What’s News, Breaking: Wednesday, Janaury 17, 2024

January 17, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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PUBLIC ADVOCATE URGES MAYOR TO READ
ACTUAL TEXT OF ‘HOW MANY STOPS ACT’

CITYWIDE — MAYOR ERIC ADAMS AND DETRACTORS OF THE “HOW MANY STOPS” ACT NEED TO READ THE ENTIRE BILL, which refutes their claims about it, said NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams on Wednesday, Jan. 17. This bill, the details of which are available to the public on the NYC Council’s website, details the language that exempts certain categories of casual interactions with the public from reporting requirements. Williams said that the “misconceptions” and misinformation that the Mayor is claiming run contrary to the actual text of the bill. Moreover, Williams pointed out existing language from the current NYPD patrol guide that already instructs officers to log some information on Level 1 and 2 stops related to Body-Worn-Camera recordings.

Intro 586-A and the other component of the ‘How Many Stops’ Act passed the City Council with a veto-proof majority last month.

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$260K RAISED FOR FAMILY OF BK SCHOOL CROSSING GUARD KILLED ON SUBWAY

CROWN HEIGHTS — MORE THAN A QUARTER OF A MILLION DOLLARS HAS BEEN RAISED after a beloved school crossing guard was shot and killed, reportedly trying to break up a dispute over loud music on a subway train this past weekend, according to GoFundMe. Richard Henderson, 45, was shot in the back and shoulder on Sunday night on a Manhattan-bound No. 3 train approaching the Franklin Ave-Medgar Evers College station, abc7 reports. His family said he was a devoted father of three and doting grandfather of two young girls “who lived to help others.”

As of Wednesday afternoon, a GoFundMe account had collected just over $260,000 for the family.

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IN MEMORIAM:
JOYCE RANDOLPH DIES AT 99; WAS
LAST OF HONEYMOONERS’ FOURSOME

MANHATTAN — JOYCE RANDOLPH, THE LAST SURVIVING STAR OF THE PIONEER TV PROGRAM “THE HONEYMOONERS,” DIED JAN. 13 AT AGE 99, the New York Times reports. Born into a Finnish family in Detroit, the actress who took on the surname “Randolph” as her stage identity, played Trixie Norton, wife of Ed Norton and upstairs neighbor to Ralph and Alice Kramden, the couple’s best friends. “The Honeymooners,” which premiered on Oct. 1, 1955, took place in Brooklyn, featuring Gleason as bus driver Ralph Kramden with absurd get-rich-quick schemes. (Jackie Gleason was a Brooklyn native). “The cast of four dominated the Saturday night viewing habits of millions in the golden age of live television, and for decades afterward on rerun broadcasts and home video,” writes veteran NY Times and Pulitzer-winning journalist Robert D. McFadden. Predeceasing Ms. Randolph were Gleason, who played Ralph Kramden, in 1987; Audrey Meadows (Ralph’s wife, Alice) in 1996; and Art Carney (Trixie’s husband, Ed Norton) in 2003.

According to the Times obit, Ms. Randolph dedicated an eight-foot bronze statue of Mr. Gleason at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in 2000. And Marines attending a 2006 U.S.O. gala gave her a standing ovation.

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NY SENATOR URGES RENEWAL OF FUNDING
TO HELP LOW-INCOME FAMILIES PAY WATER BILLS

NEW YORK AND CAPITOL HILL — RENEWED FEDERAL FUNDING IS NEEDED TO HELP LOW-INCOME FAMILIES PAY THEIR WATER BILLS, says U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who on Thursday, Jan. 18, will hold a video press conference on the matter. Sen. Gillibrand urges the government to fund the Low Income Household Water Assistance Program, which aids households whose drinking water and/or wastewater services have been disconnected, or are about to be disconnected, because of inability to pay. Because the program expired last year, Gillibrand is calling on the government to renew this program.

Since the program’s creation in 2021, LIHWAP has helped more than one million households nationwide, including over 35,000 in New York, afford their water and wastewater bills.

