This Sunday at the United Nations We Demand Justice for Jacob Ostreicher

******* MEDIA ADVISORY *******

WHAT: Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) will lead elected officials in demanding that the Bolivian government free Jacob Ostreicher, a Borough Park (Brooklyn) resident who has been incarcerated in Bolivia for more than a year.

WHERE: Bolivian Mission to the United Nations, 211 E. 43rd (between 2nd and 3rd)

WHEN: Sunday, July 1, 12:00 noon

WHO: U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer, former NY Governor David Paterson, NYS Minority Leader John Sampson, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, NYS Senator Malcolm Smith, NY Assemblywoman Rhoda Jacobs, NY Assemblyman Alan Maisel, NY Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, and NY City Councilman Brad Lander.

NOVELTY GUN LIGHTERS POSE REAL THREAT

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

June 26, 2012

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release

718-853-9616 (office)
973-945-4903 (cell)

Assemblyman Hikind shows Boro Park vendor selling novelty lighters how dangerous and
real looking the ‘guns’ are.

HIKIND SAYS NOVELTY GUN LIGHTERS POSE REAL THREAT

ASKS VENDORS: ‘DO THE RIGHT THING—
STOP SELLING GUN LIGHTERS’

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is urging Borough Park and Midwood vendors to cease carrying novelty lighters—especially the ones that look like real guns, which he says can pose a serious threat. The Assemblyman made a point of visiting local vendors asking them to drop the product line for the sake of community safety.

“They look real,” said the Assemblyman who noticed the items being sold across the street from his office. “It’s too easy to confuse a gun-lighter with a real gun or a toy.” Last year, a California mother accidentally shot her twelve-year-old daughter after mistaking a real gun for a novelty cigarette lighter. “There have already been too many accidents reported,” said Hikind. “These ‘guns’ are accidents waiting to happen. Soon enough a law will be in place prohibiting their sale so I’m asking vendors to please drop these items now.”

A bill that would ban novelty lighters was recently passed by the New York State Assembly and now awaits action by the NYS Senate. Fire prevention officials say it is nearly impossible for children to distinguish a toy from a lighter and incidents of children starting fires with novelty lighters have increased. More than a third of fire-related deaths each year are caused by children under the age of 10.

In 2006, Maine became the first U.S. state to ban novelty lighters after the son of a fire chief mistook a novelty lighter for a flashlight and burned his face. Today, 14 states have enacted legislation prohibiting the sale of novelty lighters.

“Why risk further injuries?” asked Assemblyman Hikind. “If you’re a vendor, just do the right thing and stop carrying these dangerous items.”

HIKIND POSTS $5K REWARD FOR INFO ON HATE CRIME PERPS

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

June 25, 2012

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release

718-853-9616 (office)
973-945-4903 (cell)

Another car sawstika'd on Foster Avenue in Boro Park

HIKIND OFFERS $5K REWARD FOR INFO ON PERPS
AS ADDITIONAL SWASTIKAS ARE FOUND

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is offering a $5000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the vandals painting swastikas in Boro Park. He made the announcement after learning that a car in front of the Hamodia office (207 Foster Ave.) was the latest target in a series of attacks on Jewish homes, buildings and property in the community. The attack was discovered this afternoon.

“We don’t know who is doing this yet but we know why,” said the Assemblyman. “Some individuals are sending a message. We hear them. And when they’re caught—and they will be—we’ll send a message, too. I urge anyone with any information to come forward.”

Discussing Special Ed and the New Education Law

This Saturday evening on "The Dov Hikind Show" Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein will join me along with Agudath Israel of America's special ed expert Leah Steinberg, Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz, Leo Goldenberg and Cheskel Bennett as we discuss the new Education Law and how it will benefit our special education children.

Brooklyn Begins Booting Cars This Monday

NY City’s pilot vehicle booting program begins in Brooklyn this Monday, June 25. The program will expand into Queens and Staten Island this summer before being rolled out citywide. The city has issued the following advisory.

WHAT IS BOOTING?
Booting is an enforcement tool used instead of towing. With booting, a device is attached to a wheel of your vehicle to prevent you from moving it. You can be booted for owing the city more than $350 in parking, red light camera or bus lane violation tickets that are in judgment. If you do not pay the parking, red light camera and bus lane violation judgment debt and related fees within two business days of being booted, then your vehicle may be towed.

WHY IS THE CITY STARTING TO BOOT?
Booting is a new, improved tool for us to enforce against parking debt instead of towing. Towing is time-consuming, inconvenient and can be frightening when you don’t see your vehicle. Towing doesn't allow you access to personal belongings, such as infant car seats, prescription drugs, or important paperwork left in a vehicle. Booting allows you to put your vehicle back on the road quickly.
 
