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REP. GOLDMAN’S RESOLUTION, NOW PRIVILEGED,
FORCES HOUSE VOTE ON EXPELLING SANTOS

CAPITOL HILL — THE RESOLUTION TO EXPEL EMBATTLED QUEENS CONGRESSMAN GEORGE SANTOS has been reinvigorated. Brooklyn Congressman Dan Goldman (D-10) and colleague Robert Garcia (D-CA) on Tuesday, Nov. 28, called up as a privileged resolution their previous bill, thus forcing the House Republican leadership to schedule a vote on his expulsion within 48 hours. This resolution follows the release of the report from the House Ethics Committee’s investigation which concluded that George Santos defrauded his donors, filed false FEC reports, and repeatedly broke the law in order to fraudulently win his election last November.

Reps. Goldman and Garcia had originally introduced their individual resolutions to expel Santos earlier this year — Goldman in August and Garcia back in February. Although a majority of GOP House members voted to refer them to the House Ethics Committee, its chair, Republican Michael Guest, released a scathing report against the freshman Congressman from Queens and Nassau County.

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POLICE ID PEDESTRIAN KILLED
IN MONDAY MORNING COLLISION 

MIDWOOD — A 77-YEAR-OLD MIDWOOD WOMAN WAS KILLED MONDAY MORNING IN A PARTICULARLY GRUESOME PEDESTRIAN COLLISION, REPORTED THE NYPD ON TUESDAY, NOV. 28, and the Daily News on Monday. Around 9 a.m., the woman was crossing the intersection of Avenue P and East 19th St. (within the 61st Precinct), from the southwest corner to the northwest corner, when the driver of a 2020 Peterbilt Motors dump truck traveling eastbound on Avenue P struck her. The Daily News quoted witnesses to the collision who said the impact had decapitated the woman, although the police report used different language, indicating “trauma about the head and body.” The NYPD has identified the deceased as Erika Wajsman of East 12th St. The 43-year-old male dump truck driver remained at the scene.

Several Jewish newspapers have since updated their coverage of the tragedy: Hamodia, based on Foster Ave. in Kensington, reported that the Jewish ambulance corps Hatzalah responded to the scene, but was unable to save Ms. Wajsman. Misaskim and Chesed Shel Emes, a crisis intervention organization, provided the victim with proper Jewish burial preparations.

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FDA: RARE BUT SERIOUS REACTIONS POSSIBLE
WITH CERTAIN ANTI-SEIZURE MEDICINES

NATIONWIDE — SEVERAL ANTI-SEIZURE MEDICINES CAN CAUSE A RARE BUT SERIOUS REACTION THAT CAN BE LIFE-THREATENING IF NOT DIAGNOSED AND TREATED QUICKLY, the Food and Drug Administration warned on Tuesday, Nov. 28. The anti-seizure medicines Keppra, Keppra XR, Elepsia XR, Spritam (levetiracetam), Onfi, and Sympazan (clobazam), can cause Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS), which may start as a rash but spread quickly and injure internal organs. Cases that are not quickly treated could lead to hospitalization and even death. DRESS can include fever, rash, swollen lymph nodes, or injury to organs including the liver, kidneys, lungs, heart, or pancreas. Therefore, the FDA is requiring warnings about this risk to be added to the prescribing information and patient Medication Guides for these medicines.

The FDA urges patients taking levetiracetam or clobazam who develop any unusual symptoms or reactions, including a rash, to seek emergency room care immediately. However, they should not stop taking the medicines without consulting with their doctors, as sudden cessation can cause uncontrolled seizures.

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MEDICAL, FINANCIAL DATA OF FOUR MILLION
NEW YORKERS IMPACTED IN SECURITY BREACH

STATEWIDE — AT LEAST FOUR MILLION NEW YORKERS HAVE BEEN IMPACTED BY A DATA BREACH at the medical transcription company Perry Johnson & Associates, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced on Tuesday, Nov. 28. The Nevada-based company, which provides transcription services to healthcare organizations and physicians for dictating and transcribing patient notes, became aware of the breach in May, with the impacted data comprising some social security numbers, insurance and clinical information from medical transcription files. The data breach affected Northwell Health and Crouse Health. Most individuals whose data was impacted have been notified.

