THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK, Thoughts of an older American on Constitutional Government in the USA Options

[Livyjr]

"Acting without fear of reprisal - Albany County legislator proposing whistle-blower measure to ensure anonymity"

By CAROL DeMARE, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- While a policy protecting county employees who report waste, fraud or other violations has existed for years, a lawmaker wants to establish a more confidential whistle-blower system.

Paulette Barlette, a Latham Republican, will introduce legislation at tonight's of the County Legislature to create a whistle-blower hot line that would be operated by an outside vendor.

Barlette said her proposal is not a new concept.

Governments and school districts throughout the state and country support whistle-blower initiatives in an effort to uncover fraudulent workplace practices and save tax dollars.

Barlette's measure would apply to county government workers "to call in with their concerns or for members of the public at large," she said.

A resolution -- known as the Employee Protection Policy -- was sponsored by then-Legislator Mike Conners in 1992 and passed.

Barlette called it "a very good policy," but "all it does is state that no employee will face any sort of retribution if they voice their concerns or become a whistle-blower on any kind of fraud or abuse of government."

"I've found over the years that even though that policy is in place, employees have contacted me anonymously that they still are not comfortable with coming forward and reporting fraud, misuse of government services or unhealthy working conditions," Barlette said.

"I have gotten letters sent to me over the years, not recently, that have had words cut out of newspapers and magazines and pasted together, so obviously folks are that concerned about confidentiality," she said.

The way it stands now, an employee wishing to report something could call the county executive, county comptroller, county attorney or a county legislator, she said.

"But a way to truly make it confidential and give people a comfort zone so they will feel (at ease) coming forward with their concerns" is to have an outside party accept the reports, Barlette said.

"I respect the right of employees to voice their concerns, report their complaints, and I'm sensitive to the need for confidentiality," she said.

The resolution states that employees are especially apprehensive to come forward if what they wish to report involves "supervisors, department heads or elected officials."

The resolution asks that the county purchasing agent be directed to issue request for proposals for whistle-blower hot line services to maintain a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week confidential reporting system.

The vendor would turn over complaints it receives to designated county officials as well as the legislature, the lawmaker said.

There are vendors who supply these services at a minimal cost, Barlette said.

She also suggested the hot-line information be posted on the county's Web site.

When it comes up on the agenda, the measure will more than likely be referred to a legislative committee for review -- the procedure for all new proposals.

DeMare can be reached at 454-5431 or by e-mail at cdemare@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Sergeant suspended over 2 officers' sobriety - Officials say Joseph Pickel allowed cops to go on duty despite being allegedly impaired by alcohol"

By BRENDAN J. LYONS Senior writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- A city police sergeant has been suspended 20 days without pay for his role in allowing two uniformed officers to go on duty after they showed up for work allegedly impaired by alcohol, according to departmental sources.

Sgt. Joseph Pickel's suspension comes as police officials have dropped their investigation of one the officers, Glenn Szelest, but are seeking to fire the second officer, William Bonanni, who has a history of disciplinary troubles and remains on restricted duty, the sources said.

The incident last year unfolded as the department was reeling from a string of alcohol-related car crashes involving officers.

In response, Chief James W. Tuffey enacted a stricter policy that prohibits officers from consuming alcohol within eight hours of reporting for duty.

The policy is now being challenged by the rank-and-file's union, which wants the time limit cut to four hours.

The internal investigation of Bonanni, Pickel and Szelest was launched last November after Pickel filed a report with an assistant chief stating that Szelest and Bonanni appeared impaired when they reported for their overnight shifts at the North Station in Arbor Hill.

After a brief confrontation, Pickel ordered the officers to submit to an alcohol-sensor test which allegedly indicated Szelest was legally impaired while Bonanni had a blood-alcohol level of around 0.16, which is twice the legal limit for driving, sources said.

Both officers remained on duty that night.

Union officials, though, attacked the accuracy of the alcohol tests.

Their president last year stated publicly that the machine used by Pickel may not have been properly calibrated and that the sergeant was not trained to operate it.

Pickel eventually removed the officers from duty, sources said, although it may not be reflected in the department's blotter.

But the veteran sergeant waited at least a day to report the incident and faced discipline for the delay, sources said.

Police officials have said the delay hampered their internal investigation, which would have been handled differently had internal affairs been summoned to the North Station that night.

Instead, internal affairs detectives were left, days later, trying to pin down the officers' whereabouts before coming to work.

Their work included reviewing surveillance footage from a security camera at a North Pearl Street bar where Szelest had allegedly been before reporting for duty.

