July 1, 1996

New Jersey now has the nation's second-highest percentage of parolees walking its streets, according to a Department of Justice study released yesterday. Only Pennsylvania had a higher number of parolees per 100,000 adults at the end of 1995. In 1994, New Jersey ranked third behind Pennsylvania and Texas. But last year, the state's paroled population grew by 13.4 percent to 47,411. Mario Paparozzi, assistant chief of the New Jersey Bureau of Parole, said that prison overcrowding was putting pressure on state corrections officials to release inmates who qualify for parole.

The battle over the rights to a college's name took a decidedly sophomoric turn over the weekend: Two Princeton University alumni were arrested Saturday for stealing signs proclaiming the former Trenton State College "The College of New Jersey." Trenton State chose the name last week over objections and the threat of lawsuits from officials at Princeton, which used the name until 100 years ago.

In an unusual move tantamount to approving a new drug, the Food and Drug Administration plans to publish in the Federal Register a notice that says ordinary oral contraceptives can be safely and effectively used as "morning after" pills, according to a top agency official.

Cloak-and-Dagger Touches At Group of 7 Meeting When President Clinton's economic advisers carried heavy stacks of papers all over Lyons, France, during the summit meeting of the Group of Seven industrialized nations last week, it was not simply to exercise away calories from four-hour meals at three-star restaurants. In this era of free trade, economic espionage is rampant, security agents say, and they told the advisers to leave nothing important in their hotel rooms. [Page A1.]

A bill that would require written permission from drivers before the state could sell or otherwise release information on their licenses has been approved by the Assembly. But the bill cannot be considered by the Senate until it reconvenes in late July. In a last-minute effort to include the bill in the state budget signed Friday by Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, the measure was pushed through two budget committees on Thursday and was passed in the Assembly the same day. But the Senate adjourned before acting on the bill. The Governor had proposed selling information on drivers' licenses to generate $11 million for the state, but ran into roadblocks from legislators who said it could endanger the public and infringe on privacy rights.