The man stole from DrugSmart Pharmacy in Keansburg, according to police

KEANSBURG -- Police are asking for help from the public to find a man who burglarized a pharmacy in Keansburg earlier this month.

The man broke into DrugSmart Pharmacy on Main Street on Dec. 4 and police released surveillance images Monday in the hopes of identifying a suspect. Authorities didn't say what was stolen.

Anyone who can identify the man pictured is asked to call police at 732-787-0600. Anonymous tips can also be left at 732-787-0796.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

One victim received severe burns when a detached garage went up in flames on Saturday morning, officials said.

ASBURY PARK -- The city's fire department responded to 40 incidents on Friday and Saturday, including a blaze in a garage that severely burned a victim.

In an announcement on Facebook, the Asbury Park Fire Department said it handled several serious medical emergencies, assisted with a fire in nearby Deal and responded to two residential blazes in the city.

A fire that started around 10:35 a.m. on Saturday in a detached garage at a residence on Fourth Avenue left one man with serious burns to more than half of his body, fire officials said. Firefighters from Asbury Park and Long Branch were able to contain the fire to the garage and protect the surrounding homes.

The man was brought to the Burn Center at Saint Barnabas in Livingston. Information on the man's condition was not immediately available. 

On Friday, the Asbury Park Fire Department responded to an apartment complex shortly after 11 a.m. on Washington Avenue. The apartment was unoccupied at the time of the firefighters' arrival. Firefighters were able to gain entry to the second-floor apartment unit, and contain the fire to the kitchen area.

In the Facebook post, the Asbury Park Fire Department thanked the following agencies for their help: fire departments from Neptune, Deal, Long Branch and Ocean Township, Monmouth County Fire Marshal's Office, Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office and the Monmouth County Sheriff's Office. 

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Scroll through the gallery to view 30 people wanted by agencies throughout the state on the most serious criminal charges.

NEWARK -- More than two years after authorities named Lamont Stephenson in his fiancee's killing, police still don't know where he is.

Olga Dejesus, 40, was found dead on Oct. 17, 2014, in her apartment in Newark's North Ward. Her cause of death was ruled as asphyxiation.

Two weeks later, the Essex County law enforcement officials obtained a warrant for Stephenson's arrest on a homicide charge.

But as 2016 winds to a close, Stephenson is one of hundreds of people still wanted by local, state and federal authorities throughout New Jersey in connection with crimes ranging from drug possession to homicide.

In some cases, the defendants were arrested, charged and released, and failed to appear for future court dates. In other cases, like Stephenson's, arrest warrants were obtained but never successfully served.

Cumberland County seeks most wanted fugitives

In some cases, authorities have posted cash rewards for information leading to arrests and/or convictions.

Walter Yovany Gomez has been a wanted man since Sept. 19, 2013 -- the day a federal grand jury indicted him and 13 of his alleged fellow gang members on murder and racketeering charges.

Authorities say Yovany Gomez, an alleged member of Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, was one of two men responsible for a May 8, 2011 killing in Plainfield of a man they believed to be a rival gang member.

This summer, the FBI's Newark Division announced a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to his arrest.

Scroll through the gallery to view 30 people wanted by agencies throughout the state on the most serious criminal charges. This is only a sample hundreds of people wanted by law enforcement throughout the state.

Authorities said the man stole a cell phone

HOLMDEL -- A Lakewood man who got thrown out of a party in Holmdel because he was too intoxicated broke into a neighboring home early Tuesday morning, authorities said.

David S. Santiago, 27, was charged with burglary, criminal trespass, theft, harassment, disorderly conduct and two counts of criminal mischief in the incident that brought police to a Wildhedge Lane home at 1:11 a.m., police said in a release.

The release said the homeowners called police about a stranger banging on their front door and then minutes later kicking in the door.

When Patrolman John Maguire arrived, he was approached by Santiago, who had a long object in his hand, the release said. Santiago complied with the officers' demands for him to drop the object and get down on the ground, according to the release.

A follow-up investigation determined Santiago had been in the area for a party but was asked to leave when he became intoxicated. Instead of going home, he broke into the neighboring house, damaged some furniture inside, urinated on the floor and stole a cell phone, the release said.