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO HAVE TICKETS IN JUDGMENT?
A ticket becomes “in judgment” when approximately 100 days have passed since you were issued your parking, red light camera or bus lane violation ticket unless you have either paid the ticket or it was dismissed after a hearing. In that time, we have sent you at least 3 notices and you have not paid or contested your ticket. Once that happens, a judgment is docketed with the Civil Court of the City of New York for your debt and the City can take enforcement action against you such as towing or booting your vehicle. If your ticket is in judgment, the total amount you owe includes the fine, penalties and interest that have been added for non-payment.
 
HOW WILL BOOTING WORK?
If you owe more than $350 in parking, red light camera or bus lane violation tickets in judgment and you are parked on a public street, you may have a boot attached to your vehicle. To get the boot off, call the toll-free phone number on the boot and give the customer service representative your debit/credit card number. You will then receive a release code. Once you enter the code, the boot will unlock and you can remove it. You need to return the boot to a return location near you within 24 hours.
 
HOW WILL THE CITY FIND BOOT ELIGIBLE VEHICLES?
Vans with "license plate recognition" (LPR) technology travel throughout the city

CON ED: EXCUSES ARE USELESS. WE NEED POWER!

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

June 22, 2012

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release

718-853-9616 (office)
 

HIKIND TAKES CON-ED TO TASK FOR BORO PARK OUTAGES

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is furious about the double-talk he’s received from Con Ed regarding the outages in Borough Park. Frightened constituents began calling Con Ed last night regarding power failures and the Assemblyman spent the evening on the phone trying to get straight answers.

“I spoke with half-a-dozen people, none of whom seemed to have communicated with anyone else on their own team,” said the Assemblyman. “Everyone had a different answer regarding what to expect but by this morning power was still out and I heard new stories from a half dozen others. No one seems capable of giving a straight answer.

“If a dry cleaner or caterer or any other business in our community functioned this way, they’d be long out of business. Con Ed takes our money and has a responsibility to us. Our community doesn’t want to hear spin—we want to see results. The summer just started two days ago—is this what we should expect for the next 12 weeks?”

Ateres Golda, a catering hall at 1362 50^th , was forced—for the second time in three weeks—to rent a $10,000 generator at their own expense or else the wedding they were catering would have been cancelled. Continuants who could afford to do so left town and slept at hotels; others suffered without power.

Assemblyman Hikind spent the morning speaking to community members and Con Ed workers on 50^th Street, Borough Park’s main thoroughfare, which is closed between 13^th and 15^th Avenues. “Management says one thing—or actually six things—but the workers say another,” said the Assemblyman. “Con Ed workers don’t expect this problem to be resolved as quickly as management has promised. It’s bad enough that we’re suffering like this, but at the very least give us straight answers.”

Assemblywoman Weinstein's Education Bill Made the Entire Session Worthwhile

Hikind, Weinstein and Silver

A new education law passed today. Sponsored by my colleague Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, this was by far one of the most important pieces of legislation to come out of the recent session in Albany. The amendments to the education laws will dramatically ease the burden of parents educating special needs children in three ways:

 

1. The new law now ensures that Committees of Special Education (CSE) consider a child’s home and upbringing to determine the child’s most appropriate educational environment. Previously, the Dept. of Education only looked at educational factors; there was no credence given to how a family’s background would impact how the child learned.
2. In addition, the new law eliminates the length and tediousness of the tuition reimbursement process. Parents who found themselves waiting for a year for placement—and longer for tuition reimbursement—will now find that applications must be processed within 90 days of filing, and reimbursement for approved applications must be paid out within 30 days. Yeshivas will no longer find it necessary to pressure parents for promised monies.
3. A third plank of the new law eliminates the re-application process. Each year, parents of special-ed children have found themselves repeating the entire litigious process: visiting schools, proving that schools are appropriate or not, and so forth. The new law says that once a program is deemed appropriate, it remains appropriate as long as the child’s IEP hasn’t changed.

Helene Weinstein is a superstar. This took years of work but Helene championed this important issue through to the end. Our communities can’t thank her enough. This alone would have made the entire legislative session worthwhile.

I must also give credit to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver for his role in seeing the legislation passed, as well as Assembly Members Mike Simanowitz, Steve Cymbrowitz, Phil Goldfedder and Rhoda Jacobs; numerous members of Agudath Israel of America; Rabbi Shiya Ostrecicher, Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz, Mordechai Biser, and Leah Steinberg; as well as community leaders Leon Goldenberg and Chaskel Bennett.

Many of the players will be joining me this Saturday evening on "The Dov Hikind Show" to talk about the history of this important new law and the momentous advantages the new law will deliver to families with special needs children throughout the community.

Discussing Safety Concerns for Jews with Ukranian Officials

Today in Albany, I met with a delegation of elected officials from the Ukraine to discuss recent incidents of anti-Semitism there as well as safety concerns for Jewish residents and visitors to the Ukranian city Uman

Uman lost 17,000 Jews to Nazi slaughter but has seen a small Jewish population in Uman continue to grow since the 1990s. The new community is concentrated around Rebbe Nachman of Breslov’s tomb.

