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♪ >> Hello and welcome to NJ Spotlight news.

The city of New York is reeling after a shooting in a home last night ended with three people killed, including an eight-year-old boy.

That number includes the shooter, a man who entered the home and shot the boy in the chest.

The boy was rushed to a hospital but died shortly after.

Two other men were shot, one pronounced dead at the scene.

According to the Attorney General, several officers pursued the man on foot, two officers fired their weapons, killing him.

They must now investigate the police involved shooting and presented to a grand jury.

The Newark Mayor held a press conference to aunt -- to offer more details.

He said weapons were found, along with drugs.

As for the boy, he played baseball in little league, he is survived by his mother and aunt who are both present.

Here is what the mayor had to say about the trauma.

>> I don't like being at the hospital for no reason, and I don't like being there to watch children die.

This is a passion plea, to the rest of the community, that we need to -- they are out there in the middle of the night, and those hospitals.

Trying to prevent alternative violence and calming people down, who are being traumatized.

>> One of the keys to combating police misconduct in New Jersey is of system for reporting, put into place by the former attorney general three years ago.

A new report from the state comptroller found that most police department's are not offering reporting systems and have failed to comply with the internal affairs mandates.

Our senior correspondent spoke with an advocate who wants to help police departments update their systems.

>> There are a lot of alarming findings in the comptrollers report.

>> Advocates point to a new report that showed 80 out of 100 jersey police department failed to post online forms allowing the public to complain about how they are treated by officers.

The comptroller found one third of the police complaint forms included one forbidden feature like this, a warning about filing false reports.

>> These warnings act as a deterrent to filing a complaint.

Warnings about criminal prosecution and punishment, these kinds of warnings are in direct violation of the internal affairs of policies and procedures.

>> Those warnings can scare people who have valid complaints.

>> The comptroller says his office randomly sampled 100 Police Department from all across the state to see whether they are giving residents a proper online complaint form as directed by New Jersey attorney general.

>> The police departments website is supposed to be the front door, the public needs to feel that that door is open to them if they want to file a complaint.

>> 80 out of 100 department's are not in full compliance, 15 impartial, and five that got it right.

Forms are available from the Attorney General.

>> It is easily made available on the website.

The overwhelming majority of police departments we heard from when we shared our findings, let us know they had already corrected the problem or were in the process of doing so.

>> When you see this type of noncompliance, you got to feel, they probably don't care.

That is the message the police don't want to be sending.

>> He is pushing New Jersey police departments to comply with the Attorney General's rules for posting complaints.

The comptrollers report showed 26 of the department wrongly demanded IDs from folks filing a complaint.

>> I've noticed them asking for social security number, they are treating you like criminal.

It has the effect of dissuading people from filing internal affairs complaints against officers.

>> He says he has filed public record requests with apartments asking why they haven't posted required summaries of internal affairs cases and police discipline reports.

>> Most of them have been like, whoops, we forgot.

It makes me wonder, why am I having to do this?

We have prosecutors offices that are supposed to have oversight.

>> He says he will tackle the issue in all 21 counties.

New Jersey State office of Chiefs of police declined an interview.

New Jersey also needs to make police disciplinary records subject to public searches.

>> It allows members of the public to access disciplinary records of police officers in their communities.

>> She says establishing civilian complaint review boards would give residents input into an internal disciplinary assess that is opaque.

>> As the court case continues over the abortion drug, New Jersey's two U.S. senators have joined with 251 congressional Democrats filing and amicus brief, it urges the court in Texas to reverse at the lower courts a ban on the drug.

Mifepristone is currently available, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay on the band.

The decision from the appellate court could remove the drug from public use.

That could have impacts on access to abortion and miscarriage treatment, it also on the FDA's authority to approve drugs for market.

The FDA approved the first ever RSV vaccine.

RSV is an upper respiratory virus that can be fatal for infants and the elderly.

The new vaccine is intended for people over the age of 60.

It received FDA approval yesterday but needs the CDC's recommendation for who should receive it, expected in June.

The manufacturer is a company that could soon have competition from Pfizer, which is also working on a vaccine for older adults and a beast.

Moderna is in the early stages of a vaccine for both age groups.

More than 100,000 registered nurses left the profession during the pandemic, another 600,000 plan to leave in the next four years.

It's led to a nursing shortage that is a bad here in New Jersey, where thousands of positions are vacant, putting the quality of care at risk and leaving existing nurses overworked.

