scenic overview off-route 80 toward Alamucci Township. Plenty of rich farmland with a beautiful mountainous backdrop. As far as our air quality goes for tomorrow, codiella readings for the north and north eastern part of the state. Elsewhere, we can look for good air quality throughout. And here's the forecast in North Jersey tonight, partly cloudy with a low of around 20 degrees. Tomorrow, a chance of some snow with a high of about 40. Of course, it will all melt. In South Jersey tonight, cloudy with lows in the mid-20s. And tomorrow, a mix of sun and clouds with highs in the lower 40s.

Thomas Edison would have been 150 years old today. And students were celebrating the inventor's birthday at his laboratory in West Orange. Besides making a time capsule, the kids viewed some of Edison's well-known inventions like the phonograph and the motion picture camera. And of course, no birthday would be complete without a cake. And they were having cake in Trenton, too. The Wizard of Menlo Park's birthday was also celebrated at Thomas Edison State College. Guess they're enjoyed an old phonograph on display as well as historic photos of New Jersey's most famous inventor. And as we leave you this evening, a little surprise. The halls were jumping this afternoon around our NJN studios. Oh, tell me now that I won't miss again. That's right, the surels were performing for this week's edition of State of the Arts. And you can see the entire program on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m.

and again Sunday at noon on all NJN channels. For all of us here at NJN News, enjoy what you're about to hear. On a note right now, I will you still love me. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.