Readers send out search parties for all that is missing

The NJ Transit rail transfer station in Secaucus isn't as imposing or as grand as stations of old, but it's a pleasant place to spend some time waiting for a train. You can hear the roar of traffic on the turnpike and imagine thousands of drivers inching their way toward Hudson River tollbooths, poisoning the air in the process.

By Victor E. Sasson
Editor

Prominent Hackensack businessman Jerome S. Some met his untimely demise on Tuesday night, when an allegedly drunk woman in a small SUV ran him down in front of his Prospect Avenue high-rise.

Since then, information about the accident, charges against the woman, her identity and Some's survivors have been presented in The Record in dribs and drabs, and readers still have questions.

Today, another story about Some adds reckless driving to the driving while intoxicated charge reported on Thursday against the woman, who is identified for the the first time as Kathleen Gehm, 63, a registered nurse "through 2009" (L-1).

A reporter also interviewed Some's survivors for the first time, according to today's story, which names three sons ages 23 to 60, and a daughter, 55, but makes no mention of their mother or mothers.

Some, 87, founder and owner of Some's Uniforms on Main Street in Hackensack, would have been 64 when he fathered son Jason, 23, so readers are wondering if he remarried and, if so, was it to a younger woman?

Cone, no flowers

I drove by Some's high-rise today, the Eiffel Tower at 151 Prospect Ave., looking for a bouquet of flowers marking his death, but saw only a traffic cone.

He was struck and killed crossing the street to Bel Posto Restaurant, "running late" for a shareholders meeting of the building's co-op board -- another detail The Record adds for the first time today.

He was on the building's board, and all he gets is a traffic cone?

Safety concerns

Andrea Some, 55, his daughter, is quoted as saying street lighting is inadequate and there should be more crosswalks on heavily trafficked Prospect Avenue, especially at Bel Posto.

"Hackensack needs to take notice and make sure it doesn't happen to someone else," she said.

When will The Record get around to calling city officials and asking them about that?

Not pro Buono

On Page 1 today, readers find a story on the appearance of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Barbara Buono before The Record's mysterious "editorial board."

When Buono identifies Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo, a Democrat who has endorsed Governor Christie, as one of the party bosses who is "hostile" to her vision for New Jersey, Staff Writer Melissa Hayes actually calls DiVincenzo for comment and push back (A-6).

Gee. When Chrisite appeared before the editorial board a week earlier, the story that ran on Page 1 last Friday didn't contain any rebuttal to anything the GOP bully said to back his bid for a second term. 

An editorial on A-20 today endorses Newark Mayor Cory Booker over Tea Party crackpot Steve Lonegan, whose racial animus has been clear since he entered the U.S. Senate race. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

Four corrections

Four more corrections run on A-2 today, further evidence of a fine job by Production Editor Liz Houlton.

Local yokels

The crack Local staff spins an interesting story about the murder 0f Karen Splettstoesser, who is described as "a statuesque blonde" and a former model from San Francisco, but nowhere does her age appear (L-1).

Deputy Assignment Editor Dan Sforza continues to do such a great job during the prolonged absence of his boss, Deirdre Sykes.

Readers are breathing a sigh of relief that Staff Writer John Cichowski's latest excuse for a Friday Road Warrior column is missing today.

The expanded local obituary today appears to have a punch line: A pastor's grandmother lived in the attic, surely the stuff of an Alfred Hitchcock movie (L-5).

Ung's judgment

I've started to question the judgment of Staff Writer Elisa Ung, The Record's main restaurant reviewer, who seems to be obsessed with only two food groups, meat and dessert.

Today, in her 2-star review of Choripan Rodizio, she claims the Hackensack grill restaurant is "less appropriate for anyone who wants anything other than meat" (BL-18).

I called the restaurant and was told that yes, it still offers two of the best salads I've ever had: Beets, String Beans and Boiled Egg, and Fresh Spinach, Pears, Walnuts and Blue Cheese.

Ung also slams the seafood, but I remember a terrific Filet of Sole Oreganata and crunchy shrimp with linguine.

What gives?

Cuban dilemma

On Thursday, Ung praised a Saddle Brook cafe's medianoche -- a Cuban sandwich made on sweet bread and pressed in a heated grill -- but a photo appears to show a burnt sandwich with unmelted Swiss cheese (BL-1 on Thursday).

She lists the ingredients of an authentic Cuban sandwich, but omits mustard.

Why did she bother? The best Cuban sandwiches in North Jersey are available at La Pola on Palisade Avenue and 54th Street in West New York.