Give Us Back Our Heritage, Harrison, Asks Mt. Hope Church

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WPCNR SUNDAY TIMES. By John F. Bailey. September 15, 2002: The Mt. Hope A.M.E. Zion Church held a rally at Delfino Park Saturday to dramatize the impasse between the church and the Town of Harrison in the church efforts to have Harrison turn over ownership of Stoney Hill Cemetery.



A GRAVEYARD OF LOST HERITAGE: THE 1750 STONEY HILL CEMETERY: The Mt. Hope church, having been put off for six months by the Harrison Town Board in their quest for a deed to the cemetary that is the last resting place for African-American slaves and black Revolutionary and Civil War veterans, staged the rally to build political support for Harrison to deed the property to the church.

Photo by WPNCR


The gathering was supported by the presence of a contingent of political celebrities, including, County Legeslator, Loiz Bronz who emceed the festivities, Legislator William Ryan, and White Plains Councilpersons Rita Malmud, Tom Roach, Benjamin Boykin and Glen Hockley.



RYAN, ROACH, MALMUD, BOYKIN, HOCKLEY and Candidate for the 88th Assembly District, Tony Sayegh, rallied behind the Mt. Hope contingent. Here, County Legislator William Ryan addresses the group of about 40 persons. He said the cemetary “needs to be put into the hands of the people who will care the most for it. The Town of Harrison needs to “recognize the history that went into the ownership. Over a century, it’s very clear the people now caring are the descendents of the rightful owners.” He implied that he would work with the County Legislature to facilitate Harrison deeding the property to the church. Lois Bronz who emceed the meeting, implied she would work to bring about the transfer, saying “isn’t that what being a public official is for?”

Photo by WPCNR


Hal Fitzpatrick, head of the Stoney Hill Cemetery Corporation said the Town of Harrison has been presented with a petition of about 1,000 residents from Harrison and White Plains appealing for the transfer, and that the granting of the deed is supported by six Harrison spiritual leaders. He said the new Harrison Town Board had said six months ago to check back with them in six months, and that they had been waiting for action a year before that.

A flyer handed out at the rally, listing Harrison objections to granting the deed. Harrison, according the Stoney Hill Cemetery Corporation literature, maintains that Mt. Hope abandoned the property, thereby, “relinquising ownership.”

The flyer says Harrison fears Mt. Hope will develop on the property, and that granting the deed to Mt. Hope would “set a precedence for requests from other parties requesting property in the Town.” The Town, it further reports, fears Mt. Hope acquisition of the deed would result in Mt. Hope receiving monies which they fear will be “misused and misappropriated.”

The flyer counters these arguments, saying Mt. Hope “has not been able to afford renovations to the cemetery,” that real estate zoning and designatin as a National Historic site would prevent development, and that their claim is “the legacy of slavery and reparation by the Quakers who gave theproperty to freed slaves.”

The flyer remarks that the Cemetery Corporation would be bonded and the Town of Harrison would be able to inspect financial records on a regular basis, and that the church has neither the inclination nor the funds to relocate the Cemetery.

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FUMMMBOOOOL! New Rochelle Takes Advantage and Wins, 42-7

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WPCNR PRESS BOX. By John F. Bailey. September 14, 2002: New Rochelle turned four White Plains turnovers into touchdowns in the second quarter Saturday afternoon at Parker Stadium to win a League 1-A clash, 42-7.

White Plains played even in the second half, discovering a passer and receiver combination with promise: Mike Devere who connected three times to Evan McGuire, the third time an 18-yard scoring strike for the Tigers only TD in the opening of the second half.



KICKOFF A TURNING POINT? Electing to kick off with a prevailing southwind, White Plains kicks off to the Huguenots. The kick was strong taken on the 15, but Courtney Greene returned it 25 yards to the 45 for great field position for the opening drive. They punched in for the first TD in 7 plays, the score coming on a 22-yard run around left end, down the sideline 4th and 1 play by Jamal Henderson.

Photo by WPCNR


One Long Half.

The Tigers had one really bad half yesterday, and it started with the knowledge that there was no scoreboard. The big orange-lettered scoreboard was not in service. Quarters were timed on the field, and seemed to this reporter interminably long. The first half took an hour and a half to play, 30 plays in the first quarter, most of them runs, with frequent timeouts on the sultry 80 degree afternoon.

Not Without Opportunity.

After the opening New Rochelle scoring drive where New Rochelle’s big, rangy, overpowering line just opened holes at will, the Tigers got a modest drive going from their own 33. On a Sean McLaughlin pass on 2nd and 10 from the Tiger 45, he fired to Darrell Mack over the middle at the Huguenot 43 and a push by the defender gave the Tigers a first down on the spot.

