Attorney General James Releases Statement on Texas Attorney General’s Anti-Choice Lawsuit Against New York Doctor

New York Attorney General Letitia James released the following statement after the Attorney General of Texas filed a lawsuit against a New York doctor for providing telehealth abortion care:

“Abortion is, and will continue to be, legal and protected in New York. As other states move to attack those who provide or obtain abortion care, New York is proud to be a safe haven for abortion access. We will always protect our providers from unjust attempts to punish them for doing their job and we will never cower in the face of intimidation or threats. I will continue to defend reproductive freedom and justice for New Yorkers, including from out-of-state anti-choice attacks.” 

New Lease Signed At 2413 Third Avenue In Mott Haven, The Bronx

 

Kofee, a Brooklyn-based cafe, is set to open its second New York City location at Maven, a residential tower at 2413 Third Avenue in Mott Haven, The Bronx. Designed by CentraRuddy Architecture and developed by RXR, the 27-story tower yields 200 residential units, 60 of which are rent stabilized and reserved for residents earning 130 percent of the area median income.

Residential units at Maven are offered in one- to three-bedroom floor plans. Amenities span 21,000 square feet and include a fitness center, outdoor lounge areas, a game room, and coworking spaces. In addition, 81 on-site, enclosed parking spaces with electric vehicle charging stations are available to residents.

Kofee’s new location, which will occupy approximately 720 square feet at the base of Maven, is set to open in the first quarter of 2025.

Photograph of model living room at Maven, courtesy of RXR

Transit nearby Maven includes subway stations with service for the 4, 5, and 6 trains.

Photograph of fitness center at Maven, courtesy of RXR

“Kofee’s arrival is the perfect complement to the resident experience we’ve worked hard to build at Maven,” said Joseph Graziose, Jr., executive vice president, head of construction and development at RXR. “Kofee will become yet another welcoming space for our residents and South Bronx visitors to gather and connect, all while being able to enjoy high-quality coffee and food options at their leisure. As Mott Haven continues to grow and thrive, we’re excited to see a local NYC business like Kofee bring a new experience to the neighborhood.”

Maximiliano Davila-Perez, Former Head Of Bolivian Anti-Narcotics Agency, Extradited To The United States From Bolivia On Cocaine Importation And Firearms Charges

 

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Anne Milgram, the Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), announced today that MAXIMILIANO DAVILA-PEREZ, a/k/a “Macho,” was extradited from Bolivia and arrived in the U.S. this morning to face federal charges for conspiring to import cocaine into the U.S. and conspiring to use and possess machineguns in connection with this cocaine importation conspiracy.  DAVILA-PEREZ will make his initial appearance in the Southern District of New York this afternoon before the Honorable Robyn F. Tarnofsky.  DAVILA-PEREZ’s case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Denise L. Cote. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Maximiliano Davila-Perez abused his position as the head of Bolivia’s anti-narcotics law enforcement agency to instead aid the very narcotics traffickers he was entrusted to investigate and arrest.  Along the way, he sought to use Bolivian law enforcement officers to guard and transport cocaine shipments and participate in the shipment of massive quantities of cocaine.  While this conduct is abhorrent, it is sadly not shocking; instead, this is the latest example of our work with the DEA’s Special Operations Division in rooting out this type of cocaine-fueled corruption around the globe.  Let this be another loud message to those who would abuse their positions to send ton-quantities of cocaine to the United States: our reach is global, our memory is long, and we will not allow you to continue to flood our country with cocaine without punishment.  I commend the work of the career prosecutors of this Office, who have investigated and prosecuted these cases alongside the Special Operations Division for years and will continue to do so for as long as remains necessary.” 

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said: “Maximiliano Davila-Perez was supposed to fight the drug trade, but instead he fueled it.  As the head of Bolivia's anti-narcotics agency, he turned law enforcement into a cocaine trafficking machine, seeking to flood our streets with poison.  His betrayal of public trust ends here.  Let this extradition serve as a warning: no corrupt official is untouchable, and the DEA will stop at nothing to bring criminals to justice, no matter where they hide.”

