Lakewood - Officials, Residents Seek Solution To A Traffic Hazard

Lakewood, NJ - Mary's Lane is a strip of blacktop between Princeton and Park avenues that juts out of Fourth Street just east of the Lakewood Community Center, and that road is a problem.
The road - actually, it's a paved right of way - is sandwiched between the railroad tracks and a series of street ends. The popular pathway is home to Foodex Supermarket, which draws a steady stream of cars on Friday as Orthodox Jewish residents prepare for Shabbos. Plus, the road makes a quick bypass of Princeton Avenue from Fourth to Seventh streets - unless you take that first turn too fast.
Drivers turning right from Fourth Street onto Mary's Lane have smacked into the railroad tracks - or, worse, climbed them only to get stuck like an inert caboose - in seemingly increasing numbers, said Township Committeeman Menashe Miller.
The problem is particularly bad at night, when drivers can't see where the blacktop ends and the tracks begin.
"It's a terrible situation," said Joseph Newhouse, a member of Chaveirim Volunteer Services, an AAA-like organization in Lakewood that responds to many of the accidents in which cars get stuck and damaged. "There are weeks we've done five or six a week.".

Mayor Meir Lichtenstein has pushed to sue the property owner, whomever that may be, but Committeeman Robert W. Singer suggested first have a meeting and he said that he will schedule that meeting as soon as possible.

Air Force Issues New Rules in Bias Fight

Albuquerque, NM - The Air Force submitted new guidelines on religion as part of its fight against a lawsuit by a Jewish Air Force Academy graduate who alleges the school's officers and cadets illegally impose Christianity on others.
The Justice Department has asked a U.S. District judge to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that the Air Force has no official policy of proselytizing.
But the attorney for Mikey Weinstein of Albuquerque, who sued the Air Force, said that dismissing the lawsuit would be "ridiculous in light of what the new guidelines say.". "They completely, thoroughly violate the Constitution of the United States," he said.

The guidelines, filed with the court, drop a requirement for chaplains to respect others' rights to their own beliefs and no longer caution officers about promoting their personal religious views.

Weinstein, has asked the Air Force to treat religion - or a lack of religion - equally and to protect people from being "evangelized" against their will on duty.

Washington - Marine Helicopters Crashed

Washington - Late Friday two U.S. Marine Corps helicopters crashed in the waters off the coast of Djibouti in Horn of Africa, the Defense Department says.

U/D: 02/19/06 09:32
The U.S. military says 10 U.S. troops died in the helicopter crash off the coast of Djibouti.

Two crew members were rescued and are in stable condition. One had knee surgery, and the other "suffered muscular and skeletal bruising, no fractures, and may have inhaled contaminated sea water."

Borough Park +Store On Fire+

Borough Park +Store On Fire+ A fire on the first floor of a commercial laundromath building 25 x 50 with residential above at 4311 15th Avenue and 44th Street. FD on the scene.

Study Shows Dresdner Bank Had Liks To Nazis And Stake in Crematorium Co.

Germany's Dresdner Bank AG financed Nazi arms makers and owned a stake in a company that built crematoriums at the Auschwitz concentration camp, authors of a bank-commissioned study said.

What emerged from the study, is that Dresdner was a part owner of Huta Hoch- und Tiefbau AG, a Breslau-based construction firm that built the crematoriums used to dispose of bodies at the Auschwitz death camp in occupied Poland.
Some 1.5 million people, most of them Jews, died at the camp from gassing, shooting, hanging, beating, starvation, disease or mistreatment. And that is the most extensive involvement by a bank in an accomplice firm in Auschwitz.
Two top bank executives, Emil Meyer and Karl Rasche, were members of Hitler's SS, or Schutzstaffel, a paramilitary organization whose involvement in Nazi crimes included running concentration camps.
Meyer committed suicide at the end of the war in 1945 and Rasche was sentenced to seven years in prison by the Nuremberg war crimes tribunal for his activities.

New Enhanced 911 Service to Ulster and Sullivan Counties

HOLMDEL, NJ - Vonage America, a leading provider of broadband phone service, announced that almost all of its customers have basic 911 service and a majority of them have Enhanced 911 (E911) - a feature that automatically associates a physical address with the calling party's telephone number. In just 90 days.
Vonage has equipped an additional 1,061 locally run calling centers, in over 360 new counties, with E911 capabilities, which brings the total number of calling centers within the 911 service area to over 3180, Including Ulster and Sullivan Counties in NY.

Brooklyn +Crane In Danger Of Falling+

Brooklyn +Crane In Danger Of Falling+ A elevated crane at the construction site on top of Kings Count Hospital, is in danger of collapsing due to very high winds blowing in the area, PD has roped off the area, also reporting a large tree down on top of some vehicles across the street in front of 318 Maple Street, ESU and additional BAT are responding.

U/D: 13:08
A crane enginer has just arrived, due to the construction co. can not move the crane now.

U/D: 14:08
O.E.M. Reports that the crane has been lowered sfely to the ground on Winthrop Avenue, and the street has been reopened.

Brooklyn +B.Q.E. at McGuiness Blvd. Shut Down+

Brooklyn +B.Q.E. at McGuiness Blvd. Shut Down+ Traffic Alert, The Brooklyn Queens Expressway westbound at McGuiness Blvd has been shut down due to a MVA involving a bus with approximately 60 passengers on board and 3 other vehicles, FD on the scene, expect major delays in the area.

Cowen Heights +Motor Vehicle Accident+

Cowen Heights +Motor Vehicle Accident+ A MVA in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn at Snyder Avenue and Utica Avenue with injuries, Hatzolah requesting backup units to the scene and an ambulance.

Washington - Homeland Security Secretary Commits Security Look For Orange County

Washington - Congresswoman Sue Kelly got a commitment - during a House Transportation Committee hearing in Washington, D.C. - from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that his agency will take a close, hands on look at the Indian Point nuclear power plants.