Fumble Virus

Then the first of the fumbles began. Quarterback McLaughlin took the snap and fumbled losing the ball. New Rochelle took over, only to fumble it right back, giving the ball back to the Tigers on the NR 42. On the next play, Spencer Ridenhour fumbled it right back, again first down, New Rochelle. Was it sticky, sweaty hands on a dry, humid day? Who knew?

After White Plains tightened up on defense and stopped NR for 6 plays on a great sack by Evan McGuire on the New Rochelle quarterback, White Plains took over on their 32, and the Palmer throng sensed that the Tigers were in the game.

Four Touchdowns in Second Quarter After Muffed Punt.

With New Rochelle punting with the wind this quarter, Spencer Ridenhour failed to field a high kick, it hit him in the knees, and New Rochelle recovered at the White Plains 15 yard line. They scored on an 11-yard run by Courtney Greene on the second play, 14-0.

The Tigers never recovered, and the execution errors multiplied. An interception of a McLaughlin pass set up New Rochelle after the following kick-off on the Tiger 48 and a 48 yard pass made it 20-0.

Two more touchdowns on an interception and a return of yet another White Plains fumble made it 36-0 at the half. Daymare! It seemed a season of bad football, by both teams (New Rochelle fumbled too) was packed into one quarter.



THE WHITE PLAINS HIGH SCHOOL BAND PERFORMS at halftime, none too soon, under direction of Leslie Tompkins. The 80-member band looked sharp, delivered “We want a touchdown,” (a football song!) and perked up downcast but good-natured, gallows-humored fans.

Photo by WPCNR


Mike Devere took over at quarterback the second half, and hooked up with Evan McGuire and Darrell Mack on a number of sparkeling receptions in the flat. Devere was given more time in the pocket than an often-pressured Sean McLaughlin received in the first half, and New Rochelle was not playing all its first string line. However, lefty Devere spun around and threw sharp flat passes to McGuire and Darrell Mack that moved the football on two drives in the third quarter, handling the ball well under pressure. To be fair, McLaughlin was under a severe pass rush in the first half, and was not given the time to locate his receivers before they could finish their routes. The tall New Rochelle rushers made it difficult to spot the receivers.




PAGEANTRY OF PARKER STADIUM ON SATURDAY: The 42-7 loss, evened the Tigers record at 1-1. They travel to play Ramapo next Saturday at 1:30 PM.
Photo by WPCNR

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Bradley Campaign Does Not Have Counts in “Zero Districts”

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WPCNR SATURDAY MORNING SPECIAL. By John F. Bailey. September 14, 2002: The person who collected District Leaders’ reports on election results from White Plains for the Adam Bradley campaign Tuesday evening, Primary Night, told WPCNR that he was unable to get figures from the District Leader responsible for Districts 9 and 13 in White Plains because the District Leader for unknown reasons was not present when election inspectors reported the results.
The upshot of this is that the Bradley campaign at this point does not have a raw count of votes for Mr. Bradley or Naomi Matusow as of the time the polls closed in Districts 9 & 13. They know 184 Democrats voted in those districts.

Arnold Bernstein, who announced the White Plains totals to the “Bradley Brigaders” assembled at the Gedney Grille Tuesday evening to watch the Primary’s Progress, said there were votes for Assembly in Districts 9 & 13, because that is where he voted Tuesday. The assumption by WPCNR is Mr. Bernstein voted for Mr. Bradley, so the Board of Elections “Final” Canvass Sheets for White Plains should show at least 1 vote for Mr. Bradley, or 1 vote for Ms. Matusow.

Bernstein characterized Districts 9 & 13 as a heavily Democratic district with vote totals for Rita Malmud in previous elections approximating in the 180s. According to Bradley, 184 Democratics voted in Districts 9 & 13 Tuesday based on the sign-in sheets. He also said Friday that in viewing the Canvass Sheet, 174 Democrats voted in the Governor’s primary line, yet none showed up on the Assembly line.

Board of Elections: Can’t Help You Until Monday.

A person answering the phones at the Board of Elections Saturday morning told WPCNR that “no one was available” until Monday to answer any questions about the Canvass Sheets, or to confirm that the final White Plains Canvass Sheets did not show votes for Assembly as Mr. Bradley reported to WPCNR yesterday, after viewing the Canvass Sheets at the Board of Elections Friday afternoon.

White Plains City Clerk Does Not Have Results.

Janice Minieri, City Clerk for White Plains, told WPCNR Saturday morning that election results from Districts 9 and 13 were reported directly to the Board of Elections by Elections Inspectors on the scene Primary Night. She said she had no information as to whether votes for Assembly were recorded on the machine at Ridgeway School (where Districts 9 & 13 vote).

