Volume 65, No. 147 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2019 50¢ NYC expands QUEENS supervised release ahead TODAY of bail reforms By David Brand November 12, 2019 Queens Daily Eagle The City Council and at least one local district attorney’s office will expand fund- THE STATE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY ing for a supervised release program at will hold a joint hearing today to examine courthouses across the five boroughs as the the $51.5 billion 2020-2024 MTA Capital city prepares for new state measures that Plan. This hearing will offer lawmakers curtail the use of cash bail for most people an opportunity to receive testimony and charged with nonviolent offenses. ask questions of MTA officials and expert The city’s supervised release initiative, stakeholders. first pioneered in Queens, relies on social workers and case managers who work with defendants to ensure they return to their A BROOKLYN MAN HAS BEEN pretrial court dates. The program “offers charged with murder for allegedly stabbing a strong, proven solution to the challenges a man to death outside of a homeless shelter and opportunities provided by the State's in East Elmhurst last week. Prosecutors say Justice Joseph Zayas, administrative judge in Queens Supreme Court, Criminal Term, bail reform measures,”See more said Elizabethon page Glaz 16- Ricardo Henry, 34, got into an argument with said supervised release gives judges more options than simply releasing defendants on Continued on page 2 Abdul Silas in front of a homeless shelter on their own recognizance under new state bail laws. Eagle file photo by Andy Katz Ditmars Boulevard. The argument became more heated until Henry allegedly pulled out a knife and repeatedly stabbed Silas in the abdomen, killing him. Inaccessible Sunnyside subway “VIC OLEN E IS NEVER AN ACCEP- table way to end an argument. In this case, the defendant is alleged to have repeatedly stations miss out in MTA Capital Plan plunged a knife into the victim’s torso. This By Amanda Glodowski was an act of senseless violence that will Queens Daily Eagle never be acceptable. The defendant now faces Sunnyside is home to zero wheelchair ac- the possibility of spending the rest of his life cessible subway stations and that’s not chang- locked behind bars.” ing in the immediate future. The MTA recently published its 2020-2024 Capital Plan, a $51.1 billion proposed invest- THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW ment that promises to fund enough accessible York joined colleges across the country stations so that commuters are never more on Friday to celebrate the success of first- than two stops away from an elevator. Sun- generation college students. The number of nyside’s four inaccessible subway stations are CUNY undergraduates who are the first in not included in the renovation plan, however. their family to pursue higher education was The neighborhood is serviced only by the 107,778, or 44 percent of those who were No.7 train, and while Court Square station in Long Island City is one of the nearest ac- enrolled in the 2018-2019 academic year, a cessible stations, it only offers an elevator to percentage that has remained consistent since the No.7 train — not the G, E or M trains. A 2012, according to CUNY. commuter must then travel six stops — more than two miles — to reach the next accessi- ble station on the No. 7 line at 61st Street in “CUNY IS PROUD TO RECOGNIZE Woodside. first-generation college students for their “It’s horrible to get anywhere. I feel like I commitment to education and perseverance, live in another country. I live in Queens,” said and for the impact they are making on our Lisa Forsee, 57, a Queens resident with a per- campuses across the city as they work to better manent mobility disability. their lives,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix To get to her various doctors’ appointments Matos Rodríguez. “Our historic mandate is to in Manhattan, Forsee said she must make her build a bridge to the middle class for students way four blocks to the nearest bus stop and of all backgrounds, including those who are take the Q103 to the 21st St-Queensbridge F the first in their family to attend college. We train station, where there is an elevator. The are invested in helping them to attain their detour adds at least 45 minutes to each of her goals.” An individual in a wheelchair accesses a subway station using an elevator. Such commutes. accessible subway stations are few and far between — there are none in Sunnyside. Continued on page 2 Photo by Marc A. Herman/MTA New York City Transit via Flickr Continued on page 12 Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Visit us Online @queenseagle facebook.com/queenseagle queenseagle.com NYC expands supervised release ahead of bail reforms QUEENS Continued from page 1 previously exist,” Grasso added. He was not available for comment on Friday. er, director of the Mayor’s Office of Criminal The Manhattan District Attorney’s office Justice, which oversees the initiative. has pledged $100 million in assets seized The Queens pilot program was introduced from major banks to fund the supervised re- TODAY by the Criminal Justice Agency in 2009 and lease expansion. The Council pledged an ad- resulted in 87 percent of client defendants ditional $7 million in the current fiscal year. November 12, 2019 returning to court and completing their su- In March 2016 and March 2019, a total of pervised release requirements, the city an- 12,262 people were mandated to the super- nounced in 2015. vised release program, according to a report S T. MARY’S HEALTHCARE SYSTEM New state bail reforms mandate release by the Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice. for Children in Bayside has been awarded a without bail for some violent felonies, like That includes 1,950 people charged with fel- robbery in the second-degree and burglary in onies and 517 charged with misdemeanors in $30,000 KidCents Regional Grant to provide the second-degree. Supervised release means Queens. nutrition education home care visits to judges have more options than releasing de- In Queens, 91 percent of defendants were children with special healthcare needs and fendants on their own recognize, known as not re-arrested for a felony and 92 percent their families. ROR, said Justice Joseph Zayas, administra- made all their court appearances during that tive judge of Queens Supreme Court, Crim- three-year time period, MOCJ reported. inal Term. “Expanding it is timely given the The city said Friday that total has reached “ AT ST. MARY’S, OUR DEDICATED effect of the bail statute” Zayas said. nearly 15,500 people, including 4,200 this team of pediatric specialists are caring for “With supervised release, at least you have year. Roughly 90 percent made every court children with complex and potentially life- an assurance that a defendant is going to have appearance, while 92 percent had no felony limiting conditions,” said Daniel Devine, numerous reminders of the court date,” Zayas re-arrests while in the program, the city said Manager of Institutional Gifts & Program continued, adding that the initiative also Friday. But a larger percentage have been ar- Development at St. Mary’s. “This fragile helps connect defendants with needed mental rested for misdemeanors. population’s risk of malnutrition — and the health, substance abuse and employment ser- The Queens DA’s Office did not respond Bronx Supervising Judge George Grasso critical medical complications that could arise vices that can have a major impact on their to a request for comment Friday, but Queens told the New York Times that supervised from it — are of very high concern to us. lives. Executive Assistant District Attorney James release was “another tool” for judges. Through this new grant partnership, the Rite Quinn explained the potential consequences Bronx Supervising Judge George Grasso, Eagle file photo by Paula Katinas Aid Foundation will be helping St. Mary’s one of the initiative’s major advocates, told of supervised release in an interview with the Kids achieve and maintain a more nutritious the New York Times that supervised release Times. gram, the more of these defendants are going lifestyle and go on to lead healthy, happy “The more expansive the city becomes in to be committing crimes when they’re out,” equates to “having a larger tool kit.” lives.” “Good options, good tools, that didn’t taking people into the supervised release pro- Quinn said. “And that’s our concern.” THE ORGANIZATION “YOUR LIC” What's on the docket announced the launch of its public engagement process on Friday to inform planning for 28 acres along the Long Island City waterfront. for the Queens legal community CLE: BREAKIN’ UP IS HARD TO DO: Get 'The Best of the Nest' delivered KE E P YOURSELF INFORMED ABOUT B asics of Business Dissolution PROBATE & everything Queens by subscribing to our daily Tuesday, Nov. 12 ADM INISTRATION to your inbox every week: newsletter. 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