Swan Lake - Teenagers Charged With Hate Crimes In Vandalizing Camp

Swan Lake - Police say teenagers scrawled hateful messages with spray paint inside the main building of an Orthodox Jewish bungalow colony on Mount Hope Road. On walls in the front room at Camp Kasho, overlooking boxes of matzo meal crushed on the floor and a sticker advising people to keep their children off the Internet, was the name "Hitler" in letters a foot high. The vandals also spray-painted their names, nicknames and initials and splashed cans of paint around the room. Police lodged hate crime charges against three teenagers from neighboring Abbott House, a home for neglected, abused, developmentally disabled or otherwise homeless kids.

Sullivan County Sheriff Michael Schiff said a camp employee came to the site to handle the delivery of trusses for a new building. The man saw the teenagers flee into the woods, discovered the break-in and vandalism and called 911.

Woodbury - Police Believe Man Fell Asleep In Truck

Woodbury - Police investigating a horrific Thruway crash that killed four people last week have tentatively concluded that the driver of the tractor-trailer that caused the accident fell asleep at the wheel.

Flatbush +Private Dwelling Fire+

Flatbush +Private Dwelling Fire+ FD on the scene of a fire in the basement of a 2 story 20X40 brick private dwelling at 926 East 29th Street between Avenue's ''I'' & ''J''. Bat 41 using all hands on arrival and requesting additional E&T's due to window bars hampering efforts, fire is DWH.

U/D: 08:36
Fire Dept. calling a 2nd Alarm for heavy fire.
Fire remains DWH.

U/D: 08:49
All visible fire hase been K/D, Primary searches in the basement are negative, Pri searches for the 1st and 2nd floors are underwat.

U/D: 09:03
FD Div.15 reports, secondary searches are also negative, and he places this fire as 10-41 Code 1 {Suspicious Fire}.

New York City - Ex-parking Violations Judge Trying To Evade Paying His Own Parking Tickets

New York City - A former judge at the city's Parking Violations Bureau thought he could beat the system and evade paying $12,000 in 167 of his own parking tickets, but now he got his law license suspended for trying.

Glenn Caldwell was barred from practice for the next three years by a state appeals court that found his behavior "appalling."
The panel of judges said, and Caldwell, 56, must pay the price for attempting to beat the tickets by using insider's knowledge of the system.

He slyly ordered vanity license plates for two family cars, "intentionally requesting a combination of letters and numbers that he knew would provide him with a technical defense to any summons issued to those cars."
Caldwell's plate numbers, 4GZ-Z50 and Y50-V26, were often confused for regular plates by ticket agents and cops, a mistake that could be a basis for voiding a summons.

Much of the evidence came from the PVB's supervising administrative law judge, who had taken photos of Caldwell's illegally parked car, after becoming suspicious.

Manhattan - Kosher Steakhouse Isn't To Chelsea Neighbors Taste

Manhattan - Arthur Emil, whose restaurants include the luxury Midtown restaurants Beacon, Solo and Prime Grill, wants to open a high-end kosher steakhouse in Chelsea.
The 5,000-square-foot ground floor, plus a basement with about the same area, is at 147 W. 15th Street where Emil wants to open the new high-end restaurant steakhouse.

But neighbors of the mostly residential W. 15th Street block between Sixth and Seventh Avenue's, don’t want to risk it, they don't want to have a noisy nightspot in their neighborhood.

So early this month they went and asked Community Board 4 to recommend that the State Liquor Authority deny a liquor license for the proposed restaurant even though Emil pledged not to admit patrons after 11 p.m., and also to store his garbage in an inside refrigerated space and have it picked up at an hour when it would not disturb residents.
“We don’t run nightclubs,” Emil told the Community Board “We will be responsible operators at all times - upscale restaurants are my life.” And also the fact that a kosher steakhouse would be closed on the Jewish Sabbath from Friday evenings to Saturday evenings was suggested as an advantage for a residential block.

Neighbors, however, were not receptive and the community board deferred to residents and voted against approval of the liquor license.

Borough Park +Reckless Driver / Large Crowd+

Borough Park +Reckless Driver+ FDNY truck was cut off by a reckless driver on 13th Avenue and 45th Street, NYPD are trying to get control of the scene where lots and lots of people gathered, after FD took away from the driver of the vehicle his license and keys.

Manhattan +Bomb Threat+

Manhattan +Bomb Threat+ NYPD ESU Units and K-9 are requested by the MTS Pct for a bomb threat that was received for the Maison Square Garden at 34th Street and 7th Avenue, no package or any other suspicious device has been found at this time.

Ramapo Building Inspector Suspended Following Drug Charges

Rampo - The town's building inspector was suspended following accusations that he had marijuana in his town-owned car when he was involved in an accident on the New York state Thruway.
Brian Brophy, 56, has been out on disability since he was involved in the three-car accident, town officials said.
But now "He's been suspended with pay," said Town Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence, "We're awaiting the outcome of the investigation from the accident.

State Troopers said that at the accident scene Brophy complained of neck and back injuries and was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital by the Nanuet Ambulance Corps.
At that time a NY State Trooper was conducting the accident investigation when he went into Brophy's vehicle looking for registration and insurance information, and inside he found 3 grams of marijuana and in a white envelope in the glove compartment containing 64 $100 bills.
"Maybe he was going to pay his mortgage," they said.
Brophy was charged with possession of marijuana.

Brophy has been a town employee for nearly 25 years and made $135,000 last year.

U.S. Senate Pushes For Jewish History Months

Some South Florida residents are rejoicing over a decision by national leaders to back plans to observe American Jewish History month.
the U.S. Senate has passed a resolution urging President Bush to proclaim American Jewish History Month to celebrate the history and heritage of Jews in America.

A Third Target Store Grows in Brooklyn

Brooklyn is getting its third Target store, a 300,000-square-foot structure to be built across the street from Brooklyn College at the intersection of Flatbush, Nostrand and Avenue H. In addition to 220,000 square feet for Target, the development will also include 80,000 square feet of mixed retail space and a five-level parking garage.
The developer, had to get the LIRR and MTA's blessing before the project could go ahead.

New Lakewood Mayor Moving Forward

Lakewood - Mayor Lichtenstein is finding a lot of fans in his first seven weeks as mayor. Now that the novelty has worn off - Lichtenstein the first observant Orthodox Jewish mayor in New Jersey history, in a community that includes an estimated 6,000 Orthodox families, the 35-year-old property manager is ready to focus on his initiatives for 2006.
"Religion has nothing to do with how you pay taxes, with how the streets are paved," Lichtenstein said. "While in the beginning, there was more fanfare . . . people realize I'm going to do the job I have to do."

Lichtenstein can handle the pressure, whether the constituent is wearing a yarmukle or not, He's available to everyone, What's on his head makes no difference in how he governs.

Manhattan +Suspicious Device Port Auth. Bus Terminal+

Manhattan +Suspicious Device Port Auth. Bus Terminal+ NYPD from the MTS Pct. are calling for a level one mobilization at West 42nd Street and 8th Avenue at the Port Authority Bus Terminal for a suspicious device with a positive detection from the device by Canine, ESU and Bomb Squad are requested, PAPD are on the scene, additional units are also requested for crowd and traffic control. Bus Terminal being evacuated, expect major delays in the area.

New York - Governor Has Appendix Removed

Albany, NY - Gov. George Pataki underwent surgery to remove his appendix.
Pataki aide David Catalfamo said "the surgery seems to have gone fine."
Catalfamo said the governor underwent the appendectomy shortly before 6 a.m. at Hudson Valley Center Hospital just outside of Peekskill in Westchester County after checking himself into the facility late last night.
The governor's spokesman said Pataki began having abdominal pains earlier on Yesterday. The 60-year-old Republican had unexpectedly canceled an appearance yesterday at an event in New York City with Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

U/D:
Doctors say that Pataki reached the hospital just in time.

Borough Park +Motor Vehicle Accident+

Borough Park +Motor Vehicle Accident+ A MVA with some injuries in Boro Park, Brooklyn at 16th Avenue and 61st Street, hatzolah on the scene.

Israel To Start "Anti-Semitic Cartoon Contest"

Israel - An Israeli cartoonist has launched an "anti-Semitic cartoon contest" to poke fun at fellow Jews in response to furore among Muslims over the publication of caricatures of Mohammad.
The cartoonist said he was inspired by violent Muslim protests and the launching of a Holocaust cartoon competition by an Iranian daily that said it wanted to test the boundaries of free speech espoused by Western countries.
"We thought it would be a much braver thing to do, to publish cartoons about ourselves, rather than our adversaries," He said. "We want to fight fire with humor." "We will show the world we can do the best, sharpest, most offensive Jew hating cartoons ever published,"
There will be no limitations on cartoons entries other than that they be witty, he added.
The newspaper said it was holding the contest to test the boundaries of free speech.

Kiryas Joel - Man Charged With Trying To Bribe Two Cops And More

Kiryas Joel, Monroe - Already in hot water for allegedly grabbing another customer at Wal-Mart, a Kiryas Yoel man compounded his troubles by offering two state troopers $100 each not to arrest him.
Now, in addition to a misdemeanor charge, the 31-year-old man must answer to two felony counts of bribery when he goes to Monroe Town Court. He is free on $5,000 cash bail.
Police say the KJ man grabbed a 28-year-old Woodbury man in the Wal-Mart tire center.

County Sewage Plant Could Boost Capacity And Help Kiryas Joel

Harriman - Preliminary results of an experiment at the Orange County-run sewage treatment plant in Harriman suggest that new filter technology could boost its capacity by 50 percent and would cost almost $25 million to install.

The draft report confirms the capacity boost that consultant Camp Dresser & McKee predicted in 2003 and offers another way to expand the 30-year-old facility, which has been pushed past its limit and mired the county in lawsuits. For years, the state had banned new sewer hookups because the beleaguered plant couldn't handle any more.

When a judge ordered the village of Kiryas Joel last year to supplement its environmental review. Kiryas Joel has asked the judge to reconsider the case, partly based on the Camp Dresser & McKee's report about the sewer-plant test. Its lawyers argue that the county acted in bad faith in its lawsuit by failing to disclose it was testing technology that could boost the Harriman plant's capacity again.
County officials said they wouldn't comment on the report until the final version is released and cautioned that changes had been made since the draft was written.

Manhattan +Midtown Pedestrian Struck+

Manhattan +Midtown Pedestrian Struck+ A motor vehicle accident with a pedestrian that was struck in midtown Manhattan in front of 11 West 47th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue's, Hatzolah responding.

Brooklyn +B.Q.E. Heavy Delays+

Brooklyn +B.Q.E. Heavy Delays+ Heavy delays now on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway outbound near the Prospect Expressway and Smith Street, due to a jackknifed flat-bed trailer closing down two lanes, no injuries.

U/D: 09:46
Now the NYPD closed down all lanes, avoid the area.

New York City - Bias By Cabbies Is Decreasing, But Still Present

New York City - cabbies are increasingly color-blind, new city statistics show.
Last Year 3% of hacks failed to stop for a person of color or a disabled passenger, or rejected a passenger based on destination, according to results from hundreds of undercover tests carried out by officers from the Taxi and Limousine Commission.

The TLC tests cabbie adherence to the no-refusal rule by having plain-clothes officers attempt to snag rides. Last year, the commission conducted more than 3,500 tests. Violators face punishment that ranges from fines to license revocation.

Are Antennas Celling Out Our Safety?