Spectre of a Jam?

The Final Canvass Sheet showing “zero” votes, if the sheets actually show zero votes for assembly, may not necessarily be a Board of Elections recording error in receiving reports from Election Inspectors from Ridgeway School.

There is the possibility of a mechanical failure, causing votes not to be recorded. Such a mechanical failure at vote 39 on a voting machine in George Washington School, threw the Larry Delgado-Glen Hockley race councilperson contest in White Plains into the courts last year.

White Plains Recanvass, North Castle Recanvass Tuesday Will Tell Tale.

Bernstein said the mystery of the missing counts, if the counts are indeed at “0” will be solved Tuesday when the White Plains machines are recanvassed at 12 noon at Ferris Avenue. The North Castle voting machines will be canvassed that day at 1 PM, by a separate Board of Elections team. Harrison will be recanvassed at 9:30 AM and Lewisboro later Tuesday morning at 10:30, Bedford at noon.

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2 White Plains Districts Missing from “Complete” BOE Returns.

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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. By John F. Bailey. September 13, 2002 BREAKING NEWS UPDATED 8:15 PM EDT: As the sensitive recanvassing process began Friday in three of the Naomi Matusow “stronghold towns,” WPCNR has learned that the Board of Elections Canvass sheets provided to the Bradley campaign reported “complete” by the Board of Elections are missing two key White Plains districts on the assembly vote, where reportedly 184 Democratic Voters voted, according to the sign-in sheets viewed by the Bradley campaign.

The recanvassing process which began today and was reported still in process in late afternoon, according to a “Bradley Brigader” was showing what the Bradley campaign expected to find, and that was “good.” He would not elaborate further.

Pound Ridge Report

Another observer on the scene at Pound Ridge, remarked that so far the numbers Mr. Bradley’s observers took and reported from the canvass sheets on the scenes Tuesday night match those found on the voting machines at Mt. Kisco, New Castle and Pound Ridge today.

Where’s My Impoundment Order?

Our WPCNR “reporter,” on the scene at Pound Ridge, reports that Suzanne Beatty, Town Clerk of Pound Ridge still had not received a copy of Judge Orazio Bellantoni’s impoundment order at the time of the recanvass Friday, three days after he signed it Tuesday night.

BOE “Final” Canvass Sheets Bradley Says Show ZERO votes in Districts 9 & 13, for Assembly but 173 voters for Governor’s race.

According to a news tip from a source close to candidate Adam Bradley, the canvass sheets provided to the Bradley camp by the Board of Elections show “0’s” for key White Plains Districts 9 and 13 on the Assembly line.

Mr. Bradley confirmed this at 6:45 PM to WPCNR Friday evening after he had viewed the “Complete” White Plains Canvass Sheets at the Board of Elections Friday. He did not make a copy where he personally made the discovery of the zeros. Bradley commented that the Board of Elections had delayed showing him the Canvass Sheets until Friday.

Votes for Governor/ Not Assembly?

Commenting further, Bradley said it was interesting that the canvass sheets showed 173 persons voted in the Governor Race, yet no votes were recorded in the Assembly race in Districts 9 and 13 on the sheets. He said 184 Democrats had voted, according to sign-in sheets at the Ridgeway School location, and found it strange that those 184 would not have voted in the Assembly race, but 173 voted in the Governor’s Primary Race.

A lot closer than it looks.

He said, this shows the election is “way too close to call,” with Matusow having a 99 vote lead, and, Mr. Bradley’s discovery that the Board of Elections is, according to his information, missing 184 votes. He said he carried White Plains by a 2.7 to 1 margin over Matusow, while Matusow won the five northern communities: Lewisboro, North Castle, Pound Ridge, Bedford , Mount Kisco by 3 to 1.

WPCNR Does the Math:

This information of possibly uncounted votes, would indicate Bradley might pick up 138 votes and Ms. Matusow, 46 if Districts 9 & 13 followed the Bradley trend. Mr. Bradley also pointed out the Absentee Ballots of which there were about 60 had yet to be counted.

Can of Worms

On the other hand, if the machines do actually say “ZERO Votes” for assembly in Districts 9 & 13, there may be a bigger can of worms opened.

Asked whether Mr. Bradley could file a quo warranto proceeding as Lawrence Delgado of White Plains is doing to overturn a BOE mandated Matusow victory in the primary, Bradley said no, the Election Law statute does not allow him that right. However, Bradley did say, the courts could order a new primary.

Heavily populated White Plains Districts Missing?

Voters in District 9 and District 13 voted at the Ridgeway School in White Plains, according to Board of Elections pre-election district locations.

