for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com july 4, 2013 • The CourieR SUN 9 Rockaway Theatre Company, Inc. st of the 2013 THE QUEENS QueensCourier.com Place In Partnership with Gateway National Recreation Area Proudly presents the Grand Re-Opening of the historic Post Theater Director- John Gilleece Musical Director-Jeff Arzberger Musical Arrangements by Jeff & Heather Arzberger July 19th, 20th, 25th, 26th, 27th, August 2nd & 3rd at 8PM Matinees: July 21st , 28th and Aug. 4th at 3PM These are benefit performances to help defray the costs of rebuilding after the storm. We will be featuring exciting raffles, auctions & Chinese auctions at all Matinees. For reservations and travel directions call: 718-374-6400 Or visit our website: www.rockawaytheatrecompany.org Ticket prices: Adults-$20.00 /Seniors & Children-$15. 00 This progam is supported, in part, by public funds from N.Y.C. Dept. of Cultural Affairs & Councilman Eric Ulrich *All music is performed by special licensing agreement with Broadcast Music, Inc., Nashville, TN, 37203 PHOTO COURTESY OF VIC NICASTRO A car crash on the Grand Central Parkway killed two and left four seriously injured. MAN CHARGED IN FATAL GCP CRASH BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] Madosh Hansraj packed his five friends into his car in the early morning hours of Saturday, June 29. While driving on the Grand Central Parkway, he reportedly lost control and crashed. Two passengers died. Hansraj, 20, of Queens Village, now faces charges including two counts of manslaughter, one count of felony assault, two counts of criminally negligent homicide, speeding and driving while ability impaired, according to authorities. Police said Hansraj lost control of the vehicle when he tried to switch from the center lane to the right lane while traveling eastbound at high speed. Cops added when he tried to brake, the vehicle slid off the roadway and hit the guardrail near Utopia Parkway and 188th Street. Three of the four people in the backseat were not wearing seat belts and flew through the rear window. Two of the ejected passengers, Meera Dukharan, 17, and Anil Persaud, 18, were pronounced dead at the scene. The third has serious injuries. He, the other rear passenger and a teenager in the front seat, are being treated at New York Hospital Queens. Hansraj’s bail was set at $250,000, according to court records. SPLIT DOWN THE MIDDLE Council passes controversial NYPD bills BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] Queens lawmakers are split over two controversial bills that have passed the City Council and are poised to shake up management of the NYPD. Following the approval of the Community Safety Act, lawmakers and organizations have been coming out one by one to express their opinions about the two polarizing bills. “Queens residents should be outraged,” said Public Safety Committee Chair Peter Vallone Jr. One of the bills will create an inspector general to oversee the activities of the police department in conjunction with the police commissioner, while the other bill will make it easier for people to sue the NYPD over racial profiling and other forms of discrimination. Mayor Michael Bloomberg and others against the bills said they will hamper the officers’ work and increase crime. Bloomberg promised to veto the legislation, but the City Council is expected to have enough votes to override it, according to reports. Supporters of the bills are celebrating the passage of the legislation, saying the NYPD abuses its stop-and-frisk policy, which allows officers to halt people and search them, and also provides for the surveillance of Muslims. “In reality, less than one percent of stops yield guns,” said Councilmember David Weprin, a supporter. “The legacy of stopand frisk is the humiliation of innocent people and the destruction of the trust that should exist between communities and the police department.” The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA), which represents about 50,000 current and retired city officers, promises to challenge councilmembers that voted in favor of the bills and support opponents in reelection bids. The organization distributed flyers outside the Bayside LIRR station on July 3 to Weprin’s constituents and asked them to call on him to change his vote. “No councilmember who puts this city at risk will have a free ride in the next election,” PBA President Patrick Lynch said. Vallone does not think the inspector general bill will be effective to change crimes. While he agreed there are problems with stop-and-frisk, he said the bill will tie police up in courts. A day after the council passed the bill, Bloomberg made headlines with a controversial statement on his morning radio show. “One newspaper and one news service, they just keep saying, ‘Oh it’s a disproportionate percentage of a particular ethnic group.’ That may be, but it’s not a disproportionate percentage of those who witnesses and victims describe as committing the murders,” Bloomberg said. “In that case, incidentally, I think, we disproportionately stop whites too much and minorities too little.” Bloomberg later declined to apologize for his comments.
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