According to the allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment, other court filings, and statements made during court proceedings:[1]

Until in or about November 2019, DAVILA-PEREZ was the Director of Bolivia’s chief anti-narcotics law enforcement agency, Fuerza Especial de Lucha Contra el Narcotráfico (“FELCN”).  In DAVILA-PEREZ’s role as Director of FELCN, he exploited his official position in furtherance of large-scale cocaine trafficking activities, including by seeking to divert resources away from investigating traffickers supported by DAVILA-PEREZ, and by providing heavily armed FELCN officers under his command as security for cocaine shipments.  DAVILA-PEREZalso worked in partnership with large-scale cocaine suppliers who operated cocaine labs in Bolivia and agreed to ship more than a thousand kilograms of Bolivian cocaine to New York.

In or around July 2019, while DAVILA-PEREZ was still the Director of FELCN, DAVILA-PEREZ and his co-conspirators were recorded while they discussed a plot to send over one ton of cocaine to the U.S. via airplane from Bolivia.  During that meeting, DAVILA-PEREZ suggested using particular airfields in Bolivia at which he controlled airport security and could divert law enforcement resources to provide cover while the aircraft was loaded with ton-quantities of cocaine.  DAVILA-PEREZ also committed to providing uniformed FELCN officers armed with machineguns to guard the plane during loading and before takeoff.  DAVILA-PEREZ explained that he charged by-the-kilogram rates for the protection of the cocaine load.

In November 2019, DAVILA-PEREZ was demoted from his post at FELCN but continued to use his political influence and law enforcement authority while he conspired to import ton-quantities of cocaine from Bolivia to the U.S. and provide armed paramilitary protection for those cocaine shipments.   Indeed, between November 2019 and February 2020, during a series of recorded meetings and calls, DAVILA-PEREZ and his co-conspirators continued to arrange the anticipated cocaine shipment.  During those meetings, DAVILA-PEREZ discussed the drug competition in the New York market; his continued promise to provide armed protection for the cocaine shipment; and the successful delivery of a 10-kilogram sample of cocaine in Lima, Peru, which was delivered on or about December 10, 2019, in anticipation of the larger cocaine shipment that DAVILA-PEREZ and his co-conspirators intended to import to the U.S. under DAVILA-PEREZ’s protection.

DAVILA-PEREZ, 60, of Bolivia, is charged with: conspiring to import cocaine into the U.S., which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum term of life in prison; and conspiring to use and carry machineguns during, and to possess machineguns in furtherance of, the cocaine importation conspiracy, which carries a maximum term of life in prison.

The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.   

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding efforts of the Special Operations Division of the DEA Bilateral Investigations Unit for its ongoing assistance. He also thanked the DEA Southern Cone Division, the DEA Newark Field Division, the DEA Aviation Division, and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs for securing extradition of DAVILA-PEREZ.

This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s National Security and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sam Adelsberg, Matthew J.C. Hellman, and David J. Robles are in charge of the prosecution.

The charges in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Indictment and court filings set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

Attorney General James’ Office of Special Investigation Releases Report on Death of Zabina Gafoor

 

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) today released its report on the death of Zabina Gafoor, who died on February 17, 2023 in a motor vehicle incident involving members of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in Queens. Following a thorough investigation, which included interviews with involved officers and witnesses, review of security camera footage, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI concluded that a prosecutor would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the involved NYPD officer committed a crime, and therefore criminal charges are not warranted in this case. 

On February 17, 2023 at 8:32 p.m., an NYPD officer was driving a marked police car with sirens and turret lights activated while responding with other officers to a call of an “officer in need of additional units.” He was driving on Beach Channel Drive in Far Rockaway, Queens, a local road with a 25 MPH speed limit, at speeds at times exceeding 70 MPH. As the officer approached Bay 32nd Street, there was a car in front of him. The light at the intersection was green, but the car slowed down to make a left turn. The officer attempted to drive around the car by going into the opposing lane of traffic and passing it on the left, but the car turned left at the intersection, colliding with the police car. The police car’s momentum and the collision sent the police car diagonally across the intersection, where it struck Ms. Gafoor, who was standing just off the curb in the bike lane of Beach Channel Drive.

