What’s News, Breaking: Monday, January 29, 2024

January 29, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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BISHOP BRENNAN LAUNCHES 2024 CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK,
MARKING ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY

BUSHWICK — THE ROMAN CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN BEGAN ITS ANNUAL LOCAL CELEBRATION OF CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK ON SUNDAY. The Most Rev. Robert J. Brennan, Bishop of Brooklyn, led a special Mass in honor of the start of Catholic Schools Week at St. Brigid Roman Catholic Church in Bushwick, joining students, faculty and families of St. Brigid-St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Academy at the Mass. Following the liturgy, Bishop Brennan visited the academy for the ribbon cutting ceremony and blessed the recently renovated Kindergarten classroom. The school is working to renovate all the classrooms by September.

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of National Catholic Schools Week. This week, Bishop Brennan is scheduled to visit schools throughout Brooklyn and Queens for a chance to meet students and faculty and catch a glimpse of the innovative educational programs offered daily.

Bishop Brennan blesses the newly-renovated kindergarten classroom at St. Brigid-St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Academy
Photo courtesy of John Quaglione/DeSales Media

Children attend Mass at St. Brigid-St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Academy to launch Catholic Schools Week.
Photo courtesy of John Quaglione/DeSales Media

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IDIOTAROD STORMS THROUGH CITY ONCE AGAIN

CITYWIDE — SIXTEEN TEAMS OF HIGHLY TRAINED IDIOTS RACED THROUGH the streets of Brooklyn on Saturday at the 20th Idiotarod, reports Brooklyn Magazine, an annual event that is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike a race; groups of competitors pushed tricked-out shopping carts to contests at checkpoints and bars along a five-mile route, seeking to wow (and bribe) judges, sabotage other teams, and stun onlookers. The leather-themed “Gimp My Ride” team won best in show, other standout themes included “Occupy Whale Street,” “Clams Casino,” and “Hot Cucumber,” whose sandwiches reportedly scored them the Best Bribe award.

Pictures abound on Brooklyn Magazine’s website; following the awards ceremony on Saturday night, the carts, as is tradition, were smashed to pieces.

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DIGITAL FAIR REPAIR LAW FACILITATES
FIXES ON CELL PHONES, OTHER ELECTRONICS

STATEWIDE — THE NEW YORK STATE DIGITAL FAIR REPAIR LAW MAKES IT EASIER FOR CONSUMERS TO REPAIR broken electronics at independent repair shops statewide, Attorney General Letitia James wants consumers to know. The law, which took effect Dec. 28, makes repairs of cell phones, tablets and other electronics simpler and more affordable by facilitating the repair of electronics at independent shops or to do repairs at home by requiring manufacturers to make diagnostic and repair information for digital electronic parts and equipment available to independent repair stores.

However, several products are excluded from this law, including motor vehicles, home appliances, medical devices, off-road equipment, farm equipment, yard or garden equipment, construction equipment, power tools and public safety communications equipment.

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DAN GOLDMAN: HOW TO REPORT MAIL THEFT

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — U.S. REP. DAN GOLDMAN ON FRIDAY SAID THAT CALLS ABOUT mail theft in his 7th District from constituents have been on the rise in recent months and promised that his office was working with law enforcement to solve the issue; Goldman also shared instructions on how to report mail theft to the Postal Service online. Potential victims should go to emailus.usps.com, select the “Where is my mail?” menu option, then the “Daily mail delivery” option, and then the “Theft of mail” drop-down menu option, entering available information as needed.

Mail theft in Goldman’s Brownstone Brooklyn has spiked since the coronavirus pandemic; the congressmember last year urged USPS Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to dedicate resources to cracking down on the city’s mail crime wave following a rash of brazen thefts using glue traps hidden in mailboxes to catch outgoing letters.

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NEW FOOD ALLERGY TREATMENT PROGRAM
AIMS TO BUILD RESISTANCE IN PATIENTS

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — A NEW FOOD ALLERGY TREATMENT PROGRAM THAT UTILIZES ORAL IMMUNOTHERAPY will open its newest location in Brooklyn Heights this Thursday, Feb. 1. Kim Yates founded Latitude Food Allergy Care in the wake of a protracted journey with her daughter, Tessa Grosso, whose story was chronicled in the New York Times. Ms. Grosso, 25 and an NYU student, reportedly became free of multiple food allergies — including to wheat, eggs and dairy — after undergoing oral immunotherapy treatment; before, EpiPens and adrenaline had to be used to halt anaphylactic shock. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology defines oral immunotherapy as “the medically supervised therapy of feeding an allergic individual an increasing amount of a food allergen with the goal of increasing the threshold that triggers a reaction.” Patients are exposed to microscopic amounts of their allergy-trigger at first, graduate to larger amounts, and build resistance to the food’s harmful effects over time.

