Bronx News Roundup, Wednesday, June 29

Late speed roundup today, folks.

Weather: Sunny today, might rain tomorrow afternoon. 

Quick Hits:

A post-graduation ceremony brawl in a parking lot near the Bronx's Lehman College ended with the stabbing death of Isayah Muller, a star running back for Truman High School. His father, who was also apparently involved in the fight, was charged with assault, while two parking lot attendants were questioned but not charged. I know, this makes very little sense. Hopefully we'll get some clarity soon.

Three of the four men convicted for plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues were sentenced to 25 years a piece, less than the life sentence prosecutors were seeking. 

Bronx News Roundup, Wednesday, May 4

First off, thanks to Adi for his light sleeping habits and nimble early-morning camera work. Now let's get to more Bronx news out there on the webosphere.

Weather: As you can probably tell by looking out your window right now, it's raining and it's expected to continue until the late afternoon. It will cool tonight, with temperatures dropping into the mid-40s. More rain tomorrow.

Story of the Day: Judge Upholds Guilty Verdict for Riverdale Bomb Plotters
In her ruling yesterday, federal judge Colleen McMahon said it was "troubling" how doggedly a government  agent worked to engage the four would-be terrorists who were found guilty in October of plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues (and shooting down military transport planes at Stewart International Airport), but said they still deserved to go to prison. These men couldn't hold Osama bin Laden's tunic, the judge implied. According to the NY Times, McMahon wrote that convicted plotter "[James] Cromitie is not a particularly intelligent man, but it defies reason to think that he was unaware” of what was going on. For more bomb plot background , check out the Riverdale Press' Adam Wisnieski's work.

Quick Hits: 
Police are investigating the 17-year-old baby-sitter of a nine-month-old baby who died Tuesday morning after being found unconscious in a Marble Hill apartment. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the teenager admitted to punching the baby in the stomach.

Bronx State Senator Jeff Klein and his independent caucus want to ban doctors and other health care professionals from wearing neckties, jewelry or other fashion accessories that might carry carry yucky germs.

Bronx Pastor Suzan Johnson Cook, who grew up in Wakefield and founded the Bronx Christian Fellowship Baptist Church, was tapped by the Obama administration to be the nation's Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, which just may be the coolest title of any government post.

Residents hope a new Van Nest property owner delivers on his promise to clean up what they say is a drug den.

More on the sparkling new $65.5 million homeless intake center on East 151st Street.

Erika Marte, a senior at Bronx School for Law, Government and Justice, was one of 17 New Yorkers to win the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship. Marte, who lives in Van Nest, will attend Hamilton College in the fall and wants to be a teacher when she's done with her own schooling.

Bronx News Roundup, Friday, March 25

Weather: Sunny, but still, sadly, cold. That goes for the whole weekend.

Story of the Day: The Holy Grail -- A High-Class Bronx Hotel
During his February state of the borough speech at Clinton High School, Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. dared mention the Holy Grail of Bronx BPs -- the creation of a high-class hotel in our fair borough. Adolfo Carrion and Freddy Ferrer both tried to prioritize a new hotel to no avail. But Diaz believes he's recognized a simple solution this time: use one of the failing new Yankee Stadium parking garages that are "going belly up," Diaz says in an article in the Daily News. Bronx Parking Development, which operates the garages, owes the city $10.6 million in back rent and a $6.9 million bond payment is due April 1. The garages are only being filled to 63 percent capacity on game days -- perhaps it has something to do with the $35 fee -- and their future doesn't appear bright. Bronx Parking negotiated a year reprieve with bondholders to make something happen. Either build on top of one of the garages, Diaz says, or just knock one down entirely and build a hotel in its stead. Some local residents said they'd like to see something for the community replace the garages, but Diaz says building a park won't pay off Bronx Parking's bonds. Plus: it's the Holy Grail!

Quick Hits:
City Limits breaks down the Census data released yesterday. A couple of Bronx tidbits that we didn't mention in yesterday's Census post (which includes an interactive map): Staten Island (+5.6%)) was the only borough that grew more than the Boogie Down ([Corrected] +3.9%, which still makes it the state's second fastest-growing county). However, the Bronx's white population dropped by 22%. Bloomberg says the city was "shortchanged" by some 225,000 people.

Lawyers for the four men convicted of planning to bomb two Riverdale synagogues have asked a judge to overturn the convictions.

Today is the 21st anniversary of the Happy Land fire, which killed 87 people in the Bronx, the largest mass killing in the city before 9/11.

The son of Bronx salsa legend Willie Colon was busted on pornography charges, police said.

