VCJC News & Notes 9/20/24

 

Van Cortlandt Jewish Center

News and Notes

Here's this week's edition of the VCJC News and Notes email. We hope you enjoy it and find it useful!

Reminders

Shabbos

Shabbos information is, as always, available on our website, both in the information sidebar and the events calendar.
Here are the times you need:  
Shabbos Candles Friday 9/20/24 @ 6:37PM
Shabbos morning services at 8:40 am.  Please join the services if you can do so safely. 
Shabbos Ends Saturday 9/21/24 @ 7:40PM
If you require an aliyah or would like to lead services, read from the torah or haftorah please speak to one of the gabbaim.
 
Flying Off the Shelves!
Fortunately, we can just keep printing the VCJC Memories calendar. So, order yours today!
Read all about it on our blog.  You can order it from the forms on the blog post.
Available for just $18, this calendar offers more than just a way to mark the days—it’s a way to stay connected to the VCJC community. The cover page can be personalized with a custom message, making it a thoughtful gift for Rosh HaShanah, birthdays, anniversaries, or other celebrations. Whether for yourself or a loved one, it’s an excellent gift for anyone with a special connection to VCJC.

Celebrate the New Year by cherishing the old memories and making new ones with this special calendar!

Space for rent
The VCJC has space available for short term rentals.  If you, or anyone you know, needs either office or event space, please let us know or let them know, or both. You can review the information on our blog post.

Shop at the VCJC Online Affiliate Store!
Reminder: we negotiated a discount on Sukkahs from an independent vendor.  The discount is higher than any other discount they offer, to the best of our knowledge. Save 12% at SukkahMart.com by using the coupon code VCJC12.  Tell everyone you know! (Especially those that need a sukkah or schach.) See more on our Holiday Sales page.

We’ve just posted several member-recommended books on the Sabbath Sales page and have several more recommended titles we will be posting - take a look, then take a read.

What makes our store special is that some items are recommended by members of the VCJC community themselves and all items have been reviewed and represent curated selections.

The store is still a work in progress—so while there are many empty spaces at the moment, we’re actively building it out and adding new items to serve you better. We welcome your suggestions and feedback as we continue to expand our offerings! Think of the empty spaces as things you will want to look at later.

On the VCJC Shopping Blog, we post about specific areas of interest and spotlight exciting new products. The blog is a great resource for discovering special finds.

Visit the VCJC affiliate store through our website today,and help support the center while finding great products for yourself or loved ones!

We have a Rollator style walker available
It has been donated to the VCJC.  If you need one, let us know.  We’d appreciate a donation for it.

Our mailing address is:

Van Cortlandt Jewish Center

3880 Sedgwick Ave

Bronx, NY 10463

Attorney General James’ Office of Special Investigation Releases Report on Death of Elijah Muhammad

 

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) released its report on the death of Elijah Muhammad, who died on July 10, 2022 while incarcerated in the George R. Vierno Center (GRVC) on Rikers Island. Following a comprehensive investigation, including review of Department of Correction (DOC) staff incident reports and security camera footage, witness interviews, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI concluded that a prosecutor would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the correction officer staffed on Mr. Muhammad’s unit committed a crime, and therefore criminal charges would not be pursued.

At 3:00 p.m. on July 10, 2022, the correction officer staffed on Mr. Muhammad’s unit witnessed Mr. Muhammad in a severely disoriented state. Mr. Muhammad appeared to have difficulty keeping his eyes open and standing upright, at one point slumping to the floor in a seated position. After being alerted by other incarcerated people in the housing unit, the correction officer held open Mr. Muhammad’s cell door while two incarcerated people helped him into his cell. However, in violation of DOC rules, the correction officer failed to call a medical emergency. He also failed to take any other action to assist Mr. Muhammad, such as administering Narcan.

The correction officer continued to check on Mr. Muhammad periodically for two hours, until 5:13 p.m., sometimes stepping into Mr. Muhammad’s cell. The correction officer then did not check on Mr. Muhammad until 9:43 p.m.

Other people housed in Mr. Muhammad’s unit continued to check on him throughout the evening. Beginning around 8:00 p.m., the incarcerated people who came to Mr. Muhammad’s door appeared to grow increasingly alarmed by what they saw through his cell window and began knocking on and kicking at his door. At 9:43 p.m., the correction officer went into Mr. Muhammad’s cell, where he found Mr. Muhammad unconscious, cold, and foaming at the nose. The officer recruited another correction officer to help, and together they moved Mr. Muhammad out of his cell and onto the ground to begin rendering aid. The correction officers called for medical staff, who then called for emergency medical services. Mr. Muhammad was declared dead in the housing unit at 10:30 p.m. The medical examiner found that the concentration of Fentanyl in Mr. Muhammad’s blood was a fatal dose.

Following a preliminary assessment of the incident, OSI determined that the failure of the correction officer to call a medical emergency or provide immediate aid to Mr. Muhammad qualified as an omission, or failure to perform a duty imposed by law, which contributed to Mr. Muhammad’s death. Therefore, OSI conducted this investigation pursuant to Executive Law Section 70-b.

Under New York law, proving criminally negligent homicide as an omission would require proving beyond a reasonable doubt, among other things, that the correction officer caused Mr. Muhammad’s death. In this case, the medical examiner determined that while providing Narcan when Mr. Muhammad was first observed in a disoriented state, or in the ensuing hours when the officer failed to check on Mr. Muhammad, might have increased his chance of survival, there is no guarantee that it would have saved his life. OSI concluded that although the correction officer’s failure to call a medical emergency or render aid contributed to his death, a prosecutor would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that this failure caused Mr. Muhammad’s death. 

BRONX MAN SENTENCED TO 12 YEARS IN PRISON FOR SHOOTING PATIENT IN JACOBI HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM

 

Defendant Endangered Patients, Staff When He Fired Four Shots

Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a Bronx man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for shooting a man in the emergency room waiting area of NYC Health + Hospitals Jacobi, sending patients and hospital staff running for their lives. 

District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant opened fire inside Jacobi’s emergency room, wounding one man and showing complete disregard for the patients and staff, with one bullet lodging in a wall close to a woman holding a baby. The defendant’s violent actions have now been answered with a substantial prison sentence.”

The defendant, Keber Martinez, 25, formerly of 1241 Beach Avenue was sentenced today to 12 years in prison and five years post-release supervision on one count of first-degree Assault by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Jeanette Rodriguez-Morick. He pleaded guilty to that charge on August 28, 2024.

According to the investigation, on January 25, 2022, the defendant was inside the hospital emergency room and shot at the 35-year-old victim four times, striking him once in the left arm causing him to bleed profusely. Martinez fled the hospital after the shooting and was arrested in Harlem. The attack was captured on hospital surveillance video.

District Attorney Clark thanked NYPD Detective Robinson Martinez of the 49th Precinct Detective Squad, retired Commanding Officer of the Bronx Homicide Squad Lieutenant William O’Toole, as well as Detectives from Bronx Homicide, and NYPD officers and detectives who responded to the scene.