ONLY ON NEWSSTANDS: UP TO $1,225 IN COUPON SAVINGS INSIDE ASBURY PARK PRESS :: MONMOUTH EDITION APP.COM $2.00 05.03.15 VOLUME 136 NUMBER 105 SINCE 1879 @ISSUE 1AA BUSINESS 6AA CLASSIFIED 1D LOCAL 3A LOTTERIES 2A OBITUARIES 20A OPINION 4AA SPORTS 1C SUNDAY BEST 1E WEATHER 12C More than 15,000 homeowners, whose properties sustained damage during super- storm Sandy, applied for acceptance into the state’s largest rebuilding initiative. Yet al- most two years later, just a bit over half re- main engaged in the program. Observers are wondering why so many were removed from the Rehabilitation, Re- construction, Elevation and Mitigation (RREM) program and what that says about a system plagued with delays and rife with frustration. “Where’s everyone going?” asked Aman- da Devecka-Rinear, executive director of the New Jersey Organizing Project, which ma- terialized in response to problems with RREM. Just 8,300 of the 15,000 remain in the program. Over half of RREM applicants disappear RUSS ZIMMER @RUSSZIMMER RUSS DESANTIS/CORRESPONDENT The Tober family of Monmouth Beach decided to turn down RREM grant money to fix their home. See RREM, Page 6A His goals aren’t all that complicated. Don Leadbeater’s dream of the future didn’t mention a yacht or a billion dollars or a mansion. It didn’t include starring in his own reality television show or creating a killer app. “The American dream is to be happy and successful,” Leadbeater, 20, of Toms River, said before going to class at Ocean County College on Friday. “Just being able not to struggle in life, working paycheck to pay- check.” Can New Jersey provide that for him? The Asbury Park Press toured the Shore’s col- leges last week as part of a campaign it called Millennials weigh in on state of Jersey MICHAEL L. DIAMOND AND KALA KACHMAR @MDIAMONDAPP AND @NEWSQUIP See COLLEGE, Page 7A WORLD GOES GAGA OVER NEWBORN BRITISH PRINCESS. PAGE 1B A lthough Gov. Chris Christie wasn’t charged Friday in the George Washington Bridge scandal, his political problems from the illegal, intentional lane closures may have gotten worse. • The good news for Christie was that U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fish- man said he expects no one else, beyond the three people implicated by his office, to face criminal charges in connection with the lane closures. • The bad news is, it is now law enforcement, not merely the media or politi- cal partisans, decrying what Fishman described as a political vendetta — one carried out on behalf of Christie’s re-election by people he entrusted with high-ranking positions of power. Christie’s primary defense since the sinister origins of the September 2013 traffic jams first came to light: I didn’t know. Such an excuse is not very presidential, in the opi- nion of Claira Monier, a resident of Goffstown, New Hampshire. Her view should matter to Christie, who has been courting voters in her state’s first-in-the-na- tion presidential primary. “If you’re a president, you have to trust the people close to you. If you cannot appoint people that are trust- worthy and ethical, that raises some issues about you being an excellent administrator,” Monier said. “And I think the president of the United States has to be a top- ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS Gov. Chris Christie's primary defense regarding the origin of the George Washington Bridge traffic jams: I didn't know. David Wildstein, a former Port Authority appointee of Christie, pleaded guilty. Former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly was indicted. Bill Baroni, former deputy executive director of Port Authority, was indicted. What’s next for Christie? No charges filed, but his political aspirations may have taken a hit MICHAEL SYMONS @MICHAELSYMONS See CHRISTIE, Page 6A INSIDE » Time line of the GWB lane closure scandal, 6A » Who are the key players to watch? 6A » Is this the beginning of the end for Christie? EDITORIAL, 4AA ON THE WEB » Visit APP.com for videos, previous coverage and more. GANNETT PHOTO ILLUSTRATION/ JOANNE WALSH WHO WON? For the latest on the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, check APP.com Is your mom your superhero? Tell us why for a chance to win. Page 2A ROYAL RIDE American Pharoah wins first leg of Triple Crown. For full coverage, see Sports, 1C
