Tragicomedy, Part 3:

Bagel Shop Owner Says He’s Not Breaking the Law by Keeping Window Shades Down
Channel 3000 News | August 12, 2023 | Nick Caloway

WEST ORANGE, New Jersey (WCBS) — The owner of a bagel shop in West Orange, New Jersey, thinks he’s being unfairly targeted by the town’s zoning department.

Jarrett Seltzer, who opened Bagels by Jarrett in early 2020, claims he was cited twice for zoning infractions even though he’s following the rules.

“We switched to curbside, obviously because of COVID. And it was one of those things that just ended up working,” said Seltzer.

That curbside-only business model stuck. Customers still order online and their food is carried out to them.

Seltzer keeps the shades down to lower his cooling bill and discourage customers from coming inside.

In July, Seltzer was given a summons from the West Orange Zoning Department, which claimed he violated an ordinance that states “all windows shall be left uncovered and shall not be opaque to the public view.”

The ordinance also says “All screening of interiors, or shades, shall be maintained clean and in a good state of repair.”

“As far as the code reads, we’re not breaking the code. And we stand by that,” said Seltzer.

Seltzer said the zoning department gave him another summons on Thursday for advertisements covering more than one-third of his windows, which he disputes.

Seltzer said he’s facing thousands of dollars in fines and possible jail time.

“If you drive down Main Street in West Orange, you will see that every single business has window shades up. No one has any issues with their window shades. It’s only my window shades. And I can’t tell you why,” said Seltzer.

Mayor Susan McCartney told CBS New York she believes Seltzer violated the ordinances even after she tried to work with him on a solution.

Loyal Bagels by Jarrett customers said Seltzer is being harassed by township officials over window treatments.

“I don’t understand it. I’m not a lawyer. I am a realtor in town, or whatever, so it really doesn’t make us look good, to be honest with you,” said Amy Gallatin. [ … and every other American.]

Seltzer hired an attorney and plans to fight the claims before a judge on Aug. 22.

Police Stage “Chilling” Raid on Marion County Newspaper, Seizing Computers, Records and Cellphones
daily mail | 8/11/23

MARION [Kansas] — In an unprecedented raid Friday, local law enforcement seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials from the Marion County Record office, the newspaper’s reporters, and the publisher’s home.

Eric Meyer, owner and publisher of the newspaper, said police were motivated by a confidential source who leaked sensitive documents to the newspaper, and the message was clear: “Mind your own business or we’re going to step on you.”

The city’s entire five-officer police force and two sheriff’s deputies took “everything we have,” Meyer said, and it wasn’t clear how the newspaper staff would take the weekly publication to press Tuesday night.

The raid followed news stories about a restaurant owner who kicked reporters out of a meeting last week with U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, and revelations about the restaurant owner’s lack of a driver’s license and conviction for drunken driving.

Meyer said he had never heard of police raiding a newspaper office during his 20 years at the Milwaukee Journal or 26 years teaching journalism at the University of Illinois.

“It’s going to have a chilling effect on us even tackling issues,” Meyer said, as well as “a chilling effect on people giving us information.”

The search warrant, signed by Marion County District Court Magistrate Judge Laura Viar, appears to violate federal law that provides protections against searching and seizing materials from journalists. The law requires law enforcement to subpoena materials instead. Viar didn’t respond to a request to comment for this story or explain why she would authorize a potentially illegal raid.

Emily Bradbury, executive director of the Kansas Press Association, said the police raid is unprecedented in Kansas.

“An attack on a newspaper office through an illegal search is not just an infringement on the rights of journalists but an assault on the very foundation of democracy and the public’s right to know,” Bradbury said. “This cannot be allowed to stand.”

Meyer reported last week that Marion restaurant owner Kari Newell had kicked newspaper staff out of a public forum with LaTurner, whose staff was apologetic. Newell responded to Meyer’s reporting with hostile comments on her personal Facebook page.

A confidential source contacted the newspaper, Meyer said, and provided evidence that Newell had been convicted of drunken driving and continued to use her vehicle without a driver’s license. The criminal record could jeopardize her efforts to obtain a liquor license for her catering business.

A reporter with the Marion Record used a state website to verify the information provided by the source. But Meyer suspected the source was relaying information from Newell’s husband, who had filed for divorce. Meyer decided not to publish a story about the information, and he alerted police to the situation.

Police notified Newell, who then complained at a city council meeting that the newspaper had illegally obtained and disseminated sensitive documents, which isn’t true. Her public comments prompted the newspaper to set the record straight in a story published Thursday.

Sometime before 11 a.m. Friday, officers showed up simultaneously at Meyer’s home and the newspaper office. They presented a search warrant that alleges identity theft and unlawful use of a computer.

The search warrant identifies two pages worth of items that law enforcement officers were allowed to seize, including computer software and hardware, digital communications, cellular networks, servers and hard drives, items with passwords, utility records, and all documents and records pertaining to Newell.

The warrant specifically targeted ownership of computers capable of being used to “participate in the identity theft of Kari Newell.”

Officers injured a reporter’s finger by grabbing her cellphone out of her hand, Meyer said. Officers at his home took photos of his bank account information.

He said officers told him the computers, cellphones and other devices would be sent to a lab.

“I don’t know when they’ll get it back to us,” Meyer said. “They won’t tell us.”

The seized computers, server and backup hard drive include advertisements and legal notices that were supposed to appear in the next edition of the newspaper.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do,” he said. “We will publish something.”

Florida Man Arrested for Manslaughter After Hole-in-One Photo ID
ABC News | August 3, 2023 | Ivan Pereira

… Dean Zook, 87, allegedly was heading to the club that day with his wife for dinner when his car bumped into another car parked in the lot, court documents said. A man came out asking what Zook did to his car and after Zook allegedly took responsibility and asked for insurance information, police said.

The other man allegedly punched Zook several times, according to court documents.

“The victim attempted to put his hands up to protect himself, but was unable to protect himself from the continuing punches,” court documents said.

The suspect later discovered that his car was not the one struck by Zook, but left the scene, court documents said.

Zook stumbled when police arrived on the scene and he was rushed to a hospital with bleeding in the brain, police said. He succumbed to his injuries on July 16, according to court documents.

Kim Soon will be in contact with you — if you’ve been his friend.

Or:

Looks like the media are eating them up.