A dead body was found floating in the Hudson River near Riverdale.

Speaking of Riverdale, the head of Shervier Nursing Care Center stepped down amid a lengthy investigation into the 350-bed institution's finances and other problems.

Bronx (Weekend) News Roundup, Oct. 4

Here's a behind-the-scenes look into the ongoing synagogue bomb-plot trial. The case is wrapping up this week as closing arguments are set to begin today.

Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. had some harsh words for gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino this weekend, calling the Republican an "utter nut job." Diaz and former BP Freddy Ferrer were both on hand in Manhattan on Saturday to endorse Paladino's rival, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Diaz is on one of several politicians predicted to be vying for a spot in the 2013 Mayoral race. 

Progress reports released by the DOE show a drop in evaluation grades for Bronx elementary and middle schools, though many blame the slip on tougher state testing standards.

An off-duty corrections officer was shot by the NYPD outside of a club on E. 161st after he refused to drop the gun he was carrying. Victor Hernandez  is now in stable condition at Lincoln Hospital.

Police are asking for help in locating a missing 15-year-old boy who was last seen on Sept. 28 near his home at 2115 Haviland Avenue.

A final viewing was held Saturday in Baychester for the six member of Joy Fellowship Christian Assemblies who died in a car accident two weeks ago.

Well-known Bronx graffiti artist Fernando Carlo was nabbed by cops this week for tagging a subway car at 207th Street last year. He had been abroad since then and was arrested upon returning to the states.

The Daily News looks back on the case of Larry Davis, a Bronx man charged with slaying four drug dealers 24 years ago this week. His capture and trial made national headlines at the time.

The new Willis Avenue Bridge, connecting upper Manhattan to the Bronx, reopened on Saturday.

Small businesses are still hurting from the recession, even if experts say the downturn officially ended last year.

Bronx News Roundup, Oct. 1

If you couldn't tell by the soggy weather this morning, it is indeed October now. Because of the rain, expect subway delays if you haven't already experienced them. On to the news!

First, an awesome picture of some of the subway flooding problems and a report that the 4 train was delayed after a tree fell near the 167th St. stop. [Update: a reader alerted us that this photo was taken in 2006. But it's still awesome.]

As of 10:57 a.m., the MTA was reporting delays on the 1, 2, 3, A, C, E, B, D F, M, and N, Q, R lines.

To the relief of its 800-plus workers and doctors, Westchester Square Medical Center, slated to close on Dec. 31, will remain open but the amount of beds in the hospital will shrink, state Health Department officials say.

Internal Affairs reportedly raided 12 Bronx police precincts to seize and audit all tickets handed out over the past 13 months. 

The late actor Tony Curtis grew up in the Bronx, the son of dirt-poor Hungarian immigrants. His given name: Bernie Schwartz.

Daily News columnist Juan Gonzalez points out that Eva  Moskowitz, who founded the Harlem Success charter schools and opened two new schools in the Bronx this year, spent some $1.3 million on marketing and recruitment, which swelled the waiting list to get in and pressured state officials to let her open schools. Gonzalez admits the schools have been successful, but says the money is the reason regular public schools can't compete.

The trial of four men accused of plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues is nearing conclusion as the defense wrapped up its case yesterday. They called very few witnesses, instead relying on their cross-examination of a government informant who they say entrapped their clients. Closing arguments begin Monday.

The Bronx driver accused of beating a traffic cop pleaded not guilty yesterday after turning himself in to authorities.

The Manhattan College and Fordham University men's soccer teams face off tomorrow night.

A deal to save the so-called "birth place of hip-hop" is near completion.

Hostos Community College is hosting a dominoes tournament on Sunday that will benefit the school's Emergency 100 and Scholarship fund. Entry is $30. Winners can earn up to $2,000 in prizes.

And finally, after conducting an online poll, the Wildlife Conservation Society has named the new beaver recently found in the Bronx River. It's Justin Beiber, er, Beaver. Justin joins Jose who was discovered in 2007 and named after Bronx Congressman Jose Serrano. The discover is another great sign of the river's resurgence. Plust, the two are planning a world-wide tour to the delight of pre-adolescent beavers everywhere.

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 17

Wow, looks like the Bronx lucked out yesterday when a torrential, tornado-like storm ripped through Brooklyn, Queens and parts of Long Island. Here's a link to some intense footage taken by readers of the City Room blog.

In the Riverdale bombing plot trial, the FBI informant at the center of the case revealed a complex past during his testimony that involved a friendship with the former Prime Minister of Pakistan.