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BROOKLYN REP. GOLDMAN PRESENTS
GUN ANTI-TRAFFICKING BILL TO CONGRESS

CAPITOL HILL — A BILL TO REDUCE ILLEGAL GUN TRAFFICKING AND INCREASE TRANSPARENCY ON TRACING DATA was introduced in Congress on Wednesday, Jan. 17, with Brooklyn Congressmember Dan Goldman (D-10) as one of the presenters. Goldman and Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois introduced the ‘Trafficking Reduction and Criminal Enforcement’ (TRACE) Act to help the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) reduce illegal firearms trafficking by increasing transparency on gun trace data, require longer maintenance of background check records, mandate gun dealers report lost or stolen firearms, and mandate a second serial number that is harder for criminals to remove. The TRACE Act would require background check records to be maintained for a minimum of 180 days and for gun dealers to perform inventory checks to report lost and stolen guns, a measure currently prohibited under the Tiahrt Amendments, which the TRACE Act would also repeal for restricting the information that investigators can obtain on gun transactions.

A strong advocate of gun control, Rep. Goldman has also co-sponsored and/or introduced several other bills including, earlier this month, the ‘Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act.”

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GOLDMAN FILES CENSURE OF STEFANIK FOR SUPPORT OF JAN. 6 INSURRECTIONISTS

WASHINGTON, D.C. — CALLING HER BEHAVIOR ‘CONTEMPTUOUS,’ REP. DAN GOLDMAN SAID HE WOULD BE INTRODUCING A RESOLUTION on Wednesday to censure Rep. Elise Stefanik for conduct unbecoming of a member of Congress, including her “consistent support of insurrectionists who attacked the United States Capitol on January 6th, 2021.” Goldman (D-Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan) said Stefanik (R-Upstate NY) is providing “support, aid, and comfort to those convicted of the January 6th attack” and “spreading conspiracy theories related to Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 Presidential election.”

Stefanik’s referral of the convicted insurrectionists as hostages “both demeans the actual hostages currently held in captivity in Gaza and provides support for those who attacked the Capitol to prevent the peaceful transfer of power, caused the death of five law enforcement officers, injured more than 100 others, and threatened violence against members of Congress and their staffs,” Goldman said.

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JUDGE IN E. JEAN CARROLL DAMAGES TRIAL
THREATENS TO EXPEL TRUMP FOR ROWDINESS

LOWER MANHATTAN — A JUDGE IN MANHATTAN CIVIL COURT HAS THREATENED TO EXPEL DONALD TRUMP FROM HIS TRIAL FOR REFUSING TO STAY QUIET while Plaintiff E. Jean Carroll, a writer, testified on Wednesday, Jan. 17, according to the Associated Press and several news reports. Judge Lewis Kaplan gave Trump an initial warning after he audibly muttered comments about the plaintiff’s testimony. However, after Trump repeatedly ignored the jurist’s warnings and interrupted the proceedings, Judge Kaplan warned that his right to be present at the trial would be revoked unless he remained quiet.

Carroll, 80, was testifying as of press time that Trump “shattered” her reputation after she had accused him of sexual abuse from an incident decades earlier. She seeks $10 million in damages after winning a rape lawsuit against Trump, who is again running for President.

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BROOKLYN MAN ARRAIGNED FOR ‘HORRIFIC SPREE’ OF STABBINGS

DOWNTOWN — A BROOKLYN MAN WAS ARRAIGNED ON CHARGES OF ATTEMPTED MURDER, ASSAULT and other charges in connection with a series of stabbings on Nov. 12, 2023, that left three men seriously injured, Brooklyn D.A. Eric Gonzalez announced Wednesday. Abraham Kentish, 27, formerly of the SUS Shelter in East New York, allegedly went into the room of a sleeping 70-year-old shelter client and stabbed him 15 times. He then allegedly stabbed a sleeping 38-year-old client twice. Later that same morning he boarded a number 4 subway car and allegedly stabbed a sleeping 32-year-old man in the neck. All three victims were taken to Brookdale Hospital where they were treated for stab wounds.

“This defendant allegedly engaged in a horrific spree of violence, brutally stabbing three innocent and vulnerable people as they slept. We have no tolerance for this kind of random violence in Brooklyn and will now seek to bring the defendant to justice,” Gonzalez said. Kentish is being held without bail.

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NYU’S SCORSESE VIRTUAL PRODUCTION CENTER HITS MILESTONE AT INDUSTRY CITY

SUNSET PARK — CONSTRUCTION OF NYU’S NEW MARTIN SCORSESE VIRTUAL PRODUCTION CENTER is substantially complete, Industry City announced in a release Wednesday. Virtual production technology allows actors and directors to work in a virtual environment to create visual effects in real time, rather than in post-production. The facility features two 3,500-sq. ft. column-free stages, two 1,800-sq. ft. TV studios, broadcast and control rooms, dressing rooms and makeup areas, a lounge and bistro, scene workshops, offices and training spaces. NYU Tisch will open the facility to students in Fall 2024 and it will also be available for commercial rentals.