The White Plains voting machines were voluntarily impounded Wednesday by White Plains City Clerk Janice Manieri as a precaution so if there are votes recorded for Assembly on those two machines, they should be picked up in the White Plains recanvass Tuesday, which is looming big with the new information discovered by Bradley today when he went over the BOE White Plains canvass sheet.

Board of Elections “Missteps?”

This report of “zero votes” in two White Plains Districts appears to be a fourth misstep by the Board of Elections which Adam Bradley has criticised for failure to provide him with canvass sheets in a timely fashion.

The recording of “zeros” on the canvass sheets, as yet unconfirmed, would indicate that the 78 districts reported as “complete” on the Assembly Race by the Board of Elections may be missing two heavily populated White Plains districts.

Previous Board of Elections missteps, in reporting the close Bradley-Matusow race, were:

1. Approximately a 15 to 24 hour delay in reporting all districts from 10:15 PM to well after 1 PM Wednesday, when the Board of Elections website reported a 180-vote lead for Ms. Matusow.

2. Failure to notify all eight Town Clerks to impound the voting machines in their districts to impound their machines until about 11:00 AM Thursday morning.

The delay is being blamed on county police not knowing what to do with the impoundment order. But, the county police Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety William Rehm said Thursday when contacted by WPCNR, the police never received the impoundment order Tuesday evening or Wednesday, by implication.

Public Safety Officer says it’s his fault — did not receive impoundment order until Thursday.

Maureen Keating-Tsuchiya, a “Bradley Brigader,” told WPCNR Friday evening that a Captain Marty McGlynn (spelling could not be confirmed) of the County Department of Public Safety said he was responsible for sending out the impoundment order to the Town Clerks. However, Ms. Keating-Tochiya says Captain McGlynn reports that he did not receive the impoundment order from the Board of Elections until Thursday morning, saying, that it was his fault for not sending out the impoundment order.

Timing Still 10-11 hours late.

The timing though of Captain McGlynn’s report of when he received the Impoundment Order (Thursday morning) was already about 10 to 11 hours past the deadline set by Judge Bellantoni of 12 noon, September 11. When WPCNR contacted County Deputy Public Safety Commissioner William Rehm it was early Thursday morning. The Commissioner of Public Safety for Westchester County is Lewis D’Aliso.

Ms. Keating-Tsuchiya said D’Aliso was on vacation. Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety William Rehm told WPCNR Thursday morning, that the Department of Public Safety had not received an impoundment order from the Board of Elections as of the time we spoke to the Deputy Commissioner.

The very strange fact that WPCNR heard Wednesday from one Town Clerk remains: This Clerk told WPCNR that she had expected an impoundment, was surprised when none was received Wednesday and called the Board of Elections to ask if the machines had been ordered impounded. She was told no on Wednesday by a Board of Elections official she did not identify.

Board of Elections Commissioner LaFayette Criticised for not cooperating with Bradley Camp.

Ms. Keating-Tsuchiya raised another, possibly fifth issue: perceived lack of information from the Board of Elections on the recanvass schedule.

Ms. Keating Tsuchiya CO-Chairperson of the New Castle Democrats, criticised Commissioner of the Board of Elections, Reginald LaFayette, of not being forthcoming with the recanvassing schedule, and for changing the schedule when it was issued, and not keeping the Bradley camp imformed.

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Voting Machines Not Impounded until Thursday Noon in the 89th. 11 Hours Late.

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WPCNR EVENING CITY STAR REPORTER. September 13, 2002: The eight Town Clerk Offices in Bedford, Harrison, Lewisboro, Mount Kisco, New Castle, North Castle, Pound Ridge and White Plains reported to WPCNR that they did not receive the impoundment order from the Board of Elections to lock down and guard the 89th Assembly District voting machines until Thursday morning between the hour of approximately 11 AM and 12 noon, just one day before the recanvass begins Friday.
Seven town clerk offices outside White Plains reported to WPCNR Thursday they had received the faxed copy of Adam Bradley’s Impoundment Order signed by Judge Orazio Bellantoni at the Board of Elections offices Tuesday evening, about 23 hours after it was signed and served to the Board of Elections by Mr. Bradley personally.

It was not until 12 noon Thursday that clerks we spoke to proceeded to initiate lockdown procedures for the voting machines. According to Mr. Bradley, he met with Judge Bellantoni at the Board of Elections headquarters in White Plains Tuesday evening at 11:30 P.M. to have the Judge sign a court order impounding the machines.

By 11:30 PM when Mr. Bradley had gone to have the order signed, no election returns had been posted since 10:15 PM by the Board of Elections, and the vote margin was 80 votes. Mr. Bradley knew the race was “too close to call,” and moved, as is standard in close elections to impound the machines.