Federal funding is coming to New Jersey to train the next generation of nurses, one New Jersey University will use the money to improve its equipment and training.

>> Great things are happening in Clifton, New Jersey.

>> This Congressman stopped by Seton Hall's College of nursing for a Fed used to train and equip the next generation of medical professionals.

>> My cousin was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when he was eight days old, he is one of my best friends, seeing his interactions with nurses made me want to be a nurse.

>> It's scary to have the experience as anyone can imagine, the nurses were kind and caring and made it a bearable experience.

>> I love the idea of being a physician assistant because it gives me a lot of freedom to be in health care in many different areas.

If you are a doctor, you are tied to one specialty, as APA, you can move around.

We have a passion about helping people.

>> Those federal funds might come in handy, since New Jersey has a ton of job openings for nurses.

13,000 of them at Zuna..

It's not so great for patients.

>> It's nice to hear there are so many jobs available for nurses, but it is discouraging because it means that we have a shortage, which is a problem and it's going to have effect on patient care.

>> I hope these vacancies will not exist.

>> We need nurses, we need doctors.

If we can't see that, we are totally blind.

>> After losing so many nurses, the state is trying to encourage people to stay by waiving renewal fees for nursing licenses.

The fungus minces nurses and physician assistants were among the unsung heroes when COVID was at its worst.

>> They kept America hole at enormous personal cost.

I don't think we have think you enough.

They are the true heroes.

>> These funds will help pay for simulation labs which feature lifelike mannequins for students to practice on.

Future nurses say they are a help.

>> They are helpful, getting the time to practice with patients that are realistic, but you don't -- you have safeguards, it's helpful.

>> Nurses are used to doing much with little, here they are able to do more.

We do appreciate all of your support.

>> That's good news for New Jersey's health care system.

The spring 2023 Hospital safety grades are in, and Garden state hospitals received the highest marks in the nation for patient safety.

The grades awarded three dozen New Jersey hospitals with A grades.

Pennsylvania ranked fourth, Connecticut was fifth, and New York 40th.

As hospital staffs continue to recover from the pandemic, New Jersey hospitals maintained positive grades throughout this period.

We spoke with -- about the importance of the ratings and what it means for residents who seek care.

>> We know this survey, it is a very highly regarded.

How did New Jersey fair?

>> They did well.

New Jersey always does well on these.

This year, 51.5% of the hospitals that were rated got A's.

Hence the ranking number one.

Number two was Ohio, it had 50%.

The margins are slim, but it is nice to have ragging rights.

>> It helps that 100% participation happened in New Jersey.

>> That is something the Hospital Association mentioned, they were saying they are proud about the push to improve and commitment to transparency.

That has not always been easy in New Jersey.

Clearly we are the state with 100% participation and we have been for a while.

>> What are the metrics they look at?

We know our hospital systems are taxed.

>> That something that comes up, they admit that they can see the researchers say it has had an impact.

They did find that infection rates, hospital acquired infection rates, are going up nationwide.

They look at things like, argue getting an infection, the likelihood of risk, communication between nurses and patients and doctors, whether you understand your medication.

These things have been shown to have an impact on patients.

>> Were our typical leaders still at the top of the pack?

>> Generally speaking, there are sometimes variations.

Hospitals, when they get in a -- when they get an A, they are very proud of it.

When they get a C, it's important to note, there were no D or F ratings this year.

When they get a C, hospitals will tend to have back and forth with what the numbers are.

>> What is the New Jersey Hospital Association have to say about it?

Our workforce has been under duress.

This is a good news coming out of what has been a bad situation.

>> They were saying, transparency, commitment to quality improvement, this is a demonstration of that.

They should be proud, it's a good thing.

I encourage people to look at the individual hospital if they are thinking of going somewhere, take a look back a couple years, you need to get a full picture.

>> Secretary of state Anthony Lincoln says the U.S. is engaged in efforts to free New Jersey native Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in Russia on March 29.

Kevin McCarthy and Hakeem Jeffries released a joint statement calling for the release of the reporter and Paul Whelan.

President Biden addressed Gershkovich's family who was there, telling them we stand with you.

Evan went to report in Russia to shed light on darkness that you all escape from years ago.

The former director of the office of Russian affairs spoke with NJ Spotlight News and told us it might be a long road to freedom.

>> Journalists are under pressure everywhere and have been for many years.

It is particularly pronounced in Russia, not just in this case, but also in the case of all the Russian journalists who have been arrested and sentenced.