Per New York’s Vehicle and Traffic Law, Penal Law, and prevailing case law, a police officer who causes a death while properly responding to an emergency in a police vehicle cannot be charged with a crime unless the officer acts recklessly or intentionally. The criminal charge that requires recklessness is Manslaughter in the Second Degree, in which a person is guilty when they recklessly cause the death of another person. Recklessly means that the officer consciously disregarded a “substantial and unjustifiable” risk of death and that their actions are a “gross deviation” from a reasonable standard of conduct.

In this case, while the officer is responsible for Ms. Gafoor’s death, the evidence does not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer’s conduct was a gross deviation of the standard that would have been observed by a reasonable officer in the same circumstances, or that the officer consciously disregarded a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death. The officer was speeding because he was responding to an emergency, including a report of “officers in need of additional units.” He took precautions before the collision by activating his emergency lights and sirens, and when the officer saw the car in front turning left, he engaged his brakes and steered left in an attempt to avoid the collision. In the seconds before striking the turning car, the officer had slowed from 73 MPH to just under 55 MPH. Therefore, OSI concluded that there was insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges.

The NYPD’s patrol guide requires that if qualified to do so, the patrol supervisor must administer an alcohol test to any police officer involved in a collision that results in a death, and if not qualified, the patrol supervisor should request a qualified Highway Unit officer to administer the test. In this case, a test was not administered to the officer following the collision. While there is no evidence the officer in question was impaired or intoxicated, OSI recommends that all patrol supervisors be trained in administering alcohol breath tests to avoid similar delays in the future.

The OSI also recommends that every NYPD officer receive Emergency Vehicle Operator Course (EVOC) training once per year in an effort to prevent future collisions between police cars and civilians.

MAYOR ADAMS ANNOUNCES MAJOR EXPANSION OF CITI BIKE SERVICE IN OUTER BOROUGHS AS RIDERSHIP CONTINUES TO SOAR

 

New Citi Bike Stations Will Be Installed in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens Beginning Fall 2025, Delivering Convenient Transportation Option to Underserved Communities

 

After Expansion, 64 Percent of New Yorkers Will Live Within Five Minute Walk of Citi Bike Station 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez, and Lyft today announced plans to expand and improve Citi Bike to meet growing ridership demand and help ensure New Yorkers across the city have equitable access to this system. Beginning in the fall of 2025, Citi Bike service will expand further to Norwood and Riverdale in the Bronx; to Brownsville, East New York, Kensington, and Bay Ridge in Brooklyn; and to west of Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens. Additionally, this expansion will add more docks in some of the system’s busiest existing areas to improve access to bikes and parking, including in Midtown and Downtown Manhattan, Harlem and East Harlem, Downtown Brooklyn, Williamsburg, Greenpoint, and Park Slope.

 

“This Citi Bike expansion is the latest way we’re making it easier and more affordable to get around New York City, particularly for low-income New Yorkers,” said Mayor Adams. “People in Brownsville and other low-income neighborhoods deserve Citi Bike access as much as any other New Yorker, and this expansion brings us closer to ensuring just that. Whether it’s half-priced Metro Cards and ferry rides, expanded student Metro Cards, electrifying our fleet, or so much more, we’re building a more affordable, more equitable, more sustainable transportation system in all five boroughs.”

Map of Citi Bike Expansion Area. Credit: DOT

“Citi Bike is more popular than ever because it’s convenient, sustainable, and a quick way to get around. Bike share has become an integral part of our transportation landscape, and this expansion will bring this great service to even more communities,” said DOT Commissioner Rodriguez. “We thank Lyft for this investment and look forward to working with them on these important program improvements.”

 

“It’s been astounding to see Citi Bike grow from an idea into a critical part of New York City’s transportation network, now supporting over 1.6 million unique riders on their 44 million journeys this year,” said Caroline Samponaro, vice president of external affairs, Lyft Urban Solutions. “We look forward to providing an even greater number of New Yorkers with access to this incredible bike share program.”

