http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... autopsy_in_political.html

The autopsy is in.

Thank you Sammy

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I don't know if I agree with that. Are his friends and family asking for that? They may already have closure.

It's tricky. He was a private citizen -- with some super shady associates, for sure, but he deserves whatever dignity that can be maintained in his death. Does the public have a right to know intimate details? I dunno.

This whole thing reads like a surreal movie script.

No wife.
He lived with Cathy Chin for many years.

Does anyone happen to know the first name of his wife or ex-wives?
(I ask for a very personal reason from long, LONG ago.)

It is almost 3 months to the day that Jack Shaw was found dead in his apartment. Preliminary autopsy was inconclusive, and the news stories said toxicology tests would take a few weeks. So by September those results should have been in. With no official information we are left to speculate.

1- The Governors race

Chris Christie looked to have the governorship locked up back in early August when the stink of endemic, mostly democratic municipal corruption was being let out for all to see (or smell?) Here we are less than 2 weeks from election day and the polls are even and the anti-corruption angle of Christie's campaign seems to have disappeared. My speculation: if there was no foul play then revealing that would have no political impact and they would have said something back in September. Revealing that there was foul play would open the AG office to accusations of political games, so they are waiting until after election day.

2- The Zombie administration of JC Official #4

With so many members of Team Healy being caught up in the corruption scandal, and strong evidence linking their actions to the mayor himself, one has to assume the feds have been trying to put together a case on JC official #4 but haven't found the smoking gun yet. It's possible they have it but are waiting for the election to be over, but it seems more likely at this point that Healy is too powerful for mere mortals to get him. In any self respecting democracy this entire administration and it's city council hacks would have folded in shame. But here in Hudson County no one seems to care much, and so despite indictments, admissions of guilt, and a key player turning up dead less than a week after the story broke, Team Healy lurches on, haunting the halls of at 280 Grove St.

I am willing to accept that Jack Shaw, in poor health and facing a devastating end to his career, could have died for various reasons, over medication, intentional suicide, etc. But the circumstances demand a full, IMPARTIAL investigation. The family and friends of Mr Shaw also deserve some closure to the tragic end of this man's life.

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Amazing, I found myself wondering that very same thing earlier this morning. What gives indeed?

So it seems there must be some IMPORTANT people preventing the release of the autopsy investigation. There is no other explanation for delaying the release of the information for 2 1/2 months.

I think it is most likely he was murdered before he could spill the beans and implicate even MORE mobbed up politicos.

Has anyone even seen mention of WHAT pills were found near the body?

Still no results from the autopsy? What gives? This guy was the conduit for many of these pols who met with Dwek.

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This is still a major national news story. I know the heat has been off, but major news outlets covered the indictments of Cheatam and Beldini yesterday.

Toxicology reports can take weeks to come back (just ask the Jackson family), so I would be really surprised if it wasn't just that there hasn't been news to report yet.

He died almost four weeks ago, so it's plausible that his results might not be back in yet. I'm not yet prepared to say it's being covered up, but if there's no word in a few more weeks, then maybe...

So it has been weeks now and no final facts about how he died. He has been swept under a rug.

Jersey City Councilwoman-at-Large Willie Flood said Shaw was very well known in the area?s political scene.

?He was a staple in Jersey City,? Flood said. ?Everybody knew Jack.?

Just wondering why there has not been a follow up on how he died

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Okay. But I did not miss the irony in your post.

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Varies? Hmmm. there's something quite illogical or perverse or both with that series of statements. Maybe the text should read as follows:

Most suicide victims require many attempts. And according to Canadian researcher Dr. A. Leenaars, who has extensively studied suicide, the percentage of those whom successfully kill themselves varies from 12 to 37% percent.

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It actually isn't unusual. Most suicide victims do not leave notes. And according to Canadian researcher Dr. A. Leenaars, who has extensively studied suicide notes, the percentage of those who leave notes varies from 12 to 37% percent.

It is possible that the weight of it all caused his health to fail.