Bonanni has spent nearly six of his 15 years with the department on administrative leave or suspension -- most recently for his involvement in the accidental shooting death of a bystander on New Year's Eve 2003.

It was not Bonanni's bullet that killed the man and he was later cleared in that incident.

Meanwhile, the Albany Police Officers Union has filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the department in connection with the alcohol policy put in place last spring by Tuffey.

The chief enacted the policy following the death of Detective Kenneth Wilcox, who had alcohol in his system but was not legally intoxicated when he fell asleep behind the wheel of his speeding cruiser and died in an on-duty crash in April 2006, according to Tuffey.

The fatality came during a series of alcohol-fueled crashes involving off-duty officers.

Still, the union is challenging whether Tuffey's policy should have been the subject of labor negotiations.

Christian P. Mesley, the union's president, declined comment last week, saying he preferred to speak with a different reporter.

Lt. Timothy Close, president of the Albany Police Supervisor's Association, the union representing police sergeants and lieutenants, said their union "recognizes the spirit and rationale behind" the alcohol policy, but that they are "in disagreement with certain portions."

"APSA has offered alternative recommendations for Chief Tuffey's review, and we anticipate continued and open dialogue regarding this matter," Close said, not elaborating.

He declined comment on the circumstances of Pickel's suspension.

"APSA continues to support Sgt. Pickel, who remains a highly respected and effective police supervisor," Close said.

Tuffey said that even though he is negotiating with the rank-and-file union regarding the alcohol policy, the city could challenge any decision to alter it.

"I'm not sure I have to negotiate," he said.

"I think the public interest outweighs that."

"... I still feel that my policy was reasonable."

J. Lyons can be reached at 454-5547 or by e-mail at blyons@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Police investigate shootings in Albany - Three men are shot in two separate incidents within 24 hours"

By DAN HIGGINS, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- City police are investigating the shootings of three men in two separate incidents within 24 hours.

In the most recent incident, two men were standing on a front porch when they were wounded outside 82 Third St. in the city's West Hill neighborhood, police said.

One victim was struck in the ear and another in the leg shortly after 6 p.m.

Both were taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital.

Their conditions were not made public.

Albany police spokesman James Miller said there were two suspects in the shooting, but a description was not immediately available.

Shortly after the incident, police in the field could be heard saying one of the assailants may have had a rifle.

In the first shooting, a New York City man was wounded in the buttocks in an apparent robbery at 1 a.m.

The victim was leaving a friend's house on the 200 block of First Street when two males wearing ski masks emerged from a parking lot, chased him and fired, Miller said.

The man told police he was in Albany visiting friends.

He was taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital, where police said his injuries were not life-threatening.

No arrests were reported in either incident.

[Livyjr]

"Bigger database means a backlog - New DNA rules also include getting samples from those already in jail"

By MICHAEL HILL, Associated Press

First published: Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- The state is poised to greatly expand its criminal DNA database even as administrators continue to catch up on a backlog created by the last expansion in 2006.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer is working with legislators to require genetic samples from everyone convicted of a felony or misdemeanor in New York -- a move that would instantly create a new backlog of some 51,000 people already in prison or under some form of criminal supervision.

State law enforcement officials say they are prepared for a new burst of work, which they are confident will lead to more criminals being caught and more innocent defendants exonerated through DNA evidence.

"I'm expecting we're going to see many more crimes solved through DNA analysis," said Robert Maccarone, head of the state's probation division.

The database allows DNA samples from criminals -- usually taken by a swab inside the cheek -- to be compared with samples taken from crime scenes.

New York has taken in about 200,000 DNA samples from criminal offenders since 1996, with the collection rate speeding up in recent years as the list of offenses requiring a genetic sample grows.

Last summer, the database was expanded to encompass an additional 18 misdemeanors, most notably petit larceny, making up almost half of all crimes covered by the database, and it created the need to collect DNA samples from 30,000 offenders grandfathered in.

Law enforcement officials have been working to digest the bulge since then.

Samples are prioritized and sent to a central State Police lab in Albany.

To keep up, the lab in April more than tripled its capacity to about 5,000 a month.

Training has begun on new generations of machines and State Police are arranging to have an outside lab do some work.

[Livyjr]

"Building permits fall in region - Steep one-year decline in housing activity reflects a national trend"

By CHRIS CHURCHILL, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Saturday, June 9, 2007

The number of residential building permits issued in the Capital Region dropped dramatically in 2006, and would have continued to fall in the early months of 2007 if not for a rise in permits in Saratoga County.