Bradley told WPNCR at 5 PM Thursday evening that he went from the judge directly to one of the Board of Elections Commissioners, and presented the Court order.

Impoundment process fails to comply with courtset deadline: 11 hours late.

WPCNR’s photograph of the actual court order indicates that the impoundment calls for securing of the voting machines by 12 noon, Wednesday, September 11.

According to the Town Clerk offices and three town clerks who spoke with WPCNR in person, Thursday morning was the first time they had even heard of an impoundment order being issued.

County Police Responsible for Notifying Towns.

According to a City of White Plains source, the Westchester County Public Safety Commissioner (now Lewis D’Aliso) has the responsibility for notifying the town clerks through the local police departments of an impoundment order via teletype.

The Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety, William Rehm, when asked if the impoundment order had been teletyped, said he would check into it, and phoned WPCNR back to say that “We never received any order for an impoundment and so we didn’t send out a teletype.”

Just an Innocent Question.

WPCNR was curious Thursday morning as to how an impoundment proceding was executed so we contacted Janice Manieri, the White Plains City Clerk, to explain the process.

Ms. Manieri told WPCNR Thursday morning that she had not received an impoundment order, but when she read the Journal News Wednesday morning, reading of the impoundment, she ordered the machines impounded as a conscientious measure.

Town Clerk shocked.

One Town Clerk (who volunteered that she supported Naomi Matusow), said she had been expecting an impoundment Wednesday, because, she said, there is almost always an impoundment order issued in a such a close election. She said she called the Board of Elections Wednesday and asked if an impoundment was coming. She was told “No,” but did not tell us the Board of Elections official who said no impoundment order was in effect.

Impoundment Orders Faxed After WPCNR Call.

WPCNR spoke to Ms. Minieri, the White Plains City Clerk at approximately 9:30 Thursday morning. When she told us she had not received the impoundment order, WPCNR contacted the Board of Elections, and said that White Plains had not received the impoundment order. The person we spoke to said, it was faxed. A few minutes later, WPCNR called the Board of Elections back, and was told “we’re checking on it.” By this time it was approximately 10:30 A.M.

Not quite believing the impoundment order had not been served by the Board of Elections, WPCNR polled the clerks offices around the 89th District.

Each office WPCNR talked with said faxed copies of the impoundment order were then received approximately 11 A.M. at the 7 offices we called. The information was willingly and graciously provided by the actual town clerks or personnel in the Town Clerk offices or legal officials in Bedford, Harrison, Lewisboro, Mount Kisco, New Castle, North Castle, Pound Ridge and White Plains WPCNR contacted, even being so courteous as to call WPCNR back.

Voting machines locked up in many cases

Three town clerks we spoke to said the voting machines were locked up any way in storage garages, though not under any special impoundment-level protection. WPCNR did not ask where the machines were before they reached their typical storage locations.

Bradley shocked.

When we talked to Adam Bradley about impoundment impediment, he was shocked that his order had just been sent to Assembly District 89 Town Clerks today. He had not checked on whether the impoundment orders had been served or not, automatically, assuming that the impoundments would be executed in a timely manner as “they have been for the last 15 years,” as he put it.

Bradley said Thursday evening that he had been told by Carolee Sunderland that the impoundment order had been sent to the police Tuesday evening to be served, but that the person was new “and did not know what to do with it.”

A Town Clerk said she did not think it made any sense to impound less than one day before a recanvass was to start.

Commissioner of the Board of Elections, Carolee Sunderland was contacted by WPCNR first thing Thursday morning to talk about the impoundment procedure, before we contacted Ms. Minieri. Sunderland did return the call at 6:15 PM when WPCNR was unable to speak with her.

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Matusow Lead Down to 99 Votes. All Districts In.

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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. By John F. Bailey. September 12, 2002 NEW INFORMATION 11:45 P.M. EDT: In a posting to its website Thursday morning, the Westchester County Board of Elections reported incumbent Assemblywoman Naomi Matusow’s lead after all 78 districts have been counted as being 99 votes, 2,547 votes to 2,448 with 18% of the Absentee Ballots still to be counted, 60 in all, and an undertimined amount of “Affidavitt Ballots.”
This sets the stage for a dramatic recanvass which will begin Friday, according to a spokesperson for Commissioner Reginald LaFayette’s office. The days and times for the recanvass of the eight communities in the 89th Assembly District were reported to WPCNR, Thursday morning, but have since been changed, Harrison being moved to Tuesday.
The unofficial results posted on the Board of Elections Thursday morning:

Office ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 89

PARTY 78 Districts out of 78 Reporting (100)% Votes Percent

82% of Absentee Ballots Counted

DEM BRADLEY, ADAM T 2,448 49%

DEM MATUSOW, NAOMI C 2,547 51%

Office Totals 4,995 100%

TURN-OUT 17%

The Board of Elections Recanvass Caravan

One team of inspectors from the Westchester County Board of Elections will begin the sensitive recanvassing of the Primary Vote beginning Friday, in the north end of the 89th, staggering the visits. The team will begin in Pound Ridge approximately 11:30 A.M., then on to Mount Kisco at 12:30 P.M. and wrap up with New Castle at 2:30 P.M.