 

Today’s announcement builds on the city’s efforts to make Citi Bike memberships more affordable, set price controls, and enhance safety measures to better support riders. The expansion will add more than 250 new stations and will bring 2,900 new bikes into service, about half of which will be electric bicycles — bringing Citi Bike service to more than 900,000 additional New Yorkers. When the expansion completes, there will be a Citi Bike station within a five-minute walk of more than 5.6 million New Yorkers, or 64 percent of New York City’s residential population. In combination, Citi Bike and the e-scooter share program that operates in the East Bronx and Eastern Queens will provide more than 75 percent of New York City’s residential population with access to a shared micromobility service. With the completion of this expansion, the Citi Bike system will grow to more than 36,000 bikes and 2,400 stations, nearly seven times larger than the 6,000 bikes and 332 stations that Citi Bike launched with in May 2013. Citi Bike will also pilot “kioskless” stations that feature newer, sturdier docking equipment that allows for greater flexibility regarding where stations can be placed.

 

Since its launch in 2013, Citi Bike has become an integral piece of New York City’s transportation landscape and is the largest bike share program in the world outside of China. As the program has expanded, it’s become the fastest-growing transportation network in the city’s history with over 246 million all-time rides. Lyft and the city have doubled the system’s number of stations from 1,000 in August 2020 to 2,150 in November 2024. In October of 2024, the system set a monthly record with over 5.1 million rides, up 143 percent compared to October 2019. A record-breaking 193,645 Citi Bike rides took place on September 20, 2024. Citi Bike trips represent approximately 39 percent of the total estimated cycling trips within the Citi Bike service area, based on East River Bridge crossings. Additionally, there have been more than 44 million Citi Bike rides so far this calendar year — already a new annual record.

 

Today’s announcement also expands on the Adams administration’s efforts to make getting around New York City both more accessible, more affordable, and more eco-friendly, particularly for young people and low-income New Yorkers. In the Fiscal Year 2025 Adopted Budget, the administration partnered with the City Council to invest an additional $20.7 million in “Fair Fares NYC,” expanding eligibility for half-price fares to people making 145 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. The budget also included $11 million to provide free MetroCards to Summer Youth Employment Program participants, who — thanks to the Adams administration’s efforts — are also eligible for free two-month Citi Bike memberships.

 

In May 2024, the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services released its Clean Fleet Update, highlighting that the city had surpassed 5,000 plug-in electric vehicles and installed 2,000 electric charging ports. To date, over 70 percent of the city’s fleet — more than 21,000 fleet units — now use sustainable fuels, including electric, hybrid electric, solar, and biofuel vehicles.

 

In April 2024, the administration won $77 million in federal grants to electrify 180 school buses and build a first-in-the-nation electric truck charging depot at the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center. In October 2023, Mayor Adams launched a historic greenway expansion to build 40 new miles of protected bike infrastructure in the outer boroughs, bringing safer, greener transportation options to the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island.

 

The Adams administration has also completed a record number of protected bike lanes in 2023 and launched major bike infrastructure projects on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, on Second Avenue in Manhattan, on the Washington Bridge connecting Manhattan and the Bronx, and more.

 

In 2022, Mayor Adams unveiled “NYC Ferry Forward,” which created a discount program, similar to Fair Fares, in which seniors, people with disabilities, and low-income riders pay reduced fares for ferry rides.

Jenifer Rajkumar’s Statement on Mark Levine Joining the Race for City Comptroller

 

I welcome Mark to the race and look forward to a robust campaign season filled with ideas for how to save our city. It is my mission to love, care for, and empower New Yorkers by making government work for working people. Government inefficiency costs lives, and we must act now to save New York. 

DEC Announces $15 Million in New Grant Funding for Community Reforestation

 

Funding Supports New York State’s 25 Million Trees by 2033 Initiative and Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act Reforestation Targets

Grants to Public Entities for Reforestation in Urban Areas Complement Recently Released Opportunities for Planting Projects on Private Lands 

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced $15 million is now available through the new Community Reforestation (CoRe) Grant Program to expand, restore, and create urban forested natural areas. The funding helps fulfill the 2024 State of the State “25 Million Trees Initiative” launched by Governor Hochul to recognize the importance of trees and forests for climate resiliency and community health. The State of the State commitment included a $15 million appropriation for competitive grants supporting resilient reforestation.

