EDITORIAL
READERS WRITE
The trouble with Queens Boulevard
On Sept. 8, I made the unfortunate
decision to travel on Queens
Boulevard, from Rego Park to
Forest Hills in a vehicle.
I tried to get past the intersection
of Yellowstone and Queens
Boulevards, traveling east,
without much success. It seems
that “blocking the box,” at that
intersection and others, in Forest
Hills, has become a daily routine.
W
here is the enforcement of
that very traffic violation that
the 112th Precinct has promised
previously? I had to wait for three
changes of the traffic lights before
I was able to pass that intersection!
Granted, there was a street
fair, on Austin Street that Sunday,
but the intersection in question
is only two blocks away from
the stationhouse. If traffic law enforcement
is no longer a priority,
for the NYPD, shouldn’t they tell
us that?
This is an ongoing problem,
for this intersection as well as for
the intersections of Queens Boulevard
and 71st-Continental Avenue,
and 71st-Continental Avenue
and Austin Street.
As I made my way along
Queens Boulevard, I recalled
being a part of the community
group that years ago gave New
York City’s Department of Transportation
recommendations for
making Queens Boulevard safer
from Yellowstone Boulevard to
Union Turnpike.
The group was to make traffic
run smoother, to keep pedestrians
safer when crossing Queens
Boulevard and to help cyclists
traverse the boulevard without
being run down by fast-moving
cars. Why have none of our recommendations
been implemented
by now?
Only with strenuous enforcement
of the current traffic laws,
will traveling on Queens Boulevard
be better than it has been.
When did the NYPD decide
that traffic enforcement, along
Queens Boulevard, is not worth
their time?
S.M. Sobelsohn, Kew Gardens
EDITORIAL STAFF
Reporters: Bill Parry, Mark
Hallum, Carlotta Mohamed, Jenna
Bagcal, Emily Davenport,
Max Parrott
Photographers: Nat Valentine,
Ellis Kaplan, Robert Cole
Copy Editor: Katrina Medoff
Contributing Writers/Columnists:
Tammy Scileppi, Robert Cole
ART & PRODUCTION
Production Manager:
Deborah Cusick
Art Director: Nirmal Singh
Layout: Robert Pozarycki
Cartoonist: Tip Sempliner
ADVERTISING
Senior Account Executive:
Kathy Wenk
Account Executives:
David Strauss
Sherri Rossi
PROUD MEMBER OF NEW YORK PRESS ASSOCIATION
PUBLISHER
Brian Rice
EDITOR
Robert Pozarycki
V.P. OF ADVERTISING
Ralph D’onofrio
CIRCULATION
Robert Palacios
CLASSIFIED
Classified Director:
Celeste Alamin
Classified Sales
Manager:
Eugena Pechenaya
NO LONGER SILENT
The enactment of the Child Victims Act in New
York state has opened up a brand new wave of lawsuits
against individuals accused of sexually abusing
minors decades ago.
The latest case in Queens involves Monsignor
Otto Garcia, a vicar general within the Diocese of
Brooklyn and former church pastor.
On Sept. 10, Flushing resident Tom Davis appeared
at a press conference in Manhattan to come
forward with his story about being sexually abused.
He accused Garcia of molesting him while serving
as an altar boy at St. Michael’s Church in Flushing
during the 1970s.
The diocese was quick to defend Garcia, noting
that he was exonerated through an investigation by
its own Diocesan Review Board. They also took a
swipe at Davis’ attorney, Jeff Anderson, whose law
firm filed hundreds of new lawsuits under the Child
Victims Act, and accused the attorney of “making
sensational misrepresentations” of Davis’ case “to
garner media attention.”
Two years ago, Davis — who said he kept the incident
a secret for 45 years — came forward to law
enforcement and the diocese.
His parents had been active in the church, and he
didn’t want to come forward beforehand out of fear
of ruining his career. Having overcome drug and alcohol
abuse, in 2017, Davis felt the time was right to
finally make his voice heard.
But by that time, the criminal statute of limitations
had expired, the Queens District Attorney’s office
told Davis. Furthermore, the Diocesan Review
Board — chaired by retired NYPD Chief of Department
Joseph Esposito — took all of two days to investigate
the four-decade-old matter before clearing
Garcia, noting that there was a lack of evidence to
substantiate Davis’ claim.
Too many generations of sexual abuse victims
have kept silent for various reasons. One such reason
is a general feeling of being powerless. It’s hard
to feel otherwise when the people you turn to for help
turn you away, or discredit your case.
Davis has exercised his ability to seek legal remedies
in civil court against his alleged abuser and
those who failed to protect him. It will go to a judge
or a jury to thoroughly examine the facts of the case
before making a fair judgment.
At the very least, everyone involved in this case
will get their day in court. Justice will be served
whether by validating Davis or exonerating Garcia.
In the end, that’s what matters.
No victim of sexual abuse should feel silent any
longer. They should come forward, because the Child
Victims Act has empowered them to do so.
HOW TO REACH US
MAIL: 38-15 Bell Boulevard, Bayside, NY 11361
PHONE: Display Advertising: (718) 260-4537
Editorial: (718) 260-4549
WEBSITE: Visit www.qns.com
E-MAIL: Editorial: timesledgernews@schnepsmedia.com
Display Advertising: brice@schnepsmedia.com
Classified: classified@schnepsmedia.com
TO SUBSCRIBE: Call (718) 260-2515
Copyright©2019 Queens CNG LLC.
16 TIMESLEDGER, SEPT. 13-19, 2019 BT QNS.COM
/www.qns.com
link
link
link
/www.qns.com
/QNS.COM
link
link
link