Crown Heights - A new trend has sprouted on rooftops across the area that is making landlords rich - but may also be making people sick.
Cellular antennas and related equipment have flooded the cityscape, as cell phone companies scramble to keep up with the constant surge in mobile phone use.
The federal government and company officials insist the technology is safe and that any radiation emitted is far below the accepted exposure levels.
But a growing chorus of community groups and elected officials across the city - and the country - charge the long-term health effects even at low levels are unknown, and are pushing for more regulation.
Advocates point to one Brooklyn apartment building on Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights as an extreme example - with at least 27 antennas from three companies.
Panicked residents, most of them Orthodox Jews, charge that since the bulk of the antennas arrived, they suffer from headaches, dizziness, lethargy and other ailments.
"It's scary," said one resident, who asked not to be named for fear of retaliation. "It seems like everyone has something." Ground Zero may be the Eastern Parkway building.
"Twenty-seven cell towers is too much for any one building," said City Councilwoman Letitia James.
some Eastern Parkway residents said they plan to move.
"Even if there's only a small percent chance that it's dangerous, how can you make money at the expense of other people?" asked another resident.

Monticello - Deluxe Condo Planned

Monticello - New York City investors are planning to build a seven-story luxury condominium complex just off West Broadway overlooking the Monticello Raceway. It would be the tallest building in Monticello and one of the largest buildings in the county.
The complex would be 75 feet high, and it will be on top of a hill on Dunbar Road.
The so-called Dunbar Towers the multimillion-dollar proposed project still has to clear several hurdles, said project manager Kalman Freidus of Fallsburg, who said he is representing the investment group from New York. The development doesn't depend on a casino coming to the Monticello Raceway, he said. The group plans to market the condos to retirees and snowbirds.

The complex would have 92 one- and two-bedroom condos, and would also have a pool, recreation area and tennis courts.

The proposed site is near eight rundown bungalows that would be torn down.
Just across the street on West Broadway, a developer is planning to build 99 town houses.

Jewish Family In Los Angeles Accuses Police Of Wrongful Death, And Civil Rights Violations

Los Angeles, CA - A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed in Los Angeles federal court alleging two undercover police officers shot and killed a Jewish man Assaf Deri after they mistook him for a Middle Easterner or Muslim.

The undercover officers, without provocation, fired multiple rounds at Deri after they cornered him in his vehicle in a North Hollywood alley.
His parents allege that police then tried to cover up the death by raiding the his apartment in hopes of finding evidence of contraband or illegal activities.

The suit alleges wrongful death, negligence, civil rights violations, assault and battery and false arrest. It seeks punitive damages.

Portugal Chastises Iranian Ambassador Over Holocaust Denial

Lisbon - Iran's ambassador to Lisbon was summoned by Portugal's government after saying in an interview it would have taken the Nazis 15 years to burn the corpses of 6 million people.
The remarks, reflecting similar Holocaust denials by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, were an unacceptable distortion of history, Portuguese Foreign Minister Diogo Freitas do Amaral said in a statement.
The statements "seriously offended humanity's collective conscience," the minister said.
In an interview on Tuesday with Portuguese state radio RDP, Iranian ambassador Mohammed Taheri said: "When I was ambassador in Warsaw, I visited Auschwitz and Birkenau twice and made my calculations. To incinerate 6 million people, 15 years would be necessary."
Freitas do Amaral said Taheri was told his statements and those of his government's over the Holocaust were unacceptable.

Williamsburg +Motor Vehicle Accident+

Williamsburg +Motor Vehicle Accident+ A MVA on Harrisn Avenue anf Heyward between a vehicle and a minvan with some children involved, Hatzolah on the scene requesting EMS FDNY for multiple injurie, but not serious.

Brooklyn +Serious MVA+

Brooklyn +Serious MVA+ A motor vehicle accident at Avenue W and West 6th Street, has Hatzolah on the scene requesting backup BLS units on a rush Code-1.

Queens +JFK Airport Show Dog Missing+

Queens +JFK Airport Show Dog Missing+ PAPD are attempting to find a dog that competed in the Westminster Kennel Club dog show and escaped from its travel carrier on the tarmac at JFK Airport.

The dog was reportedly waiting in his carrier to board a Delta Airlines flight to California when he got loose.

No information on his owner's identity was available.


U/D: 02/16/02 13:52
The search for the show dog named Vivi, who bolted from her cage at Kennedy Airport, was officially called off.

Flatbush +Pedestrian Very Seriously Struck+

Flatbush +Pedestrian Very Seriously Struck+ A motor vehicle accident with a pedestrian that was struck at Avenue "J" and East 16th Street, Hatzolah on the scene requesting Medics on a rush, aided is unconscious.

U/D: 15:29
Aided in traumatic arrest removed by Hatzolah in likely condition to Kings County Hospital, requesting NYPD Highway-2 A.I.S. for Poss Job.

U/D: 16:01
NYPD Highway-2 has advised, that this is going to be a confirmed A.I.S. Job.

U/D: 16:09
Hospital reports the aided that was struck 80-year-old female, was pronounced DOA at the hospital, PD calling for a level one mobilization at the scene in regards.

Foundation for Jewish Youth Gets Founder's $500 Million

The Jim Joseph Foundation is poised to become one of the biggest Jewish philanthropies in the country with the addition of more than $500 million in assets, all directed toward Jewish education and youth programs.

The money will significantly increase the foundation's expenditures, which have averaged about $550,000 a year over the last several years. The foundation will now direct about $25 million a year toward causes and programs for Jewish youths.

Mr. Joseph, a West Coast real estate investor and developer, "felt he wanted to try to touch every Jewish child in this country, and his thinking was that by developing programs for youth and children, it would in the future strengthen the Jewish community in the United States," said Alvin T. Levitt, a lawyer and longtime confidant of Mr. Joseph, who will become the president of the foundation's board.

Williamsburg +Fire & Police Activity+

Williamsburg +Fire & Police Activity+ A fire in a 3 story vacant buidling under construction with a partial collapse at 164-166 Skillman Street at Willoughby Avenue, FD calling Hazmat to the scene, NYPD are asking for the bomb squad due to some explosions that were heard in the collapsed building, and all personnel are ordered out of the structure.

U/D: 11:29
Hazmat made a survey and is reporting that this is not a police/crime scene, it was some sort of religious ceremony activity set up by squatters, requesting O.E.M. and the Building Department. ESU on the scene canceling U-5 and the bomb squad.