Latitude Food Allergy Care will open at 32 Court St. on Feb. 1.

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HUDSON SAYS NO THANKS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECT

CROWN HEIGHTS — A PROPOSED MIXED-USE AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECT looks likely to be shelved after City Councilmember Crystal Hudson last week requested her colleagues deny rezoning permission, reports the RealDeal; the council typically defers to members on matters within their own district. The Pacific Street project, which would have 150 units and space for childcare and manufacturing businesses, is now likely to be shelved indefinitely — potentially dropping developer Nadine Oelsner, who has allegedly borrowed $11.5 million for construction, in hot water.

Hudson favors a broader rezoning plan backed by Mayor Adams that would see multiple blocks of the surrounding area also allowed to develop upwards; the councilmember left a public hearing on the plan before community members were able to speak and air concerns.

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GIRL SCOUT COOKIE SALE SEASON BEGINS

CITYWIDE — BUY SOME COOKIES FROM THE LARGEST GIRL-LED BUSINESS IN THE WORLD. The Girl Scout Cookie Season kicks off Feb. 1, with members of Scouting troops collecting orders both digitally and in person. Customers can order directly from Digital Cookie storefronts, which offer immediate shipping and can also search online to find local troops to support. Supporters wishing to interact directly with the young entrepreneurs can pick out their Girl Scout Cookies in person, where troops and individual Scouts host booths around the city. Rising costs in goods and services have caused an increase to $7 per box in New York City to support Girl Scout programming in the five boroughs, with a greater percent allocated to each troop.

Ashleigh Flanagan, local Girl Scout and 2023 Top Cookie Seller in Brooklyn, said, “Being a top Girl Scout cookie seller gives my troop the money to do the activities we want to do, such as going to the Statue of Liberty, camping, and gardening.”

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WOMAN CHARGED AFTER BODY PARTS FOUND IN REFRIGERATOR

MIDWOOD — A BROOKLYN WOMAN WAS CHARGED WITH CONCEALMENT of a human corpse on Friday following the gruesome discovery of a man’s head and other body parts in her refrigerator, reports NBC News. Heather Stines, age 45, was taken into custody on Monday after police were summoned to her Nostrand Avenue apartment by an anonymous tipster; Stines allegedly “became combative” when officers attempted to inspect the taped-up fridge, then, following her arrest and a psychiatric evaluation, claimed that the murdered man had been killed in September by her husband, who is currently incarcerated in Virginia on unrelated charges.

Police identified the victim as Kawsheen Gelzer, age 39, a convicted sex offender; neighbor Dorothy Williams told the New York Post that rumors about the couple’s involvement in Gelzer’s disappearance had run wild: “Everybody knew he went in there and never came back out… He didn’t deserve to die like that. Nobody deserves to die like that.”

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REP. CLARKE CALLS FOR HALT TO FUNDING
PREDICTIVE POLICING SYSTEMS

NATIONWIDE — FEDERAL FUNDING NEEDS TO BE STOPPED FOR SOFTWARE THAT CLAIMS TO PREDICT CRIME LOCATIONS, UNLESS IT IS PROVEN TO BE NON-DISCRIMINATORY, SAY BROOKLYN Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-09) and several Democratic colleagues in the House and U.S. Senate. Clarke and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) in December 2021 had issued a letter to the Justice Department, seeking more information about whether the department funds predictive policing systems. They charge that the DOJ took almost a year to respond and then failed to answer most of the members’ substantive questions, admitting it did not know how much federal grant money had been spent on predictive policing systems.

The members have now urged the DOJ to include an analysis of the accuracy and risks posed by predictive policing systems as part of an upcoming report on AI and law enforcement that President Biden requested of the DOJ, along with an inventory of grants for predictive policing systems.

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MTA CHIEF PLEDGES TO ‘PERSONALLY’ TICKET BUSWAY VIOLATORS, YET HIS OWN EMPLOYEES PARK THERE

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — THE NEW LIVINGSTON STREET BUSWAY is being blocked by cars, and transit workers are the ones parking there, according to Streetsblog NYC. Pledging to protect safety and right of way for bus riders, New York City Transit President Richard Davey declared last week that he would “be out there personally towing and ticketing” the transit workers’ vehicles that have parked illegally in front of the agency’s offices in Downtown Brooklyn. Yet the next day, cars marked with MTA logos, NYPD cruisers and other vehicles with various government identifiers, including MTA parking placards, blocked the red-painted lanes on Livingston Street. Streetsblog visited the spot on four separate occasions during two weeks.