A Bronx man was charged with sending explicit pictures of himself to an 11-year-old Throggs Neck girl who has been missing for three days. The man maintains he had nothing to do with her disappearance.

In perhaps the least surprising new story of the day, people in the Bronx and elsewhere in the city are struggling to make ends meet during this recession.

Fordham University's The Ram newspaper opines about plans to beautify Fordham Plaza.

A City Island woman who works at Montefiore Medical Center is selling bags and donating a portion of the proceeds to a women's center in Ethiopia.

"Krackoon," a horror film about a crack-addicted raccoon, made by Throggs Neck film makers in the east Bronx is generating some buzz.

City Limits riffs off of a Norwood News story about the death of a homeless man in Norwood. Police are considering the death an accident, but friends believe it was the result of a beating. A new study says the country's homeless population is increasingly becoming a target for attacks.

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 15

NY1 has all the results from last night's Democratic primary. If you missed our coverage, you can read our  tweets from various election parties on the right side of this page. And we'll have more from several Bronx races later today, but until then, here are some highlights:

• The biggest story of the night: Gustavo Rivera beat out incumbent Pedro Espada by a pretty significant margin. We'll post more on both candidates' events last night in a bit. For more, see here, here, and here, and pretty much everywhere else. Hiram Monserrate, the former Queens senator who helped Espada stage the Senate coup last year and who has faced his own share of legal troubles, also lost last night in his bid for State Assembly. 

• Besides Espada, every other Bronx incumbent in the Senate and Assembly who faced a primary challenge came out victorious. 

• Sen. Eric Schneiderman, whose district includes parts of Riverdale, will head into November's election as the Democratic candidate for Attorney General. He was one of five candidates vying for the spot, and just barely defeated candidate Kathleen Rice.

On to some other, non-election Bronx news:

Four people were injured in an apartment fire that broke out this morning on Bronx Park Avenue. 

A disgruntled worker who was fired from his job at a Domino's pizza set fire to two locations of the chain restaurant--one on White Plains Road and the other on Boston Road. No one was injured. 

A suspect in the Riverdale synagogue bomb plot apparently forgot to set the timer on one of his explosive devices, according to recorded tapes play during the trial. 

Jay-Z and Eminem wrapped up their concert series last night at Yankee Stadium. The performance brought fans to tears, according to MTV.com

City Limits has this piece on the death of Norwood resident Billy Murphy, and on the alarming raise in violent acts committed against the homeless (see more on Murphy's death in the Norwood News, here.)

Residents in Woodlawn suspect someone targeting stray cats may have poisoned a family's pet dog. 

The Daily News writes about a student exchange program between Bronx CUNY Prep students and a school in Berlin, Germany. 

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 9

Recordings played during the Riverdale synagogue trial shed light on the role that Shahed Hussain, the government informer, played in the bomb plot.

New York's landlords are one of the few groups left supporting Sen. Pedro Espada, Jr. Espada, who heads the Senate's housing committee, gets a big chunk of his campaign contributions from landlords and real estate groups.

Speaking of Pedro: the NY Post says he has the most violations so far this election season for posting campaign fliers illegally, racking up over $30,000 in fines.

Next week's election could affect how much rent you pay. The Riverdale Press takes a closer look at where Espada and rival Gustavo Rivera stand on housing issues, like vacancy decontrol.

A raccoon broke into a Highbridge apartment building early this morning.

Nearly a quarter of the city's students played hooky yesterday on the first day of school, thanks to a one-day school week wedged between two holidays. But some public schools in the Bronx were still too crowded.

Only 60 percent of Bronx seniors on Medicare are getting their annual doctor's checkup (compared to a nationwide average of 77 percent). But the same study says the yearly visits don't necessarily lead to better health.

A Westchester woman accused of faking an illness to score free wedding gifts says doctors at a Bronx clinic falsely told her she had leukemia. 

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 8

At a press conference announcing endorsements from Assemblyman Jose Rivera and Assemblywoman Carmen Arroyo, State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. said Eric Stevenson -- the candidate expected to take over Michael Benjamin's 79th Assembly District seat -- was intimidated into withdrawing his endorsement of Espada. Stevenson said he had no idea what Espada was talking about.

Planned Parenthood is now officially backing the primary opponents of both Espada (Gustavo Rivera), and his top Senate ally, Ruben Diaz Sr. (Charlie Ramos).

In his latest campaign finance filing, Espada said he spent $17,000 on produce that he's given out during his campaign. But the manager of Hunts Point Market, where Espada says he sent a $17,000 check to, said the market doesn't sell produce, it just leases space for produce vendors.