But if it was a suicide, there was no note found. This would be unusual. Perhaps there was a note explaining everything that he id and it is now evidence that can be used against the rest of the ne'er-do-wells, which is why it has not been revealed yet.

Or not. Who knows?

Under the circumstances much uncertainty about his manner of death. Although it seems Mr. Shaw had his share of problems, others might have had motivation to kill him. I don't see why an official cause of death has not been forthcoming. Again I'm curious....is there any type of investigation going on? I do not presume that there should or should not be an investigation. I'm just asking the question.

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He was heavily in debt, bereft of a "heavy" to work behind the scenes for, under arrest, and facing the prospect of ratting on his friends. Approximately how much uncertainty is there in your mind as to how he died?

Have any definative conclusions about Jack Shaw's death been reach yet. It seems any tests should have been completed by now. Is this an open case under investigation?

The hidden life of Jack Shaw
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Political consultants are an unusual breed: Constantly charged with putting people in power, but never quite having that power themselves or even having a stated role after the election.

The New York Times just ran an interesting, detailed look at recently deceased Jersey City-based political consultant Jack Shaw, revealing some of his background you may not have known. The 61-year-old consultant was arrested a week ago Thursday along with 44 other political and religious leaders in the state for allegedly taking illegal campaign donations.

A few days later, he was found dead in his apartment, a possible suicide.

The Times said that Shaw grew up in Illinois and was the president of the Illinois Young Democrats. He worked for Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, then left the state after being suspected of mishandling campaign funds. In New Jersey, he worked with many top politicians, including Frank Lautenberg, James Florio, and Barbara Boggs Sigmund.

It seems that he was involved in some problematic relationships. Various associates severed ties with him, one of whom accused him of having a drug problem, others who said he mishandled their funds. He also was involved in running the beleagured Jersey City SPCA shelter, which was eventually shut down last year.

One consultant said, ?The kinds of things Jack does, he always needed to have a person, a big person to be the guy to. He ran out of people.?

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jerseymom wrote:
Good NYT article about Jack Shaw's shady background...with an interesting connection to Metrovest developers:

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Before Death, a New Jersey Political Operative?s Descent

Jack M. Shaw leaving court in Newark last week. He was one of more than 40 people arrested in a sweeping corruption scandal.

The New York Times
By DAVID W. CHEN and DAVID M. HALBFINGER
Published: July 30, 2009

A few hours after he was ensnared in the biggest corruption sting in New Jersey history, Jack M. Shaw showed up at his favorite diner in downtown Jersey City. I am innocent, he declared, with the optimistic charm that had gotten him through so many previous legal, political and personal thickets.

Five days later, Mr. Shaw, 61, was found dead in his luxury high-rise apartment in what the police suspect was a suicide.

The quick biography of Mr. Shaw, who died on Tuesday, is that he was a longtime Democratic operative who worked for former Gov. Jim Florio and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg before diving into the notoriously shadowy world of Hudson County politics.

The unabridged version, though, is that Mr. Shaw was not always quite what he wanted people to believe.

Some friends speak of the Jack Shaw they still believe was the straightest of arrows and the kindest of souls. But there was also the Jack Shaw who fled Illinois after being investigated on suspicion of mishandling $50,000 from a Democratic organization, and was later accused by a business partner in New Jersey of embezzling money to support a drug habit.

There was the Jack Shaw who was known for being a gregarious storyteller who, with his red hair, red beard and rotund frame, reminded some of Santa Claus. But there was also the Jack Shaw who was described by close friends, like William O?Dea, a Hudson County freeholder, as being so private that few knew of his gastric bypass surgery, cancer and heart trouble, or of his recent bankruptcy.

There was the Jack Shaw, too, who liked to bill himself as the ultimate political power broker. But there was also the Jack Shaw who had become such a political has-been that when he was arrested last week, Thomas V. O?Neil, a veteran political consultant, reacted in the same way that many did: ?I thought he was dead.?

Mr. Shaw grew up in Illinois, became president of the Young Democrats of Illinois and was an operative for Mayor Richard J. Daley of Chicago. But he had a dubious record: In 1977, he was investigated by the Cook County state attorney?s office after $50,000 in campaign contributions was mishandled.