The issue is, we are not holding any Russians right now.

It's difficult to see how this would work.

>> We are halfway through the budget season, which means New Jersey's Legislature has heard from most of the various state departments, policy experts and advocates of pleading for a bigger piece of the pie, the proposed budget.

The latest on how those hearings have gone and how the budget process could be impacted if the federal government cannot raise the debt ceiling on time.

We are about halfway through the budget season, the Legislature has held several hearings so far.

What are we seeing emerge as the greatest requests?

>> It is a perennial issue, school funding, it's a huge share of the overall budget.

We are in a process of realigning how the formula works.

There are schools that are losing money even as the state spends more over all on K-12 public schools.

One of the big asks is to get more money to schools that are set to lose aid under the formula, even as spending on education increases.

The corporate business tax is a simmering issue.

Those with profits over $1 million, it has been in place for the last several years and is due to expire.

It remains a point of tension, some groups want to see this funding remain in place.

The state has a lot of needs.

The business community has been outspoken about how it is time for the surcharge to go away and New Jersey will no longer punish businesses with high taxes.

>> The pandemic aid still needs to be spent, how is he proposing spending and?

>> There are proposals that are part of the governor's budget plan for the 2024 fiscal here that starts on July 1.

For boardwalks, local governments that are having a hard time coming up with money to fund increases in their employee health care costs, and dozens of items, additional federal aid for pandemic spending.

A lot of federal money moving concurrently to the state budget process.

>> That is a great area for New Jersey.

What could happen if the federal government defaults on its debts if they do not raise the spending cap by June?

>> It's a huge issue, the focus has been on how the default would affect the federal government.

But states like New Jersey, there are projections that don't account for a default and the impact on the economy that would have.

It would cause the administration to go back to the drawing board when it comes to revenue projections.

>> Thank you for helping us figure this all out.

>> Here's a look at how the markets are closed today.

Make sure you check out NJ business beat this weekend.

We look at the first year of recreational marijuana sales in the states, including an effort to allow home cultivation.

Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. on our "NJ Spotlight News" YouTube channel.

>> Only 14% of eighth graders are proficient in U.S. history, and 22% are proficient in civics.

They come from a report issued by the Nation's report card.

This is the lowest score ever recorded since the assessment began in 1994.

It is the first ever drop in civics scores.

It is concerning to my next guest, the president of the New Jersey Center for education.

Thank you for being with us tonight.

>> My pleasure.

>> There is a new national report that shows it abysmal scores for high schoolers when it comes to history and civics.

What do you make of this trend?

>> I have to say I am not terribly surprised.

Particularly civics, for the last several decades, it has not been taught.

If it is not taught, the kids are not going to do a great job on an exam.

We did an inventory of civic education in New Jersey.

In 2000 4, 60 1% of the school district indicated that the kids were getting one-two weeks of civics in U.S. history when they got to the period of the Constitution.

>> What should it look like, what should they be learning?

>> They need more time on it.

Since 2004, we have spent more time on testing math and language arts, and less time on social studies.

The New Jersey Department of education, in 2020, concluded that 20% of the New Jersey school district had a required civics course in riddles school.

That meant 80% didn't.

80% were getting the couple of weeks in high school and that is it.

>> I want to get to the meat and potatoes of what is kids should be learning.

>> Now you get to what I am really interested in.

We need to have those required civics courses for all of our kids.

In 2021, New Jersey did just that.

The legislature unanimously passed an act which mandated all New Jersey school districts require at least a semester of civics in middle school.

What should that include?

It directed that resources and professional development for teachers to be provided.

We have an extensive curriculum guide on our website, which needs to be updated continually.

It starts with the idea of asking questions, you want the kids to not just answer the questions, but also ask them.

Why do we need government?

What is the value of a democracy?

What are the components of a democracy?

If we want to continue to have a democracy, we need informed citizens.

If we want informed citizens, we need to provide the education that they need.

>> The president of the New Jersey Center for Civic education at Rutgers University, thank you so much for that is going to do it for us tonight.

Tune into Reporters Roundtable tomorrow morning.

They talk about President Biden's latest immigration policy which involves sending troops to the border.

That is Friday morning at 10:00 a.m. on the "NJ Spotlight News" YouTube channel.

You can now listen to "NJ Spotlight News" any time via podcast, download it, and check it out.

Thank you for being with us tonight, we will see you back here tomorrow.

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