As we mentioned in yesterday's roundup, the apartment building generally considered the "birthplace of hip hop" will be purchased and renovated by a city-backed housing group.More here. And here.

Prosecutors have the defendants in the Riverdale synagogue bomb plot trial on tape testing out hand-held missile launchers. And reportedly getting really excited about them.

The Post's Bronx girls high school soccer preview says the Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy squad has become one of the top teams in the borough after two seasons of playing at the varsity level.

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 1

We all knew this summer's been oppressively, relentlessly, shirt-stainingly hot, but now it's official. We are enduring the hottest summer in New York City history, according to the National Weather Service. Thankfully, temperatures are supposed to drop on Friday.

City officials unveiled a new $6 million dollar skate park near Yankee Stadium.

A lawyer has taken the Riverdale's Horace Mann School to court after the school suspended his son for three days. The schools suspended the 16-year-old after classmates found topless photos of a young woman on his computer.

Recordings show that one of the defendants charged with plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues expressed some hesitation about the plot, which also included plans to shoot down airplanes. The defense says this gives credence to their claim that the defendants were coerced into the plot by an FBI informant. More on the case here.

Researchers from the YIVO Insitute for Yiddish Research are combing through the apartment of famed Yiddish writer of Chaim Grade, whose widow recently died in the Amalgamated Houses near Van Corltandt Park.

Upstart Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, a real estate developer from Buffalo, recently touched down in the Bronx to talk with political leaders, including Democratic State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr.

Speaking of Diaz Sr., Ken Padilla, a district leader in the Reverend's turf, says Diaz Sr. is engaging "politics of deception."

It got ugly on the Cross Bronx Expressway last night when an overturned tractor-trailer dumped lumber all over an on-ramp.

Bronx News Roundup, August 30

Police are still looking for the driver of a green Nissan Pathfinder who allegedly hit a 5-year-old kid in Williamsbridge, dragged him 50 feet, paused briefly, and then drove off. The 5-year-old, Joshua Sanders, remains in critical condition at Jacobi Hospital.

An ex-con was arrested and charged with raping a 79-year-old Bronx woman in July.

On Friday, a paid FBI informant testified in the case of four men accused of plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues. The informant, who the defense said coerced the four defendants into the bombing plot, said one of the defendants told him he wanted to be a martyr.  

Policed detectives say a convicted murderer may have killed other victims in the early 1980s by luring them with promises of cheap designer jeans. 

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio is launching a new website dedicated to scrutinizing the city's worst landlords.

We linked to this in a Friday post, but this Times story delves into the complicated relationship between Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and his father State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. Junior is set to endorse Gustavo Rivera in the 33rd Senate District race at 11 a.m., while Senior has already endorsed the incumbent, Pedro Espada Jr. (The pair, Senior and Espada, have become allies after years of animosity -- Diaz took over the  south Bronx senate seat Espada used to occupy).

A new oral test for HIV, which can provide results in just 20 minutes, is being pushed in the Bronx, which is home to one-third of the city's HIV/AIDs cases.

Nelson Castro said the Bronx Democratic County Committee is crossing the ethical line in trying to have him thrown off the ballot for residency issues. But Bronx Democratic boss Carl Heastie said the investigation into Castro's residence was prompted when two pieces of mail sent to his address were returned and added that when a Board of Elections legal team went to the apartment, the name on the buzzer was not Castro's.

Bronx News Roundup, June 21

The Times profiles Father John Flynn, the retiring longtime pastor of St. Martins of Tours church whose presence has become a fixture in the Crotona area since 1981. He presided over his last mass (pictured above) on Sunday.  The Tremont Tribune wrote about Father Flynn in March.

The city is holding a hearing today on a proposal that would turn the Grand Concourse -- from 153rd Street to 167th Street -- into New York's newest historic district. Back in the day, "If you lived on the Concourse, it was a sign that you had made it," Bronx Borough Historian Lloyd Ultan told the Post.


 The Daily News writes about a couple of Bronx teens looking for work in a tough job market this summer.

A bail hearing for the four men accused of plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues is set for today. Protesters, friends and relatives say there's not enough evidence to keep them in jail. The defendants say they were coerced into the plot by FBI operatives.

As of yesterday, police were still looking for a teenage mother and her daughter who went missing.

An 18-year-old refugee from Sierra Leone who lived in the Bronx was stabbed to death early Sunday morning in Washington Heights. Another man was shot and killed hours later in Melrose.(On early Saturday morning, a 27-year-old man was found dead on Perry Avenue, in Norwood, with multiple gun shot wounds.)