Mr. Shaw landed in New Jersey at the behest of the late Dan Horgan, a former state party chairman from Hudson County, according to Democratic officials. In 1982, he ran a statewide race for the first and only time: Barbara Boggs Sigmund?s unsuccessful primary campaign for the Senate.

When she lost, Mr. Shaw signed on as a field director for Mr. Lautenberg, who won, and later became his state director.

He was especially close to organized labor; one of his best friends was Ed Pulver, the late president of the Hudson County Central Labor Council.

?Jack was like the Sherpa guide of union politics and base politics in New Jersey,? said James McQueeny, a former Lautenberg press secretary.

But instead of aiming for a career in national politics, Mr. Shaw stayed local, and became an adviser to Robert C. Janiszewski, the former Hudson County executive later convicted of corruption.

In 1987, the year he ran Mr. Janiszewski?s winning campaign for county executive, Mr. Shaw formed a partnership with Frank X. Robinson, another prominent Democratic operative who worked for years for Joseph V. Doria Jr., the former Bayonne mayor and former Assembly speaker, who was ousted as commissioner of community affairs after his office was raided on the day of Mr. Shaw?s arrest.

For a time, Mr. Shaw and Mr. Robinson ran one of New Jersey?s best-known political shops. But they abruptly severed ties in 1993. Friends of Mr. Robinson, who did not return repeated phone calls, said he told them that Mr. Shaw had embezzled a large sum of money from their firm, Rifka Consulting, to support a cocaine habit.

Mr. Shaw also had a falling-out with Mr. Janiszewski, his marquee client, over the misuse of campaign funds, said Mr. O?Dea, the longtime county freeholder.

At one point, Mr. Shaw and Mr. Pulver took control of the Hudson County chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. But the State Commission of Investigation issued a blistering report citing ?horrid? conditions at their shelter after a worker was seen beating a dog with a shovel. It also blasted the shelter?s financial operations, saying that the ?diversion of money was rampant.?

Friends and associates say Mr. Shaw was often in poor health. As early as the 1980s, he was so obese that he needed a cane to get around. He was a diabetic. He quit his heavy smoking habit only after a bout with cancer. He had heart disease, and a personal bankruptcy filing in 2005 listed three hospitals, an ambulance company and a cardiologist among his creditors.

This year, Mr. Shaw had gastric bypass surgery. He shed some 60 pounds, and began eating mushroom egg-white omelets with tea at his favorite restaurant, the Brownstone Diner in Jersey City, but seemed a shade of his former self, friends said.

But Mr. Shaw kept his medical problems to himself, said Mr. O?Dea: ?He?d disappear, and you wouldn?t hear from him, and then two or three weeks later, he?d finally call you back and reluctantly say he?d gone into the hospital for some procedure.?

Mr. Shaw never married. But in the late 1990s he began dating Catherine Chin, a property manager for Metrovest Equities, a Manhattan real estate company that was looking to build in Jersey City. Through Ms. Chin he met George Filopoulos, the company?s president, who eventually hired Mr. Shaw.

Mr. Filopoulos said he was relatively new to town when he heard of the possibility of redeveloping part of the old Jersey City Medical Center complex. Metrovest succeeded in developing it into a $350 million residential project called the Beacon.

?He was full of information in terms of how to navigate through,? Mr. Filopoulos said. ?He knew everybody.?

But Mr. Shaw?s contract ran out in 2008, Mr. Filopoulos said, and he was looking for ways to justify a new retainer.

Indeed, just a couple of days before Mr. Shaw?s arrest, he and Mr. O?Dea firmed up plans to meet on July 28 with Mr. Filopoulos to discuss possible federal stimulus money for a hotel proposed for Liberty State Park.

Mr. Filopoulos canceled that meeting on July 27, the day before Mr. Shaw?s body was found.

Though he kept up appearances in a sleek black luxury car, Mr. Shaw?s financial situation seemed to deteriorate in recent months, friends said.