The block with the most illegal parking violators was at NYC Transit’s headquarters on Livingston between Smith Street and Boerum Place, ironically omitted from the bus upgrade because of construction at that building.

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PALESTINIAN RESTAURANT HOSTS SHABBAT DINNER
FOR NEW YORKERS

DITMAS PARK — AYAT, A PALESTINIAN RESTAURANT IN BROOKLYN’S DITMAS PARK, ATTRACTED MORE THAN 1,300 LAST FRIDAY FOR SHABBAT DINNER, as part of a healing outreach to the turmoil between Jews and Palestinians around New York City, reports Jewish Week online. Restaurateur Abdul Elenani and his wife, Ayat Masoud — for whom the restaurant is named — invited all New Yorkers in the hopes that mutual bonds remain possible. Many of the attendees were anti-Zionist and left-leading Jewish groups that have persistently called for a cease-fire on humanitarian grounds in Israel’s war against Hamas. Among the attendees was New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, a Park Slope resident, who is active with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice and Kolot Chayeinu. Before the meal, a Shabbat service was held in a tent across from the restaurant.

The dinner was held in response to negative publicity from a British publication that took issue with the phrasing on the restaurant’s menu. Specialties were available for those who keep kosher and for vegetarians.

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PRATT MOVING ITS MFA ART FACILITIES TO BROOKLYN NAVY YARD

NAVY YARD — PRATT INSTITUTE IS MOVING ITS GRADUATE FINE ARTS AND PHOTOGRAPHY FACILITIES from the Pfizer Building on Flushing Avenue to the Dock 72 building in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, “enabling access to a burgeoning creative community,” the famous art institute announced on its website on Sunday. Dock 72 features floor-to-ceiling windows, with abundant natural light and great views of the Manhattan skyline. The space is expected to be complete and occupied by the fall term, starting in August 2024. The new location will include 100 individual artist studios, seminar and critique spaces, gallery spaces, a computer lab, fabrication shops and a black box for performances and projections.

“Expanding Pratt Institute’s footprint in the Brooklyn Navy Yard provides our graduate Fine Arts and Photography students with exceptional studios and access to a powerful community of diverse creatives and professionals,” Pratt President Frances Bronet said in a statement.

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SPEAKER ADAMS: COUNCIL TO OVERRIDE MAYOR’S VETO ON SOLITARY CONFINEMENT

CITYWIDE — SPEAKER ADRIENNE ADAMS SAID ON FRIDAY THAT THE CITY COUNCIL plans to vote on Tuesday to override Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of legislation to end solitary confinement. The legislation, which previously passed the Council by a veto-proof supermajority, would allow solitary confinement for up to four hours for de-escalation or emergencies, and then require alternative forms of separation proven to be more effective, she said in a release.

Multiple studies show that people who have spent time in solitary are significantly more likely to die by suicide and other causes including accident, violence and overdose, Speaker Adams said.

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BROOKLYN PANEL: PROTECTING KIDS FROM ‘PREDATORY’ INTERNET

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — NY ATTORNEY GENERAL LETITIA JAMES and state Sen. Andrew Gounardes join the founder of the #HalfTheStory Project Larissa May for a panel discussion on child online safety and privacy. Moderated by New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg, the panel will delve into the growing dangers posed by social media companies, their predatory actions, and their profound impact on the well-being of children and teens growing up while having their every move tracked, stored, cataloged and used by the largest and most powerful companies on earth.

The event takes place on Wed, Jan. 31, from 6 – 7:30 p.m. at the Center for Brooklyn History, 128 Pierrepont St., Brooklyn Heights.

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FEMA: CLOCK TICKING ON COMMENT PERIOD FOR RED HOOK’S FLOOD WALLS AND GATES

RED HOOK — FEMA ISSUED NOTICE LAST WEEK THAT THE 30-DAY PUBLIC REVIEW PERIOD HAS COMMENCED on the environmental assessment of the proposed Red Hook Resiliency Project, which aims to protect parts of Red Hook from storm surge and water level rise. The proposed projects will include the construction of flip-up and sliding gates to an elevation of 10 feet along parts of the Red Hook waterfront; and flood walls with heights up to four feet covered by raised and re-graded streets. The proposed project would focus on two low-lying areas that are most vulnerable: Atlantic Basin and along Beard Street (see photos). Additionally, the area of Todd Triangle would be re-designed and reconstructed.

