22 The Courier sun • january 23, 2014 for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com DISSENT AMONG THE RANKS Community Board seeks leadership change, help BY MAGIE HAYES AND TERENCE M. CULLEN editorial@queenscourier.com Community Board (CB) 9 has grown infamous for its internal disagreements, leaving some members to wonder about oversight and to question whether they should seek help. The borough president’s office oversees Queens’ 14 community boards. The question now is whether newly-elected Borough President Melinda Katz and her staff will amend the issues. District Manager Mary Ann Carey said the borough president has recently called several board members in for interviews, including herself last week, regarding “everything,” but declined to specify what was discussed. From September to November of last year, about 15 to 20 board members were “strongly discussing” having the borough president’s office intervene, but instead decided to “let it be” and “wait it out,” said an anonymous board source, who asked not to be named in fear of retribution. “There has certainly been a lot of dissent regarding leadership,” the source said. Now, the source “certainly hopes” Katz will intervene. Another ranking board member, who asked not to be named, said the borough president’s office was aware of the problems with the board from local news coverage. Discussing matters of personnel issues with the press, however, would be inappropriate, the source said. Katz’s office declined to comment. Katz oversaw community boards for three years when working for former Borough President Clare Shulman. Last August, Carey was placed on six months’ probation after a battle with the board’s executive committee, which nearly ousted her in June of the position she has held for 30 years. Board member Sam Esposito defended Carey and said that Chairperson Jim Coccovillo “restlessly continued on his quest to harass and intimidate the staff.” In November, Esposito dodged his own removal from the board after allegations he made anti-Semitic remarks. Coccovillo attempted to redo the vote that kept Esposito, but it never came to fruition. “Plenty of people were ready to boot him as chair if he tried to kick Sam off the board again,” said another member, who also asked to remain anonymous. Coccovillo was absent from the January meeting, and Carey revealed the chair had given her a performance report,in which she failed every category. She then alleged that she and her staff work under stressful conditions because Coccovillo was always watching over their shoulder, and that he subjected them to “harassment.” Coccovillo could not be reached for comment. In March, CB 9 will have a vote for new leadership. Multiple sources said there is no chance Coccovillo will be reelected. “I think we need a change in both the leadership and the office staff,” the source said. Legally Speaking By: Scott Baron, Attorney at Law BATTER UP Advertorial Q: I was only 16. During an elective softball class, as a warm-up exercise, I was hitting ground balls to a fielder. A new student named Juliet approached me and asked if she could hit a few. I handed the bat to Juliet and told her, “This is just a practice drill, and don’t take full swings.” However, Juliet immediately threw the ball in the air and took a full swing before I had time to get out of the way. A: The school will argue that you assumed the risk that resulted in your injury: that a participant in an athletic activity is deemed to have assumed those commonly appreciated risks which are inherent in the sport and flow from your participation. Its attorneys will contend that the danger of one person’s swinging a bat into another’s face while warming up for the game is inherent. Despite your tender age, if you were an experienced softball player, then there is a substantial likelihood that you will be found to have taken this risk upon yourself. Your attorney will need to dig deep. Perhaps, in truth, the accident resulted from some unassumed, concealed or increased risk from which your teacher should have been protected you. Perhaps the school knew or should have known what you did not – for example, that Juliet had severe behavioral problems. Even if you can clear the hurdle of assumption of the risk, your attorneys will still need to build a case that the school engaged in negligent supervision. Only a few seconds elapsed between your giving the bat to Juliet and this tragedy. Where an accident occurs in so short a span of time that even the most intense supervision could not have prevented it, the court may hold that lack of supervision cannot be the proximate cause of the accident. On this case more than many, your attorney must work very hard. The law responds to changed conditions; exceptions and variations abound. Here, the information is general; always seek out competent counsel. This article shall not be construed as legal advice Copyright © 2014 Scott Baron & Associates, P.C. All rights reserved. 159-49 Cross Bay Boulevard, Howard Beach, New York 11414 1750 Central Park Ave, Yonkers, NY 10710 718-738-9800, 914-337-9800, 1-866-927-4878 Gov, students work to end animal cruelty BY MAGIE HAYES mhayes@queenscourier.com The state is cracking down on irresponsible animal dealers and breeders, and the local Ozone Park community is jumping on board with its own project. P.S. 65 is raising “By showing their money to help a local caring for the no-kill shelter care for its animals. Governor animals and Andrew Cuomo also recently signed a bill to caring for others, target pet dealers and it’s instilling that breeders who neglect to provide humane virtue in them.” treatment for animals in their care. MICHELLE State Senator Joseph STANGEL Addabbo, who cosponsored the bill, called it “an important step forward for animal safety in New York State.” The “puppy mill bill” will allow local lawmakers to enact stronger regulations in monitoring licensed pet dealers and breeders. “For many years, I have pushed for this legislation to crack down on irresponsible pet dealers and breeders who keep animals in substandard and inhumane conditions, who often wind up selling sick animals to the public, and who routinely put the money they can make from selling these innocent animals above and beyond their responsibility to care for them properly,” Addabbo said. Further ensuring these animals’ safety locally is the elementary school’s fourth graders, who are fundraising for Heavenly Angels Animal Rescue, so the center can provide for the animals they take in. “By showing their caring for the animals and caring for others, it’s instilling that virtue in them,” said Michelle Stangel, fourth grade teacher. The students created T-shirts to sell for $15 each and hope to sell 100. All funds go directly to Heavenly Angels. Students also toured P.S. 65 classrooms and told their peers about the different ways they could help. In addition, they promoted the project on social media and are collecting spare change in their classrooms. In the main lobby, a collection box is taking in leashes and food for the animals. To make a donation, visit www.booster.com/ps65q.
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