The dilapidated buildings of Journal Square were finally demolished and removed, and the hole in the ground was filled with dirt after years of talk and relative inaction. Construction of two mixed-use towers was to begin by the end of the year but, like everything else associated with the property, has been delayed.

In October, Lucila Ventura, whose two babies were thrown down an air shaft after she gave birth, was ordered freed from prison when an appellate court ruled that her sentence was too harsh.

In early July, former Olympic skater Nicole Bobek was charged in a major drug bust in Hudson County.

On Feb. 5, the quadruple-murder charges against Hamilton Sanchez were dropped, nearly four years after he was charged with killing the Armanious family. Apparently the case against Sanchez fell apart when Edward McDonald, who was convicted in the murders, refused to testify.

The year started with a tragedy when a Jersey City woman's stillborn baby was apparently thrown out with the trash at Christ Hospital in Jersey City. A short but exhaustive search was conducted, but the body was never recovered. The hospital was later fined $20,500 by the state.

Source: The Jersey Journal - NJ.com