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Briana: Tonight on "NJ Spotlight News" breaking down a big theme running rampant on the presidential campaign trail.

Crime, is it up, or is it down?

>> The idea is there is a -- and in perception with crime rates.

Crime has actually been your going -- been going on the last couple of years.

Briana: Plus, can -- plus, cannabis shakeup.

A 21 year old intellectual and intellectual development is asking the court should give him his rights back.

>> I know how to make responsible decisions the best way possible for me, knowing all my physical limitations and knowing what is actually best.

Briana: And the Phillies offer to keep that -- the 76ers and PA may not be a slamdunk.

Governor Murphy says Camden is still at play.

>> I'm sure that's a setback but until the final plan is approved by the city Council, it is not a done deal.

"NJ Spotlight News" begins right now.

♪ From NJPBS Studios, this is "NJ Spotlight News" with Briana Vannozzi.

Briana: Good evening and thanks for joining us this Monday night.

I'm Briana Vannozzi.

We begin with the few key stories were following, first, the legislature has a plan to address why more white and male owned businesses are getting the majority of contracts over women and minority on companies.

A group of assembly members today introduced a package of bills designed to create more equity in the system of awarding New Jersey's public contracts are requiring more oversight in which subcontractors are hard by the state, mandatory outreach events like training workshops and educational programs for minority and women owned businesses, along with enforcing that state agencies must make a good-faith effort to increase contracts awarded to certified minority and women owned businesses.

The move comes in response to a study released last January which found despite women owning 38% of businesses in the state, they received less than 10% of public contracts.

Likewise, black owned companies represent about 9% of available construction business, yet they receive a fraction of the dollars available for construction contracts.

>> The evidence is clear.

Systemic and quick -- inequities persist, hindering the growth and prosperity of marginalized communities.

Today we recommit to building a more inclusive and equitable business landscape, one where every entrepreneur, regardless of background, has the chance to thrive.

Briana: Also tonight, one of New Jersey's most influential critics of corporate cannabis is being stripped of his post by Governor Murphy.

The governor's office announced on Friday the Charles Booker will be removed from the states cannabis regulatory commission.

Barker was appointed by Murphy in 2021 and has been a favorite of social justice advocates.

He has been vocal in pointing out how the states legalization law fall short in helping the communities most harmed of the war on drugs.

Barker also consistently voted against policies he felt were too an official for large cannabis operations that pushed to legalize home grow.

That put him at odd with the state senator, he tapped a Union County taxation official and a constituent to replace Barker.

With roughly a month to go before sentencing, disgraced former Senator Bob Menendez is making a last-ditch effort to get a new trial.

This time by submitting letters defending the strength of his character.

Since August, friends and acquaintances of Menendez have submitted five letters to federal court urging the U.S. District Judge to take into consideration Menendez's years of public service to New Jersey.

Among them, the president and CEO of Metropolitan family health network and Linda Wilder, founder of the Daniel Jordan fiddle foundation for adult autism.

She wrote to say that Menendez is a champion of worthy causes by way of fighting to create the autism CARES act, adding that his work inspired their own.

Menendez was found guilty in July and 16 charges for -- of federal corruption and conspiracy for taking part in a widespread bribery scheme where he and his wife received cash, gold bars and other luxuries from three businessmen in exchange for his political influence.

Menendez filed for an acquittal and new trial, alleging the government failed to prove he took official acts for those bribes.

In the lead up to November's election, politicians are claiming crime is up and neighborhoods are not say.

But state, federal, and local data show otherwise.

According to the FBI, violent crime has been on the decline, both in New Jersey and nationwide.

Despite that, the notion of an unsafe America has become a political selling point that is gaining traction, and discerning fact from fiction is growing more difficult.

A social justice writer dug into the issue and joins us with her latest reporting.

Good to see you.

I guess the top question is, how to public perceptions of crime compare to the actual statistics?

>> Thanks for having me.

The idea is that there is a perception issue with crime rates at the moment.

Crime has actually been going down the last couple of years.

It did spike in the pandemic, which some criminologists feel leads to feelings of uncertainty and what is happening in the country and in New Jersey at the moment.