The production center should fit in well with Industry City’s burgeoning media and production ecosystem, said Glen Siegel, Managing Partner at Industry City.

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TWO SENIOR MEMBERS OF BRITAIN’S ROYAL FAMILY DEAL WITH SURGERY FOR BENIGN CONDITIONS

UNITED KINGDOM — TWO SENIOR MEMBERS OF THE BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY are taking medical leave, reports the Associated Press. King Charles III is to undergo a “corrective” procedure next week for an enlarged prostate that has been deemed benign, and will require “a short period of recuperation.” Meanwhile, Catherine, the former Kate Middleton, and now the Princess of Wales, underwent a planned abdominal surgery for a non-cancerous condition on Wednesday morning, Jan. 17, and will recuperate at a private hospital for the next two weeks.

Princess Catherine apologized for having to postpone scheduled engagements related to being an active, working royal.

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TWO NYPD OFFICERS SHOT AFTER RESPONDING TO 911 CALL IN BROWNSVILLE

BROWNSVILLE — TWO OFFICERS WERE SHOT on Tuesday after responding around 3 p.m. to a 911 call from a woman who said she was being assaulted by her son. One sergeant and three police officers from the 73rd Precinct responded to the apartment on Bergen Street near Saratoga Avenue and identified the perpetrator as Melvin Butler, 39, according to NYPD Detective Chief Joseph Kenny, who spoke at a press conference. During the arrest, a violent struggle ensued and Butler grabbed an officer’s weapon. Shots were fired, though it is not yet clear who fired them. One officer was hit in the left hand, another officer in the left thigh. Both are recovering at Kings County Hospital. Butler was shot multiple times and is listed in critical but stable condition.

Kenny said Butler has six prior arrests in New York City and one in North Carolina, with a history of resisting arrest and domestic violence. He served 15 years for attempted murder.

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TONIGHT: CB2 COMMITTEE TO CONSIDER PROPOSAL TO ALLOW CASINOS

CITYWIDE — TONIGHT, COMMUNITY BOARD 2’s LAND USE COMMITTEE WILL CONSIDER NYC’S proposal to change its zoning citywide to allow up to three casino complexes — including their related hotels, bars, restaurants and other amenities — in C4-C8 commercial districts and M1-M3 manufacturing districts throughout the city. (See map for allowable areas.) The casinos would be required to go through a state review and receive a 2/3 vote of approval from a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) made up of elected officials.

There are nine casino proposals to date, including several in Manhattan, one in the Bronx, two in Queens and one in Brooklyn (in Coney Island). The CB2 meeting will be held Wed., Jan. 17, at 6 p.m. at 350 Jay St, 8th floor conference room.

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TWO NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN DOWNTOWN BK

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — TWO NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS ARE SET TO OPEN IN DOWNTOWN Brooklyn this September, reports Brooklyn Bridge Parents, and are now open to enrollment for pre-k and kindergarten classes — older grades up to grade 5 will be added as students grow. P.S. 456 will have a curriculum focused on social justice, project-based learning and life skills, along with a Spanish dual-language program, while P.S. 482, the Albee Square Montessori Public School, will offer the city’s first public Montessori-based curriculum, centering hands-on and environmental learning; both schools will offer admissions priority for low-income families and will have rooftop play spaces, gyms, music rooms and other specialized facilities for students.

P.S. 456 offers borough-wide admissions, while P.S. 482 is un-zoned but gives priority to families from District 13; parents can register online for open house dates this week for P.S. 482 through District 13’s website and for P.S. 456 through the P.S. 456 website.

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NYPD COMPLAINTS REACH DECADE HIGH

CITYWIDE — COMPLAINTS MADE AGAINST THE NYPD REACHED THEIR HIGHEST LEVEL since 2012 in 2023, reports Gothamist, with 5,604 complaints filed with the Police Department’s Civilian Complaint Review Board, spiking 51% from 2022. A third of the complaints cited Brooklyn precincts, with one East New York precinct receiving four times the citywide average. The board’s suggestions for officer censure are not binding, and the NYPD appears to be increasingly declining to follow them, according to its yearly report: just 55% of its recommendations were followed by the department last year under commissioners Keechant Sewell and Eddie Caban; most disciplinary procedures involved cutting vacation days or suspending officers.

