Sunday news: Vape van guy, phone poll- UPDATE

Update- July 10, 2017

Yesterday, GA had an extended Facebook exchange with a friend of Joseph Ruggiero ("FOJ")who claimed to have seen Ruggiero's Medical Marijuana card.

In the morning, FOJ denied having seen it:

That night, FOJ changed his denial about seeing the card to "I've seen it."

I could not "see the video posted."

So FOJ posted a photo of what appears to be a Medical Marijuana card in close-up with Ruggiero's name, address and photo, with a big thumb over other information.

Ah, it was FOJ's thumb!  

GA asked FOJ and a second witness who claimed to have seen his card to go on the record. FOJ declined, and the second witness went silent.

I asked FOJ for Ruggiero's number, then was blocked.

Let's recap. No one who claims to have seen the card will go on the record (with me) and the photo purporting to be Ruggiero's Medical Marijuana card held by FOJ can't be posted.

Why not?  If the card exonerates him, why not make public?

Anyway, there's the update; GA saw a partial pic of what appears to be Ruggiero's is license to possess weed legally.

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VAPE VAN GUY UPDATE
Prior to his canonization as a Hoboken Free Speech martyr, this happened: "Drug charges for Hoboken man caught in anti-immigrant tirade video."

Joseph Ruggiero, the antagonist in the notorious 'Vape van incident' was busted on July 6...

 "...following Thursday's search and charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, distribution of marijuana within 1,000 feet of school property and distribution of marijuana within 500 feet of a public park, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said yesterday."

Ruggiero is presumed innocent until proven otherwise.

What's fascinating is that in the hours before the news broke, the Vape Van episode was exhumed for Hoboken's mayoral race by some Reformers and the Dark Side tabloid, The Hoboken Reporter. 

Ooops!  The untimely arrest of Ruggiero for allegedly possessing weed with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of school property, forestalls the Vape guy's canonization as the living symbol of Zimmer/Bhalla overreach.

In fact, Zimmer/Bhalla's move to pluck this (alleged) bad apple looks prescient.

So, what's new?

GA read a comment posted by a friend of Ruggiero's this morning on Facebook.

Huh?  The cops learned Ruggiero had a "medical marijuana card" and was "let go on a summons" and "it appears that charges will be dropped"?

GA followed up with Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante; I asked him whether Ruggiero had a medical marijuana license, and was "only given a summons."

Chief Ferrante replied, "Under the new Criminal Justice Reform, 85% of arrestees are released on a summons to appear in court. Drug sales and Burglary are not deemed violent crimes. Only violent criminals, determined by a risk assessment are detained until trial. Summons is a Criminal justice term, it is not like he got a parking summons. He was arrested on multiple drug distribution charges. But instead of a high bail being placed on him, which would have happened prior to Dec 31,2016, arrestees proven to be non violent are released until their trial as they are innocent until proven guilty."

GA asked again, "Does he have a license for medical marijuana?"

Ferrante replied, "Not that I am aware of."

There you go, folks. Stay tuned.

For the record, the original Vape Van episode stemmed from a criminal complaint filed on May 6, 2017 against Ruggiero for "Harassment" and "Bias Intimidation".   Ruggiero's supporters,  some members of the public, and some bloggers framed the City's  punitive actions as clamping down on Ruggiero's First Amendment right to use 'hate speech'  in public.

Um... no.

Nobody loved the hate speech, but that was not the legal basis for the proposed revocation of the Vape Van's license.

Read statute § 146-8 Granting of licenses. There is a "good moral character" and "general history" clause. Ruggiero's 'general history' included dozens of parking violations, and termination for cause by Hoboken's Department of Transportation and Parking in November 2013.  Further, on May 6, a harassment complaint was filed against him with a viral video to back up the victim's version of events.  You see, there was a veritable smorgasbord of lawful reasons why his vendor's license was subject to revocation under Hoboken law.

The First Amendment argument was a straw man, albeit a popular straw man. That was, and is my opinion.  Let's save sainthood for Saints.

PHONE POLL
Have you gotten it yet?  GA hasn't.

But I have confirmed whose poll it is- Anthony 'Stick' Romano's.  The campaign is using a pollster called Global Strategies.

That's all for today... happy Sunday!