Volume 65, No. 92 Thursday, AUGUST 22, 2019 50¢ BPs miss charter revision deadline QUEENS for community board member data By Sam Raskin Queens Daily Eagle TODAY All five of New York City’s borough presi- dents failed to meet a voter-imposed deadline — August 22, 2019 — to deliver information about community board representation and the member selection pro- cess — and they say it’s because they didn’t WITH THE STROKE OF A PEN, GOV. know where to send their reports. Andrew Cuomo ensured crime victims in The borough presidents faced a July 1 dead- New York are better protected from their line to submit to the mayor and City Council attackers. speaker — and post on their own websites — the demographic composition of their com- munity boards’ membership, along with other CUOMO SIGNED SEVERAL PIECES information on the appointment process. The of legislation Wednesday, including a law provision was added nearly 10 months ago to that allows victims of domestic violence to the City Charter following a 2018 ballot pro- seek damages from perpetrators who violate posal overwhelmingly supported by voters. orders of protection, a law that expands the Borough President Melinda Katz has not yet submitted information about Queens The charter defines the organization, powers eligibility for compensation to victims of community board members as mandated by the City Charter. None of the five and functions of city government. unlawful surveillance crimes and another that borough presidents have complied with the Charter's July 1 deadline. Continued on page 9 broadens the definition of a “child victim.” Photo courtesy of Katz’s office Read more on page 20. EVEN AS NEW YORK DECRIMIN- alizes marijuana possession and the NYPD People of color still account for 94% of NYPD weed arrests significantly curtails the number of weed See page 20 arrests citywide, intense racial disparities persist among those who are arrested with small amounts of bud. BLACK AND LATINX NEW YORKERS Rego Park driver charged with manslaughter accounted for 94 percent of all low-level marijuana arrests in New York City during the first six months of the year, according to for crash that killed Brooklyn cyclist NYPD arrest data compiled by the state. Read more on page 20. By Jonathan Sperling Queens Daily Eagle A Rego Park teen was arrested and U.S. REP. CAROLYN MALONEY charged with manslaughter Wednesday joined a coalition of nonprofits at a Long after police and prosecutors said he ran a Island City rally Wednesday to call on red light and caused a midday collision that Congress to increase federal funding for killed a Brooklyn cyclist earlier this month. programs like food stamps and Medicaid. Mirza Baig, 18, was not initially charged for speeding through a red light and crash- ing into an SUV, which flipped and fatal- THE FEDERAL TAX AND BUDGET ly struck a cyclist on the shoulder of the Response Team Coalition, made up of street. The NYPD announced on Wednes- day that Baig would be charged with man- local nonprofits, met at the Queensbridge slaughter, criminally negligent homicide, Community Center to shed light on several vehicular assault, reckless endangerment, key issues. The coalition includes Fulfilling assault, criminal solicitation, criminal fa- the Promise of Opportunity, Human cilitation, reckless driving, disobey traffic Services Council of New York, and United device, traffic device violation and speed Neighborhood Houses. Read more on page 2. violation. Graphic dashboard camera footage quickly circulated on social media follow- NEW YORKERS TAKE PRIDE IN THE ing the crash, which occurred at the inter- correct pronunciation of street names. You section of Coney Island Avenue and Ave- can tell a true Manhattanite from 30 yards nue L in Midwood, Brooklyn on Aug. 11. Graphic video shows the final moments before a cyclist was killed after a Rego Park Continued on page 2 driver ran a redlight in Brooklyn. Image courtesy of Umar Altaf, Wahand Continued on page 2 SAVE THE DATE 10.03.19 Tickets/Information: Michael Nussbaum (718) 422-7409 ‧ [email protected] PRESENTS Guardians of Justice guardians-of-justice.eventbrite.com Rego Park driver charged with manslaughter for crash that killed Brooklyn cyclist Continued from page 1 scene, they found Alzorriz unconscious with The case, he said, “illustrates the dangers QUEENS body trauma. He was later pronounced dead at faced by cyclists and pedestrians when driv- The cyclist, Jose Alzorriz, 52, was waiting a nearby hospital. Both the 39-year-old driver ers choose to recklessly ignore the rules of the at a red light just before 12:30 p.m. when Baig of the SUV and the 52-year old pedestrian sus- road.” allegedly drove through a “steady red light,” tained non-fatal injuries. An NYPD officer told the Eagle that Baig police said. Baig’s Dodge Charger smashed Alzorriz was the 19th cyclist killed in a ve- was not initially arrested and charged follow- into a Honda SUV traveling east on Avenue hicle collision in New York City in 2019. ing the collision because “Everything has to be L, forcing the SUV into Alzorriz, as well as Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s investigated between us [the NYPD] and a dis- TODAY a pedestrian. office is prosecuting the case and said he would trict attorney's office.” An investigation is still — August 22, 2019 — When 66th Precinct cops arrived on the continue to investigate “vehicular violence.” underway, the officer added. away when you hear someone yell, “It’s not Hue-ston Street, it’s House-ston Street,” for example. With federal budget decisions looming, SO THEN, WHY IS THERE SO LITTLE Queens groups rally for funding consensus around the name of one of Queens’ By Rachel Vick main thoroughfares, Roosevelt Avenue? Why Queens Daily Eagle do some borough natives pronounce it Rose- U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney joined a co- a-velt Avenue, and some pronounce it Ruse-a- alition of nonprofits at a Long Island City velt? When the Eagle took to Twitter with an rally Wednesday to call on Congress to in- informal poll on the subject, responses were crease federal funding for programs like mixed. Read more on page 13. food stamps and Medicaid. The Federal Tax and Budget Response Team Coalition, made up of local nonprofits, THE MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE met at the Queensbridge Community Center seems to be swinging away from Queens, with to shed light on several key issues. The coa- two major media companies entangled in a lition includes Fulfilling the Promise of Op- legal web over who exactly owns the rights to portunity, Human Services Council of New Spider-Man. York, and United Neighborhood Houses. The coalition demanded that the U.S. Senate adhere to the budget priorities estab- THE RUMOR MILL, AND THE INTER- lished by the House and members of Con- net, exploded Tuesday after the news broke that gress to support the fight against the Trump Administration’s proposed rule changes for Sony and Disney failed to reach an agreement food stamp eligibility. The organization also on the future of Spider-Man, the comic book advocated for the New York congressional hero from Queens. Sony has owned the rights to delegation to cosponsor the Working Fami- the character since 1999, but regains full control lies Tax Relief and the Affordable Housing with this decision. Read more on page 9. Credit Improvement Acts. “From proposals to cut SNAP, Medicaid, and affordable housing to the recent public U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney addresses a coalition of organizations at Wednesday’s rally THE PARKS DEPARTMENT UNVEILED charge rule, the Trump Administration has new features and skate ramps in Forest Park for increased funding for New York’s human services. Photo courtesy of Maloney’s Office launched unprecedented attacks on our na- last week, aided in part through funds from tion’s most vulnerable communities and has The calls to action comes at a time when funding for projects that work to stabilize Councilmember Robert Holden. threatened to take away food assistance from federal funding for human services has communities and their residents. A recent 3.1 million Americans who are struggling to dropped by about $300 million in less than a analysis by the FWPA found that federal put food on the table,” Maloney said. decade, while 40 percent of New York City funding for some of the city’s human service “IT WAS AWESOME TO SEE THE The measures would support $500 million residents cannot afford to maintain a basic organizations would be cut by 18 percent. skateboard clinic at Forest Park today with in annual funding to help finance affordable standard of living, the advocates said. The FPWA coalition has collected about new ramps and features that my office funded housing, which would help establish and Trump’s proposed cuts could lead to the 50 signatures from local organizations, re- for the skate park,” Holden said in a statement. maintain thousands of additional affordable elimination of programs like the Community ligious groups and policy experts in support “I spoke to some parents and they were so housing options. Services Block Grant, which helps provide of their goals. pleased that their kids were able to take part in this program.” Queens County Criminal Court Calendar — August 22 — VISIT US ONLINE AT QUEENSEAGLE. SENTENCING FOR of first-degree kidnapping for allegedly forc- an unlicensed taxi. Todaro appears in JP1 for com for more up-to-date news about Queens’ BAYSIDE MAN WHO BUILT ing a young woman and a teenager to perform a hearing. communities and courts. To subscribe to our AT-HOME ARSENAL sex work. Hannah appears in K10 for sentenc- Todaro allegedly locked a woman in his taxi daily emails, visit queenseagle.com/subscribe.