While a statement from the NYPD blamed the increase in complaints on increased quality-of-life arrests, activists found this explanation unconvincing. Chris Dunn of the New York Civil Liberties Union told Gothamist, “Complaint activity varies not by law enforcement activity but by excessive and overly aggressive law enforcement.”

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TEEN DIES WHILE SUBWAY SURFING ON F TRAIN

MIDWOOD — A 14-YEAR-OLD BOY PASSED AWAY ON FRIDAY AFTER BEING STRUCK at the Avenue N F train station, reports AMNY; police believe the teenager was subway-surfing and slipped and fell while riding on the outside of a train car. The death is one of several recent incidents involving the dangerous activity; officials say videos shared on social media are responsible for the increase in recklessness and have warned parents about the trend. In November, Mayor Adams recorded a PSA with the mother of Zachary Nazario, who passed away in February after striking his head while subway surfing on the Williamsburg Bridge.

“Another innocent life has been lost, and it should not happen… I implore parents to talk with their children and teachers to speak with their students — riding on top of subway trains is reckless, dumb, and the consequences can be lethal,” MTA President Richard Davey wrote in a statement.

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BK WOMAN CHARGED FOR GUN TRAFFICKING

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A BROOKLYN WOMAN ON THURSDAY WAS CHARGED IN BROOKLYN FEDERAL court on Thursday for allegedly dealing guns and drugs at a Canarsie housing project, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York; Ariana Charles, also known as Almighty A, age 28, allegedly illegally sold 18 firearms, some trafficked from Georgia and Virginia, to an undercover police officer at the Breukelen Houses, along with crack cocaine and fentanyl dangerously disguised as Oxycodone pills. Text messages between the undercover officer and Charles allegedly show the officer telling her that he would resell the weapons for a profit; Charles faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Four co-conspirators have also been indicted as a result of the same investigation. The alleged criminal activity took place between March and August 2022, and is being prosecuted under the gun trafficking provisions of the new Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, enacted in June 2022.

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ESSAY CONTEST LETS KIDS IMAGINE BEING PRESIDENT

BAY RIDGE & STATEN ISLAND — CONGRESSMEMBER NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS (R-11/STATEN ISLAND-SOUTHWEST BROOKLYN) IS HOSTING her annual Presidents’ Day Essay contest for students in her district comprising southwestern Brooklyn and Staten Island. Students in grades three through five who reside or attend school in New York’s 11th Congressional District are encouraged to write essays on what they would do to improve their community if they were president of the United States. Submission deadline is Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. All essays must be within 400 words and be mailed (USPS) to Malliotakis’ Staten Island district office, 1698 Victory Blvd, Suite 2L, Staten Island, N.Y. 10314. Winners will receive a congressional certificate of recognition from Malliotakis, a gift card to a local bookstore and an invitation to a pizza party where they will have the opportunity to meet with Rep. Malliotakis to discuss their ideas.

Rep. Malliotakis reports that her office received over 600 submissions for last year’s Presidents’ Day Essay Contest, more than double the number of essays she received since joining Congress in 2021.

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MISSING SENIOR IN EAST NEW YORK

EAST NEW YORK — POLICE ARE ASKING THE PUBLIC FOR HELP LOCATING MISSING SENIOR Sharon Hill, age 73, who was last seen on the evening of Saturday, Jan. 13, leaving her Ashford Street residence, near the Gateway Center. Hill is described as 5’2″ and around 165 pounds, and was last seen wearing glasses, a purple sweater, black sweatpants and purple sneakers; photos shared by police show her to have salt-and-pepper hair and a dark complexion.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of this missing person is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website, or on X (Twitter) @NYPDTips.

Missing woman Sharon Hill. All calls are strictly confidential.