Attorney General James is warning New Yorkers to protect themselves from potential identity theft by informing their insurance companies of possible fraudulent billing and to question any unrecognized billing and to place fraud alerts on their credit reports.

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MAIMONIDES HEALTH TEAM TRAVELS TO UKRAINE

BOROUGH PARK AND UKRAINE — MAIMONIDES HEALTH RECOGNIZED THE WORK OF DR. JOSHUA SCHILLER, Director Of Global Health, Emergency Medicine, Maimonides Medical Center, and a team of seven of its doctors who joined a weeklong medical trip to Ukraine from Nov. 4-11. The team was organized through the charitable foundation, International Medical Response, whose objective is to “support, and enhance healthcare systems in communities across the world that have been impacted by natural disasters, extreme poverty, or regional conflict,” according to its mission statement. “Medicine is a language between healthcare practitioners that is spoken worldwide,” said Dr. Schiller, who explained that “the goal of this program is to bring care and health education to patients and providers.” He said, “Consequently, education in medicine can bridge political and social boundaries over great distances.”

Partner organizations include Zonta International, Uzhhorod National University, and Maimonides’ Department of Emergency Medicine.

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RESOLUTION FROM JEWISH CONGRESSMEMBERS
CONDEMNS PUSH TO EXPEL PALESTINIANS FROM U.S.

CAPITOL HILL — THE RESOLUTION CONDEMNING CALLS FOR EXPULSIONS OF MEMBERS OF THE ARAB COMMUNITY, which Brooklyn Congressman Dan Goldman co-introduced on Nov. 28, reads, in part: “Whereas this rhetoric calls for the removal of an entire people from our nation . . . [U]nfairly and dangerously conflates Palestinians with Hamas and its actions  . . . [I]mplies immigrants are a danger to America — ignoring our nation’s long history of welcoming people of all faiths and backgrounds . . . [I]s un-American, bigoted, and is designed to inflame tensions which could result in violence: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives — Condemns calls from Members of Congress for the expulsion of Palestinians from the United States.”

Congressman Goldman has personal experience with the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, having been in Israel that weekend to attend a bar mitzvah. He later recounted to Spectrum News 1 the “traumatic experience” of trying to flee Israel.

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REP. GOLDMAN REBUKES CALL TO EXPEL PALESTINIANS,
CALLING IT ‘RACIST, XENOPHOBIC’

BROOKLYN AND CAPITOL HILL — BROOKLYN CONGRESSMAN DAN GOLDMAN (D-10) JOINED HIS COLLEAGUE, Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio/Cincinnati area), in denouncing calls from other members of Congress to have Palestinians expelled from the United States. Reps. Goldman and Landsman, both of whom define themselves as Jewish, on Tuesday, Nov. 28, introduced a resolution condemning calls from members of Congress to expel Palestinians from the United States, and in response to another House Resolution (6211) from Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Montana). “Calls to expel Palestinians from the United States are racist, xenophobic and have no place in the government of the United States,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “We cannot stand for rhetoric that fans the flames of hate in this nation. The anti-American proposal to expel an entire people from this country must be condemned.”

Zinke, the Congressmember who initiated the expulsion idea, defines himself on his webpage as a fifth-generation Montanan. According to his bio on government advocacy pages, he and his family are Lutherans — interestingly, the same faith tradition as some Palestinians in the U.S. and in the Holy Land. The Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem’s Old City is Lutheran.

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FORT DEFIANCE CLOSING AFTER 15 YEARS IN RED HOOK

RED HOOK — FORT DEFIANCE, A BAR & RESTAURANT THAT WAS A “HOME AWAY FROM HOME” for Red Hook residents for 15 years, posted on Instagram that it will be permanently closing on Dec. 3. The bar was known for its “acclaimed Irish coffees and standout brunch,” Eater said. Fort Defiance’s closure comes just a little over a year after it reopened in its new home at 347 Van Brunt Street.

