Officers Hurt, Light Rail Plan Advances in Top Local Headlines

Police: Englewood Officers Hurt in Melee With Emotionally Disturbed Man

Three Englewood police officers were injured in a confrontation with an emotionally disturbed man early Sunday, the second time in two weeks city officers have been hurt in violent struggles, authorities said.

Officers were called to the Englewood Hospital emergency room around 1:30 a.m. for a report from staff that Ifeoma Ezekwo, 58, was interfering as her son was being involuntarily committed for a psychological evaluation at Bergen Regional Medical Center, police said.

Englewood athletes earned seven first-place finishes Sunday at the NJ Striders Track and Field meet in Fair Lawn that drew some 800 youth participants ages 7 to 15 from more than 20 area junior track and field teams.

Englewood athletes won events ranging from the shot put to the triple jump, but truly shined on the track, racking up 13 top-three finishes in running events.

New Jersey Transit's Board of Directors voted Wednesday to contract a Morristown-based engineering firm to study the environmental impact of a proposed extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail line into Englewood, NJ.com reported.

The environmental study, which will assess the impact of exending the Hudson County-based line from its Tonnelle Avenue station in North Bergen up to Englewood Hospital, will take about two years to complete, NJ Transit spokesman John Durso, Jr. said.

Security camera footage and an observant 7-Eleven clerk led Englewood police to charge a Teaneck man with pulling a knife on the convenience store worker last month, authorities said Wednesday night.

Gregory Stewart, 36, menaced the clerk at Englewood's Tenafly Road 7-Eleven with a knife early April 21 in an argument over the price of cigarettes, police said. 

An Upstate New York woman has been accused of being an illegal drug courier after more than three ounces of cocaine were found in a car that was improperly parked at a gas station along the Palisades Interstate Parkway in Englewood Cliffs, according to PIP Police.

Englewood officials explain how extending light rail access to Englewood would benefit the city, its residents and the rest of the county.

A new artisanal bakery and bistro is expected to open on South Dean Street this month, food blog BoozyBurbs.com reported.

Englewood teen Kenrick "Mike" Francisco will be one of 33 New Jersey high school students performing his original music May 23 at the Ninth Annual Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey's Shout Down Drugs competition.

Follow Englewood-Englewood Cliffs Patch on Facebook and Twitter or subscribe to our free daily newsletter. News tip? E-mail englewood@patch.com