WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER 3,374,995 VISITS IN ONE YEAR—65,000 VISITS A WEEK BY 985,281 VISITORS

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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL By John Bailey July 24, 2006: Carl Albanese shared with WPCNR readers earlier today his views he sent to the Common Council on the ordinance the Council will consider to license air powered rifles and pistols in the city, which are sold in Wal-Mart, and The Sports Authority (where teens where eagerly examining them last week when WPCNR was browsing that store.)

Albanese points out in the following letter and photograph these instruments which would require licensing by the city of White Plains and a background check.

WPCNR checked with the Mayor’s Office, which through its spokesperson David Maloney, denied this had anything to do with any air pistol incident involving the Mayor’s car, but Maloney did not know if another public official had suffered an incident involving their vehicle being damaged by an air pistol being used to shoot out the windows, as rumored. WPCNR asked Mr. Maloney for a statement as to the reasons for the air pistol, air gun licensing law today, and as night fell Monday evening, the Mayor’s office has not issued an explanation for why suddenly the city is getting into the gun control legislation business. Asked if there had been a number of air pistol robberies or incidents, city hall did not comment.

City Hall Seeks to License Ownership of these Air Pistols and Air Rifles, including the 70 year old classic, the Red Ryder BB Gun. Photo, Courtesy Carl Albanese.

Mr. Albanese, a certified firearms instructor,  elaborates on the photograh he has sent showing guns to be “licensed” by the new city air gun registration procedure:

“This a photo of air guns, spring, air and gas firing instruments purchased at Walmart in White Plains today, some are my own for training purposes for children and adults, on gun safety and ownership.

These are a small variety and percentage of toy guns and air guns that will fall under the licensing code, including paintball guns.

The NYS penal code for air guns is Law # 265.05 it states: No one under the age of 16 years old can buy an air gun or air rifle in NYS. It does not mean that one cannot possess or use one, or requires  a license to do so in NYS.

Any person under 16 years old is permitted to use and own one under adult supervision.”

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Nicoletti said he personally toured city shortly after the storm hit and determined the extent of the damage.  He reports that he was able to mobilize 5 City crews prepared to clear trees blocking city streets compared to 2 Con Ed Line Crews the first two days and occasionally a third line crewthe first two days of the storm. Had Con Ed responded with more line crews the city streets could have been opened sooner with the implication power could have been back on faster with more crews. Nicoletti estimated there were between 500 and 600 trees downed.

“We mounted two shifts a day, immediately, 70 on the day shift and about half that on the night shift, and we continued to work Saturday and Sunday, working around rain storms, working 10 hours each day. You can’t get blood out of a stone. This is a marathon not a sprint. (On Wednesday and Thursday) We’re working at the pace of Con Ed too, as fast as they could disconnect the lines, we’re hard on their heels to take the trees away,” Nicoletti described the last five days of DPW activity with Con Edison.

Would you say the DPW had more crews to remove the trees than Con Ed had crews to turn off the power, WPCNR asked the Commissioner, “Oh, by far,” the Commissioner responded, “Con Ed had one or two or sometimes three line crews on its part (for the entire city). The minimum number of crews we had out was four to five. I  know we were always manning 4 to 5 with aerial crews, ground crews. Each crew had a loader, dump trucks, chain saws. When Con Ed told us the electricity was off, we would remove the trees and chop them up, and move them over to the side of the road, because we had multiple road closings. hen we would go on to the next one.”

WPCNR was informed that more crews were brought by Con Edison on Friday and Saturday. Exact numbers of line crews from Con Edison at any given time in White Plains were not made available to WPCNR by Con Edison Media Relations at any time.

WPCNR asked how he assessed the state of the city at the present time:

“The roads are cleared. That’s our top priority that the roads are not blocked.”

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WPCNR. Mr. & Mrs. & Ms. White Plains Voice. July 24, 2006: WPCNR was in error in including an addition to a reader’s review of Wal-Mart, in a case of mistaken identity,  and apologizes for the mistake. As the reader points out:

Concerning my Wal-Mart review, which you yourself revised with your own words, you now state that I, the author of the letter, made that positive addendum to my post myself.

This is a lie and you have tried to wrongly discredit me and my associate. You are blatantly trying to cover up your wrongdoing.

Please print this letter as a retraction. If you do not and allow this lie to perpetuate, perhaps I can ensure your readers find out by other means.

Lois T

THE WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER NOTES: I apologize, Lois T, in mistaking a separate mailing for yours as an addendum to your original comment. Thank you for pointing this out. And I have removed the comments.

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WPCNR WEATHER SCOOP. July 23, 2006: As glorious sunshine and blue skies and fluffy whites returned to the metropolitan area Sunday afternoon, so did electricity. As of 10:30 P.M., a spokes for media relations of Con Edision reports all of Westchester County has been restored, after 4-1/2 days of sawing, chopping, lifting, splicing and dicing, Con Edision as turned Westchester County back on.

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WPCNR’S ADAM IN ALBANY. By NYS Assemblyman Adam T. Bradley. July 22, 2006:  The 2006 legislative session was a success because of several agreements to toughen New York’s crime laws.  I sponsored and supported bipartisan legislation to expand the state’s DNA database, improve the sex offender registry and increase penalties for DWI.

Expanding the DNA Database

New York’s criminal DNA database will roughly triple in size under a new agreement between the Assembly and Senate.  In a bipartisan fashion, we worked together to increase the DNA database to encompass people convicted of felonies and 18 key misdemeanors, including petit larceny (A. 11951A). Modern science has equipped us with powerful tools and today’s DNA technology has revolutionized criminal investigations.  The Legislature’s agreement will allow law enforcement to take criminals off our streets and protect our citizenry.

Protecting our families from Sex Offenders

I sponsored an important new law to enhance Megan’s Law.  This enhancement adds Level 2, moderate-risk sex-offenders to the state’s on-line sex offender registry. In addition, it authorizes local police authorities to provide information concerning low-risk Level 1 offenders to entities with vulnerable populations (Ch. 106 of 2006).

The Assembly and Senate have passed legislation that I sponsored to crack down on the most dangerous sexual predators (A.8939A).  The measure will create the crime of predatory sexual assault, elevating penalties for Class B violent felony sex crimes to a maximum of life in prison if the perpetrator acts especially violent, is a repeat offender, or attacks a child under 13.  I urge the governor to promptly sign this legislation into law.

The Legislature also passed a bill increasing the penalties for incest (A.9305B). This bill assures that a person who commits a violent sexual assault against a youthful family member faces charges that are at least as severe as the charges brought against a person who commits such a crime against a non-family member. 

Toughening DWI Penalties

Bipartisan agreements were reached on the strictest DWI legislation in decades:

·        Increasing penalties for repeat drunk drivers who subsequently kill or seriously injure others (A.10619B)

·        Enacting comprehensive reforms to the state’s approach to alcohol and other drug related traffic offenses (A.11963).

By enacting these laws, New York is sending a message that we will not tolerate crime.   I look forward to returning to Albany to continue working in a bipartisan fashion to help keep criminals off our streets and protect our families.