The locations of the voting machines where the recanvasses will be conducted by a single team Friday, according to Maureen Keating-Tsuchiya, of the Bradley campaign, who is assigning her watchers are as follows:
Friday 11:30 Pound Ridge–Highway Garage, Stonehill Road, Rt. 137

12:30 Mt. Kisco–Whalen Moving & Storage
39 Kiscona Avenue, Mt. Kisco

2:30 New Castle–200 So.Greeley Avenue, Chappaqua

For Tuesday, the format has changed with two Board of Elections teams splitting North District locations and White Plains and Harrison to the South.

On Tuesday, (not Monday as previously written in error), the North BOE team begins counting with Lewisboro at 10:30 A.M., hits Bedford at 12:30, and completes the canvas planning to arrive North Castle at approximately 1 P.M or later.

The South Team Tuesday begins with Harrison at 9:30 A.M. and moves on to White Plains at 12 noon. The Tuesday locations:

North Watch

Tuesday Team #1 10:30 Lewisboro: Meadow Pond School Warehouse, Deepwell Farm Road, Lewisboro

12:30 Bedford Whalen Moving & Storage 39 Kiscona Avenue, Mt.Kisco.

1:00 North Castle Recreation Center, Whippowill Road, Armonk.

South Watch

Team #2 9:30 Harrison, Town Garage Gleason Place off Harrison Avenue

Noon–White Plains 20 Ferris Ave (firehouse)
lower level

Bradley Estimate of Total Vote Very Close. But Wrong Horse.

The estimates received from the Adam Bradley “Election Analysts” Tuesday evening said the projected winner, according to their election night runners, and expected absentee and affidavitt ballots, would receiver 2,500 to 2,600 votes and the loser 2,400 votes. That estimate is in line with the actual vote count so far.

Only their reports from elections sites had Bradley with the winning totals, not Ms. Matusow.

The recanvass will sort out whether the Board of Elections recorded the canvass sheets taken from the backs of the voting machines corrrectly. The Board does not assign their clerks to specific elections so results are not tracked by a specific clerk who is in charge of a particular race.

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White Plains Walks to Remember

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WPCNR MORNING SUN. By John F. Bailey. September 12, 2002: The City gathered approximately 2,000 citizens strong stretching two long city blocks, at twilight Wednesday evening for the City of White Plains Memorial Walk & Ceremony to honor the dead, the heroic, the sufferering of the World Trade Center-Pentagon attacks.



MAYOR DELFINO AND COMPANY lead the community marching down Main Street from City to begin the solemn march, a serious procession that blended pride in country, reflection on sacrifice, and resolve, stirred by The Westchester Firefighters Emerald Society bagpipesmen playing The Marine’s Hymn, and Over There Left to Right, County Legislator William Ryan, Councilpersons Tom Roach, Rita Malmud, Glen Hockley, Robert Greer, Benjamin Boykin, Mayor Delfino, Lois Bronz, County Legislator, and Councilman William King. They were on the march to the Public Safety Building. More Photos Follow.

Photo by WPCNR




FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS OF ALL RACES AND CREEDS AND RELIGIOUS PERSUASIONS marched down Main Street, turned left at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, down Martine Avenue facing the golden sunset and a strong Northwest wind. It was the second annual “Memorial Walk,” an event created by the City Administration, last year within a week after the 9/11 horror.

Photo by WPCNR



THE CITY’S PEOPLE FILLED LEXINGTON AVENUE FOR ABOUT ONE BLOCK for the memorial ceremony.

Photo by WPCNR



DIGNATARIES AND THE CITY FATHERS ADDRESSED THE CITIZENS WHO CAME TO REMEMBER 9/11 from the steps of the Public Safety Building. That is the Common Council seated on the steps. The 20-knot winds gusting across the city, whipping the crowd symbolized that the struggle for rights, and freedom and happiness is not a walk in the park, and the silent statues reminded this reporter of the persons who sacrifice to protect, preserve and keep you and me out of harm’s way.

Photo by WPCNR

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Matusow Surges Ahead with One District To Go Before Recanvass

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WPCNR EVENING CITY STAR REPORTER. By John F. Bailey. September 11, 2002:The Board of Elections this evening posted their first update of the “too close to call” 89th Assembly District in almost 24 hours.