Authorities found the phone and returned it to its owner, the release said.

After he was arrested and taken to police headquarters, Santiago became unruly in his cell and damaged the toilet there, the release said.

Santiago was being held in the Monmouth County jail in Freehold in lieu of $10,000 bail.

MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

New Jersey's real estate market has slowly recovered since the Great Recession decimated home values across the state. But investing in some areas has proved to be more fruitful than others. Today we're looking at the areas that have fared the best and the worst over the last half decade or so.

The last three hospitals in a legal battle against the state's largest insurer have see half their claims survive a crucial test.

A string of court victories for Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey recently came to an end when a Bergen judge refused to dismiss all counts of a lawsuit by three hospitals.

Those hospitals were left out in the cold when Horizon announced its "OMNIA" health insurance policies in late 2015. The policies save consumers money by giving them more coverage if they are treated at one of the plan's "Tier 1" hospitals. If they go instead to "Tier 2," they pay more. Their monthly premiums are also 15-20 percent lower.

The move touched off a titanic battle in both the legislature and the courts, as the excluded hospitals realized their financial stability would be threatened if Horizon customers went elsewhere. As the state's largest health insurer, Horizon covers 3.8 million residents.

The excluded hospitals also worry that being dubbed Tier 2 implies their care isn't as good as Tier 1.  

In the latest ruling, delivered late last week, Superior Court Judge Robert P. Contillo allowed crucial parts of the hospitals' lawsuit against Horizon to continue.

That means Horizon could face a trial in which it would have to explain how it chose the hospitals it selected for OMNIA, and would have to prove it didn't commit a breach of contract by excluding other hospitals from the new arrangement. And it would have to defend the charge that its Tier 2 label wasn't damaging to the hospitals' reputations.

Three of the six counts against Horizon were dismissed, meaning the group of hospitals cannot pursue its claim the insurance giant pressured physicians to steer patients to OMNIA hospitals. Nor will it be able to continue to argue in court that Horizon's role as a non-profit means it has a financial obligation to the hospitals.

Because of that split ruling, however, both sides are claiming victory.

"The ruling is a win for the hundreds of thousands of people who have chosen OMNIA and a clear rebuke to the remaining three plaintiffs," said Horizon spokesman Tom Wilson. "The hospital's case was effectively gutted and what remains amounts to no more than a garden variety contract dispute."

The hospitals that remain in the suit - Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, and CentraState Medical Center in Freehold - insist their core complaints remain legally alive.

"The Court's decision means that a trial is likely and as a result, the secrecy Horizon has maintained surrounding the selection proves will finally be removed," said Michael K. Furey, attorney for the hospitals. Already, court documents have shown the insurer selected its participating hospitals using a scoring system that "was biased in favor of the large hospital systems," he said.

Four other hospitals that joined the lawsuit when it was filed in late 2015 have since dropped out and made their own arrangements with Horizon. They are St. Luke's Warren Hospital, Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth, JFK Medical Center in Edison, and Capital Health Systems in Trenton.

Another group of 17 hospitals tried a different legal tack, arguing the N.J. Department of Banking and Industry failed to take into account the effect OMINA would have on struggling urban hospitals, as well as on the state's Catholic hospitals. They were largely designated Tier 2 facilities.

That approach failed, however, as a judge ruled the Department acted properly in allowing Horizon to set up the ground-breaking arrangement with hospitals. Also failing was a court battle to force Horizon to release internal documents about its formation of the new OMNIA policies.

Given that track record, Wilson remained confident about this latest ruling.

"Having lost more than half of its plaintiffs, the... case has now lost half its allegations," said Wilson, of Horizon. "The ruling is a win for the hundreds of thousands of people who have chosen OMNIA and a clear rebuke to the remaining three plaintiffs."

Kathleen O'Brien may be reached at kobrien@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @OBrienLedger. Find NJ.com on Facebook.  

As you might have guessed, Jersey City and Hoboken are well represented

As New Year's Eve -- one of the most lucrative bar nights of the year -- quickly approaches and New Jerseyans make their plans, let's take a look back at just which of the state's watering holes were busiest this year. 