A presentation may be viewed online.

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STATUE OF BK BASEBALL ICON JACKIE ROBINSON STOLEN IN KANSAS — CUT OFF AT ANKLES

WICHITA — A BRONZE STATUE OF BELOVED BROOKLYN DODGERS BASEBALL ICON JACKIE ROBINSON was stolen from a park overnight Thursday in Wichita, Kansas — cut at the ankles and hauled off in a truck, the BBC reports. The $75,000 statue was in McAdams Park, which recognizes influential African Americans and is home to League 42, a youth baseball league named after Robinson’s jersey number. “Our community is devastated,” Wichita police said in a statement.

All Star and World Series champion Robinson, the first African American to play pro baseball, started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. His strength of character and outstanding talent contributed substantially to the civil rights movement.

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UNLICENSED DRIVER STRUCK AND KILLED 14-YEAR-OLD BOY IN CANARSIE

CANARSIE — A 14-YEAR-OLD BOY WAS KILLED A BLOCK FROM HIS HOME BY AN OUT-OF-CONTROL CAR being driven by an unlicensed driver Saturday night in Canarsie, Brooklyn. Police said the boy, Christian Antoine, was crossing the intersection of East 81st Street and Glenwood Road around 6:16 p.m. when a car driven by Rayan K. Salmon, 45, barreled into a second vehicle’s left front fender, then spun clockwise and struck Antoine with the driver’s side as the boy crossed the street. Antoine was transported by EMS to Brookdale Hospital Medical Center in critical condition, where he was later pronounced deceased. Police arrested Salmon, who lives on Glenwood Road, and charged him with Aggravated Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle. The investigation is ongoing.

Salmon was transported by EMS to Brookdale Hospital Medical Center with complaints of body pain, in stable condition. The driver of the second vehicle was transported by EMS to NYC Health and Hospitals/Kings County, also with complaints of body pain, in stable condition.

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‘BLING BISHOP’ ROBBERY SUSPECT SHOT & KILLED IN NEW JERSEY

MONMOUTH JUNCTION — U.S. MARSHALS ATTEMPTING TO ARREST THE THIRD SUSPECT wanted in the 2022 Brooklyn robbery of the “Bling Bishop” shot and killed the man as he fired at law enforcement on Wednesday afternoon, NBC reports. Shamar Leggette, 41, was inside the MHO Inn and Suites on US-1 in Monmouth Junction when he came out shooting at deputy marshals and they returned fire. Leggette was wanted for robbing Bishop Lamor Miller-Whitehead and his wife of more than $1 million in gaudy jewelry at his ministry in Canarsie, an event famously captured on live-streamed video.

Two other men were previously arrested in the robbery, the Brooklyn Eagle reported.

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MAN ON JAY ST. SUBWAY PLATFORM INJURED AFTER CONTACT WITH TRAIN

DOWNTOWN — A 36-YEAR-OLD MAN WAS STANDING near the edge of the F train platform at Downtown Brooklyn’s Jay Street MetroTech station on Wednesday, Jan. 24, when he made contact with the side of a southbound F train as it was leaving the station, according to an NYPD spokesperson. Police responded to the 911 call at approximately 7:30 p.m. Since the man remained on the subway platform, power to the tracks did not have to be shut down.

The man was transported to Methodist Hospital in stable condition, and police do not suspect any criminality.

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CAMPAIGN FINANCE BOARD FLAGGED 400 DONATIONS TO ADAMS’ 2021 CAMPAIGN

CITYWIDE — THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE BOARD FLAGGED roughly 400 political donations to Eric Adams’ 2021 mayoral campaign as possibly bundled and requiring disclosure the campaign never provided, according to records obtained by Gothamist. The donations were combined into a single contribution — a practice called bundling — and represent nearly $396,000 in potential public matching funds. Under some circumstances, bundling is allowed, but the mayor never provided the legally required disclosure to make that determination, Gothamist reports.

The CFB audit has been paused while the FBI investigates whether the mayor’s 2021 campaign collected illegal foreign and straw donations.