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FEDERAL JAIL OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY TO SMUGGLING AND BRIBERY

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A FORMER FEDERAL PRISON CORRECTION OFFICER HAS PLEADED GUILTY at Federal Court in Brooklyn of bribery and smuggling of contraband substances at a jail in this borough. Quandelle Joseph, formerly employed by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Dora L. Irizarry, on Thursday, Jan. 11, to receiving bribes in exchange for providing contraband to individuals detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Court documents and facts presented at the guilty plea proceeding revealed that Joseph, who became a correction officer at the MDC in May 2020, accepted tens of thousands of dollars from inmates in exchange for smuggling narcotics, cigarettes and cell phones into the facility. In one instance, Joseph entered a unit he was not guarding during a lockdown, opened an inmate’s cell and provided him with contraband, for which he was expecting a $12,000 payment.

In another case, Joseph admonished another inmate, “Tighten up search comin’ clean phones out call logs n text n try to stash it.”

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MAIMONIDES’ CANCER CENTER EARNS REACCREDITATION

BOROUGH PARK — MAIMONIDES HEALTH’S CANCER CENTER HAS EARNED REACCREDITATION from the Commission on Cancer, a quality program of the American College of Surgeons. Maimonides Cancer Center applies a multidisciplinary approach and treats cancer as a complex group of diseases that requires consultation among a team of health care professionals with specialties in oncology, radiology, pathology and surgery, among other medical disciplines. Through this program, cancer patients benefit from having access to clinical trials, screening and prevention events, palliative care, genetic counseling, rehabilitation, oncology nutrition and survivorship services.

As part of the reaccreditation process, the Maimonides Cancer Center underwent a site visit to confirm the program’s compliance with accreditation standards that evaluate the program’s cancer care services.

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MTA RELEASES INFO ON PUBLIC REVIEW SCHEDULE FOR CONGESTION PRICING PROGRAM

CITYWIDE — THE PUBLIC REVIEW PROCESS HAS BEGUN FOR THE TOLLING STRUCTURE THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED for Central Business District Tolling, New York’s congestion pricing program, the MTA has announced. The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (MTA Bridges & Tunnels) will accept written and audio comments from now until March 11. They will also be holding four hybrid virtual/in-person public hearings from Feb. 29 to March 4. Members of the public may submit written comments online, and by email, mail and fax (212-504-3148, with Attention to CBDTP Team). Audio comments may also be submitted via voicemail at 1-646-252-7440. Members of the public who wish to speak at the hearings are required to register in advance online, in-person or by calling the Public Hearing Hotline at 646-252-6777.

All public hearings will be livestreamed on the MTA YouTube channel as well as on the project website; they take place Thursday, Feb. 29 at 6:00 p.m., Friday, March 1 at 10 a.m., and Monday, March 4 at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

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FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS JETBLUE’S TAKEOVER OF SPIRIT AIRLINES

NATIONWIDE — A FEDERAL JUDGE IN DALLAS ON TUESDAY, JAN. 16, BLOCKED JETBLUE Airways from buying the low-cost Spirit Airlines, siding with the Biden administration on antitrust grounds, the Associated Press reports. Following a lawsuit from the Justice Department, U.S. District Judge William Young ruled on Tuesday “that the merger would substantially lessen competition in a relevant market.” The Justice Department had warned that the merger would eliminate the nation’s largest low-cost airline and raise fares as a result. JetBlue, however, argued that the merger would actually benefit consumers as JetBlue’s competition would be strengthened against dominant rivals [e.g. Delta and United] in the U.S. air travel industry.

JetBlue has a presence at both of New York City’s airports — JFK and LaGuardia in Queens. JetBlue operates at LaGuardia from Terminal A, and at JFK from Terminal 5. Spirit operates at LaGuardia (and MacArthur in Central Islip, but not JFK).

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SENATORS URGE THEIR COLLEAGUES TO SUPPORT PASSENGER RAIL FUNDING

CAPITOL HILL — THE RAILROADS SERVING THE NORTHEAST CORRIDOR MUST GET SENATE FUNDING, SAY SENATOR KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-N.Y.) and a coalition of 13 Senate colleagues who represent New England, the Mid-Atlantic states and Illinois. They sent a letter urging Senate Appropriations leadership to defend funding in its Fiscal Year 2024 spending legislation for the Federal Railroad Administration Federal-State Partnership and Intercity Passenger Rail grant program. The committee-passed U.S. Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill included $100 million for this account. But House Republicans have proposed zeroing it out, which would dramatically hinder ongoing work to improve rail infrastructure in the Northeast and across the country.

The coalition included Democratic Senators representing New England states, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Illinois; and two Independents: Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine.