Governor Hochul Announces John Wang Will Be Nominated to Serve on the Empire State Development Board of Directors

 

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced John Wang will be nominated to serve on the Empire State Development Board of Directors. Mr. Wang is the first Asian American to be nominated to the ESD board.

"New Yorkers deserve leadership that is qualified and committed to the work of the State," Governor Hochul said. "With his wealth of experience and passion for public service, John Wang will be an extraordinary addition for Empire State Development. I look forward to working with him as we continue to bring together the most diverse and knowledgeable leaders to solve the State's most pressing challenges and deliver for New Yorkers."

Empire State Development Acting Commissioner and President and CEO-designate Hope Knight said, "Under Governor Hochul's leadership, New York State is advancing a bold economic agenda that is catalyzing new investments and creating more opportunities for more New Yorkers. Our diversity as a state is our strength, and the nomination of Mr. Wang helps to reflect the diversity of New York and its economy. Mr. Wang's experience, insight and unique perspectives are an asset to the ESD Board, and I look forward to working with him as we launch aggressive new initiatives to create quality jobs and generate sustainable economic growth in communities throughout the state."

John Wang is the President of the Asian American Business Development Center (AABDC), which he founded in 1994. It is a nonprofit established to provide technical assistance to Asian American small businesses and a leading trade development organization which promotes business between the United States and Asia. Over the years, a major component of AABDC's work has expanded into the promotion and advocacy of Asian American executives, business leaders and entrepreneurs through the Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business Award which recognizes the achievement and contribution of Asian Americans in the general economy. Over 700 Asian Americans have been honored since 2001.

The mission of Empire State Development (ESD) is to promote a vigorous and growing state economy, encourage business investment and job creation, and support diverse, prosperous local economies across New York State through the efficient use of loans, grants, tax credits, real estate development, marketing and other forms of assistance.

To support the governor's economic development mission, ESD will help execute many priorities in the FY23 Budget such as:

• $1.4B ConnectAll Initiative
• $1B Small Business Rescue Plan
• $350M Office of Strategic Workforce Development
• $250M Restore NY
• $200M Shovel Ready Investments (FAST NY)

As part of ESD's board of directors, John Wang will help to bring back a robust and prosperous economy for Asian-owned businesses and all of the amazing small businesses across the state. His experience in helping businesses in New York and abroad will help give Asian-owned small businesses the boost they need after a turbulent two years.

Inspector General Lucy Lang commends Governor Kathy Hochul for actions taken to protect state employees from gender-based violence, stalking, and sexual assault

 

Governor Kathy Hochul expanded New York State's approach to preventing gender-based violence, stalking, and sexual assault in the workplace by adopting many of Inspector General Lucy Lang’s recommendations issued earlier this morning at the New York State Crime Victims Memorial.  

The new Executive Order, signed today by Governor Hochul, and effective immediately, will modernize the state's workplace policies, procedures, and trainings, resulting in a safer environment for all employees, ensuring that responses to domestic violence is survivor-centered, trauma-informed and culturally responsive. 

“Every employee of New York State deserves to feel safe in their workplace,” said Inspector General Lucy Lang. “I am thrilled by Governor Hochul’s decisive action to make New York a national leader in addressing and preventing gender-based violence in its workforce. Today, the Governor acted swiftly to address the findings and recommendations of our investigative report, which I am confident will make our state workforce better prepared, responsive, and safer for domestic violence victims and all state employees.”

The Governor’s Executive Order follows a newly issued investigative report by Inspector General Lang revealing failures by senior leadership at State agencies overseen by the prior administration to comply with their own domestic violence policies due to a lack of agency awareness of and sensitivity to domestic violence issues.   

As detailed in the report, despite being made aware by the employee that she had been the victim of emotional, physical, and verbal abuse by her husband, senior employees in the Labor Relations and Legal Departments failed to respond appropriately. Almost a year later, the husband, who was by then no longer employed by OGS, killed his wife in their home before taking his own life. “While the facts of this ultimate tragedy are beyond the scope of our investigation, which assessed only the agencies’ compliance with their internal policies, it provides critical context for the complexities and dangers of domestic violence, “ said Inspector General Lang.  “Moreover, it is an opportunity to reflect on and improve the way we respond to domestic violence in the future.”

Among the Inspector General’s recommendations was designating one or more agency liaisons to the Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (OPDV) and distribute the liaison name(s) and contact information to staff.  Since a 2008 executive order, State agencies have been required to utilize OPDV’s model to formulate and adopt policies of their own, but it was not until today that the designation of and dissemination of the contact information for the liaison was mandatory. The Inspector General commends the Governor for addressing this critical gap in policy.  

As she also announced earlier today, Inspector General Lang has launched a comprehensive audit of all State executive branch agencies to assess compliance with State Domestic Violence and the Workplace mandates and will now include these additional requirements.  The Inspector General’s Office will provide these findings to OPDV who will work with these agencies to ensure compliance and provide training and resources.

Permits Filed For 3273 Third Avenue In Morrisania, The Bronx

 

Permits have been filed for a seven-story mixed-use building at 3273 Third Avenue in Morrisania, The Bronx. Located between East 163rd and East 164th Streets, the lot is closest to the Intervale Avenue subway station, serviced by the 2 and 5 trains. Joel Fekete of JF Real Estate Capital Inc is listed as the owner behind the applications.

The proposed 72-foot-tall development will yield 52,842 square feet, with 49,223 square feet designated for residential space, 3,254 square feet for commercial space, and 364 square feet for community facility space. The building will have 73 residences, most likely rentals based on the average unit scope of 674 square feet. The concrete-based structure will also have a cellar, a 31-foot-long rear yard, and 22 open parking spaces.

DJLU Architects is listed as the architect of record.

Demolition permits have not been filed yet. An estimated completion date has not been announced.

Governor Hochul Announces Historic State Funding to Yonkers Schools - Is This Quid Pro Quo for the State Senate to Change the Election Law?

FY 2023 Budget Provides Unprecedented Support for Students and Teachers

Historic Plan Includes Record $31.5 Billion in Total Statewide School Aid for School Year 2023 - Highest Level of State Aid Ever

Record $360.1 Million in State Aid to Yonkers City Schools in 2022-2023 

 Governor Kathy Hochul today announced historic state funding to Yonkers schools for the 2022-2023 school year. This aid is part of Governor Hochul's unprecedented investment in education in the FY 2023 State Budget. Those investments include a statewide school aid increase of $2.1 billion, including a $1.5 billion increase in Foundation Aid and a $125 million increase in pre-kindergarten for four-year-old children. Additionally, the Budget provides $100 million in matching funds to provide academic and mental health supports for students and educators.

"Our FY 2023 State Budget includes historic investments that will make a difference in people's lives now and for years to come, including a record investment in our public schools - the largest in state history," Governor Hochul said. "The COVID-19 pandemic was an unimaginable experience forced upon our teachers and students, but they rose to the challenge. It is now our responsibility to ensure they have support to get back on track, recover, and thrive and I thank Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins for her collaboration on this budget which unleashes the power of New York's education system."  

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, "I'm proud that we are continuing to build on the efforts I helped lead over the past years to fully fund our schools so that regardless of zip code or school district, every New York student has access to a high-quality education. This past budget, it was important that effort pushed forward with Governor Hochul, Senate Education Chair Shelley Mayer, the Democratic Senate Majority, and our partners in the Assembly. Working together, we were able to bring home these historic levels of funding to our students in Yonkers and across New York State. These landmark investments in students from cradle to college will ensure a bright path forward for New York."

The FY 2023 State Budget provides $360.1 million in state aid to Yonkers City schools in 2022-2023 - an increase of $25.5 million, or 7.6 percent, over the previous school year. This includes 2022-23 Foundation Aid of $246.7 million, a year-to-year increase of $12.7 million or 5.4 percent. The Yonkers City School District also receives $19.6 million of VLT aid, and an additional $12 million in the SED budget.

The Budget increases School Aid in the Mid-Hudson region by $358.7 million, or 13.0 percent, including a $267.3 million, or 15.0 percent, increase in Foundation Aid. This increase is largely driven by the second year of the three-year phase-in of full funding of the Foundation Aid formula.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

What a coincidence, State Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins is getting additional funding for the schools in her district. Is this Quid Pro Quo so the State Senate will vote to change the election law so Brian Benjamin's name can be taken off the ballot, thus allowing another name to be substituted?

Recidivist Sex Offender Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Attempted Enticement Of 12-Year-Old And 9-Year-Old Girls And Attempted Receipt Of Child Pornography

 

 Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that STEVE ROSADO, a registered sex offender, was sentenced today by the Honorable Jed S. Rakoff to 20 years in prison for attempting to entice two minor girls to engage in illegal sexual activity, and for attempting to receive child pornography after having been previously convicted of sex offenses involving minors.  ROSADO was arrested in December 2020 and pled guilty to the charges in November 2021.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:  “Steve Rosado tried to – and in some cases, did – prey on the most defenseless members of our community.  He attempted to engage in repeated sexual activity with multiple children, some of whom he believed to be as young as 9 years old, even after having been twice before convicted of sex offenses and required to register as a sex offender.  Crimes like this can have devastating and lasting effects on minor victims, and I once again thank the FBI and the NYPD for their work in investigating and arresting Rosado before he could harm any others.”

According to public court filings:

On November 29, 2020, an undercover FBI agent (the “UC”), posing as the mother of a 12-year-old girl and a 9-year-old girl, initiated a series of conversations with ROSADO, then 41 years old, via an online messaging service.  The UC and ROSADO later exchanged telephone numbers, and they proceeded to communicate over the next week via the online messaging service, text message, and lengthy telephone conversations that were recorded by the UC.

In hundreds of text messages, and hours of calls, ROSADO repeatedly expressed, in graphic and unambiguous terms, his desire to engage in repeated sexual activity with both children – including both oral and vaginal sex – as part of their “new routine together.”  To help alleviate any concerns the UC might have regarding ROSADO having sexual relations with her young children, ROSADO provided the UC with his recent test results for COVID-19 and HIV, and he discussed what he and the UC could do if he were to impregnate one of the children.

The UC and ROSADO arranged to meet at a bar in Manhattan on the evening of December 7, 2020, with the understanding that they would return to the UC’s apartment afterward and ROSADO would then engage in sexual activity with the children.  On the evening in question, ROSADO met the UC at the agreed-upon location.  After the two of them left the bar and began walking toward the UC’s purported apartment, law enforcement arrested ROSADO.  ROSADO was at the time in possession of gifts for the children – including dolls and a stuffed animal – and an overnight bag containing, among other things, lubricant.

That same day, law enforcement seized multiple electronic devices belonging to ROSADO.  Subsequent searches of those devices by law enforcement, pursuant to search warrants, revealed that ROSADO had for weeks been communicating online with several other individuals who purported to be minors – some purporting to be as young as 13 years old – in an ongoing effort not only to receive child pornography, but also to persuade the young victims to move to New York to live with him, so that he could engage in sexual activity with them, impregnate them, and eventually engage in sexual activity with their future children.  ROSADO’s electronic devices further revealed that during this same period, ROSADO was engaged in an ongoing sexual relationship with a 16-year-old female victim.

At the time he committed the aforementioned offenses, ROSADO was a registered sex offender, having twice before been convicted of sex offenses involving minors.  In 2004, ROSADO was convicted of possessing a sexual performance by a child, in violation of New York State Penal Law § 263.16; and in 2005, ROSADO was convicted of four counts of rape in the second degree, in violation of New York State Penal Law § 130.30(1), four counts of rape in the third degree, in violation of New York State Penal Law § 130.25(2), and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, in violation of New York State Penal Law § 260.10(1).  The 2004 conviction arose out of ROSADO’s stalking and attempted kidnapping of a 13-year-old female victim he met online, and the 2005 conviction arose out of ROSADO’s having had sexual intercourse approximately 24 times with a 14-year-old female victim.  As a result of his prior convictions, ROSADO was incarcerated from December 2005 to October 2013.

In addition to his prison term, ROSADO, 42, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced to lifetime supervised release.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI-NYPD Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force.

MAYOR ADAMS RECOGNIZES NYC SERVICE VOLUNTEERS FOR WORK THROUGHOUT COVID-19 PANDEMIC

 

Ceremony Honors Volunteers and Local Organizations That Went Above Call of Duty in 2021

 New York City Mayor Eric Adams today marked the end of National Volunteer Month by honoring volunteers through the “2022 Mayoral Service Recognition Program: Building Together for Tomorrow” for work done to help New Yorkers recover from the COVID-19 pandemic over the last year. At a virtual ceremony organized by NYC Service, Mayor Adams recognized volunteer and civic engagement efforts led by community-based organizations, businesses, and residents that have uplifted communities and fueled the city’s recovery.

 

“Service is what makes New York the city that it is, and, throughout the past two years, service has mattered more than ever,” said Mayor Adams. “Service has made our communities stronger and played a vital role in helping our city respond to and recover from the pandemic, and I want to thank every New Yorker who has served our city and helped their neighbors. And I know that by continuing to serve, we will move forward and ‘Get Stuff Done’ for New York.”

 

“New York City overcame the darkest days of the pandemic because of the selfless work of everyday volunteers,” said Deputy Mayor for Strategic Initiatives Sheena Wright. “When COVID-19 tried to tear us apart, volunteers kept us and our city together. Thank you to the brave volunteers who answered the call for the betterment of our city.”

 

“Service is central to what it means to be a New Yorker,” said New York City Chief Service Officer Laura Rog. “As we have seen in the last year, the hundreds of thousands of volunteers and over 3,000 AmeriCorps members serving in New York City made a critical impact on the city’s recovery efforts. We thank them for their time and their efforts to support our city when it has been needed most.”

 

The Mayoral Service Recognition Program is an annual citywide celebration of volunteers and service members, recognizing efforts to build solutions in response to community challenges and meet residents’ most urgent needs. Among volunteer efforts highlighted during this year’s event were food donation initiatives, park cleanups, neighborhood beautification projects, and recreational classes for communities.

 

NYC Service received more than 200 nominations for the four awards categories. The awardees completed service projects in 2021 that directly impacted communities hit hardest by the pandemic and were selected for excellence in building community through service.

 

The 2022 Mayoral Service Recognition Awardees honored for exceptional service in 2021 are:

• Nirmala Singh — Honored with the AmeriCorps Alum Impact Award for embodying the AmeriCorps spirit of “Getting Things Done” in New York City communities beyond their service year. Nirmala, an AmeriCorps Alum (’17-’18), and a native of Guyana, leverages her AmeriCorps experience and passion for serving the most vulnerable to address the rise of gender-based violence in the South Queens community. Recognizing how the pandemic would exacerbate gender-based violence, Nirmala and her sister activists founded South Queen's Women's March, a local gender justice nonprofit in South Queens. Through her organization, Nirmala has co-led monthly, culturally responsive, pop-up food pantries and essentials distribution, such as period supplies, masks, toys, and more to ensure resources are readily available and accessible to women in South Queens.

 

• El Centro del Inmigrante — Honored with the Community Impact Award for leveraging the power of volunteers in innovative and resourceful ways to strategically address community needs. El Centro volunteers supported vaccination efforts by organizing regular on-site COVID testing, outreach with public health resources, and vaccine distribution on Staten Island’s North Shore. Volunteers conducted targeted vaccine outreach, including campaigns for restaurant workers that resulted in 431 immigrant restaurant workers receiving their first vaccine, West African community campaigns, and a campaign to reach the unhoused population on Staten Island. El Centro and their volunteers also organized high school vaccine distributions and vaccine distribution to children under the age of 12. El Centro's volunteers have further helped to host a variety of engaging afterschool youth programs and cultural events to encourage safely distanced, outdoor events for children during COVID.

 

• S. Katzman Produce and DREAM — Honored with the Partnership Impact Award for an innovative partnership in service to a community. The partnership between S. Katzman Produce and DREAM brought access to healthy food to families impacted by the pandemic in the South Bronx and East Harlem. The partnership began shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic hit New York City and continued through 2021, with S. Katzman Produce — assisted by volunteers from DREAM's community — donating and helping to distribute more than 10,000 bags of fresh fruit and produce to families in East Harlem and the South Bronx over the past two years. These distributions have leveraged DREAM’s ability to expand its family engagement practices and overall pandemic relief efforts.

 

• Shalom Task Force Youth Outreach Board — Honored with the Youth Impact Award for going above and beyond to create tangible impact in their community. Sarit Katz, Raffi Weil, and Noyah Shebshaievitz first started volunteering for Shalom Task Force  through the Purple Club Fellowship — the first leadership development program of its kind to empower Jewish high school students in ending dating and sexual violence. As part of their service with the board, Sarit, Raffi, and Noyah developed Purple Clubs in their respective high schools and engaged over 150 New York City high school students in workshops about domestic violence and their role in prevention efforts, helping to eradicate the stigma around these topics within the Jewish community.

 

NYC Service builds partnerships to deepen and expand civic engagement through volunteer and service programs, creating sustainable change for the city's greatest needs. Over the last year, NYC Service united New Yorkers in service for a more equitable and inclusive city by connecting New Yorkers, community-based organizations, businesses, AmeriCorps members, and other institutions to address the most urgent issues communities experience. NYC Service directly supported hundreds of community-based organizations across the five boroughs by providing volunteer engagement capacity through a cohort of 100 AmeriCorps members, technical assistance, and tools, as well as more than 20 free trainings for nonprofit staff.

 

Fostering the importance of volunteerism as a strategy to support the city’s recovery and to rebuild communities hardest-hit by COVID-19, NYC Service infused 20 community-based organizations with $10,000 in funding for volunteer efforts and engaged 45 corporate employees at four partnering companies in skills-based volunteering campaigns to support 26 small businesses in addressing organizational capacity needs.

 

“South Queens Women’s March is a volunteer-led and intersectional organization working to foster women’s empowerment by dismantling patriarchy and gender injustice hyper-locally,” said Nirmala Singh, co-founder, South Queens Women’s March (SQWM). “We take to the streets to unify women and gender expansive people in our community and connect them to the tools and resources necessary to empower their own lives and thrive. I am honored and humbled to receive this recognition for SQWM, and commit to continue our fight to curb gender-based violence and promote gender equity in South Queens.”

 

“El Centro's devoted staff and volunteers make our work possible. With full hearts, we all stand alongside our community, doing whatever necessary to uplift, engage, grow with, and learn from the people we serve,” said Michelle Molina, co-executive director, El Centro Del Inmigrante. “There is no greater motivation than the prosperity of our community.”

 

"DREAM is incredibly grateful to be able to shine a light on all the work S. Katzman Produce has done for our communities throughout the pandemic,” said Richard Berlin, co-CEO, DREAM. “Their partnership, swift mobilization, and acts of service through the past two years provided our families with a sense of security and allowed us to further commit to the health and wellness of our students. Stefanie and the Katzman team continue to champion food access for the communities who need it most and we are proud to partner with them."

 

“As one of the largest produce wholesaler/distributors in the Northeast, our mission is to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables for New Yorkers,” said Stefanie Katzman, executive vice president and fourth generation in her family’s business, S. Katzman Produce. “It’s a privilege to partner with DREAM to feed the students and their families, introduce children to fresh fruits and vegetables at an early age, and instill good eating habits early to promote good health.” 

 

“Throughout the pandemic there has been a tragic increase in domestic violence cases,” said Sarit Katz, chair, Shalom Task Force Youth Outreach Board. “I am thankful to my fellow chairs on the Shalom Task Force Youth Outreach Board for their help and aid in preventing these cases. Together, we can make an impact, and it all start

 

NYC Comptroller Lander and Trustees Announce Agreements Reached on Key Sustainability and Climate Issues With Leading Energy and Industrial Companies

Agreements Reached on Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Climate Lobbying in Alignment with the Paris Agreement, Prompting Withdrawal of Shareholder Proposals.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and trustees of three of New York City’s public pension funds today jointly announced several agreements reached with leading energy and high-tech industrial companies to improve disclosure of climate-related lobbying and capital expenditures.

The Office of the New York City Comptroller, on behalf of the New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS), Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS), and Board of Education Retirement System (BERS) successfully engaged with General Electric Company (GE), Duke Energy Corporation, and Dominion Energy, Inc., beginning late December. The funds filed shareholder resolutions at each company last fall and agreed to withdraw them based on the agreements reached.

“Climate change presents a clear and significant risk to our economy,” said New York City Comptroller Brad Lander. “Energy companies have an especially critical role to play in ensuring we are confronting those risks head on. I applaud General Electric, Duke Energy, and Dominion Energy for providing investors with critical information on their lobbying activity and capital expenditure plans – so that investors can assess their efforts in relation to the urgent need to transition to a low carbon future.”

Shareholder advocacy with corporations in the pension funds’ portfolio is one part of the New York City Retirement Systems’ comprehensive effort to confront the climate crisis and finance a just transition. As one of the country’s largest institutional investors, NYCRS uses a range of tools to advance the transition to a green economy – including divesting from fossil fuel reserve owners, investing in climate solutions like renewable energy and resiliency projects, engaging with corporate actors to bring about more ambitious climate action across the economy, and deploying municipal finance to invest in green infrastructure. Read more about our comprehensive climate finance strategy here.

General Electric Company: Paris-Aligned Climate Lobbying Reporting

General Electric has expressed clear support for the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting greenhouse gas emissions, but investors have not received necessary information on GE’s lobbying activity which may contradict the goals of the Paris Agreement. Corporate lobbying activities inconsistent with meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement and holding global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels present regulatory, reputational, and legal risks to companies, and systemic risks to economies and markets.

In response to constructive engagement on a shareholder proposal submitted by the three New York City Retirement Systems — which serve as lead investors at GE on behalf of the Climate Action 100+ — GE agreed to provide reporting during 2022 on its climate-related lobbying activities. The report will describe whether GE’s lobbying activities are aligned with the Paris Climate Agreement’s aspirational goal of limiting average global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and how the company plans to mitigate risks presented by any misalignment.

The Climate Action 100+ is an ambitious global investor collaboration through which 700 global investors with more than $68 trillion in assets across 33 markets encourage the world’s 166 highest emitting companies — responsible for an estimated 80% of global emissions — to take necessary action on climate change. Focus companies are assessed on their net zero transition using the Climate Action 100+ Net Zero Company Benchmark, which includes a climate policy engagement indicator, including whether the company has a Paris Agreement-aligned climate lobbying position and all of its direct lobbying activities are aligned with it.

The three Systems own 1.72 million shares in GE, valued at $164.3 million as of February 28, 2022.

Duke Energy Corporation and Dominion Energy, Inc.: Paris-Aligned Capital Expenditures

The Comptroller’s Office negotiated agreements with two of the country’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters to disclose detailed information about planned capital expenditures that will enable investors to assess whether the companies are on track to meet their net zero goals. While net zero goals are important steps that address climate-related financial risks, clear and transparent reporting is critical to ensuring that a company’s future capital expenditures will allow it to adequately invest in proven low-carbon technologies to meet these goals. Near-term investments in natural gas assets with long useful lives can lead to stranded assets, a significant risk for investors, and impede progress towards the long-term goal of net zero emissions.