Click through the photo slideshow above to see the 16 most popular New Jersey bars of 2016, according to data from FourSquare.

The popular social app ranked these Garden State spots based on an algorithm that assigns a rating based on user activity, such as likes and dislikes, tip sentiment and more.  

As one might expect, New Jersey's most consistently attractive social hubs Hoboken, Jersey City and along the Jersey Shore made the cut with ease, with one city even enjoying four booze halls in the top 16. 

Sadly, no bonafide South Jersey bars made the list, despite NJ.com food dude Pete Genovese naming the Corner Bar way down in Pilesgrove as the best bar in New Jersey. Better luck next year.

Which bars did you frequent in 2016? Comment below. 

Bobby Olivier may be reached at bolivier@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobbyOlivier. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The ride-sharing company Lyft recently announced its 2016 Lyftie Awards, honoring the most visited destinations in New Jersey.

Ride-sharing enthusiasts in New Jersey are, it seems, always thankful it's Friday.

The ride-sharing service Lyft identified the TGI Fridays on U.S. 9 in Old Bridge as the top destination for its users in the Garden State in 2016. Never underestimate the appeal of Jack Daniel's ribs and a Drinksicle, apparently. 

Lyft, which serves areas such as Atlantic City, Cherry Hill, Jersey City, and Newark, calculated the most passenger drop-offs throughout the year to come up with its annual Lyfite Awards.

Most of the other winners were no-brainers: the Prudential Center in Newark was the most visited event space, and the most visited transit stop was the PATH station in Hoboken. The top-searched destination in New Jersey was Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City. The most visited bar was the giant Bar Anticipation in Lake Como, which ranked eighth on FourSquare's list of most popular bars in New Jersey in 2016. 

Ann Ferracane, the general manager of Lyft New Jersey, says the winning businesses are "core to what makes the community so unique."

Nationally, San Francisco International Airport was the number one airport drop-off location and Washington D.C.'s Union Station the top transit destination, while the MGM Grand in Las Vegas was the most requested hotel destination and Los Angeles' iconic gay bar the Abbey topped the list of bar drop-offs. For more information, check out the Lyfie Awards website here. 

Kelly Roncace may be reached at kroncace@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @kellyroncace. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.

The refs' organization views the issue as settled, but its president is unhappy with the solution.

The referees’ organization now views its recent conflict with the Freehold Regional High School District hockey teams as a settled matter, except for one thing – its president, while no longer “banned,” said he still cannot officiate their games.

That optimism comes after refs arrived and a pair of games involving FRHSD teams were played as scheduled at Jersey Shore Arena on Tuesday night.

“I think we’re at a good place,” Eric Munroe, the first vice president of the National Ice Hockey Association of America New York-New Jersey chapter, said. “I’m hoping everything runs smoothly from here. We at the executive board are hoping everything runs smoothly from here.”

While Munroe told NJ Advance Media he considers the situation resolved, NIHOA NY-NJ president Dave Brown, one of the officials at the center of the controversy, is unhappy with the solution.

“All I know is I’m suspended or I’m not allowed to work those games,” Brown said. “I’m in a cool-down period or a cool-off period or banned or whatever they want to use, I don’t really care. I don’t see how that’s fair.”

Brown and his officiating partner, Sal Bianco, claimed two Howell parents attacked them in a postgame incident last February. Then, on Dec. 15, the pair was barred from officiating FRHSD games.

On Monday, district officials and referee executives – minus Brown – spoke on a conference call to discuss a resulting "boycott" by officials, which led to the cancellation of last Friday’s game between Howell and Robbinsville. Both sides later deemed the call “productive.”

Brown said he was later told by an official on the call that the bar against Bianco has been lifted and he is free to officiate games involving those schools – Colts Neck, Freehold Boro, Freehold Township, Howell, Manalapan and Marlboro.

Brown was told he is also no longer “banned” from working the games, but has been placed in an indefinite “cooling off period,” during which he cannot officiate those games.