In addition, more than 25,000 Jews visit Uman each year around Rosh Hashanah. But in recent years, violence has erupted between the Ukranian residents and the visitors.

Sergii Tulub (Governer of Cherkasy and the greater Uman area) led a Ukranian delegation to Albany to explore opportunities for bilateral business and economic cooperation with the state of New York. I took the opportunity to address not only safety issues for Jews in the Ukraine, but also had some suggestions for improving relationships with visitors and non-Jewish residents.

Introducing Our Sanitation Bill to the Assembly

HIKIND SANITATION BILL CLEARS NY STATE ASSEMBLY 101 TO 3

June 19, 2012

For Immediate Release

Contact: Yehudah Meth
718-853-9616 (office)

LEGISLATION WILL REQUIRE DSNY AGENTS TO SUBMIT PHOTOS WITH SUMMONSES

HIKIND: ‘WE’RE ONE STEP AWAY FROM NEW YORKERS AVOIDING BOGUS TICKETS’

A Sanitation Bill introduced by Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) to help eliminate false sanitation tickets has passed the NY State Assembly and now awaits approval of the NY State Senate. The proposed legislation will require DSNY agents to photograph and document the condition of a property at the time a sanitation ticket is issued.

Calling the bill “the antidote to bogus tickets,” Assemblyman Hikind proposed the legislation only four months ago after proving that DSNY sanitation workers were purposely or carelessly issuing expensive tickets to his constituents and other New Yorkers. Three NY City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) agents were captured on surveillance video in Brooklyn issuing fraudulent tickets.

“Today, we’re one step closer to making the ticketing process for sanitation violations as fair as possible to home owners and business owners,” said the Assemblyman.

The Hikind legislation (#8968-B) will require sanitation agents to carry a mobile device that will allow them to take photographs with a time and date stamp of sanitation violations, and upload the photos and accompanying summons to a central database.

“Sanitation tickets are a minimum of $100,” Hikind noted. “This is a tremendous financial burden, especially in today’s economy. My office is frequently contacted by constituents who’ve received tickets yet claim innocence. Photographs will remove all doubts. This new legislation will not only protect potential victims of the system, but it will also reduce paperwork and the cost of adjudication proceedings.”

Hikind added, “Anyone who has ever received a violation knows it always comes down to their word against the agent’s. With photographic evidence, there can be no dispute as to the guilt or innocence of a property owner. It’s a win-win for the City and for New York City’s residents.”

Senator Schumer Meets With Miriam Ostreicher

Yesterday morning I was privileged to introduce Miriam Ostreicher to Senator Charles Schumer, one of the most powerful members of the U.S. Senate. The three of  us were joined by Yidel Perlstein, Chairman of Brooklyn Community Board 12, and we spent the morning discussing the plight of Jacob Ostreicher, our Brooklyn resident who has now been incarcerated in Bolivia for more than a year without being charged with a crime.

Yidel Perlstein, Senator Schumer, Miriam Ostreicher and Dov Hikind

Senator Schumer is determined to do everything in his power to bring Jacob home and we discussed a number of approaches to secure his release. Jacob's condition continues to deteriorate, but we will not rest until he is returned to his family.

SWASTIKA ATTACKS IN HEART OF BORO PARK

For Immediate Release

HIKIND TO PERPS: WE WILL FIND AND PROSECUTE YOU

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is vowing to find the perpetrators who painted swastikas in multiple locations in Borough Park last night. The discovery was made this morning when a resident saw a swastika painted on a 16th Avenue synagogue and called Assemblyman Hikind at his home. Four additional swastikas were soon discovered.

“What kind of sick person does this in a neighborhood of Holocaust survivors?” demanded the Assemblyman. “This is yet another example of the type of hate crimes that result from bigoted rhetoric. There will be no tolerance for hatred here and our community will address this from top to bottom. We’ll show that we’re serious about prosecuting criminals who would hurt us with their vile actions.”

The Assemblyman said law enforcement was immediately notified and a search is underway for the individual(s) who painted the swastikas.

“Hate crimes aimed specifically at the innocent people of this neighborhood are precisely why we need heightened security,” said Assemblyman Hikind. “The Security Initiative that is being put in place will go a long way towards protecting Borough Park and Midwood residents.

The swastikas were located at: 4609 16^th Ave., 4619 16^th Ave., 4423 16^th Ave., 4623 18^th Ave., and 42^nd between 15^th and 16^th on a van.

Swastika Baby Toys Removed From Boro Park

A Borough Park resident purchased a package of child-safe toys at a local discount store but was aghast to discover that one of the toys sported a swastika. After the resident contacted my office this morning, one of my staff members immediately the retailer to inquire into the source and distributor of the product. It was discovered that these toys are made in China and many similar productshave already been recalled for safety concerns. The retailer immediately removed the items and agreed not to sell them in our community.