Cleveland - Converting The Doughnut Shop To Be Kosher

Ohio - A group of Orthodox Jews in the Mayfield and Richmond roads neighborhood approached Coste of the Amy Joy Donut Shop, and they asked if Coste, a Catholic with Italian roots, would be interested in converting the doughnut shop at 5076 Mayfield Road in Lyndhurst - a place he has run for the past 37 years - into a kosher operation.

Coste talked with his son, Tom, about the change. They decided to do it, so they created Northeast Ohio's first kosher doughnut shop. And the shop also sells kosher coffee and espresso. It soon will carry kosher bagels and ice cream.

"The best thing was, we didn't have to change any of our ingredients," said Coste. "It turns out they were all kosher." But he had to stop serving the breakfast sandwiches that were made with bacon, pork sausage and ham. He had to clean the entire interior of the building - part of the process of becoming a kosher establishment, also the employees no longer can bring in their own lunch - unless, of course, every bit of it is kosher.

"It is amazing, the immediate acceptance of the Jewish community. They've been wonderful," said Coste. The location, he said, has shown an immediate and dramatic increase in sales since it went kosher this Feb.

"People come in and say, 'This is wonderful. We can finally eat things other people are eating," Coste said.

Randolph Judge To Review Home Synagogue

Ramdolph - Municipal Court Judge Ira Cohen expects tonight to hear the township's case against the Chabad Center of Randolph NJ, which was issued zoning summonses late last year.

The township began receiving complaints from neighbors over parking issues after people using the center parked on the lawn. There apparently were school services held for children there as well, officials said. Another potential problem was that the septic system was designed for a small family, not a congregation.

The township and the rabbi initially came to an agreement that the Chabad Center could house the following activities:
• Small family prayer services:
• A minyan, or a gathering of at least 10 men for prayer: and
• Counseling:

Brooklyn +U.S. Military vs N.Y. Sanitation+

Brooklyn +U.S. Military vs N.Y. Sanitation+ A U.S. uniformed military officer had an accident and rear ended a N.Y.C. Sanitation plow truck earlier this morning on Coney Island Avenue and Avenue "J". EMS did transport the military officer to Maimonides Hospital, NYPD of the 61st Pct did request Highway Units to respond to the hospital for this being a possible DUI incident.

Brooklyn - Lubavitcher Scholar Dies At 106

Brooklyn - Rabbi Yehuda Chitrik, a 106-year-old Lubavitcher scholar known for his storytelling, and as a spiritual inspiration in the Chabad Lubavitch movement, has died yesterday after being hospitalized suffering a heart attack.
In 1926, he began teaching in what is now the Ukraine, where he married, he then moved to Brooklyn after his wife died in 1983.

U/D: 02/16/06
More than #1,000 mourners turned out to the funeral yesterday in Brooklyn. To pay their respects to the renowned 106-year-old Hasidic scholar

Brooklyn - Court Rules In Favor Of State Indepedence Party

Brooklyn - The State Supreme Court's Appellate Division in Brooklyn ruled in favor of the state Independence Party's effort to disband its county organizations in Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx.   
The party is trying to cut ties with Lenora Fulani, a former leader who was accused of making anti-Semitic statements and has supporters in the three boroughs.   "There is no room in our party for such outrageous racism," Party Chairman said. "We are a party of inclusion and the only people that should be excluded are those who preach this kind of hate."   
Fulani couldn't immediately be reached for comment, but last time she said the party was trying to become "all white, where blacks and other minorities are not just unwelcome, they are maligned and abused."

Albany - Tousands Of Yeshivah Students Call for Private-School Tax Aid

Albany - Thousands of yeshivah students gathered on the steps of the Capitol with their teachers, rabbis, to call for the support of the governor's proposal to provide a tax credit that could be used to pay for private or parochial schools.
Gov. George E. Pataki's budget proposal to give parents in failing school districts a $500 tax credit has already received a nod of approval from the Republican-controlled Senate and several members in the Democratic-controlled Assembly.
But supporters of the proposal are still pressing for the support of Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who remained on the fence.
Mr. Silver, who is an Orthodox Jew, is under dueling pressures from the Jewish community and the teachers' unions, two groups that he has supported in the past, and which have supported him.

The $400 million proposal would allow parents who live in a school district with failing schools to receive up to $500 per child to use for any educational purpose. Mr. Pataki and other supporters have said that most of the money would go to parents in New York City with children in public schools.

Flatbush +Fire at Bakery+

Flatbush +Fire at Bakery+ Engine 225 is transmittin the 10-75 using all hands for a fire at Yitzi's Heimishe Bakery (Miriam's Bakery) at 2919 Avenue J and Nostrand Avenue, fire is on the first floor from this 2 story bldg. searches are underway, fire remains DWH.

U/D: 06:31
Fire is K/D placed as PWH, primary searches complete and neg.
Con Ed is requested for live wires that are down in front of the building.

Fire Dept are calling this fire suspicious.
Also requesting the Health Dept. to location.

Borough Park +Escaped EDP+

Borough Park +Escaped EDP+ The NYPD of the 66th Pct is calling for a level one mobilization due to an escaped EDP that escaped from Maimonides Hospital 49th Street and Ft. Hamilton Pkwy, repuesting K-9 Units to respond, no description given of the EDP at this time.

U/D: 22:58
Only description right now is, 23-year-old m/w wearing a pink hospital gown.

Monsey - Town To Purchase Emergency Safety Traffic Signal Technology

Monsey - Emergency Medical Services say that they had to take the road less traveled to go to an emergency, and some times we even have to ride the sidewalk, On the often congested and narrow Monsey roads, slow-going is not the ideal method of responding to a fire, said Monsey fire chief.
With the safety of the general public and the town's volunteer emergency service workers in mind, Ramapo plans to make it easier for emergency vehicles to get through dangerous or crowded intersections by installing technology that would allow the drivers to trigger green lights as they go to and from the scene, avoiding any sort of collision when racing to a fire, said Town Supervisor.
The system uses high-energy, infrared technology to grant authorized vehicles momentary right-of-way at traffic lights.
The town plannes to install the equipment first on 12 traffic lights along Route 59 from Suffern to Spring Valley and some intersections along Route 306, before expanding the program throughout the town and to the town's five ambulance companies.