The owner St. John Frizell told Eater that the decision to close Fort Defiance was related to debt accrued during the pandemic and losses from stalled liquor licenses.

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MAN SUSPECTED OF KILLING MOTHER AND STUFFING HER IN A BOX MAY BE FREED

EAST FLATBUSH — A MAN CHARGED WITH KILLING HIS MOTHER AND STUFFING HER INTO A BOX in their apartment may be set free due to the lack of an accurate autopsy proving the cause of her death, the New York Post reports. 30-year-old David Drummond was removed from the custody of the Department of Correction earlier this month and sent to Bellevue Hospital. Cops said he admitted to hitting his mother but without an autopsy, Drummond, who allegedly has a history of mental health issues, could be back on the streets of Brooklyn.

The mother’s body was too deteriorated to take an accurate autopsy, the paper reported.

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PARENTS CALL CUTS TO NYC’S FREE 3-K ‘CATASTROPHIC’

CITYWIDE — PARENTS DESCRIBED MAYOR ERIC ADAMS’ CUTS to the city’s free 3-K program as “catastrophic” and “pulling the rug out from under families’ feet,” the Daily News reported Monday. Adams announced plans last week to cut $120 million from the budget for free preschool for 3-year-olds, translating into thousands of fewer slots. Enrollment in 3-K was expected to increase by 18% next year, the Daily News said.

The mayor calls these and other large budget cuts the “rightsizing” necessary to meet the demands of the large number of migrants entering the city.

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FLORIDA MAN ARRESTED AFTER THREATENING MASS SHOOTING ON NYC SUBWAY

PINELLAS PARK — A FLORIDA MAN WAS ARRESTED after allegedly threatening to shoot up a New York City subway on Thanksgiving, WFLA News Channel 8 reported. An anonymous tip led officers to Robert Trout III, 19, of Pinellas Park, who had posted a video of himself brandishing two Glock .40-caliber pistols on social media. “I’m gonna shoot anybody I see on that f****** train. If you’re from New York City do not take the train on Thursday evening,” Trout wrote on Instagram.

Trout’s family told police he has ties to New York and was expected to be moving back soon. As of Monday, he was still being held in the Pinellas County Jail on an “FBI courtesy hold,” with bail set at $50,000, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.

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NYC WARNS LANDLORDS THEY COULD BE FINED FOR UNLICENSED SMOKE SHOPS

CITYWIDE — NYC HAS EXPANDED ITS CRACKDOWN ON UNLICENSED SMOKE SHOPS BY GOING AFTER LANDLORDS, Mayor Eric Adams said in a release on Monday. The NYC Sheriff’s Office Joint Compliance Task Force to Address Illegal Smoke Shops has sent letters to landlords and owners of 50 buildings across the five boroughs warning that they could be legally liable for the continued unlicensed sale of cannabis or tobacco products by their tenants. 

The letter explains that landlords could face “an injunction and penalties up to $1,000 a day,” and that the city “is empowered to request that the building owner or landlord initiate an action to remove tenants from the property.”

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LONG-TIME CHIEF OF MICROBIOLOGY LAB AT LICH DIES, AGE 83

COBBLE HILL — THE FORMER CHIEF OF THE CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY LAB AT LONG ISLAND COLLEGE HOSPITAL IN COBBLE HILL died at State College, Pennsylvania on Nov. 12.  Benjamin HeeChan Bae taught residents and fellows, and did research in the development of simple, cost-effective diagnostic microbiology procedures at the (now-shuttered) hospital for 25 years, according to an obituary published in various sources including Legacy.com. Bae’s work was published in numerous scientific publications. He was 83. A funeral service will be held Nov. 29 in Pennsylvania.

According to his obituary, Bae “believed in and practiced the notion that man should do his utmost while working and being paid for the work regardless of his dislike for the job or compensation.”

