16 THE QUEENS COURIER • JANUARY 31, 2013 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com politics s HUNTLEY PLEADS GUILTY Disgraced pol allegedly helped funnel funds BY TERENCE M. CULLEN [email protected] Former State Senator Shirley Huntley, arrested last summer and later ousted in a primary election, has pleaded guilty on charges that she helped funnel nearly $80,000 through a phony non-profit, according to the FBI. Huntley, who turned herself in to the state attorney general’s office last August, was originally fingered for helping cover up a non-profit which offered parent workshops that State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman alleged never took place. The disgraced legislator admitted she helped embezzle $80,000 through Parents Information Network; Huntley’s daughter, Pam Corley, ran the non-profit. Huntley was charged with two felonies and a misdemeanor for drafting a fake, backdated letter to make it appear as if Parents Information Network held workshops in 2008 that used $30,000 in state-granted money. She pleaded not guilty to these charges in August. If convicted on all three charges, Huntley, 74, could face a maximum of nine years in prison. Sally Butler, Huntley’s attorney, was not available for comment. Huntley is not speaking to the press, a representative said when her house was phoned. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Former State Senator Shirley Huntley, pictured here leaving court last August after turning herself in, is reportedly expected to plead guilty for tampering with non-profi t funds. Obituary Former City Councilmember Emanuel Gold, former State Senator, dead at 77 Former Queens politician Emanuel Gold, who served in the New York State Senate from 1971-1998, passed away on Thursday, January 24. He was 77. “His contribution to Queens and to New York itself was tremendous,” said Heskel Elias, a friend and previous client of Gold, who practiced law in Forest Hills. “He was liked on both sides of the aisle,” he added. While representing District 13 in the State Senate, Gold served as deputy minority leader. He was voted into the State Assembly in a special election in 1970, a year before he was elected senator. One of Gold’s most notable accomplishments as a politician was authoring New York’s “Son of Sam” law. Named for New York City serial killer David Berkowitz, it prohibits convicted criminals from profi ting from their crimes. Services were held at Parkside Memorial Chapels in Rego Park. Juanita E. Watkins passes Former City Councilmember Juanita E. Watkins passed on Sunday, January 20 after a long illness. Watkins grew up in Brooklyn, was an excellent student and the fi rst from her family to go to college. She attended the State University of New York at New Paltz, and Teachers College at Columbia University, where she earned her master’s degree. Upon graduation, she became an elementary school teacher. After several years, she moved on to the fi eld of educational publishing at McGraw-Hill. Watkins also served as a commissioner on the NYC Civil Service Commission. During her political career, she served in many functions including: delegate and member to the Democratic National Convention, Queens County Democratic District Leader, and Queens County Committee Chair. She became the fi rst woman of color to represent a City Council district, and after her fi rst term of offi ce, she went on to win two subsequent elections and served three terms in the City Council representing the 31st Council District. While on the Council, often at the detriment of her own health, Watkins was a champion for small business, education, women’s rights, the poor, the elderly and the disenfranchised. Watkins is pre-deceased by her mother and best friend Floretta Watkins, and is survived by her beloved niece and goddaughters. Also saddened by her loss are members of her City Council staff and her extended political family in the Assembly and Senate. — BY SONDRA PEEDEN
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