INCUMBENT PICKS UP MOMENTUM ON LATEST BOARD OF ELECTIONS REPORTS
Photo by WPCNR


Incumbent Naomi Matusow with one district out, not identified, has a 159-vote lead over her challenger Adam Bradley, 2,525 votes to 2,366. The unofficial figures from the Board of Elections website as of 10 PM EDT follow:
Office ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 89

PARTY 77 Districts out of 78 Reporting (98)% Votes Percent
82% of Absentee Ballots Counted

DEM BRADLEY, ADAM T 2,366 48%

DEM MATUSOW, NAOMI C 2,525 52%

Office Totals 4,891 100%

TURN-OUT 17%

The Bradley camp reacting to the numbers disagrees with the unofficial Board of Elections count, pending recanvas, based on their tallies at the machines on site. Jonathan Appel, Bradley campaign manager, points to confused reports coming from the Board of Elections, as evidence for optimism on the part of his candidate. Appel said the Board of Elections has told the Bradley team they were missing three White Plains districts, then that only one was missing.

Appel, who handles the numbers for Adam Bradley, says the absentee ballots have yet to be opened and counted, of which there are, he understands, about 40 from White Plains alone. Appel, who said his candidate’s unofficial numbers last night from the election machine sites, showed Bradley winning by as much as 200 to 300 votes when all was said and done, was still confident and awaited the recanvass.

LaFayette: Recanvass May Begin Friday.

Reginald LaFayette, Co-Chair of the Board of Elections, told WPCNR Thursday afternoon that he thought canvassing would begin on Friday.

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White Plains Remembers the Towers

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WPCNR AFTERNOON TRIB & POST. By John F. Bailey. September 11, 2002: White Plains paused to pay tribute to the lives lost in the World Trade Center attacks of 2001 Wednesday morning with ceremonies at the Michaelian Office Building and at White Plains High School.


STUDENTS OF WHITE PLAINS HIGH SCHOOL CREATE UNIQUE TRIBUTE: Under a somber cloudy sky, freshened by a clearing wind, the mournful bagpipe of Kevin Daugherty accompanied the lowering of The Stars and Stripes to half-mast, moving many of the students who had gathered at the White Plains High School courtyard to tears as the evocative pipes stirred emotions deep inside. A lone bagpiper marched up the path to the high school entrance followed by the White Plains Police Color Guard, who raised the flag while David Nightingale sang The Star Spangled Banner. The Guard raised the flag, lowered it to half-mast and slowly marched out. The simple, moving ceremony was created by the General Organization with several teachers and administration. It was so right. The temporary flag pole was donated by a teacher’s mother and stood up proudly in the stiff wind.
Photo by WPCNR


CEREMONY OF THE FOUR-FIVES was the most moving segment of the Westchester County Community Gathering of Remembrance and Hope at the Michaelian Office Building at 8:30 AM. The bells were struck in remembrance of the perished of 9/11, by representatives of Westchester County Fire, Police and EMS departments in honor of those who have “returned to quarters.” The county reports over 1,200 persons gathered on Martine Avenue for the remembrance.
Photo by WPCNR




“WHEN YOUR EYES ARE FILLED WITH TEARS, YOUR HEART IS FULL,” County Executive Andy Spano remarked in his brief address at the County ceremony. Spano said the county is planning a memorial to those lost on September 11. Spano ended his address by saying the best way to remember the persons who died in the attacks was for us the living to “do the right thing.”

Photo by WPCNR



COUNTY POLICE OFFICERS LOOK ON AT THE COUNTY REMEMBRANCE: A moment of silence was observed at 8:46 AM, to observe the moment the attacks began. As the silence played out, gusts of a strong West wind sweeped across the crowd. Shevon Jacobs performed an original song, “The Call.” Juliet Brisman, widow of Mark A. Brisman read a poem “Days” by Billy Collins, the U.S. Poet Laureate. Rachel Smith, a witness to the events of September 11 spoke of the long anguish she had felt through the last year and the time to move on. The Westchester Chordsmen finished the event with a unique arrangement of God Bless America which brought tears to those around this reporter.

Photo by WPCNR




LONE BAGPIPER, KEVIN DAUGHERTY LEADS POLICE HONOR GUARD up the path to the entrance to White Plains High School to begin the students’ tribute.
Photo by WPCNR



THE NEXT GENERATION of leaders looks on at the WPHS ceremony. Many students and teachers could be seen tearing, remembering in their own way, with a mission on their faces as the music of the pipes evoked the loss and the legacy of the lost uniquely for each observer.