Following negotiations, Duke Energy agreed to include additional disclosures in its earnings materials, upcoming climate report and ESG investor day materials. Dominion Energy agreed to include in its climate report a narrative discussion on its capital allocation evaluation process related to the company’s climate goals and its planned and projected investments.

These steps will meaningfully enhance the companies’ climate-related financial disclosures and provide investors with decision-useful information necessary to assess the alignment of the company’s capital expenditures with its decarbonization goals.

As of February 28, 2022, the three Systems own more than 982 thousand shares in Duke Energy, valued at $98.7 million, and more than 886 thousand shares in Dominion Energy, valued at $70.5 million.

The trustees of those systems are as follows:

New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS): New York City Comptroller Brad Lander; Mayor Eric Adams’ Representative Preston Niblack (Chair); New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams; Borough Presidents: Mark Levine (Manhattan), Donovan Richards (Queens), Antonio Reynoso (Brooklyn), Vito Fossella (Staten Island), and Vanessa L. Gibson (Bronx); Henry Garrido, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME; Tony Utano, President Transport Workers Union Local 100; and Gregory Floyd, President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 237.

Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS): New York City Comptroller Brad Lander; Mayor Eric Adams’ Appointee Philip Dukes; Chancellor’s Representative, Lindsey Oates, New York City Department of Education; and Debra Penny (Chair), Thomas Brown and David Kazansky, all of the United Federation of Teachers.

Board of Education Retirement System (BERS): Schools Chancellor David C. Banks, Represented by Lindsey Oates; Mayoral: Tom Allon, Vasthi Acosta, Gregory Faulkner, Dr. Angela Green, Anthony Lopez, Alan Ong, Gladys Ward, Karina Tavera; Thomas Sheppard (CEC); Geneal Chacon (Bronx), Tazin Azad (Brooklyn), Kaliris Salas-Ramirez (Manhattan), Jaclyn Tacoronte (Staten Island), and Deborah Dillingham (Queens); and employee members John Maderich of the IUOE Local 891 and Donald Nesbit of District Council 37, Local 372.

MANHATTAN MAN SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS IN PRISON FOR SHOOTING THAT WOUNDED A MAN AND SENT TWO CHILDREN RUNNING FOR THEIR LIVES

 

Viral Video Showed Young Siblings Cowering in Fear 

 Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that an alleged gang member from Manhattan has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for Attempted Murder in the second-degree for shooting at a Bronx man as two children struggled to get away on a Mount Eden street in broad daylight.

 District Attorney Clark said, “A 13-year-old girl and her five-year-old brother were caught in a hail of bullets when the defendant fired a dozen shots at a Bronx man. Now, the defendant will pay the consequences for his intentions to kill and his blatant disregard for the lives of the children he endangered. They still suffer trauma from that horrific day.”

 District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Michael Lopez, 28, last of 1430 Amsterdam Avenue, Manhattan, was sentenced today to 15 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision, with a waiver of right to appeal, by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Ralph Fabrizio. The defendant pleaded guilty to Attempted Murder in the second degree on January 28, 2022.

 According to the investigation, at 4:43 p.m. on June 17, 2021 near 1551 Sheridan Avenue, the defendant got off a scooter and chased a 24-year-old man up the block, firing at least 12 shots at him. Video shows Lopez’s target running into a 13-year-old girl and her five-year-old brother, knocking them to the ground. The defendant continued to fire shots at the man at close range next to the children as the girl shielded her brother.

 The victim was struck once in the back and once in each leg. He sustained nerve damage and is still unable to walk. The children and other innocent bystanders were not injured, but the children still suffer from trauma. During his guilty plea, the defendant admitted he had a firearm and shot the man with the intent to kill him that day.

 District Attorney Clark thanked NYPD Detective Curtis Cato of the 44th Precinct for his work in the investigation.