In Need Of A Better Place For Our Stuff: Getting Stuff Ripped Off From Our Cars

By on April 10, 2013  News
Apr 102013
 
I wouldn't even leave the engine running unattended in this jalopy, much less a car with actual value.

I wouldn’t even leave the engine running unattended in this jalopy, much less a car with actual value.

I’m sensing a theme in today’s police blotter (courtesy of the Brooklyn Paper’s Will Bredderman), and that theme is that our cars don’t make good vaults for our expensive property:

A perp stole an idling car while the driver was ordering from a popular halal cart… the victim said he left the motor running in his Beamer…

A crook busted into two cars in the parking lot of a supermarket… and made off with… [a] Coach bag with $350 inside… [a] pocketbook with $30 and her iPhone taken…

A thief broke into a minivan… and ripped off a pair of fire extinguishers — plus the radio and global positioning system…

It’s almost laughable that we take these pieces of property worth hundreds of dollars, and just leave them unattended on the side of the street. Almost laughable, except for those times we get burned.

I certainly wouldn’t leave $500 in cash lying around like that, but I’ve left my cell phone in a car before (on those rare occasions I can actually bear to be parted from The Precious).

But then, that goes for the car itself – a piece of property worth tens of thousands of dollars left unattended on the side of the street. Which is laughable, until the car itself gets ripped off.

Another Pedestrian Struck By Car Near Intersection Of Two Treacherous Streets

By on April 4, 2013  News
Apr 042013
 
Some Bay Ridge pedestrians (Image by Violette 79 via Flickr).

Some Bay Ridge pedestrians (Image by Violette 79 via Flickr).

A car struck yet another person in Bay Ridge on April 1, this time near the intersection of Fourth Avenue and 86th Street – two thoroughfares that have recently proved treacherous for pedestrians – as elected officials and the general public debate over which measures will best mitigate danger and improve safety on our streets. Continue reading »

Emergency Response Drill At Fort Hamilton Base Simulates Underwater Recovery Of World War I Explosive

By on March 29, 2013  News
Mar 292013
 
(Photo via USAG Fort Hamilton/Facebook.com)

(Photo via USAG Fort Hamilton/Facebook.com)

The United States Army Garrison at Fort Hamilton ran a joint training exercise yesterday (March 28) involving civilian and security personnel.

This picture was posted on their Facebook page today with the following note:

Sgt. Kevin Meccariello with the 24th Civil Support Team performs environmental testing for potential contamination during a joint training exercise with Joint Task Force Empire Shield who provided the security element for the exercise March 28 in Building 210. The scenario simulated a fisherman who accidentally pulled a potentially contaminated and undetonated mortar round from World War I that had been submerged for many years. The scenario also included an active shooter.

That’s an interesting scenario, given the World War II-era explosives that were found under the Verrazano Bridge in 2010 in just 20 feet of water. I wonder how high a probability the garrison puts on such a scenario ever playing out – hopefully, it is one of those things they don’t think will ever happen, but recognize it is possible, and they’re training on it for the sake of maximum preparedness.

Bloomberg Blames Golden For Blocking Speed Camera Budget Proposal

By on March 28, 2013  News
Mar 282013
 
A traffic enforcement camera (Image source: Wikipedia Commons).

A traffic enforcement camera (Image source: Wikipedia Commons).

Mayor Bloomberg labelled state lawmakers as “reckless and negligent” on Wednesday for blocking a budget provision that would bring speed enforcement cameras to the five boroughs. Continue reading »

Dyker Heights Apartment Burglarized As Fire Escape Break-Ins Continue To Plague 6-8

By on March 28, 2013  News
Mar 282013
 
Image source: kthread via Flickr.

Image source: kthread via Flickr.

Jewelry and electronics continue to disappear from area homes, as a series of break-ins plague the 68th Precinct, which covers both Dyker Heights and Bay Ridge.

Please remember folks, if you have a fire escape then you probably want to lock the window(s) closest to it when you go out!

According to Brooklyn Paper’s Will Bredderman, a burglar [or group of burglars] exploited one unlocked fire escape window – taking the opportunity to enter a 14th Avenue apartment on March 19.

The victim claims to have left her flat, which sits between 68th Street and 69th Street, at 8:30 a.m.

When she returned at 2:50 p.m. her door was still locked – but two Nintendo game consoles, a Playstation, an iPad, a MacBook, two gold necklaces, and an engraved silver wedding band were all gone.

Drunk Cop Suspended For Shooting Gun In Air After Early “AM” Bar Fight

By on March 21, 2013  News
Mar 212013
 

In yet another bar fight involving off-duty first responders in Bay Ridge,  two NYPD officers have been suspended without pay after one allegedly pointed his gun at a group of women before firing a shot into the air.

