14 MARCH 28, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Queens reacts to city’s study of local jail plan
Many residents in two prior
meetings in Kew Gardens regarding
the jail proposal called on the
administration to hold off on the
plan to close Rikers in exchange for
smaller facilities to give legislators
Albany the opportunity enact justice
reform such as ending cash bail.
“We have been extremely
successful so far in enacting bail
reform without the legislation in this
city by encouraging judges to use
safe diversion programs and abide
by an array of other efforts that
have had an accelorated decline our
population,” Director of the Office
of Criminal Justice Elizabeth Glazer
said. “Right now we’re focused
on what we’re able to do in our
own capacity.”
Sylvia Hack from Community
Board 9 said claims from the
administration that they had
engaged residents in their plan
were not what she would define
as adequate.
“At the presentation that you and
Liz Glazer made to the commissioners
of CPC, you make the statement, ‘We
have been engaged in a significant
amount of community meetings.’
Well, this isn’t true. I don’t know what
you mean by ‘community,’ because
you’ve not been in the communities
that this proposal will affect.”
But the NAC in Queens lashed
out at a March 19 meeting in Kew
Gardens when for the second time
in a row the city banned reporters
who were invited by the members of
the committee.
Leaked audio of the meeting
depicted anger from members of
the committee who felt the policy
of keeping reporters from covering
was nothing more than the de
Blasio administration protecting
itself from bad press and prevented
information from reaching the
broader community.
Read more at QNS.com.
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
A draft environmental impact
study for the de Blasio
administration’s boroughbased
jail plan was released on March
22 with one 3,200 leaf document
depicting dozens of pages worth
of comment from local politicians,
community leaders and residents
that show a city-wide perception
that mayor’s offi ce was not open with
the affected communities on the
proposal.
Representatives from all four
boroughs slated for jail alternatives
to Rikers Island labeled the effort as
lacking in transparency with civic
leaders from Queens and Chinatown,
Manhattan having the most
vocal opposition to what they see
as a“fait accompli.”
With the ULURP process set to
begin March 25, the Mayor’s Office
of Criminal Justice held a briefing
on the draft environmental review
which changes some details of the
original envelope of the plan such
as reducing the square-footage of
the facility slated for 126-02 82nd
Ave. in Kew Gardens from 1.9 million
to 1.2 million and reducing the
projected capacity from 1,500
detainees to 1,437.
“Obviously we have been engaged
in a very intensive process of
neighborhood and community
engagement, and, you know, we’ve
obviously heard what concerns
were and we’re doing what we can to
respond to them,” Deputy Director of
the Office of Criminal Justice Dana
Kaplan said.
The plan to reduce the number of
jails in the city to a total of 11 city-wide,
with nine being on Rikers Island, is
an effort to reduce capacity to 5,750
and relocate detention centers nearer
to county courthouses in order to
cut-back on the time and resources
used to transport detainees
to court appearances.
It would also offer attorneys
better access to clients without
having to travel to Rikers Island
as well as house them nearer to
family connections.
According to Kaplan, the Queens
Detention Center will have a ward
to accommodate pregnant women
and also have a nursery. Juveniles
will not be consolidated into the four
facilities as they have already been
moved off Rikers and into one jail in
the Bronx and another in Brooklyn.
Although the plans detailed in
today’s press conference at City
Hall, the Office of Criminal Justice
admitted that there is not a specific
cost assessment to the whole
borough-based jail plan, but they
are confident the city budget can
accommodate it.
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
RRR Lounge in Ozone Park had
its liquor license suspended
by the State Liquor Authority
after an officer involved shooting
between Anthony Vega, 38, and
another individual that led to NYPD
offi cers opening fi re and wounding
the suspect.
On March 9, cops arrived at the bar,
located at 87-18 Liberty Ave., just aft er
the 3:50 a.m. alleged dispute between
Vega and another bar patron, as
part of a larger brawl, that escalated
into the former brandishing a pistol
outside the building and opening fi re
when an off -duty bouncer attempted
to wrestle the weapon away, according
to the SLA.
“The SLA has zero tolerance for
bars where violence is a routine
occurrence, threatening the safety of
their neighborhoods and straining
police resources,” SLA Chair Vincent
Bradley said. “This emergency
suspension should serve as a message
that this agency will not hesitate to take
immediate action when a bar poses a
threat to public health and safety.”
Aft er shooting the bouncer in the
foot, Vega allegedly refused orders
from the police to drop the gun and
NYPD Crime Scene Unit members inspect the exterior of RRR Lounge after
a police-involved shooting on March 9. Photo by Robert Stridiron
was summarily shot in the torso
and leg, the SLA. Vega, who was
taken to Jamaica Hospital, faces ten
felony counts regarding reckless
endangerment, intent to cause
physical injury with a weapon and the
top charge of possession of a loaded
fi rearm, according to court records.
According to Chief of Patrol Rodney
Harrison, three plainclothes offi cers
in an unmarked car who happened to
be passing by as the scene occurred
recovered 9mm pistol and a knife
from the scene. Body camera footage
is also part of the investigation into
the incident.
The SLA already had proceedings
underway to revoke the RRR Lounge’s
license for a Jan. 29 stabbing that led
to an investigating and the conclusion
that the owners were operating
disorderly premises, selling to minors
and creating excessive noise.
The RRR Lounge’s owner with
have the opportunity to argue his
or her case for remaining allowed
to sell alcohol in a hearing with
the authority.
Director of the Mayor’s Offi ce of Criminal Justice Elizabeth Glazer outlined
the draft environmental review for the borough-based jail plan.
Screenshot via YouTube
Oz. Pk. bar loses liquor lic. after shooting
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