In 2006, 1,805 residential building permits were issued, down from 2,296 in 2005, or 21.4 percent, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

That's the lowest number of permits issued in the four-county region since 1997.

The numbers apparently reflect builders' response to slack demand last year for new housing, amid a cooling overall housing market.

David Lang Wardle, director of information services at the Capital District Regional Planning Commission, which analyzed the numbers in its most recent newsletter, said the drops -- though steep -- are in line with what happened nationally.

"The housing market kind of hit the wall, and people decided it was no longer a good idea to buy housing as an investment, at least in the short term," Wardle said.

The regional trend would have continued in the first four months of 2007, if not for the strong building market in Saratoga County, according to numbers provided by the New York State Builders Association.

The number of residential building permits in the four-county region increased slightly in the first four months this year, when compared with 2006.

But permits issued fell in every county but Saratoga, where they jumped from 170 in the first four months of 2006 to 200 for the same period this year.

Kirsten Legere, spokeswoman for the state Builders Association, described the residential construction market as still healthy, even if slower than in recent years.

"It's sort of like driving a car at 100 miles per hour and slowing down to 70 miles per hour," she said.

"You are still going fast, just not as fast."

Pam Krissen, executive director of the Capital Region Builders & Remodelers Association, conceded 2006 was a relatively slow year.

But she said 2007 is not as slow as expected and pointed out the construction market is extremely active in some towns.

Clifton Park and Colonie both saw the number of issued permits increase by more than 10 percent in April, when compared with the same month in 2006, she said.

That jibes with what's being experienced in Colonie Town Hall.

"We've got applications coming in left and right," said Denise Sheehan, director of the town's Department of Planning and Economic Development.

"We're busy."

Chris Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"$100M to get to this 'destination' - Planners say cost of preparing New Baltimore site for huge shopping complex could largely be recouped"

By ALAN WECHSLER, Business writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Friday, June 8, 2007

NEW BALTIMORE -- The cost to a bring a "destination" shopping center to Greene County: $100 million to $110 million.

And that doesn't include the shops.

The Greene County Industrial Development Agency wants to spend that sum to prepare the land and build the necessary roads -- including a new Thruway Exit 21B -- to attract a developer to do the rest.

The developer also would have to buy the land from the IDA, helping to recoup most of its cost, officials said Thursday as they announced details about the center for the first time.

Besides the retail stores and factory outlets, the proposed complex would include office buildings, a performing arts center, a farmers market and manufacturing space.

There also would be two hotels, a chain restaurant and apartments.

Also proposed is an "interpretive center" to promote tourism in Greene County.

Total indoor floor space: almost 2.2 million square feet over 330 acres.

The project's price tag is high due to the relocation of Exit 21B north about a half mile.

The cost of the new exit, including a bridge over the Thruway, a toll complex and a dedicated ramp to the retail complex, would be $68 million.

Construction could begin next summer on both the infrastructure and the retail space, and the center could open in the fall of 2009.

This is not the first time the IDA has acted as a developer.

In the last four years, it has created two industrial parks on Route 9W this way.

One of those parks is expected to also house a smaller retail complex called The Shoppes at Greene Flats.

A developer paid the IDA $4 million last month for a site in Greene Business & Technology Park for the project.

But the scope of the new complex far exceeds anything the IDA has done so far.

"We are very confident," Alexander "Sandy" Mathes Jr., executive director of the IDA, said Thursday.

As with the other projects, the IDA wants a say in how the finished product looks -- in this case like a historic farming village.

The IDA anticipates the project could attract as many as 5 million visitors a year, based on traffic studies and discussions with retailers and developers, Mathes said.

Projections are for 70 percent of visitors to come via the Thruway, with the rest from Route 9W.

The latter access would be through Kalkberg Commerce Park, the other industrial park developed by the IDA.

To deal with the extra traffic on Route 9W, the agency would build four roundabouts.

The IDA has adopted a draft environmental impact statement, which speaks to the changes that will take place.

The public can offer written comment on the document over the next 30 days, or attend a public hearing at 7 p.m. June 26 at the Cornell Hook and Ladder firehouse on Gill Road in New Baltimore.

The IDA will need approval from the New Baltimore Planning Board before building.

The project would build on 30 to 40 acres of wetlands.

To mitigate that, the IDA would create or set aside about 1,000 acres of wetlands nearby.

Richard Guthrie, a New Baltimore Town Board member who is active on environmental issues, said the idea of replacing wetlands has worked well with the IDA's previous projects.