Officer Lester Sanchez of East New York’s 75th Precinct was arrested following the incident, which took place in the early morning hours of Saturday, March 9, at AM Bar [7221 3rd Ave], notes the Daily News. Continue reading »

[UPDATED] Woman Struck By Speeding Car On Third Avenue And 86th Street Unlikely To Survive

By on March 19, 2013  Featured story, News
Mar 192013
 

800px-Do_Not_Cross,_Crime_Scene

[UPDATED] 2:08 p.m. Based on a tweet we received from the author of the original news report, the victim has been deemed unlikely to survive.

In what’s beginning to feel like a case of déjà vu, the combination of speeding and reckless driving has once again caused serious injury to a pedestrian on the streets of Bay Ridge.

A 34-year-old woman was struck by a speeding motorist at the corner of 86th Street and Third Avenue on March 13, writes Will Bredderman for Brooklyn Paper.

The car collided with the woman as she made her way across 86th Street at approximately 7:30 p.m. One witness described hearing a screech followed by a thud in the moments leading up to the gruesome and bloody scene. Continue reading »

Tonight: Community Board 10 General Meeting

By on March 18, 2013  News
Mar 182013
 
An artist's rendering of a typical Community Board meeting in New York City.

An artist’s rendering of a typical Community Board meeting in New York City.

At 7:15pm tonight (March 18), Community Board 10 will hold their monthly general meeting at the Norwegian Christian Home at 1250 67th Street.

From the CB10 web site, the agenda for this evening is as follows:

  • Environmental Committee: Update on planning of Spring Electronics Recycling Event.
  • Police and Public Safety Committee: SLA Applications for Inaka Japanese Fusion Corp. (8318 3rd Avenue), Bay Ridge Hospitality LLC (8901 3rd Avenue), and King Falafel (7406-08 3rd Avenue).
  • ZALUC Subcommittee on Outdoor Cafes: Renewal of Revocable Consent applications for an unenclosed sidewalk cafe at Areo Restaurant Corp (8420 3rd Avenue) for 7 tables and 14 seats, and for an unenclosed sidewalk cafe at Mussels & More LTD (510 80th Street) for 17 tables and 34 seats.
  • Traffic & Transportation Committee: Street naming requests for Firefighter Michael G. Behette (9/11 Memorial Way, 85th Street and 5th Avenue), Detective David F. Campbell Place (Gelston Avenue and 88th Street), John and Dorothy Maguire Way (79th Street and 5th Avenue), and Adelphi Street (Ridge Blvd. between 85th and 86th Streets).

Community Leaders Rally For Return Of Victory Hospital

By on March 14, 2013  Featured story, News
Mar 142013
 
No, that's not a typo - it's merely a reference to Stephen Berger - the head of a state commission that called for Victory Hospital's closure in 2008 (Image source: Michael Fleshman via Flickr.

No, that’s not a typo – It’s merely a reference to Stephen Berger, the head of a state commission that called for Victory Hospital’s closure in 2008. From a rally held last year (Image source: Michael Fleshman via Flickr).

Could the timing finally be right for Victory Memorial to reopen?

Local elected officials and community leaders gathered on March 8, to once again call for the return of ambulance services to the medical center formerly known as Victory Memorial Hospital [699 92nd Street].

Since 2008, after locals waged a two year fight to save the facility from complete closure, the hospital has been limited to an overnight infirmary called SUNY Downstate, notes Will Bredderman for Brooklyn Daily. Read more, including how Stephen Berger screwed Southwest Brooklyn

NYPD Officer Charged With DWI In Bay Ridge

By on March 12, 2013  Featured story, News
Mar 122013
 
Image source: pixabay.com.

Image source: pixabay.com.

An off-duty New York City police officer was arrested this past weekend and charged with driving under the influence on the streets of Bay Ridge, according to CBS 2.

Officer Lester Sanchez, 29, was arrested early Saturday at 4:53 a.m. in the confines of the 68th Precinct, which includes Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights.

Sanchez was reportedly charged with driving while intoxicated, refusing to take a breathalyzer test, and reckless endangerment.

This arrest arrives on the heels of several high profile and heart-breaking fatal crashes – including one involving an on-duty NYPD officer, and as police officials respond to widespread public outcry by announcing a series of sweeping changes to crash investigations.

The New York State Senate has also recently approved legislation, sponsored by retired NYPD officer and State Senator Marty Golden, that would stiffen punishments for drivers who flee the scene of accidents which result in property damage, serious injury, or death.

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