When a neighbor goes ahead and post something about a package being stolen or something happening in the neighborhood, that sort of amplifies how people experience and deal with crime itself.

You don't hear about people necessarily saying my package came successfully today, or I was able to walk around the neighborhood with no problem.

You only really care about the bad moments, so that feeds into the idea that crime rates are higher than the actually are.

Briana: But who are what is amplifying it?

Is it social media, IQ said, a neighbor posting about something on their Facebook page?

Is it politicians?

How is the reality being distorted, as the data suggests?

>> It's all of the above.

It social media, new stories, political rhetoric, it all amplifies the idea that crime rates are up and crime is rampant, especially in cities.

If you look at the FBI uniform crime report data, the latest we have is from 2022.

The 2023 report will be coming out in October.

You see the trend that crime is actually going down.

That is actually a collective of data from police departments across the country.

While not all police departments submit data about crime that is happening in their jurisdiction, most do.

And again, that is showing that crime is trending down.

But again, when you have someone posting, you are hearing about something on the news, it makes it feel like the crime itself is a bigger issue than it actually is.

About 63 percent of Americans do think that crime is a serious issue, according to a Gallup poll from late last year.

Briana: I've been sitting down with all the collection officials and each and everyone on both sides of the aisle have said that is -- constituents or potential constituents tell them that crime is top of mind.

Is it also possible that national averages and mask local spikes, or what people are seeing or feeling in their neighborhoods?

>> That is a possibility.

But when you look at the state and local data, it does also show that violent crime is trending down.

We have cities like Paterson, Newark, Jersey City, Philadelphia, New York City all reporting that violent crime is going down.

There are certain crimes that are increasing, specifically hate crimes and bias incidents.

Criminologists say that could lead to those feelings of uncertainty.

The pandemic did leave an impression on us and again, that was a time when crime did experience a bit of a bump.

So there are those lasting feelings for you are not really sure what is happening, what is being taken care of.

My safe, is my family safe?

But on the whole, in cities like New York City, they are not really experiencing crime, a rampant issue of crime day today.

Briana: What are the implications when crime is being focused on, say in political rhetoric?

>> The issue there is, there is increase of policing, and that typically means and marginalized, black and brown communities, lower income communities are the ones that feel the repercussions of this.

There will be higher police presence in their neighborhoods and they are more likely to experience the criminal justice system.

Briana: Great reporting, Tyler, thanks so much.

The full pieces on our website.

Tonight, we are taking a deeper look at one of the main hurdles individuals with disabilities face when it comes to their civil rights.

21 year old New Jersey resident Peter has spent the last several years of his life petitioning a guardianship placed over him, one he says is both unwanted and unwarranted.

The ground -- the young adult with autism sharing his story in the hope he can help others in their quest for self advocacy and medical decision-making rights.

>> I, myself, and better for me than anyone else.

Joanna: Peter is finding a complicated court case over his guardianship.

He has spent the last three years fighting his mom's claims that he is incapable of independence because of his disability, and that she should have guardianship over all his main decisions.

>> I know how to make the best decisions for me, knowing my physical limitations and knowing what is actually best.

Joanna: After years of court appearances that cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars from a trust that is now basically empty.

His troubles did not end there.

>> We were alerted to the case right around the time that Peter's mom moved to dismiss the case.

>> Disability rights New Jersey got involved because of the extremely unusual way the court handled the dismissal.

>> The court ordered that dismissal, but impose conditions on the dismissal.

>> The restrictions are mainly that Peter has to see a guardian ad litem for another two years who would then report to his mother.

>> His father has supported him both emotionally and financially through the court challenge.

He said the second part of the conditions required that he see a therapist that he had already hired privately.

>> But still forcing disclosure of those therapy notes to his mother.

>> Typically those conditions are minor things like fees being paid, so the court will order that your case is dismissed if you pay the defendant's attorneys fees.

That the protection conditions on dismissal are used to protect the rights of the defendant.

In this case, the conditions on dismissal are weaponized against the defendant.

>> Attorney Kelly McGuire argued against those conditions in the appellate court.

We reach out to the attorney representing Peter's mother, but received no response.

