Cuomo grants clemency to 5 immigrants in Queens
BY BILL PARRY
Gov. Andrew Cuomo granted
clemency to 29 people, including
five from Queens, who have
demonstrated substantial
evidence of rehabilitation and
a commitment to community
crime reduction.
Many of those receiving
a pardon were facing the
possibility of deportation due to
their criminal record.
“While President Trump
shuts down the federal
government over his obsession
with keeping immigrants
out, New York stands strong
in our support for immigrant
communities,” Cuomo said.
“These actions will keep more
immigrant families together
and take a critical step toward
a more just, more fair and more
compassionate New York.”
Among those the governor
pardoned is Boaz Bag-Bag, 53,
who was convicted of trademark
counterfeiting in the second
degree in Queens, for which he
was required to pay a fine and not
sentenced to any incarceration.
He has not committed any
crimes in the past 10 years since
his conviction. He did not have
any prior convictions. Bag-Bag
was born in Israel and is the
CEO of a company employing
Before he was sworn into his third term Tuesday on Ellis Island,
Gov. Andrew Cuomo pardoned five Queens immigrants.
6,000 drivers in New York City.
A pardon would help defend
against the risk of removal
proceeding, according to the
governor’s office.
Wojciech Lesniak, 36, was
convicted of resisting arrest and
attempted unauthorized use of
a vehicle in the third degree in
Courtesy of Cuomo’s offi ce
Queens in 2006. Lesniak has
completed residential treatment
for alcohol and drug use and
currently works as the house
manager for a sober house and a
driver for a residential addiction
treatment program. He has
maintained a crime-free and
sober lifestyle for the 12 years
since his conviction. A pardon
would allow him to reapply
for his green card and pursue
naturalization, according to the
governor’s office.
Ronan Hylton, 47, was
convicted of attempted
criminal sale of a controlled
substance in the third degree
in 1992, as well as other drug
charges in Queens. Hylton
came to the U.S. from Jamaica
more than 30 years ago with
his family to escape political
persecution. As a father and
dedicated family man, he now
lives and works in Queens.
A pardon will allow him to
apply for discretionary relief
from his deportation order.
He has not been convicted of
any misdemeanors or felonies
for 12 years, according to the
governor’s office.
Manuel Vidal Antigua, 38,
was convicted of criminal sale
of a controlled substance in
the fourth degree in Queens in
2007 for selling small amount
of a controlled substance to
make money for his mother’s
medical expenses. He was born
in the Dominican Republic
and currently faces an order
of removal.
Antigua is the father of two
American children, helps run his
community softball team, and
takes care of his elderly mother
and he has not committed a
crime for 12 years, according to
the governor’s office.
Kerrone Kay-Marie Parks,
33, was convicted of criminal
possession of a controlled
substance in the seventh degree
in Queens in 2013. She was
born in Jamaica, is a domestic
violence survivor, a mother of
three children on the honor
roll, and currently volunteers
full-time at a nursing home.
She has remained crime-free
for five years, according to the
governor’s office.
“In pardoning immigrant
New Yorkers who face
deportation despite years
of contributing to our
communities., Governor
Cuomo has used a powerful
tool to restore dignity to people
for whom punishment will
otherwise never end, simply
because they weren’t born
here,” Immigrant Defense
Project Executive Director
Alisa Welleck said. “We look
forward to continuing to work
with the Governor’s office
and our Immigrant Clemency
Project to provide immigrant
New Yorkers with a fighting
chance to remain with their
families in the face of Trump’s
hateful agenda.”
City offi cially launches ‘Fair Fares’ NYC program
BY BILL PARRY
Mayor Bill de Blasio
and City Council Speaker
Corey Johnson held a
joint appearance Jan. 4 to
roll out the city’s fair fare
program and its efforts to
address poverty through the
development of a half-priced
MetroCard for low-income
New Yorkers.
The program is launching
in phases and initial eligibility
is open to New Yorkers at or
below the federal poverty
line who are receiving cash
assistance of Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance from the
city’s Department of Social
Services.
“New Yorkers shouldn’t
have to choose between a ride
on the subway or bus and
their next meal,” de Blasio
said. “Our partnership with
the Council for fair fares will
make our city stronger and
fairer for low-income New
Yorkers whose lives depend on
mass transportation.”
The Fair Fares NYC
MetroCard will allow
participants to purchase
unlimited weekly and monthly
passes at a 50 percent discount
at MTA vending machines.
The cards can be used on any
New York City subway or nonexpress
bus.
The city is working with
the MTA to phase in a pay-perride
option, which it expects to
launch in April.
“Fair Fares is a
groundbreaking program that
will help New Yorkers who
need it most,” Johnson said.
“Fair Fares will open up this
city and its promise to people
who currently are being shut
out because they can’t afford a
swipe. It will change lives for
the better.”
Last spring, the Mayor and
the Council announced a plan
to fund $106 million for the
Fair Fares NYC program in
the first year. On Jan. 4, the
Department of Social Services
started contacting 30,000
eligible working New Yorkers
Photo via Shutterstock
who are receiving cash
benefits. The notifications,
and subsequent phone calls,
will inform the group of their
eligibility, and invite then to
the nearest Fair Fares NYC
location to receive their halfpriced
MetroCard.
Eligible recipients can
also call 311 to assist in
receiving their card. In April,
and additional estimated
130,000 New Yorkers who are
receiving SNAP benefits will
receive notifications about
how to access their cards.
“Fair Fares is now a reality
in New York City,” said City
Councilman Daniel Dromm,
the chair of the Committee on
Finance. “These discounted
MetroCards will make bus and
subway fares more affordable
for thousands of low income
New Yorkers who rely upon
mass transit each day. Fair
Fares has long been a priority
of the Council and I’m thrilled
to see it come to fruition.”
Critics argue the program
leaves out CUNY students,
the working poor and some
immigrants. Comptroller
Scott Stringer released
data that shows the city had
significantly scaled back
initial eligibility leaving out
hundreds of thousands of lowincome
New Yorkers.
“The good news is that Fair
Fares is finally leaving the
station. The bad news is that
after today’s announcement,
the price of a MetroCard will
remain an obstacle for the vast
majority of the 800,000 New
Yorkers who were originally
promised relief,” Stringer said.
“That’s hundreds of thousands
of families who will struggle to
get to work or a job interview
because they can’t afford a full
fare. For their sake, we need to
make sure this delay doesn’t
become a derailment.”
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