“Trees are invaluable tools for mitigating extreme heat vulnerability in urban areas by lowering temperatures, reducing air pollution exposure, improving public health, and bolstering community resilience,” DEC Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar said. “Every tree planted gets us one step closer to our state’s goals to plant 25 million trees by 2033 and become carbon-neutral by 2050. DEC applauds Governor Hochul’s significant and ongoing commitments to forestry, and we are excited to launch this first-of-its-kind grant opportunity as a catalyst for resilient urban reforestation statewide.”

More than 85 percent of the state’s population lives in or near an urban community. The competitive CoRe Grant Program will support planting new trees and restoring tree cover in natural areas in urban communities. Urban neighborhoods typically have lower tree canopy and heightened environmental challenges compared to more rural areas. The majority of the grant funding--$12 million—is available for municipalities, Indian Tribes and Nations, and not-for-profit organizations to reimburse costs for projects to create new forests or restore forests impacted by invasive species or other environmental challenges. The maximum grant amount is $3 million and the minimum grant amount is $150,000. An additional $3 million is available for State agencies, State authorities, and State educational entities to expand and restore forests on State lands in eligible areas.

Eligible CoRe projects include planting trees, preparing sites and removing competing or invasive vegetation interfering with tree seedling growth, and/or protecting new plantings from deer browse. Additional consideration will be given to projects that benefit disadvantaged communities or communities with low Tree Equity scores, which measure the intersection of urban tree canopy and a population’s social vulnerability. Funds cannot be used for real property (land) acquisition or for planting and maintenance of individual street or park trees.

DEC will host a webinar on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., to provide information and answer questions about this new Community Reforestation funding opportunity. Visit DEC’s website for more information. Registration is required to attend the webinar.

Grant applications will be accepted until 2 p.m. on March 12, 2025. Applications must be submitted through the SFS Grants Management System (SFS). Those wishing to apply need to establish an account in SFS. Once registered, search SFS for “CoRe.” For more details about the grant opportunity, including application and scoring criteria, visit DEC’s website or email urbanforestry@dec.ny.gov.

In addition to the CoRe Grant Program, $4.5 million was previously announced and currently available through the Establishing Large Forests (ELF) Grant Program for private landowners to establish new forests. ELF builds on New York State’s popular Regenerate NY Forestry Cost Share Grant Program and is designed to support the creation of new forests crucial for mitigating climate change, providing wildlife habitat, protecting air and water quality, and supplying timber, an important renewable resource.

Governor Hochul’s 2024 State of the State Address and Enacted Budget included $47 million to support a new goal of planting 25 million trees statewide by 2033. The initiative will invigorate the State’s tree planting efforts, sends an unmistakable market signal to private nurseries, advances efforts to meet the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act’s net-zero goal, and grow the state’s vital forest products industry. Capital investments through the Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act and other State sources, and multi-year annual grants awarded by DEC to municipalities to plant trees in support of resilient reforestation and urban forests, are key components of this initiative.

VCJC News & Notes 12/13/24

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

1. 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 12/13/24 @ 4:11 pm
   Shabbos morning services at 8:40 am.  Please join the services if you can do so safely. 
   Shabbos Ends Saturday 12/14/24 @ 5:14 pm
   If you require an aliyah or would like to lead services, read from the torah or haftorah please speak to one of the gabbaim.
    

2. Memorial for Howie Kamiel, Sunday, 12/15/24, 2PM
   There will be a memorial observance for Howie Kamiel at Vladeck Hall.  Among many other community activities, Howie was an active member of the VCJC.  He served as our treasurer until shortly before his death.  
   Vladeck Hall is at 74 Van Cortlandt Park So, at the corner of Hillman Ave.

Our mailing address is:

Van Cortlandt Jewish Center

3880 Sedgwick Ave

Bronx, NY 10463