Wednesday December 3 News Updates Lakewood

Weather: 41° Sunny.

Some light snow is possible across much of New Jersey on Friday night after an Arctic blast of much frigid air could challenge record low temperatures.

- Agudath Israel of America commends the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for voting today in favor of Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, President Trump’s nominee for Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, and urges the full Senate to act swiftly to confirm the nomination and allow the Ambassador-designate to promptly assume his responsibilities.

- A Lakewood man, Edwin Ramirez-Carranza, 21, pleaded guilty to eluding police in an October 2024 Lakehurst pursuit and to aggravated assault for an April 2025 Lakewood crash that seriously injured an off-duty officer. He is expected to receive two concurrent five-year prison terms, with the assault sentence subject to the No Early Release Act.

- Updated: Mordechai Ben Sara Rena, a 23-year-old Lakewood bochur, was sentenced Wednesday to six years in New Jersey State Prison without the possibility of parole for a 2022 drunken-driving crash that killed a 44-year-old woman. The NJ sentencing guidelines require that for certain crimes one must sit for 85% of the time before  they are eligible for parole.

Tzedek association Director Rabbi Moshe Margaretten bemoaned the verdict in a statement to Belaaz news: “It is with great pain that we share the difficult news that Mordy Berkowitz was sentenced today to six years in prison despite the judge noting several times how impressed he was with the accountability campaign supported by Tzedek.”“We believe this sentence is extraordinarily harsh and deeply unfair, and with Hashem’s help, and your continued tefillos, we will succeed!”

Rabbi Margaretten noted “Mordy has already spent the last three years on home confinement. The victims and their families themselves pleaded for mercy. In the neighboring county he would have likely faced zero prison time.”

“Our campaign generated nearly 50,000 pledges from people committing never to drink and drive again a true kiddush Hashem and a testament to real accountability. Yet the prosecutors still sought ten years.”(Belaaz)

- Powerball jackpot has climbed to $775 million, with the next drawing tonight.

- Tomorrow evening, Thursday night, December 4, 2025, Klal Yisrael in Chutz La’aretz will begin reciting V’sain Tal Umatar.

- Giyus: The Belz newspaper Bamachane ran a headline sharply criticizing the current draft bill, warning about the compromises and decrees that would impact the Charedi public as a result of the newly opened discussions on the conscription law.

- Toms River, Lakewood Among NJ’s Most Populated Towns

New Jersey remains a top destination for families, with over 9.5 million residents across 564 municipalities. According to Reader’s Digest, which analyzed state demographics, Lakewood and Toms River rank among the most populated towns in the state. Lakewood is 4th with 139,866 residents, and Toms River is 8th with 99,091. New Jersey continues to trade places with Rhode Island as the nation’s most densely populated state.

- Tefillos and nonstop learning today as a zechus for Mordechai ben Sara Rina, who is being sentenced today in Toms River at 1:30 PM.

Part-time MUA commissioners in Toms River and Lakewood are getting full healthcare and hefty stipends sometimes for just 1–2 hours of work a month. Critics call it a “gravy train” for political appointees. Many appointees are political insiders selected by mayors and township councils. Toms River Mayor Dan Rodrick wants to dissolve the MUA to cut waste.

- The USDA will cut federal funding for SNAP in 21 states starting next week  including NJ, after they refused a February request for recipients’ addresses, Social Security numbers, and immigration status. Audits in cooperating states found issues like 186,000 deceased individuals on rolls, 500,000+ duplicate payments, and 800,000+ ineligible recipients removed nationwide. Non-compliant states, mostly led by Democrats, argue the request violates privacy laws. The lost funding, which covers roughly half of program administration costs, could cost each state tens of millions annually. Affected states include California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Michigan, Massachusetts, and others.

-The Lakewood Township MUA on Tuesday approved a 2% sewer rate increase for 2026, continuing its annual water and sewer hikes. For a family of four using about 200 gallons a day, officials estimate that the cumulative adjustments since 2023 have added roughly $15–$20 to the average monthly bill.

- New Jersey Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill is reportedly backing a plan to raise the state sales tax to 7% before she takes office, allowing the increase to take effect without her bearing the political fallout.

- Howell Police have charged 18-year-old Jaden Thompson of Freehold Township for violently assaulting a young mother who was walking with her 2-year-old on Pinewood Road in Howell on November 17. Thompson is charged with Endangering the Welfare of a Child and Simple Assault. He is already being held in the Ocean County Jail on separate attempted murder charges for an unrelated Thanksgiving stabbing in Jackson. The Howell case followed a two-week investigation after the attacker choked and slammed the mother to the ground before fleeing when she screamed.

A lottery player in union city Hudson County NJ won Tuesday’s $90 million Mega Millions jackpot.

that funding for the Section 8 rental assistance program will be delayed this month in the aftermath of the shutdown.

Only in Bnei Brak: Three brothers ended up in the delivery ward at Mayanei HaYeshua on the same day and at the same time, each accompanying his wife as she gave birth. Within just a few hours, all three became fathers and the grandparents were blessed with four new grandchildren (one set of twins!). Mazel Tov (M weisberg)

- Giyus: In Netanyahu’s circle, there’s a push for a “timetable” on approving the draft law. Coalition members are asking the legal advisor how much time is needed to review all clauses and how many more discussions are required to move the legislation forward. Despite opposition within the coalition, Charedi parties and Netanyahu’s circle are confident that the exemption-from-draft law will pass. “These are negotiation tactics; everyone has their own strategy,” said senior Charedi officials.