How To Help
If you know of a dangerous intersection in Ramapo that could benefit from the system, call the Town Supervisor's Office at 845-357-5100.

Queens +Midtown Tunnel Closed+

Queens +Midtown Tunnel Closed+ A MVA involving a bus at the eastbound of the Queens Midtown Tunnel outbound, accident with some injuried, numerous PD and EMS responding, all lanes are closed.

Conway NH - High School Coach Suspended For Holocaust Joke

Conway NH - A boys basketball coach has been suspended after students reported him for telling a joke about the Holocaust.

The head boys basketball coach at Kennett High School has been placed on administrative leave for the remainder of the season. He has been coaching for 22 years. He told the joke during halftime at a game two weeks ago The joke makes an offensive reference to Jews who were killed during the Holocaust.

Washington - Man Shot by VP Cheney has Heart Attack

Washington - Man Shot By Vice President Dick Cheney Has 'Minor' Heart Attack Doctors say some of the birdshot that the Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally fired at a fellow hunter over the weekend has lodged in the man's heart, causing a minor heart attack.

Trucks Said To Plague Brooklyn

New York City - Whether in the middle of the night or at midday, trucks come barreling down the city's streets, noisy and overladen, spewing noxious clouds. It happens everywhere, but especially in downtown Brooklyn, traffic relief advocates say. "Everywhere I go in the city, everybody agrees that there are too many," the New York City coordinator for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, said about the number of trucks on city streets.

So city council members, community boards, and neighborhood associations, are taking the city's Department of Transportation to task on its progress in dealing with the city's truck traffic.

The council's Transportation Committee, headed by Council Member John Liu, is conducting a hearing to determine the department's progress in dealing with the problem. He said the department's promise to make an impact on truck traffic is long overdue. The department had said it would have results by the end of 2005, he said.

Manhattan +Harlem Bridge Stuck In The Up Position+

Manhattan +Harlem Bridge Stuck In The Up Position+ NYC Transit, Subways #1 service suspended between 168th and 242nd Street's due to the Harlem Bridge being stuck in the up position.

New York City - Homicide Up By 20% This Year

New York City - Homicide ratse so far in 2006 are at a 20% increase. There have been 63 homicides in the city so far this year, an increase from the same point last year, when there were 53.

But the Police Department says the numbers are not a cause for concern.
"The increase is in the context of an all-time record low for last January for all crime," the chief spokesman for the Police Department, Paul Browne, said. "Even so, we recorded one less homicide this January compared to January last year." There were 44 homicides in January, versus 45 last year.

Moscow - Trial Of Perp Who Attacked Synagogue To Begin

Moscow - The Moscow City Court on Tuesday will begin the trial of the 20-year-old Muscovite Alexander Koptsev who on January 11 stabbed with a knife nine people in the synagogue in Bolshaya Bronnaya Street.

Head of the court's press service said that the beginning of the trial on the merits would be held behind closed doors. The court at its meeting will also decide if the trial will be held by jury or without jury.

NY - Chasidic Jewish Low-Fare Bus Company Serving Midtown

New York City - A few years ago, Sol Wollner, 50, and Mrs. Ungar, 50, both chasidic Jews, opened a low-fare bus company serving Midtown Manhattant.
Each day for six months, Mr. Wollner, who in the beginning worked with Mrs. Ungar and is now the manager of a competing line, said he would leave his home in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and spend a few hours in Chinatown, "We were watching the Chinatown buses to see what they were doing there, the service they were giving," Mr. Wollner said. At 5 a.m. some days, to late into the evening others, he would chart when buses were leaving full. "I saw what was needed in order to get into this business. Just to jump in, and be another competition, I was not going to do that."
Mrs. Ungar and Mr. Wollner are now engaged in litigation, but regardless of who is really responsible for bringing low-fare buses to Midtown, their respective businesses, Washington DeLuxe and Vamoose, have both played a part in expanding the market. Other, Chinese-owned, companies appear to be taking notice and are joining them in Midtown, with the newest, P2P Circulator, starting a service between Philadelphia's Chinatown and New York's Penn Station last week.
One downer for frequent travelers of Mrs. Ungar and Mr. Wollners co's is no trips Friday evenings or Saturdays: Both Washington DeLuxe and Vamoose schedule their last trip on Friday evenings before the Shabbas begins.

Manhattan +F.D.R. Traffic Alert+

Manhattan +F.D.R. Traffic Alert+ A disabled charter bus with 2 flat tires stuck in the center lane on the southbound of the F.D.R. Drive and East 15th Street, delays all the way back to the 90th Streets.

U/D: 09:02
F.D.R. southbound is completely closed now, awaiting authorized tow, extensive delays all the way back to the Tribourgh Bridge.

NY - Lawsuit Over Photo Of Orthodox Jew Dismissed

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New York - A judge has dismissed an Orthodox Jew's lawsuit, finding that a photograph taken of him on a street and sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars is art - not commerce - and therefore is protected by the US constitution's protection of free speech.
Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Judith J. Gische ruled that the photo of the 80-year-old Emo Nussenzweig - a head shot showing him with white beard, a black hat and a black coat which was about 3 feet as was reported at that time on VOS IZ NEIAS - is art even though the photographer took it surreptitiously near New York's Times Square in 2001 and then sold 10 prints of it at $20,000 to $30,000 each.

Brooklyn +Officer Assist+ At Kosher Bakery

Brooklyn +Officer Assist+ Sgt of the 61st Pct is requesting ESU and K-9 Units forthwith for a perp male armed with a hammer inside the hallway of 2610 Avenue U at the M&M Kosher Bakery in Brooklyn. Numerous ESU enroute to the scene.