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Impounded! Machines to be Recanvassed in the 89th.

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WPCNR MILKMAN’S MATINEE NEWS DELIVERY. September 11, 2002 UPDATED NEW PHOTO & BOARD OF ELECTIONS NUMBERS AS OF 1:10 PM EDT: Adam Bradley filed a court order at approximately 11:30 PM to midnight Tuesday evening, impounding the voting machines in the eight towns in the 89th Assembly District, saying the race was “too close to call.”

The Board of Elections website as of 1:10 PM Wednesday afternoon was still reporting only 85% of election districts accounted for in their unofficially posted results which show Ms. Matusow leading Mr. Bradley by 86 votes. This margin has remained the same on the Board of Elections website without being updated since 10:15 PM Tuesday evening.



HERE WE GO AGAIN: The impoundment order filed by Adam Bradley near midnight last night which calls for rounding up the approximately 50 to 60 voting machines in the 78 Election Districts making up the 89th Assembly District, pending a recanvass to determine the winner in Bradley’s primary challenge of Naomi Matusow. Bradley said he spoke with Matusow approximately 12:45 AM and she “agreed it was too close to call,” according to Bradley and that she had 11 districts she did not have numbers for, but did not disclose her numbers to him. Asked if she had commented that he had run a good race, Bradley said, she did not.

Photo by WPCNR

The numbers as reported on the Board of Elections website as of 1:10 PM:

Office ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 89

PARTY 67 Districts out of 78 Reporting (85)% Votes Percent

73% of Absentee Ballots Counted

DEM BRADLEY, ADAM T 2,131 49%

DEM MATUSOW, NAOMI C 2,217 51%

Office Totals 4,348 100%

TURN-OUT 15%

Bradley’s campaign manager, Jonathan Appel, was confident that according to the Bradley camp’s unofficial reports from the machines on site around the district that Mr. Bradley was maintaining a winning margin over Naomi Matusow of approximately 200 votes based on the White Plains numbers they had in their possession.



PRIMARY ANALYSTS: Jonathan Appel, left, and B. J. Markus, right, monitored Board of Election Returns, and compared them with their unofficial reports from the 78 Election Districts across the 89th.
Photo by WPCNR


Appel said conservatively he felt Bradley had a 120 to 150-vote margin, even though as of 1:30 AM, two districts from Lewisboro, two districts in Bedford and one from Mount Kisco, and one from White Plains had not reported in to him yet. Appel said he did not expect the Bedford and Lewisboro numbers to impact the Bradley lead because the Andrew Cuomo “pull-out” had held down the Bedford count, in his opinion.



BRADLEY BRIGADES CAMPAIGNED STRONGLY UP UNTIL 9 PM,POLLS DEADLINE:Jane Silverman and Maureen Keating Tsuchiya, volunteers for Adam Bradley’s 89th Assembly campaign, chatted with President Bill Clinton Tuesday evening at the Chappaqua Train Station. President Clinton was waiting for his daughter Chelsea to arrive from Grand Central Station. Silverman and Tsuchiya were making their final appeal to commuters to vote for Bradley, Markus & Schlaff before the polls closed.
Photo From Maureen Keating Tsuchiya


In an eerie replay of the Larry Delgado-Glen Hockley election count scenario of November of last year, The Board of Elections posted no results after 10:15 PM, when they showed with 85% of the districts counted that Matusow lead by a 51% to 49% margin. Both camps only had their own numbers to rely on.

White Plains Puts Bradley in Driver’s Seat

In early returns, Ms. Matusow was doing better leading Bradley at one time by 52% to 48% at 10 PM with 47 Districts In. Five minutes later, the gap had narrowed to 49%-51%, Matusow with half the districts in. Appel was optimistic because the bulk of White Plains returns had not come in yet.



HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Arnold Bernstein, (center), Adam Bradley’s Co-Chair announced the Bradley team’s unofficial White Plains results that as of this writing appear, according the Bradley number-crunchers, to have Mr. Bradley leading the race, pending the recanvass.
Photo by WPCNR


Optimism increased in the lively room when Bradley and Matusow were tied with 50% of the vote each with 63% of the districts reporting. It was the next-to-the-last Board of Elections results for the evening by our count.

Then Arnold Bernstein rode to the rescue at 10:20 PM. Bradley’s Co-Chairman of his campaign had figures from White Plains, with 66 of 78 districts reporting, his personal reports from the White Plains E.D.’s showed Bradley running ahead of Matusow 1,071 to 399, or 3 to 1.



INTO THE NIGHT: Assemblyman-Maybe Adam Bradley leaving the Gedney Grille at 1:30 AM this morning, looking forward to the recanvass of the vote and a new political future.
Photo by WPCNR

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