Mike Catalini, Author at The Rapid City Post

FILE - Alina Habba speaks after being sworn in as interim US Attorney General for New Jersey, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, on March 28, 2025. (Pool File via AP)

Trump administration fights to keep ex-Trump lawyer Alina Habba as New Jersey federal prosecutor

July 22, 2025

The Justice Department is fighting to keep President Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Alina Habba, in place as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey after a panel of judges refused to extend her tenure and appointed someone else to the job. Habba initially appeared to lose the position Tuesday when district judges declined to keep Habba in the post while she awaits confirmation by the U.S. Senate. They appointed one of Habba’s subordinates, Desiree Leigh Grace, as her successor. But just hours later, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that she had in turn removed Grace, blaming Habba’s removal on “politically minded judges.” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields says Trump has full confidence in Habba and the administration would work to get her confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

FILE - This photo provided by the Bucks County, Pa., District Attorney's Office shows Justin Mohn, the man accused of beheading his father in their suburban Philadelphia home in January 2024. (Bucks County District Attorney's Office via AP, File)

Woman at son’s Pennsylvania murder trial recounts finding husband’s decapitated corpse

July 7, 2025

Trial is underway in Pennsylvania of a man accused of killing his father and posting a video of his severed head online. Prosecutors say 33-year-old Justin Mohn shot his father, Michael Mohn, at their home in Levittown in January 2024 before decapitating him. Authorities say Justin Mohn posted the 14-minute YouTube video, which included anti-government rants. His mother testified Monday about finding her husband’s body in a first-floor bathroom. Justin Mohn was arrested later the same day after authorities say he climbed a 20-foot fence at the state’s National Guard headquarters. Officials say he had photos of federal buildings and apparent instructions for making explosives on a USB drive.

US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleads not guilty to assault charges stemming from immigration center visit

June 25, 2025

U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver has pleaded not guilty to federal charges accusing her of assaulting and interfering with immigration officers outside a New Jersey detention center. McIver was arraigned in federal court in Newark on Wednesday. The charges stem from a congressional oversight visit at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark on May 9. McIver is a Democrat. She was charged last month in a complaint by interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba, a Republican appointed by President Donald Trump. McIver said outside court after Wednesday’s hearing that she will not be intimidated. Newark’s mayor also was arrested at the detention center the same day, but that charge was dropped.

Meet Rep. LaMonica McIver, the Democrat being prosecuted over encounter outside NJ immigration jail

June 25, 2025

U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver captured the spotlight this month when she was indicted on charges she assaulted officials during an oversight visit to an immigration detention center in May. It’s a rare federal prosecution against a current member of Congress on charges other than corruption or fraud. Now she’s in court to be arraigned on three charges she assaulted and impeded federal officials — allegations she has said she’d fight. The 39-year-old Newark, New Jersey, native is in her first full term in Congress, and she’s garnered more attention than many members.

FILE - The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Camden, N.J., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

New Jersey can have a grand jury investigate clergy sex abuse allegations, state high court rules

June 16, 2025

New Jersey’s Supreme Court says the state can have a grand jury investigate allegations of clergy sexually abusing children and report findings. The court ruled Monday. The Diocese of Camden in May had ended its longstanding opposition to such proceedings. It had previously argued that the attorney general can’t empanel a grand jury to issue findings because a court rule limits such investigations to public officials. The high court disagreed. The issue dates to 2018, when a Pennsylvania grand jury found that more than 1,000 children had been abused in that state since the 1940s, prompting New Jersey to announce a similar investigation.

FILE - In this photo combo Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., left, speaking during a news conference, Feb. 13, 2024, in Washington and former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli speaking, Feb. 4, 2025, at Rider University in Lawrenceville, N.J. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, Mike Catalini, file)

Trump, pizza and helicopters: A guide to the New Jersey governor’s race

June 11, 2025

Getting to know the candidates in New Jersey’s race for governor may offer insights about the national mood on President Donald Trump’s agenda, as well as how voters are reacting to Democrats’ messaging. After emerging from competitive primaries, Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli began the general election campaign Wednesday. Both will look to fire up their core supporters and find new voters. And both have found subtle ways to tout their backgrounds to voters during the campaign. In New Jersey, Democrats outnumber Republicans among registered voters, but independents are a significant chunk of the electorate.

Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli to face off in race for New Jersey governor

June 10, 2025

U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill has won the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s race for governor. She emerged from a crowded field on the strength of her biography as a Navy pilot and former prosecutor. The vocal critic of President Donald Trump won against five experienced rivals. She becomes the Democrats’ standard-bearer at a time when the state party is looking to win the governorship for a third straight term and the national party is looking for new leadership. She will face the Republican nominee, Jack Ciattarelli, in the November general election. He cruised to victory with the support of Trump.

FILE - Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli speaks during a news conference, Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, in Raritan, N.J. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Trump, pushing for Ciattarelli, says New Jersey ‘ready to pop out of blue horror show’

June 2, 2025

President Donald Trump implored voters in New Jersey’s primary for governor to vote for Republican Jack Ciattarelli when early in-person voting begins Tuesday and said the state was ready for a change from years of Democratic control. The president announced his endorsement for Ciattarelli last month and held a telephone rally for the candidate Monday. The phone call lasted about 10 minutes, with the president saying that voters will decide whether the state remains a “high-tax, high-crime sanctuary state.” Currently, the state attorney general has directed local law enforcement not to assist federal agents in civil immigration matters.

Mike Catalini.

Trump administration fights to keep ex-Trump lawyer Alina Habba as New Jersey federal prosecutor

Woman at son’s Pennsylvania murder trial recounts finding husband’s decapitated corpse

US Rep. LaMonica McIver pleads not guilty to assault charges stemming from immigration center visit

Meet Rep. LaMonica McIver, the Democrat being prosecuted over encounter outside NJ immigration jail

New Jersey can have a grand jury investigate clergy sex abuse allegations, state high court rules

Trump, pizza and helicopters: A guide to the New Jersey governor’s race

Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli to face off in race for New Jersey governor

Trump, pushing for Ciattarelli, says New Jersey ‘ready to pop out of blue horror show’

Finance.

Contact

Sections

about Us