Munroe declined to comment on the status of either Bianco or Brown, while neither the school district nor the NJSIAA returned messages regarding the conflict’s status.

According to Brown, a perceived lack of answers from FRHSD throughout the process – including the results of what the district called a “full investigation” into the Feb. 7 incident that caused them to bar both him and Bianco – has been the root of his frustration.

“I think I deserve what the report was,” Brown said. “What’s the answers? Not just, ‘because we did an investigation.’ Well, what did you determine? What did you get out of that investigation? What happened?”

“Why wasn’t (the ban) put in place last season?” Brown added. “Why wasn’t it put in place when the incident happened? That, to me, is just mind boggling....Why not Feb. 7, 2016? Why Dec. 15?”

Brian Deakyne and Brandon Gould contributed to this report.

Matt Stypulkoski may be reached at mstypulkoski@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @M_Stypulkoski. Like NJ.com High School Sports on Facebook.

As we conclude another year of posting our "Vintage New Jersey" photo gallery, we humbly present what we think were the "best of the best" from 2016. This year, we posted 51 galleries and shared photos from all areas of the Garden State. We covered topics such as holidays, shops and favorite spots, seasonal snapshots and "things we survived"...

As we conclude another year of posting our "Vintage New Jersey" photo gallery, we humbly present what we think were the "best of the best" from 2016.

This year, we posted 51 galleries and shared photos from all areas of the Garden State. We covered topics such as holidays, shops and favorite spots, seasonal snapshots and "things we survived" We also introduced new concepts, including classic New Jersey music venues and "This month in N.J. history."

MORE: Vintage photos around New Jersey

But even though we call this collection "our favorite photos," our absolute favorites are the ones our readers share.

If you're a regular reader, you know the topics we cover, from all four seasons and all corners of the state. Send in your snapshots (scanned as .jpg files) to the email address shown below, and we'll do everything we can to get them into a future gallery. Photos must have been taken in New Jersey at least 30 years old to be considered.

So here's a farewell to 2016 through vintage photos; help us get 2017 off to a great start with your own submissions of vintage photos.

Greg Hatala may be reached at ghatala@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregHatala. Find The Star-Ledger on Facebook.

Fearless folks are set to jump into the Atlantic on New Year's Day. Will you join them? Watch video

ASBURY PARK -- One way to fix your New Year's Day hangover? With a frigid dip in the Atlantic - for a good cause, that is.

This year's Polar Bear Plunge season is upon us, with fearless folks taking to the chilly Jersey Shore waters between January and March to raise funds for a variety of causes.

The first plungers will take their dips in Asbury Park, Ocean City, Atlantic City and Brigantine on New Year's Day, which is forecast to be a sunny day in the mid-40s with water temps also in the mid-40s.

The Asbury Park plunge is run by the Sons of Ireland and features bagpipers to help summon plungers' courage. Festivities begin at 10 a.m. at Convention Hall; the plunge happens at 1 p.m. The event raises funds for Stephy's Place, a grief support center, and Shore House, a support program for those with mental illness.

The Ocean City plunge benefits the John R. Elliott HERO Campaign to prevent drunk driving. It starts with registration from noon to 1:45 p.m at the Music Pier. Plungers will hit the water in front of the pier at 2 p.m.

The Atlantic City plungers test their luck at noon on the beach in front of Resorts Casino. The funds raised benefit the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America.

The Brigantine plungers dive in at noon at 14th Street and the event ends with a post-plunge party at Laguna Grill & Rum Bar. Last year, this event raised more than $60K for Fisher House, which provides housing and transportation for wounded military members and their families. This plunge encourages costumes and rewards the best with prizes.

Other plunges scheduled this year include Long Branch (Jan. 8), Wildwood (Jan. 14), Manasquan (Feb. 4)., Brant Beach (Feb. 5), Sea Isle City (Feb. 17), Seaside Heights (Feb. 25), North Wildwood (Feb. 25) and Stone Harbor (March 11).

Jessica Remo may be reached at jremo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessicaRemoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

The inmate spoke with his brother and another man to bring heroin and Xanax into the jail, complaints said

FREEHOLD -- A Monmouth County jail inmate has been charged with conspiring with his twin brother and another man to try to smuggle heroin and other drugs into the facility.

