Janet Difiore - #1.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

In Our Opinion...

DA DiFiore Is Playing Stud Poker With The Public

Weekend before last, Cablevision News12’s Brian Conybeare appeared in the usual weekend timeslots of the Newsmakers program with a special presentation specifically, and exclusively, pertaining to the federal lawsuit filed by Civil Rights Attorney Jonathan Lovett on behalf of his client, Stanley Ridley, father of the late Mount Vernon Police
Officer Christopher Ridley.

Interestingly, News12 went so far as to tell its viewers that Attorney Lovett had brought some 29 lawsuits against the County over a nine-year period, about three per year, as if he didn’t have the legal right to stand up for his clients against the offenses of County government.

Conybeare was showing a videotape that purportedly had been supplied by the Westchester County Police, but which had clearly been pieced together, quite possibly by Conybeare, from the production of either three or four of the nine surveillance cameras mounted on the north, south, and east sides of the County Office Building at 148 Martine Avenue in White Plains; an obvious and desperate attempt by District Attorney Janet DiFiore, with News 12’s assistance, to deflect some of the heat she was feeling for not releasing “the tapes.”

The simple truth is that the DA has released small segments of tape from only three or four surveillance cameras, and not the raw, full footage recorded by them and five or six other cameras mounted on the west side of Court Street as the incident was occurring from the
moment the mugging began, and Officer Ridley got out of his car, to the time he lay dead on the sidewalk immediately in front of 85 Court Street.

Those images, and the images from the cameras from which we are shown only selected pieces, the images the DA does not want seen, are the cards she continues to hold in her hand, turned face-down.

After all, we were told early on that there were some six cameras that must have recorded the incident, cameras mounted on the County Office Building. Each of those cameras obviously recorded every aspect of the incident, from start to finish, that was within its range of surveillance, each from a different angle.

For example, why is it that we are shown Officer Ridley emerging from his car only from images taken by the camera mounted on the northwest corner of the County Office Building?

Why not show us images from the camera mounted on the northeast corner of the building, a camera much closer to the car, a camera, in fact, facing the car head-on, and more likely to show what Officer Ridley removed from his car when he hesitated in order to retrieve something.

That camera was directly above the mugging of the elderly civilian by Anthony Jacobs which we only get to view from images from the northwest corner-mounted camera, and the camera mounted low on the Court Street-east face of the County Office Building.

We must immediately demand to see all of the videotaped images shot from each and every one of the cameras, those nine mounted on the County Office Building at 148 Martine Avenue, in addition to any private surveillance cameras mounted at, or near, Mulino’s Restaurant, or any other business or residential locations such as Macy’s, and/or other establishments at or near the intersection of Martine Avenue and Court Street, as well as south and north on Court Street, and east and west on Martine.

Most importantly, we must view unedited, unredacted full footage from each camera if we are to learn what actually occurred.

Our Readers Respond...

Not Only At Donut Shops

Dear Editor:

Hi. I live in Yonkers, and have read your articles when I can. I go tanning at Beach Bum Tanning on Central Avenue in Yonkers. I go on
Sundays around 9pm at night and, for at least the past four weeks, there have been two to four police cars parked in the parking lot.

Not only are they parked there but they are tanning while in uniform and doing so for free.

I find it hard to believe that they have so much free time.

Thank you for your time.

A Burned-Up Taxpayer

Keep The Faith

Dear Editor:

I try to pray often because this world is corrupted. I will try to keep you and your staffers in my prayers.

Don’t get discouraged; do your very best.

J.D., Bronx

People Of Mt. Vernon Must Know

Dear Editor:

The People of Mount Vernon must know what is happening in our City, enough is enough.

Let’s start with city cars; we are paying for gas, wear and tear, and insurance on cars for people who take these cars home every day outside of Mount Vernon. Every police captain takes a City car home; all but one does not live in our City. The police commissioner lives in White Plains, chief of staff lives in White Plains, planning commissioner lives in Yonkers, add that to our tax bill.

The Department of Public Works commissioner is another winner in Junior’s administration.

He can be found at his private office on 3rd Street at least three times a day, every day. We would like to know who is signing off on all of QFI’s projects (Mr. Horton’s private company); oh, yeah, his brother Steve must be seeing to all that.

Steve sits on our City Council, and I understand he is a part-owner of QFI, because we all know Terrance cannot figure out what day of the week it is without his brother.

No one is watching our City; it is time that all Mount Vernon citizens wake up. We must hold Junior (Mayor Young) accountable for our hard-earned money; we are all hurting, taxes are out of control. We need help!!!

Young’s god-daughter is a 26-year-old trying to run programs for seniors; what does she know about being old, she has no idea.

The City Tax Assessor is scary; this man walks around town like he is untouchable. How does he sit on the board at Mount Vernon Hospital
and access their taxes without a conflict? Who sets his tax rate on his house, we wonder. On any given day you can find Mr. DeBellis’
car parked in Bronxville, he is the part-time tax assessor in Bronxville, yet he takes a Mount Vernon car there.

This man not only drives a City car but he drives a foreign car when everyone in America, including our President, is trying to buy American, again with total disregard of OUR money.

We need help!!! Who is watching our money, taxes...?

Al Passino, Mount Vernon