They are more broadly concerned about a bill introduced in both houses of the legislature that could make it much harder for someone with disabilities to maintain their independence, or overturn a petition for guardianship.

>> Currently you have to wait until an individual turns 18 to apply for guardianship.

But the bill reduces that 217 .5.

So an individual never obtains her own legal quote -- capacity at age 18 if you file at 17.5.

Never have the ability to find an attorney and mount a defense of that guardianship.

>> Under current law, someone put tensioning for guardianship has to prove -- petitioning for guardianship has to prove they cannot live independently.

This bill could change that.

>> The bill shifts that burden and says that once a petition has been filed for guardianship, the person defending against that guardianship has to prove that they don't need guardianship before that petition can be withdrawn.

>> Is guilty until proven innocent, and it would burn people's money.

They won't be able to save that money for their own required use.

You need that money, especially if you are on the spectrum.

>> Peter says he is fighting now for all those who cannot afford representation like he could.

>> Poor people are just being crushed in the system.

>> Oral arguments in Peter's case were held last week and can now take the appellate court from three months to nine months to complete a decision in this case.

In the meantime, the lower court did put a day on the condition say impose, so they are suspended for now.

In Trenton, I'm Joanna Gagis, "NJ Spotlight News".

Briana: If you are one of the millions watching the NFL yesterday, chances are you saw a laundry list of betting commercials.

It is hard to watch anything or go anywhere without being exposed to sports betting.

Now lawmakers are drawing a line in the sand, introducing legislation to keep -- keep sports betting out of one of New Jersey's major institutions, our universities.

Ted Goldberg has a story.

Ted: Commercials for sports gamely are everywhere.

In the short time that sports betting has been legal in New Jersey, these ads have infiltrated anywhere you can watch sports.

>> The rapid ascension of sports betting here in New Jersey is something that I don't know if you all plan for.

Everywhere you look, social media, events, you see things about sports betting.

Ted: Almost every sports betting -- the ads during sports betting games are all on sports betting sites.

>> Lawmakers say they are more than just a nuisance, they are a safety concern.

A few years ago, voters rejected an amendment that would've overturned long-standing rule banning bets on New Jersey college teams.

Now the assembly higher education committee wants to go further, advancing a bill today that would ban betting partnerships at schools statewide, less a partnership provides experiential learning opportunities for students.

>> We realize we have to put guards up to protect our residents and potentially some of the statistic that show -- that we put things in place for those.

>> They are most popular among men under the age of 30.

We also see when they're doing these games, they're much more likely to fall into problem gambling behavior.

>> You might not know it from his name, but Dan Casino has issues with how widespread gambling has become.

>> Were facing a generation of people who are going to have gambling problems going forward in life.

It is not something people get over easily or quickly.

>> He says numbers show people are more likely to become problem gamblers from bets that become immediate.

>> When you stretch it out and say, all right, what about gambling where it is instant and you don't even have to go to the convenience store to play it?

This involves online gambling.

That is likely to lead to much more problematic behaviors.

>> He says Ganley on sports is more -- is closer to scratch off tickets than the lottery.

>> You can bet every single play on sports.

This is also considered to be part of the way to enjoy sports.

It can be interesting if you're betting on what is going on every single play.

>> An amendment allows limited partnerships, drawing criticism from casino and praise from the estate Association colleges and universities.

>> Ensuring that her students remain as safe as possible but in the same time recognizing it as a viable career for them, there is that balance and we preach -- appreciate the work the sponsored it to try to find that balance.

>> The sponsorships are really problematic.

It is essentially incentivizing colleges and universities to push their students toward gambling.

We don't need anyone else encouraging young people to do this sort of gambling.

>> The Council of compulsive gambling of New Jersey sent a statement which reads in part, the Council strongly discourages such partnerships misses the majority of university students are below the legal age of gambling, and research has consistently shown that those under 21 who participate in or are exposed to gambling are far more likely to develop gambling problems later in life.

This bill response to the fact that several universities need the Faustian deal of partnering with sports betting companies, as betting looms larger and larger in college sports, the image of the amateur athlete seems to belong to a more innocent time.