U/D: 06:02
Sgt reporting one perp in custody by Pct units, using the taser gun, no further needed.

Chicago - Uptown Synagogue Sprayed With Swastikas

Chicago - Police were conducting a hate-crime investigation into the spray painting of swastikas and anti-Semitic writings in an uptown neighborhood on the Agudas Achim North Shore Synagogue at 5029 N. Kenmore Avenue.
They found swastikas and several anti-Semitic writings, among them "Mein Kampf," "Kill the Jews" and "White Power," spray-painted on the outside windows.
Detectives said that they had a lead that some of the graffiti matched the "tagging" style of a group of young people that spray-painted around the neighborhood.

U/D: 02/15/06
Chicago Police are investigating the anti-Semitic vandalism at the synagogue.

Brooklyn +Belt Parkway MVA+

Brooklyn +Belt Parkway MVA+ A three car motor vehicle accident on the westbound of the Belt Parkway between exit 14 and 15, Hatzolah on the scene requesting NYPD to respond, Highway Lieutenant reporting accident is in a bad spot.

U/D: 21:08
Hatzolah on the scene canceling any additional units, no serious injuries.

Monsey +Pedestrian Seriously Struck+

Rockland County, Monsey +Pedestrian Seriously Struck+ A motor vehicle accident with a pedestrian an 83-year-old man that was struck and then he flew up and landed on the vehicle's windshield. He is in serious condition on Homestead Lane and East Saddle River, Hatzolah ALS is placing Medevac Helo on a standby.

U/D: 18:49
Hatzolah canceled the Medevac helicopter, and they are transporting the aided to the hospital.

U/D: 02/14/06
Man remained hospitalized today in the Westchester Medical Center, with cuts on his head and a broken thigh bone, but his injuries are not considered life threatening.

"It looks at this point like pedestrian error, He was walking south on Saddle River Road North and, for some unknown reason, he darted across the road into the path of the car coming north." Ramapo Police said.

NYC Airports Posted Worst On-Time Arrivals

Airline passengers headed to New York City were more likely to arrive late than fliers headed to any other city in the USA, according to the year-end figures released by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).
All three New York-area airports - JFK, LaGuardia and Newark - had the worst on-time arrival rates of the 33 largest U.S. airports included in the government's rankings.

Quenns +L.I.E. Overturned Traffic Alert+

Quenns +L.I.E. Overturned Traffic Alert+ On the westbound of the Long Island Expressway and the Cross Island Parkway Ramp, a vehicle overturned all three lanes of the roadway are closed at this time, NYPD Highway Units are on the scene, expect major delays.

Councilman Plans to Challenge Veteran Brooklyn Congressman

Brooklyn - City Councilman Charles Barron of Brooklyn said yesterday that he would challenge United States Representative Edolphus Towns, a 24-year incumbent, in this year's Democratic primary.

Mr. Towns, who is 71, has found himself increasingly facing potential rivals who hope to capitalize on the strong criticism he has faced from labor groups angered by his vote in favor of the Central America Free Trade Agreement.

Oklahoma - Inmates Entitled For Kosher Meals

Oklahoma - A federal judge has ruled that three prisoners are entitled to receive kosher meals from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.

Convicted offenders Dennis Earl Fulbright, Jon Andrew Cottriel and Jerry Harmon sued the state in 2003 because they were being forced to pay for their own kosher meals.

The Judge has made this order permanent.

Queens +Airplane Alert+

Queens +Airplane Alert+ At the J.F.K. Airport in Queens a Turkish Airbus has skidded off the runway, but no reported injuries, PAPD crash crews are enroute.

Arab Co. To Oversee New York Ports

A company in the United Arab Emirates is about to take over major operations at six American ports, including New York and New Jersey.
That leaves a country with ties to the September 11th hijackers with influence over a maritime industry considered vulnerable to terrorism.

U/D: 02/14/06
Senator Schumer yesterday called on the Department of Homeland Security to review a federal committee's decision to allow Dubai Ports World, a company owned by the government of the United Arab Emirates, to oversee six American ports.

U/D: 02/16/06
The White House is also launching its investigation, and could kill the deal.

U/D: 02/26/06
John McCain Sen. From AZ Rips Hillary Clinton and other critics on Ports 'Hysteria'.

And The White House says it will accept an Arab-based company's offer for a broader review of its deal to run terminals at six leading American ports.

NYPD Adds New Cruiser To Its Highway Fleet

Come this summer, you may see a new NYPD car - the Dodge Charger, best known as the Dukes of Hazzard car. The NYPD is adding fifteen 4-door Chargers for its Highway Unit.

Washington - Vice President Cheney Shot A Man

Washington - Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot and injured a man a fellow hunter during a bird hunting trip in Texas.

U/D: 16:14
The injured man Harry Whittington, 78, was "alert and doing fine" and is in stable condition after Cheney sprayed him with shotgun pellets while the two were hunting at the Armstrong Ranch in south Texas, said property owner Katharine Armstrong.

Armstrong said Whittington was mostly injured on his right side, with the pellets hitting his cheek, neck and chest, and was taken to the hospital by ambulance.

U/D: 02/13/06
Cheney was cited for breaking hunting law.

New York - Fed Pulls Gun On Top City Cop

New York - The NYPD highest-ranking black cop had a gun pulled on him by a State Department agent outside The Waldorf-Astoria in midtown Manhattan.

The confrontation lasted several minutes before Douglas Zeigler, a 33-year veteran who is chief of the department's Community Affairs Bureau, was able to convince the agent who he was, at that time the agent holstered his gun. Zeigler was in his car with his wife, Neldra Zeigler, the NYPD's deputy commissioner of equal employment opportunity, when the agent approached the car, Zeigler was dressed in civilian attire but was carrying his gun, and the agent spotted it and drew his own weapon. Zeigler, who colleagues say has a reputation for being calm and low-key, immediately identified himself and showed his NYPD identification card, but the agent insisted he needed to see a badge.