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DENNIS WALCOTT APPOINTED TO NYS INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION

ALBANY — SENATE MAJORITY LEADER ANDREA STEWART-COUSINS HAS APPOINTED former NYC Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott to the NYS Independent Redistricting Commission, she announced in a statement Friday. He will be filling the vacancy left by the death of the highly respected Dr. John Flateau, professor and chair of the Department of Public Administration at Brooklyn’s Medgar Evers College. “Dr. Flateau’s absence is irreplaceable; however, the work of the commission must continue in order to meet the court’s time-sensitive directives,” Stewart Cousins said. Walcott is currently president and CEO of Queens Public Library and serves as chair of the New York City Districting Commission.

In December, the state Court of Appeals ruled 4-3 that the New York Independent Redistricting Commission will need to draw a new electoral map by Feb. 28, City & State reports.

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HIGH-TECH 3D MAMMOGRAM BUS ROLLING INTO BROOKLYN NEIGHBORHOODS

CITYWIDE — A STATE-OF-THE-ART 3D MOBILE MAMMOGRAPHY SERVICE is rolling into neighborhoods across Brooklyn and elsewhere, courtesy of the American-Italian Cancer Foundation (AICF), which has upgraded the equipment on its Mammogram Bus. The mobile unit travels to various locations across NYC five days a week year-round, offering no-cost breast cancer screening services to women 40-79 years of age who have not had a mammogram in the last 12 months. Insured and uninsured women are welcome. “This technology allows us to be at the forefront of breast cancer early detection,” said AICF Chairman Daniele Bodini. AICF encourages people to visit americanitaliancancer.org or call 877-981-2893 for upcoming locations and appointments.

Currently scheduled Brooklyn locations include the Coney Island Cathedral, Artisans of Medicine, St. Michael’s Church, Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church and New Lots Library, among others.

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NYC HEALTH COMMISH: SOCIAL MEDIA IS A MENTAL HEALTH THREAT TO CITY YOUTH

CITY HALL — ASHWIN VASAN, NYC’S HEALTH COMMISSIONER, HAS ISSUED A WARNING THAT THE CITY’S YOUTHS are facing a mental health crisis and urged parents and schools to take action regarding their time on social media platforms. Young people have attested that social media is negatively impacting their self-esteem, social relationships and ability to manage their time effectively and have asked for more assistance, he said in the advisory.

Following Mayor Eric Adams’ State of the City address on Wednesday, Vasan said, “The top line is that we are advising parents, caregivers — anyone who is regulating the devices and the social media platforms on them — to delay initiation until age 14,” noting that that age is a time of big transition, City & State reports.

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DOJ ENTERS AGREEMENT WITH NYS FOLLOWING INVESTIGATION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT BY CUOMO

ALBANY — THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE HAS SIGNED AN AGREEMENT WITH New York State to resolve claims that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo engaged “in a pattern or practice of sexual harassment and retaliation” of more than a dozen female employees, DOJ announced on Friday. The investigation, conducted by the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, found that that the Executive Chamber under Cuomo subjected female employees to a sexually hostile work environment; failed to correct the problem; and retaliated against employees who spoke out. Cuomo resigned in 2021 after NYS Attorney General Letitia James released a report on the claims. “We appreciate [Gov. Kathy Hochul’s] stated determination to make sure that sexual harassment does not recur at the highest level of NYS government,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District Breon Peace.

“Governor Cuomo did not sexually harass anyone. The DOJ ‘investigation’ was based entirely on the NYS Attorney General’s deeply flawed, inaccurate, biased, and misleading report. At no point did DOJ even contact Governor Cuomo concerning these matters. This is nothing more than a political settlement with no investigation,” Cuomo’s lawyer, Rita Glavin, said in a statement Friday.

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SUNSET PARK TO MAYOR: WHERE’S THE ARCHWAY?

SUNSET PARK — MEMBERS OF SOUTHERN BROOKLYN’S CHINESE AMERICAN COMMUNITY expressed frustration this week over a lack of progress in a decade-long project to build an ornamental archway in Sunset Park, reports Documented NY. After the mayor on Wednesday announced plans to build a similar archway in Manhattan’s Chinatown, the Brooklyn arch, once championed by Mayor Adams and Director of Asian Affairs Winnie Greco, has seemingly been deprioritized, with its completion date now set for 2029. The archway was originally conceived as a “friendship gift” from the Chinese government, but that endeavor fell apart in 2020 due to political tensions. Questions also remain over hundreds of thousands poured into an archway construction fund operated until 2022 by Greco that spent thousands on trips and events for the mayor, in addition to claimed payments of $50,000 or $60,000 to the city Department of Transportation — money that the DOT says it never received.

Greco is currently under investigation by the city Department of Investigation following allegations that she had demanded labor and donations to the archway fund in exchange for access to government positions and events.