Thomas Norman, 24, of Manalapan, was charged with conspiracy to distribute drugs and attempted drug possession and distribution after he allegedly tried to get drugs into the jail, according to criminal complaints.

The complaint says Norman conspired on Aug. 14 and 15 with Samuel Norman and Anthony Galladay to possess and distribute heroin and Xanax in the jail.

Charges were filed against Thomas Norman on Dec. 15, according to the complaint.

Norman has been in the county jail in Freehold since Nov. 8, 2015, on charges of conspiracy, aggravated assault and weapons and drug offenses.

No charges have been listed for Norman's twin brother or for Galladay, 37, of the Whiting section of Manchester.

MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Polar bear plunges, stand-up comedy, close-up magic, and band reunions headline New Year's weekend in New Jersey.

MONSTER JAM: The smell of gasoline and the roar of massive engines will fill the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton this holiday weekend. Some of the biggest names on the monster truck circuit -- Grave Digger, MonsterMutt, Stone Crusher, Max-D, and others -- will be crushing cars and performing insane stunts Thursday and Friday. "The Party in the Pits" takes place Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. where fans can score score autographs and get up-close views of the massive trucks. $18-$53. Thursday 7 p.m., Friday 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. 81 Hamilton Ave., Trenton. 609-656-3200.

Thursday, December 29 at 7:00 PMMonster JamSun National Bank CenterSEE FULL EVENT DETAILSnj.com

ASBURY PARK POLAR PLUNGE: Start off 2017 with charity and insanity in Asbury Park. On New Year's Day, the Sons of Ireland will be holding the annual Asbury Park Polar Bear Plunge. The plunge will benefit the Shore House and Stephy's Place. Plungers can register and sign in from 10 a.m. to noon at Convention Hall. At 12:45 p.m. they will be led from the Hall to the beach by a bagpiper. After the national anthem is performed at 1 p.m., it's into the Atlantic for the plunge. There will be post-plunge party with music by Brian Kirk & the Jirks. Register here. Sunday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. 1300 Ocean Ave., Asbury Park. 

FIRST NIGHT IN MORRISTOWN: Morristown won't be rocking on New Year's Eve just because of the nightlife scene. First Night is an all-ages, family-friendly, alcohol-free celebration of the arts that will present the city of Morristown as a "stage" for art of all types. There will be nearly 200 artists and more than 85 events ranging from dance to music to theater to performance art at 26 venues across the city. If you have little ones, get there early for the two hours of kid-oriented programming starting at 4:45 p.m. There will be live entertainment and games at the Morristown Green, which will serve as one of the central hubs of First Night. $17.50-$25. Saturday, 4:45 p.m.-midnight. Morristown. 973-539-8008.

Saturday, December 31 at 4:45 PMFirst Night MorrisMayo Performing Arts CenterSEE FULL EVENT DETAILSnj.com

THURSDAY AT STARLAND BALLROOM: Thursday will perform its first New Jersey shows since reuniting earlier this year. The band, which dominated the early-to-mid 2000s with its aggressive and emotional post-hardcore sound (including the amazing "War all the Time" record), called it a day a few years back with one of the final shows held at Starland Ballroom. Now Thursday returns with a screaming vengeance. Opening up for the band will be Hotelier and Primitive Weapons. The Thursday night will also be 89.5 WSOU's 30th anniversary celebration. $35. Thursday, Friday 7 p.m. 570 Jernee Mill Road, Sayreville. 732-238-5500.

Thursday, December 29 at 7:00 PMThursdayStarland BallroomSEE FULL EVENT DETAILSnj.com

ATLANTIC CITY POLAR BEAR PLUNGE: There will be plenty of people down in Atlantic City for New Year's Eve, but what kind of hangover cure do they have? Hair of the dog? A hearty breakfast? A run on the boardwalk? Well, a dip in the Atlantic for a good cause actually might be the best hangover cure. The Atlantic City Polar Bear Club will hold its annual New Year's Day plunge in front of Resorts Casino starting at 11 a.m. The official plunging begins at noon, but you should arrive early to register and get your place in line. The admission fee is a donation to the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America. Now be warned, the A.C. Polar Bear Club takes plunging seriously, and if you want to receive an official Polar Bear certificate, you must go completely underwater. There's no wading in to the waist -- it's all or nothing. Donation. Sunday. 11 a.m.-1 p.m. 1133 Boardwalk (in front of Resorts), Atlantic City.

