THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR | 2,905,611 VISITORS VISIT 8,324,077 TIMES 3 TIMES EVERY DAY IN ONE YEAR. HIGHEST ACTIVITY IN WPCNR HISTORY.White PlainsCitizeNetReporter lifted its worldwide visits from unique visitors to wpcnr.com to 8,324,077,a 1,306,419 increase in visits in one year from 7,017,658 visits to the site last year which covers White Plains and Westchester County. The 8,324,077 visits were made by 2,005,611 unique visitors who visited wpcnr an average of 3 visits a day. ON JULY 20- -2026 visitors have accessed wpcnr and made 3,072 visits an average of 1.6 visits. In the last week 33,495 individual vistors made 54,458 visits, averaging 1.6 visits. In the last month, 152,940 visitors recorded 229,338 visits (1.5 visits)

ELMSFORD MAN CONVICTED OF MURDER AND ATTEMPTED MURDER

Posted on February 11, 2017 by John Bailey

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. From the Office of the Westchester District Attorney. February 11, 2017:

Westchester County District Attorney Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr. announced that Dontae Degree (DOB 09/26/1986) of 57 Town Green Drive, Elmsford New York, was found guilty today after a jury trial before Judge Barbara Zambelli of:

one count of Murder in the Second Degree, a class “A” Felony,
one count of Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, a class “B” Felony,
one count of Assault in the First Degree, a class “B” Felony and
one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony.

On August 25, 2015 at approximately 1:35 p.m., several gunshots rang out in front of 127 Morningside Avenue in Yonkers. A Yonkers Police Officer who was nearby raced to the location and discovered two men who had been shot sitting in the front seats of a Hyundai Sonata.

Degree crept up behind the car occupied by his victims and fired multiple shots at them.

Kenneth Hill who was sitting in the front passenger seat was killed. Roylin Fairclough was seriously injured but survived.

Hill was shot in the head, neck and spinal cord. Fairclough was shot in the head, right shoulder and back. He was taken to Jacobi Medical Center where he underwent surgery.

Yonkers Police commenced an investigation. The defendant was arrested on October 19,2015 and was remanded.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 30, 2017.

He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.

Deputy District Attorney Timothy Ward and Assistant District Attorney James Bavero of the Superior Court Trial Division are prosecuting the case.

County Executive Robert Astorino’s Speech to Muslim Gathering

Posted on February 11, 2017 by John Bailey

County Executive Astorino addresses Muslim community group at the Andalusia School in Yonkers Friday. Photo courtesy, Westchester County Department of Communications

WPCNR FOR THE RECORD. REMARKS BY WESTCHESTER COUNTY EXECUTIVE ROBERT ASTORINO TO A MUSLIM COMMUNITY GROUP IN YONKERS FRIDAY. FEBRUARY 11, 2017:
As-Salamu Alaikum.
Thank you for inviting me here today and affording me the honor and privilege to speak to you. I’ve been coming to the great Andalusia school for many years, and I’ve always been welcomed so warmly by my dear friends here.
My father always taught me that you can tell who your real friends are – not when the sun is shining – but when the storm clouds gather.
During times of trial and tribulation… those standing beside you, and not running for the hills… those are your true friends.
Or as the Muslim-American scholar Yasir Qadhi said, “What hurts is not the criticism of our enemies but rather the silence of our friends.”
During a time of great change in our country, when uncertainty, confusion, and anxiety are running high in the Muslim community over the Executive Order on entry into the United States, I wanted to be sure you know I am not silent.
I stand here besides you today and every day… to reaffirm our special friendship.
To let you know, as the county’s top elected official, that not only are you welcome here, but that the contributions of our Muslim-American community are ESSENTIAL here.
As the Westchester County Executive, I am so proud of our great diversity – racial, religious, political… The contributions of our Muslim brothers and sisters benefit our county greatly.
You are lawyers and doctors, teachers and business owners, bus drivers and service workers, mothers and fathers.
You work hard, raise families, play by the rules and deserve respect. You are the American dream.
Please know… and make no mistake about it… I would never support a religious test on who comes into our country… America… a country settled by Pilgrims and Puritans fleeing religious persecution.
Careful screening of all people – YES. Religious test for some, NO.
We all want peace and security. What’s often forgotten is that Muslims across the world are the most frequent victims of terrorist attacks, whether the terrorist is a Muslim or a non-Muslim as was the case in the awful terror attack at the Mosque up in Quebec a couple weeks ago.
That’s why it’s incumbent on us – good people of Faith – to stand together on our shared values, love of peace, and on one of the great founding principles of this wonderful nation – the freedom of religion.
We should all continue to commit to making our community and our country stronger. We do that working together, trusting and respecting one another.
Lastly, I want you all to know as well, that discrimination will not be tolerated in Westchester.
Our Human Rights Commission seeks to promote dignity and respect by advancing justice, equality and education for all peoples in the county.
A few years ago, I was honored to appoint the first Muslim-American to our Human Rights Commission, Sonia Chin. As you may know Sonia, moved to Texas for a job opportunity and I was equally honored to replace her with the second Muslim-American to the HRC – Ghada Salim. You know Ghada as a gifted English teacher here at Andalusia and we are so lucky to have her on the HRC.
If you or someone you know has been discriminated against on the basis of your religion, you can contact Ghada or you can call the HRC at 914-995-7710. Or you can send me an e-mail.
We will not stand for it. I will not stand for it.
Again, thank you for inviting me to your house, thank you for your friendship, and thank you for your confidence in OUR country.

Legislator Boykin Explains County Legislator Position on Gun Show Legislation

Posted on February 11, 2017 by John Bailey

WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From County Legislator Benjamin Boykin. February 11, 2017:

Last month, the Board passed a law prohibiting gun shows on County parklands and facilities. This law was vetoed by the County Executive and a gun show took place at the County Center on January 21^st and 22^nd.

During this show, dozens of pieces of confederate, misogynistic, and pro-Nazi items were found to be for sale.

Due to the proliferation of guns and hateful materials in our community, I am in support of overriding the County Executives veto.

In addition to the bill prohibiting gun shows on County property, another bill regulating gun show operators which was originally introduced by the Republican caucus is also up for discussion. After hundreds of comments from both the public and from County officials, our colleagues in leadership and across the aisle decided to join the Democrats call to send this bill back to committee for much needed work.

Democrats on the Board have discussed the inclusion of various safety measures like overnight security protection for private shows and greater communication with local municipal law enforcement when private shows do take place. Discussion on this bill will take place sometime in the near future.

SEIU Union Head Condemns Immigrant Raids

Posted on February 11, 2017 by John Bailey

The following statement may be attributed to Hector Figueroa, President of SEIU 32BJ:

“As a labor union representing thousands of immigrant workers, we are greatly disturbed by the recent raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on hundreds of hardworking immigrants in six states. We condemn these counterproductive actions, which disrupt lives, tear apart families and wrongly punish hard-working people, while forcing all immigrants – documented or not – to live in constant fear. Instead of these harsh tactics, the government should focus on fixing our broken immigration system. We must bring our immigration system into line with our economic interests and humanitarian values, and we will continue to fight for commonsense immigration reform to protect all workers, secure our borders and reunite families.”