This is a loss for everyone.

>> New leadership we haven't sports betting and tourism and stuff like that, I think we all agree we should head things out before they get to a point that becomes an issue.

>> At the Statehouse, I'm Ted Goldberg, "NJ Spotlight News".

Briana: In our spotlight on business report, the Murphy administration is down but not out when it comes to landing the 76ers.

State officials tell "NJ Spotlight News" that have not given up on their bid to lure the professional basketball team to the Camden Riverfront, despite an announcement last week by the Phillies mayor stating she struck a deal with the team, paving the way for new arena to be built in the city's Chinatown.

As John notes, the governor's team says it doesn't mean New Jersey is out of the running, and he is with me now in the studio.

John, good to talk to you.

The story just keeps unfolding.

What is the newest development you have learned from the folks over at the EDA?

John: Good to be with you today.

The way the Murphy administration is sure that is the setback to have this agreement announce.

Until the final plan is approved by the city Council, is not a done deal.

So as long as there is a window and you can use whatever sports metaphor here you would like, that they see an opportunity to continue to try to be an alternative vision and the arena location in Philly has drawn some pushback.

So there is still a process that has the play out, just like you and I know at the state legislature, some Psalms governor might make an agreement and it still has to go through the legislature.

The team is under little bit of a deadline in terms of when it wants to get started on the new arena, because it has a lease writing out almost a decade from now -- running out almost a decade from now.

Because you have to get a project of this scale started, they have a little bit of a deadline they're working on.

This is not Shark Tank where they say this was our best offer and now it is off the table.

Briana: I love that analogy.

They cannot just whip up and arena overnight.

But what are the differences between what New Jersey is offering and what we know about the Phillies offer?

Yes, they do have a hurdle in front of them because a lot of the neighbors of Chinatown in Osan Chinatown said we have already been squeezed out by development and we don't want this here.

What is New Jersey proposing that might get a little bit more persuasive?

John: I think you are on to something there.

Just in the sense that there seems to be unity on the new Jabeur -- New Jersey side of the mayor, where they listen to local representative, all the way up to the governor speaking about this.

You do have a little bit of a disagreement in Philly when it comes to what the mayor's administration like to do and then what maybe some people in the neighborhood that would be impacted by this development.

Right now the team plays in South Philly, which is sort of in a sports complex area that is a lot different than Center City Philadelphia, which is more where the neighborhoods and business districts are.

There are trends -- transportation consider rations, mass transit, Philadelphia's mass transit system is having challenges just like ours is.

So there still a lot of different things at play but the idea would be that in New Jersey, everybody is singing off the same song sheet.

Briana: But also a lot of money, and as you wrote in your piece, is not just the money, but also the fact that there are financial reports that show just because you build an arena here or bring a sports team, it doesn't necessarily translate into the type of economic boon that legislators are saying it will.

John: Absolutely.

That is another element of the story.

New Jersey has this long simmering debate about the win a pits of tax incentives and publicly funded tax credits.

So this project that has been promote -- proposed on the New Jersey side of the river would qualify for some of the big programs that were remade under Governor Murphy's administration versus what we had in place when Chris Christie was governor.

The prior programs were much criticized.

Murphy's administration is very confident that things like community benefits agreements, local hiring mandates, that some of the things that have been layered into the new versions of these incentive programs will do a better job of delivering those types of promised benefits that maybe we don't see in other places that may not have as strict of an incentive program as New Jersey believes it has.

Briana: So they are saying there's more oversight now, we have built this into the program itself, therefore we can look ahead and say there's going to be more of a benefit.

John: That is the promises that have been made.

And again, I think administration feels like the programs as they exist now play a little bit better defense to keep going with the sports theme than some of the incentive programs that have been in place in New Jersey in past years and maybe in another parts of the country.

That I think the jury is still out on that for sure.

Briana: You can check out John's piece on our website.

Thanks for coming in.

That will do it for us tonight.

Before you go, a reminder chewed download the "NJ Spotlight News" podcast so you can listen to us at any time.

I'm Briana Vannozzi.

Thanks for being with us.

We will see you right back here tomorrow.

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