UNCLE FLOYD'S NEW YEAR'S EVE EVE PARTY AT UNCLE VINNIE'S: Uncle Floyd, one of New Jersey's most beloved entertainers, performs a special "New Year's Eve Eve" show at Uncle Vinnie's Comedy Club in Point Pleasant Beach on Friday. Uncle Floyd brings his blend of music and comedy to Uncle Vinnie's, a club he's performed at numerous times over the past few years. $25-$53.95. Friday, 8 p.m. 518 Arnold Ave., Point Pleasant Beach. 732-899-3900.

Friday, December 30 at 8:00 PMUncle FloydUncle Vinnie's Comedy ClubSEE FULL EVENT DETAILSnj.com

MICHAEL CARBONARO AT NJPAC: Prepare to be amazed by the visual wizardry of Michael Carbonaro this weekend. The star of TruTV's "The Carbonaro Effect" brings his blend of audience interactions, video clips and magic to NJPAC on Friday. The Long Island-born actor and magician got his start with bit roles on "Chappelle's Show" and "Law & Order: SVU" before breaking out with his "Magic Clerk" segments on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." $44-$90. Friday, 7 p.m. 1 Center Street, Newark. 1-888-GO-NJPAC.

Friday, December 30 at 7:00 PMMichael CarbonaroNew Jersey Performing Arts CenterSEE FULL EVENT DETAILSnj.com

Bill Bodkin can be reached at bodkinwrites@gmail.com. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook.

No wings were injured in the making of this impromptu hardcore show

TOMS RIVER -- New Jersey's hardcore punk scene thrives on its DIY rhetoric, but one local act recently took the genre's "we'll play anywhere" hubris to a new level. 

Monmouth County ragers Drawn Out commandeered a Cluck-U Chicken restaurant in Toms River earlier this month -- as opposed to local basements or VFW halls that typically host these shows -- and played a thrashing 20-minute set inside the dining room. 

The video above shows about 50 onlookers moshing to the music in the middle of the dining room, where chairs and tables had been removed. No food was served during the show, a manager at the Toms River location said.

The Dec. 15 show was the first time the restaurant had hosted a concert, the manager said, but the store has already received calls future other events. He added the store also hosts video game tournaments. 

Cluck-U, a popular late-night spot known for its spicy "911" chicken wings, maintains 12 locations in Central and Northern New Jersey, as well as Pennsylvania and Maryland.  

Bobby Olivier may be reached at bolivier@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BobbyOlivier. Find NJ.com on Facebook. 

This week's questions are based on NJ.com's top local news stories of the year gone by.

The year 2016 is nearly gone, a fact that spells relief for many of us worn down by the news of the year. There were a lot of memorable New Jersey stories of 2016 on NJ.com, some uplifting, others disheartening. How well do you recall them all?

This week's Local News Quiz got its inspiration from the most-viewed New Jersey news stories of 2016 on NJ.com. The seven questions below are ordered by popularity: The story with the most page views in this group is listed first. Take the quiz and see if you can finish out 2016 with a high score.

From all of us at NJ.com, we wish you the best for 2017.

John Shabe can be reached via jshabe@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter, and find NJ.com on Facebook.

You can't find most in the Garden State anymore.

Which news photograph from this past year do you think is the most emotional, the most interesting and has the best story to tell?

Our photographers went through their own work from 2016 and found several images they think best captures a wide spectrum of the events of this year.

They selected two very different funerals, one for Deal Police Capt. Earl B. Alexander IV, who was 38 and recently engaged, and the other for Eric "Uggie" Bowens, a 44-year-old beloved street performer in Newark.