The incident sparked outcry among prominent black cops, as well as others who think highly of Zeigler. The agent who pulled the gun and who was there as part of an escort for visiting Israeli dignitaries, is white.
"A lot of people are upset," one source said. "A lot of bosses and rank-and-file cops." Also does this incident follow what many inside the NYPD had seen as a demotion of Zeigler, who had headed the prestigious Organized Crime Control Bureau for more than two years, and was now named Chief Community Affairs Bureau.

Federal supervisors later personally apologized to Zeigler.

Arkansas - Neighbors Preparing To Take Synagogue Appeal To City Council

Arkansas - Members of the North Sequoyah Neighborhood Association are making their case against allowing a home on Rockwood Trail to be converted into a synagogue roughly two weeks before the Fayetteville City Northwest Arkansas Council considers it.

At its Feb. 21 meeting, the council will hear an appeal of a conditional-use permit planning commissioners granted to convert the home at 1100 Rockwood Trail into a synagogue.

Commissioners granted a conditional use permit with a vote of 6-3 at a Jan. 23 meeting.

A spokeswoman for the neighborhood association, issued a memo to the City Council and a press release outlining the group’s opposition to the permit. The group is primarily concerned that the synagogue would change the make-up of the single-family neighborhood.

NYC - O.E.M. Urges New Yorkers To Be Prepared For Storm/Blizzard Warning

New York City - The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for the New York City area through Sunday afternoon. With low temperatures as low as 25F - high 35F, heavy widespread blowing snowfall blizzard conditions possible 6 to 12 inches, with blustery high winds between 15 and 25 MPH and low visibility in the forecast.
Tonight, mostly cloudy to start then gradually becoming mostly clear with low around 10F, northwest winds between 10 to 15 MPH.
OEM reminds residents to take precautions to stay safe and warm before, during and after the storm.

U/D:
Central Park reporting 22.8 inches of snow on the ground, this ranks this storm in the top 3 for snowfall amount from one storm.

Laguardia and J.F.K. Airports are closed due to the weather and for snow removal until further notice.

Transit Alert: Path Trains, LIRR all services into and out of Penn Station and local services between Forest Hills and Kew Gardens are suspending all lines, expect major delays.

U/D: 16:59
The National Weather Service says a snowfall record has been set for New York City, with 26.9 inches measured in Central Park.

Prominent education attorney best known for championing the educational rights of Kiryas Joel school district dies

George Shebitz, a prominent education attorney and a Nyack resident, known for championing the educational rights of children with disabilities, dies after a long illness. He was 58.

Among Shebitz's best known work was his representation of the Kiryas Joel school district in Orange County in the 1980s and 1990s. The state Legislature created the school district for children with disabilities, but it was challenged by the state school board association over the school district's religious affiliation. The school serves special needs students from the Hasidic and Orthodox Jewish community.

Naked Man Slips Onto United Nations Site

New York City - A naked man ran onto the high-security grounds of the United Nations on while the gate was being opened to allow a car to enter.
The man was running north on First Avenue when he slipped through the open gate near 42nd Street. The man was stopped by U.N. security guards and held until police arrived. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital for psychiatric evaluation.
The man identified himself to police and said he was 32 years old. But because he carried no ID, police could not immediately verify his name.

Rampo - Neighbors Worry About Office Building Plan By Monsey Developer

Rampo - Stacey Kuehn moved from downtown Manhattan to Camp Hill Road nearly four years ago.
It's a relatively pristine area of Ramapo where spacious homes with large yards give the feel of a picturesque suburban life.
As of late, with a proposal to build a multistory office building with a 43-space parking lot a few hundred feet from her home, Kuehn almost feels as if she's living in the city again. "If I wanted to live next to a multistory complex, I wouldn't have moved here," she said. "It doesn't sound good to me."
Developer Isaac S. Scheiner of Monsey is proposing to build on one acre of land near wetlands near Camp Hill Road and Route 202. The proposed site is next to a Route 202 professional center with insurance, dentist and chiropractic offices.
Scheiner, who could not be reached for comment last week, does not have an application before the town, said First Deputy Town Attorney Alan Berman.
It is not unusual for an applicant to go before the state agency before the town's land use boards, Berman said.

Iran Jews Express Holocaust Shock

Iran - The chairman of the Jewish Council has strongly criticised the country's hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for saying the Holocaust was a myth.
In a letter to the president, Haroun Yashayaei said the leader's remarks had shocked the international community and caused fear in Iran's Jewish community.
In his strongly-worded letter, Mr Yashayaei asked the president how he could justify what he termed the crimes of Hitler.
Mr Yashayaei said the Holocaust was a fact of history and not a myth and accused the Iranian president of ignorance and political prejudice.

This is the first time that a senior Iranian Jewish leader has openly criticised President Ahmadinejad for denying the Holocaust.
Iran's small Jewish community of about 30,000 is recognised by the Islamic Republic and there is even a Jewish member of parliament, they normally do not interfere in political issues and often support the country's stance on the Arab-Israeli conflict.

In a gesture of loyalty to the Islamic Republic, Mr Yashayaei told the Iranian president that his comments on the Holocaust were even against the teachings of the leader of the Iranian revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei.

State Senator Klein Introduces Legislation To Protect Houses Of Worship

Responding to a series of incidents of theft and vandalism at area houses to worship, State Senator Jeffrey Klein of Westchester County introduced legislation to increase penalties for vandalism to or theft from a house of worship.
Klein pointed to a number of acts of vandalism against nativity scenes and large menorahs that were on public display last December.
“I think it’s wrong for us to chalk up these acts of vandalism as kids being mischievous or bored,” he said. “These are serious crimes and I think we should have penalties that treat them seriously as well.”
Klein’s legislation would increase the charges for vandalism, theft or desecration at a house of worship from a misdemeanor to a felony, which would carry with it a prison sentence of 1 ¼ to four years.