16 APRIL 25, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Holden voices support for ICE operations
BY MAX PARROTT
MPARROTT@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
City Councilman Robert Holden has
railed against the Offi ce of Court
Administration’s (OCA) directive
to require a judicial warrant from law
enforcement offi cers, specifi cally ICE
agents, in order to enter New York state
courthouses.
The order, which was welcomed by
advocates and attorneys at the Legal
Aid Society and Make the Road New
York along with several prominent
candidates in the race for Queens
District Attorney, would require law
enforcement to identify themselves
upon entering a courthouse, and a
judge or court attorney to review
the federal warrant before they are
allowed to proceed.
“We must stop preventing ICE from
doing its job to protect our country
by limiting their role in and around
courthouses. While many elected
offi cials refuse to meet with ICE to
hear its side of the story, I have met
with the New York fi eld offi ce and
remain in contact with its directors.
They have explained to me that the
vast majority of arrests at courthouses
are of persons who have criminal
convictions or charges and pending
immigration detainers that have been
City Councilman Robert Holden. Photo by Mark Hallum
ignored by the NYPD,” wrote Holden.
Holden cited six ICE courthouse
arrests of immigrants who had prior
convictions and charges including
felony drug possession, sexual
abuse, harassment, forcible touching,
criminal possession of a fi rearm and
grand larceny.
He also disputed reports of ICE’s
involvement in city courts, saying that
the New York fi eld offi ce told him they
made just 23 arrests in court houses
since October 2017 until present.
On the other hand, the Immigrant
Defense Project (IDP) reported
33 ICE court arrests in 2018 in
Queens alone.
Janet Sabel, attorney-in-chief of The
Legal Aid Society, praised the OCA
for protecting these both defendants
and victims.
“In order for our judicial system to
function properly, all immigrants –
including our clients who have been
accused of a crime, parents appearing
in family court, and survivors of abuse,
among others – must have unimpeded
access to courts,” she said.
The IDP report that contains that
figure of Queens ICE arrests also
argues that ICE’s operations in court
deter many immigrant survivors of
domestic abuse from seeking relief
in court.
It also shows a decrease in orders
of protection for victims of domestic
abuse corresponding to the rise in
ICE’s courtroom operations in New
York state over the past few years.
Asked how the councilman would
address the negative eff ects of ICE’s
presence in courts on the victims of
such crimes, Holden’s offi ce responded
with skepticism over the report’s
conclusions.
“Data trends that coincide with
each other do not mean that
there is a direct correlation,” his
spokesperson wrote.
F.H. tenants get $1M in settlement with developer
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
Some Forest Hills residents
are thanking a housing
watchdog group for taking
on a global asset management
firm and winning at least the
first round.
The Housing Rights Initiative
— a nonprofit that has sued major
landlords, including a firm run by
senior presidential advisor Jared
Kushner — has won a preliminary
victory in its fight on behalf of
rent-stabilized tenants at the
sprawling Parker Towers, the 1,327-
unit housing complex at 104-20
Queens Blvd.
Blackstone Group, which bought
the development from the Jack
Parker Corporation for $500
million in November, has agreed
to pay about $1.1 million in refunds
to tenants after the Housing Rights
Initiative (HRI) generated a class
action lawsuit, filed by the law firm
Newman Ferrara, against the Jack
Parker Corporation in March 2018,
claiming the company illegally
deregulated apartments despite
getting massive tax breaks under
the J-51 program, which requires
owners to keep their apartments
rent stabilized.
The suit, one of the largest
J-51 lawsuits in city history,
remains ongoing.
“The goal here is not to get back
some of what was stolen, but to get
back all of what was stolen,” HRI
Executive Director Aaron Carr
said. “Stay tuned.”
The complex, which was built
in 1960, features three 20-story
apartment towers which offer
amenities such as 24-hour doorman
service, a dog run, indoor parking
and a private club.
The original lawsuit charged the
owners illegally leased apartments
at market-rents, never gave leases
to tenants and failed to register
the units with the state, according
to HRI.
In announcing the agreement,
Blackstone said it was reviewing
lease agreements and has found
that 110 units were entitled to
reductions and about 82 units
should be re-regulated. Blackstone
said the average rent reduction
would be about $230 a month.
“We are pleased that we were able
to voluntarily address this issue
quickly and fairly for our residents,”
a Blackstone statement said. “We will
continue to review the prior owners’
lease files with the expectation
of resolving and remaining
issues expeditiously.”
Attorney Lucas Ferrara, the
founder of Newman Ferrara which
is representing the tenants, said the
lawsuit is ongoing.
“We appreciate that the new
landlord is taking steps to
recognize these tenant’s rent
stabilization rights following the
actions of the prior owner,” he
said. “While we believe that these
tenants are entitled to additional
relief, we look forward to working
with ownership to reach a fair and
equitable solution for our clients.”
HRI’s leader Carr called the
settlement a significant first step
in a series of steps to restoring
the rights of hundreds of
tenants. He also admitted it was
a victory for his small nonprofit
group against such a massive
corporate entity.
Some residents of Parker Towers in Forest Hills are due refunds from complex
owner Blackstone in an ongoing lawsuit.
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