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BROOKLYN’S TALLEST CHRISTMAS TREE READY TO GET LIT ON WEDNESDAY

DOWNTOWN — THIS GIANT FIR TREE AT BROOKLYN COMMONS (formerly called MetroTech) is traditionally the tallest Christmas tree in Brooklyn, usually coming in around 55 feet. The mammoth conifer is all set for the annual Light Up Brooklyn Commons festivities, scheduled for Wed., Nov. 29, at 5 p.m., with ice carving, snacks and Santa, and the tree lighting commencing at 6:30 p.m.

Visit the full schedule online.

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MEETING THURS. ON PLAN TO REDEVELOP KINGSBORO PSYCHIATRIC SITE

PROSPECT LEFFERTS GARDENS — EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT IS HOLDING A MEETING via Zoom on Thursday, Nov. 30, at 6 p.m. to inform the public about the proposed Kingsboro Psychiatric Center Mixed-Use Project at 681 Clarkson Ave. The project involves ESD’s transferring the site to a private developer to construct roughly 1,090 total units of affordable and supportive housing; two single-adult men’s homeless shelters, which would replace the existing 364 beds; up to 8,092 square feet of commercial space for use as a grocery store; up to 63,071 square feet of community facility space (including a Service Employees International Union facility, emergency food provider, ballet studio and resident social service space); 15 parking spaces; roughly 2.16 acres of publicly accessible open space and 0.64 acres of private open space. 

Construction would be undertaken in three phases, with the first phase commencing in 2024 and the final phase being completed in 2031. More info online.

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DOE FUND HOSTS DINNER, WITH GIFTS, FOR CRYSTAL TOWERS RESIDENTS

 EAST FLATBUSH — DURING THANKSGIVING WEEK, THE HOMELESS SERVICES NONPROFIT The Doe Fund joined forces with local partners in East Flatbush for a community dinner and giveaway to tenants of its Crystal Tower residence. The 123-unit building — part of the Doe Fund’s over 970,000 square-foot portfolio of permanent affordable and supportive housing — first opened in 2020. Each resident received essentials kits, including hygienic products and winter clothing, that students of KIPP AMP Elementary School donated through its Lending Lions program. Selin Olmsted Studio donated hundreds of designer sunglasses and optical glasses to the tenants. Kula for Karma, a nonprofit that provides mindfulness-based mental health care for marginalized populations, also led a guided meditation for residents.

The Doe Fund operates and is developing nearly one million square feet of permanent affordable and supportive housing.

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AG JAMES: MAKE SURE YOUR CHARITABLE DONATION DOESN’T END UP IN FUNDRAISER’S POCKET

STATEWIDE — N.Y. ATTORNEY GENERAL LETITIA JAMES RELEASED ON MONDAY her annual “Pennies for Charity: Fundraising by Professional Fundraisers” report. The report, which analyzed data from 2022’s professional charitable fundraising campaigns, found that a big chunk of donations often goes to the fundraisers instead of the nonprofits. While professional fundraisers pocketed nearly a quarter of every dollar donated to the charities that hired them, in 48% of campaigns the charities received less than half of the funds raised. Shockingly, in 17% of campaigns, fundraising expenses exceeded revenue and actually cost the charities money.

There are numerous fundraising scams — including phony charities with names that sound like reputable organizations and email phishing schemes — so do your research before donating, James urges. One place to start is the Pennies for Charity Database.

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STEPPED OFF BUS, STABBED, THEN BEATEN WITH HIS OWN CANE

BROWNSVILLE — A 60-YEAR-OLD MAN WAS RIDING THE B12 BUS IN BROWNSVILLE around noon on Nov. 15 when an unknown man and woman engaged him in a dispute, then struck the victim in the head, police said. When the victim and the two individuals exited the bus at Fulton Street and Alabama Avenue, the woman stabbed the victim three times to the back with a knife; while the male grabbed the victim’s cane and struck him on the head. The perpetrators fled on foot westbound on Fulton Street. The victim was transported by EMS to Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center in stable condition.

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782), or by visiting Crime Stoppers.