A career military man who grew up in Mott Haven was killed at a Georgia  Army base.

Bronx News Roundup, May 28

 Happy Memorial Day weekend, everyone! Enjoy the extra day off. Here are today's Bronx headlines:

A Jamaican drug lord, Christopher Coke, operated a drug ring out of Eastchester and parts of Queens for years, according to police. Law enforcement officials in Kingston, Jamaica have been pursuing Coke for the past four days, in violent assaults that left 74 people dead so far. Coke has still not been found.

A new book chronicles the pandemic of fires that ravaged the South Bronx during the 1970s.

An effort to keep state parks open this summer could lead to major cuts for institutions like the Bronx Zoo and Botanical Garden. The plan would take money from the state's Environmental Protection Fund, which pays for the zoo and gardens, to cover the cost of keeping the parks open.

Sam Suzuki, the Soundview landlord who was issued an arrest warrant by a housing court judge this month for ignoring court orders to fix his crumbling properties, has turned himself in to authorities.

Neighborhoods in the Bronx and Manhattan have the highest concentration of airborne nickel particles during the winter, according to a new air quality study from the Department of Health. Nickel, usually from oil burners, can irritate the lungs and worsen asthma and emphysema symptoms.

A video of Rocking the Boat founder Adam Green discussing the program, a boat-building project for students in the South Bronx. Here's a video interview with some of the program's participants that we took a few months back.

The city has settled to pay $700,000 to a mentally disturbed Soundview man who was shot by police officers during an altercation in 2005.

A pre-trial hearing is happening today for the two men accused of bomb plots at two Riverdale synagogues.

Bronx News Roundup, Dec. 7

And we're back. Remember to check back here every week day for our Bronx News Roundups, as well as every Monday and Thursday afternoon for a listing of events, happenings and meetings.

On to the news:

A Bronx woman, Suejas Estrada, was killed in a three car crash on the Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx on Friday afternoon. One of the cars in the crash was driven by former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw, who was uninjured.

The Bronx has a new tourist attraction: 1157 Wheeler Avenue, the site where Amadou Diallo, an unarmed African immigrant, was killed by 41 police bullets in 1999. Tour buses frequently visit the site, which is now decorated with a mural.

A Bronx cop in the 43rd precinct was busted on Friday for stealing and transporting cocaine.

Last Thursday, Bronx BP Ruben Diaz, Jr. announced the creation of the Bronx Public Housing Advisory Council. This council, made up of 50 tenant association leaders, will work to improve the issues of Bronx residents who live in Housing Authority buildings.

The four men arrested for plotting to bomb a Bronx synagogue in Riverdale in May will be tried in federal court in June. All of the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge.

A Bronx priest in Castle Hill designs an organic clothing line, Goods of Conscience. His clothes were recently featured in Vogue. All profits from the clothing line go to benefit victims of domestic violence in the Bronx and poor communities in Guatemala.

A teacher at Bronx Lebanon Hospital's public high school was fired after she took off 30 days to recover from a violent attack by one of her mentally ill patients. The teacher is now suing the city.

Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 18

The trial for the four men accused of plotting to bomb two Riverdale synagogues will begin next June 14. At the hearing where the trial date was set, lawyers for the accused, who are pleading not guilty, said that their clients were entrapped by a federal government informant. They also said that key evidence -- recorded conversations in which the defendants allegedly discussed the bombing plans -- doesn't exist. More on this, including courtroom sketches, from NY1 and Daily News.

NY1's Dean Meminger examines the impact of the new Gateway Center mall, which the Related Companies the mayor's office and other elected officials are touting as a huge boon for the south Bronx. From the interviews, local residents seem to think it's been a valued addition as well. Related is facing opposition to its plan to turn the Kingsbridge Armory into another mall because they have not entered into a Community Benefits Agreement.

Not surprisingly, Maria Baez failed to show up for the first post-primary City Council meeting, "keeping intact her hold on the Council's worst attendance record," writes the Times' Ray Rivera. She said on Tuesday night that she was going on vacation for a few days.

An assistant principal at a middle school in Morrisania was arrested for driving drunk on Thursday morning at 7 a.m. Her 10-month-old baby was in the back seat.

The Bronx Democrats have thrown their weight behind John Liu for comptroller after their original choice, Melinda Katz was beaten soundly in Tuesday's primary.

A fire ripped through a Morrisania area grocery store and mosque early this morning.

Rape charges against five Hoftstra students, three of whom are from the Bronx, have been dismissed.