There were also photos capturing great joy, including Clearview's Zach Firestone celebrating a win in the final of the NJSIAA State Wrestling Tournament in Atlantic City on March 6, and Piscataway's Kendrea Williams, who sank a buzzer-beater on Jan. 12 to beat South Brunswick High.

Take a look at the photos below and you decide which is the best of 2016. We'll tally the votes and let you know in a few days which photo was selected.

Here are the nine most clicked-on homes in New Jersey in 2016 according to Zillow

The suspects were arrested nearly 18 months after the shooting death of Rasheem Palmer of Red Bank

FREEHOLD -- Two men have been charged with the shooting death of a Red Bank man outside an Eatontown apartment complex last year, authorities said Friday.

Rasheem Palmer(GoFundMe) 

Frederick Reed, 20 of New Castle, Del., and Perry Veney, 30 of Long Branch, were both charged with murder and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose after investigators linked them to the July 10, 2015, killing of Rasheem Palmer, 37, said Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni.

On reports of shots fired early that morning, Eatontown police were called to the entrance of the Country Club apartments at 12:13  a.m. It was there that they found Palmer lying on Country Club Road near Tilton Avenue, authorities said at the time. Palmer was rushed to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune where he died at 2:27 a.m.

Besides his two offenses, Veney was also charged with certain persons not to have a weapon, Gramiccioni said.

He would not say what precipitated the shooting.

Reed was arrested Wednesday in Delaware and is being held in a lock-up in that state while he awaits extradition to New Jersey, the prosecutor said. His bail will be $1.1 million cash when he is sent to Monmouth County, Gramiccioni said.

Veney surrendered to police on Friday and is being held in the Monmouth County jail in Freehold in lieu of $1.2 million bail, he said.

Veney was the victim of a 2014 shooting in Red Bank while he was sitting in a car parked on Willow Street. A recently paroled convict was charged in that shooting.

MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Marine mammal rescuers say they believe the dead dolphin is the one trapped in the Shrewsbury River over the summer

SANDY HOOK -- A bottlenose dolphin believed to be one stuck in the Shrewsbury River over the summer was found dead off Sandy Hook, marine wildlife rescuers said.

The dolphin, believed to be a pregnant female, was first spotted Friday at noon floating in Sandy Hook Bay about a mile from the entrance to Sandy Hook, said Bob Schoelkopf, executive director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine.

There was no outward sign of what may have caused the dolphin's death, but a necropsy is scheduled for Tuesday after the state laboratory handling those procedures reopens from the holiday break, Schoelkopf said.

"We've been watching that animal for months and months," he said.

The dolphin had a very visible, very large healed shark bite near its dorsal fin, but the wound appeared to have occurred about a year or two ago, he said.

Schoelkopf said he and his staff would use that large scar to try to determine whether this dolphin is the same animal spotted all summer in the Shrewsbury River by analyzing photographs of the dolphin that attracted attention over the summer.

"We're hoping that these bites can give us more information," Schoelkopf said. "We're pretty sure it's the same animal."

He said this is about the 24^th death of a dolphin or other mammal stuck in the Shrewsbury River over the past 20 years.

Dolphin in N.J. river dies after rescue efforts

Dolphins that make their way around the tip of Sandy Hook get stuck in the bay and the connecting Shrewsbury River because their instincts tell them to swim south for winter, but there is no southern exit to the ocean from the river, Schoelkopf said.

And unless the animal is sick or in a bad way, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration instructs the Marine Mammal Stranding Center to leave the animals alone, he said.

"It's a natural fish trap," he said.

Most of the animals picked up in the past from the river have either died from starvation or had been so badly decomposed after surfacing in spring that the cause of death couldn't be determined, Schoelkopf said.

The dolphin is believed to be between 20 and 30 years old and because of its size is believed to be pregnant Schoelkopf said. Bottlenose dolphins, which can live up to 45 years old, are in their childbearing years between 15 and 35, he said.

Anyone with photographs of the dolphin in the river this summer - particularly ones that may show a shark bite - is asked to share them with the Marine Mammal Stranding Center, whose staff can be reached at 609-266-0538.