Then, suddenly, a new developer arrived on the scene, promising him thousands of dollars just to set up meetings with local politicians.

In retrospect, friends say, Mr. Shaw should have noticed the warning signs. The cash in envelopes. The vague talk of a high-rise project on Garfield Avenue, where residents opposed even five-story buildings. And a pitch from a developer who struck one political operative, who met with the developer but turned his offers down, as being a bit fishy.

?I said, ?Jack, be careful,? ? said this operative, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the continuing investigation.

The developer turned out to be Solomon Dwek, who was acting on behalf of the government.

For once, it seemed, Mr. Shaw?s career of brushes with the law had all caught up to him.

Friends say they believe that Mr. Shaw was devastated after the arrests, because his latest comeback bid had been snuffed out, and along with it, dozens of lifelong contacts.

?The kinds of things Jack does, he always needed to have a person, a big person to be the guy to,? said Barry Brendel, a longtime political consultant who worked frequently with Mr. Shaw. ?He ran out of people.?

When I saw a photo of the guy, I was like...is this the best Hudson County and Jersey City can do or be associated with....

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Such a good article -- gives interesting insight into his role in Hud Co politics and his career, such as it was.

I thought this line was telling: ?The kinds of things Jack does, he always needed to have a person, a big person to be the guy to,? said Barry Brendel, a longtime political consultant who worked frequently with Mr. Shaw. ?He ran out of people.?

WOW! Shaw was ready to cooperate with the Feds!

nj.com link...

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Good NYT article about Jack Shaw's shady background...with an interesting connection to Metrovest developers:

Jack Shaw Article NYTimes

Shaw autopsy provides no answers; death 'suspicious'

Thursday, July 30, 2009
By RON ZEITLINGER

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITOR

The results of the preliminary autopsy on political strategist Jack Shaw could not determine the cause of his death and more tests will be performed, Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said yesterday afternoon.

Shaw, who was charged last Thursday in a massive corruption sting, was found dead on the floor near his work desk at his Jersey City home Tuesday afternoon by his girlfriend, DeFazio said. Three sources close to the investigation told the Star-Ledger that a bottle of pills was found near his body. Shaw had been ill.

The state regional medical examiner said the cause of death has to await "further medical studies," DeFazio said. DeFazio's office has labeled Shaw's death as "suspicious."

"Foul play was not apparent here whatsoever," DeFazio said, adding that the results of toxicological tests might take weeks.

DeFazio said the fact that more tests must be evaluated to determine the cause of death rules out a massive heart attack as a possible cause.

Shaw was charged with conspiracy to commit extortion. Authorities said in a criminal complaint that Shaw accepted $10,000 for himself from an FBI informant posing as a developer and another $10,000, according to the feds, earmarked for the re-election campaign of Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy.

DeFazio said investigators have interviewed Shaw's girlfriend and security personnel at Portside Towers on Warren Street, where Shaw lived. In addition, they have also reviewed tapes from the building's security cameras, he said.

The Star-Ledger contributed to this story.

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No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less... any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind. - John Donne


You are worse than heartless; you are selfish and ignorant. Shame shame shame.

the guy is dead. he was ill. stress exacerbates physical and emotional problems.

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JCPD announced today that no suicide note was found from Jack Shaw.

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Haven't you seen Godfather part II? Perhaps it was suicide, but "his family will be provided for".

Truthfully, I don't think these clowns could pull it off either way. Look at the numbers, they just don't think that big. They're the gang that couldn't shoot straight, and the only reason it's gone on so long is everyone in authority is either in on it or turns a blind eye. That's why it took the feds to do this.

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Let's see if there's a note.

I second. It has eerie "Michael Clayton" overtones, no?

I disagree. Charges for 10k are very, very small reason to kill yourself over-- especially when you have the chance to blow the whistle and cut a decent deal and are one among many. A few years in Club Fed is not that trying. It just doesn't add up. Think about it-- this "suicide" was done early in the process here-- could it be a warning to others that are considering cutting themselves a deal by offering info? It's really not far fetched when you consider the depths of long standing corruption in the state.