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FAITH-BASED SENIOR HOUSING COMPLEX IS PART OF HUD SECRETARY’S BROOKLYN VISIT 

EAST FLATBUSH — REP. YVETTE CLARKE (D-09) on Nov. 28 will host US Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia L. Fudge in Brooklyn to highlight ways that HUD and the Biden-Harris Administration have made housing more affordable and accessible in 2023. Congressmember Clarke will discuss with HUD Secretary Fudge the efforts to boost homeownership, build housing supply, and deliver much-needed assistance. They will also tour Bishop Philius and Helene Nicolas Senior Housing, a faith-based development in East Flatbush that is propelled with HUD funding, and will meet with residents. The property, on New York Avenue in East Flatbush, houses 100 low-income seniors and individuals who have faced housing denials elsewhere. During the tour, Rep. Clarke and Secretary Fudge will also visit affordable homeownership, healthcare, education and commercial real estate amenities in the Nehemiah Spring Creek community.

A Haitian immigrant, Bishop Nicolas founded the Evangelical Crusade Fishers of Men in East Flatbush 50 years ago. He and his wife Helene have pastored Evangelical Crusade Christian Church, serving Haitian refugees.

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REVISED HUMAN RIGHTS LAW PROHIBITS BIAS ACTION AGAINST HEIGHT OR WEIGHT

CITYWIDE — HEIGHT AND WEIGHT DISCRIMINATION IS NOW PROHIBITED, with the New York City Human Rights Law having taken effect on Sunday, Nov. 26. This amendment to a pre-existing law on discrimination protects New Yorkers from discrimination based on height and weight in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The height and weight provisions join the 25 protected categories enshrined in the NYCHRL, which already prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, age, disability, religion, gender, and sexuality, among others, and covers situations such as refusing to lease or rent to a housing applicant, turning a patron away because of their height or weight, hiring only employees of a certain body size for public-facing roles, using harassing or offensive language, creating a hostile work environment.

The law provides for limited circumstances in which employers and public accommodations may take height and/or weight into account, but there are no exemptions for housing providers.

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REP. GOLDMAN INTRODUCES ‘HELPING KIDS COPE ACT’

CAPITOL HILL — A BIPARTISAN ‘HELPING KIDS COPE ACT’ THAT BROOKLYN CONGRESSMAN DAN GOLDMAN (D-10) has introduced with Reps. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Delaware) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) would support pediatric behavioral health care initiatives and community-based programs in the face of the growing pediatric mental health crisis. The bill, named the ‘Helping Kids Cope Act’ would authorize grants to improve the coordination and integration of pediatric behavioral health services across the country, increase children’s access to care via telehealth treatment, crisis responses, behavioral health urgent care centers in children’s hospitals and advocacy centers — especially those in under-resourced communities. Further, grants would improve the collection of demographic data on adolescents’ mental health needs to identify gaps in children’s access to care and would provide funding and workforce innovations to the workforce that deals with pediatric behavioral health.

Earlier this year, Congressman Goldman supported the ‘Mental Health Workforce and Language Access Act’ to provide grants for mental health professionals who are fluent in a language other than English.

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FDA EXPANDS RECALL OF FRUITS AFTER MAJOR RETAILERS CONTINUED STOCKING THEM

NATIONWIDE — THE US FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION ON MONDAY, NOV. 27, UPDATED ITS PREVIOUS RECALL OF PLUMS, PEACHES AND NECTARINES, and is now warning people not to consume these fruits. The fruit in question, which were not organically grown, and which are believed to carry Listeria monocytogenes, were recalled but still carried at major supermarket chains across the country, including in New York. The recall includes individual peaches and 2 lb. bags of peaches, nectarines, or plums). The FDA lists the retailers selling these fruits, including Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Albertson’s, ACME, Balducci’s, Food Lover’s Market, Carrs, Lucky, Eagle, Safeway, Shaw, Sprouts Farmers Markets, and Star Market.

Consumers who may have frozen these fruits are warned to discard them.

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