"The difference between what was there and what is there now is really spectacular," he said.

Malachy Kavanagh, a spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centers, said municipalities are the fastest-growing membership segment for his New York City-based trade group.

At a deal-making convention last month in Las Vegas, 800 government officials were in search of retailers.

"They've recognized that retail can be a catalyst for economic development," he said.

Jeffrey Pfeil, a principal in J.W. Pfeil & Co. Inc., a Saratoga Springs-based developer and retail leasing agent, said it might be hard to lure factory outlets to the Coxsackie-New Baltimore area because so many already are located at Woodbury Common, about 90 minutes to the south in Central Valley.

"They're out there," he said of prospective tenants.

"Whether you can attract them to Coxsackie is another thing."

Alan Wechsler can be reached at 454-5469 or by e-mail at awechsler@timesunion.com.

Greene Flats at a glance

The Greene County Industrial Development Agency envisions a complex of nearly 2.2 million square feet off the Thruway that would include "destination" retail stores, two hotels, offices, manufacturing and other attractions.

Here's how the project sizes up:

785,000 square feet: retail space, including a department store, factory outlets, a farmers market and an antiques mall

542,000 square feet: two hotels plus destination entertainment/recreation facilities

100,000 square feet: Greene Center, an interpretive center, which will promote tourism in the county

710,000 square feet: office, residential (apartments) and manufacturing space

6,000 square feet: chain restaurant

Source: Greene County Industrial Development Agency

[Livyjr]

And to further "set the stage", as it were .....

For the initial direction that this thread would like to set off in ....

Some time back ....

In June of 2006 .....

I received an e-mail entitled Subject: SCARY - How Long Do We Have .....

And it goes like this ....

This is very interesting and a worth while read ....

The statistics on this are mind boggling!!!

About the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution, in 1787 ...

Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh ....

Had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years prior:

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government."

"A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury."

"From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the worlds greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years."

"During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

1. From bondage to spiritual faith;

2. From spiritual faith to great courage;

3. From courage to liberty;

4. From liberty to abundance;

5. From abundance to complacency;

6. From complacency to apathy;

7. From apathy to dependence;

8. From dependence back into bondage .."

The e-mail then goes on with some alleged analysis from alleged Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St.Paul, Minnesota ....

And my response to the sender of this e-mail to me was that in America ....

At least at the federal level .....

BECAUSE OF THIS ....

WE DON'T HAVE A DEMOCRACY .....

WE HAVE A CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC .....

And so .....

BUT DO WE REALLY, ANYMORE?

And what about at the state level?

And so ....

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

Ah, so good to see you back, Mr. Ravi Batra!

I went to a bookstore up here today, Mr. Ravi Batra, to get a copy of Cicero's Selected Political Speechs, and the bookstore, which would pride itself with being "upscale" and catering to an "intelligentsia", this being a bookstore in Troy, NY, which upstate city has what is purported to be a world-class university in it, and Mr. Ravi Batra, no Cicero was there to be found ....

No one is interested, they told me ...

"Look what happened to Rome, after all ..."

"PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THAT STUFF!"

As if that would change much, Mr. Ravi Batra, the "not hearing" ....

The "purposeful deafness" ....

The knowing "not seeing" ....

The intentional pursuit of ignorance as freedom of expression, Mr. Ravi Batra ....

The God-given right to not know nothing at all ....

As if not knowing the wind was going to blow strong tonight would somehow stop the wind from blowing at all ....

Tacitus said, looking back on the times of Cicero, Mr. Ravi Batra, that:

"RARE is the felicity of the times when you can think what you like and speak what you think!"

And I would say to you, Mr. Ravi Batra, from out here in the "provinces", far, far removed from you down in NYC, that those times in our lives up here are rare, indeed, to the point of all but disappearing, and not existing at all .....

REPETUNDAE, Mr. Ravi Batra, from the perspective of one who is out here as a provincial, far, far removed from you, who are in a much more civilized place than I ....

Or PECUNIAE REPETUNDAE, if you will, Mr. Ravi Batra ....

REPETUNDARUM CRIMEN, Mr. Ravi Batra, in Roman law, the crime of bribery or extortion in a magistrate, or person in any public office!

VERRES can do to us what he will, and we are powerless to defend ourselves, Mr. Ravi Batra, powerless ....

The courts are closed to us, Mr. Ravi Batra, our witnesses intimidated .....

Or are bought up on retainer so that their expert testimony is unavailable ....

And our oppressor is Eliot Spitzer ....

Without his efforts in the law courts ....

None of this would have been possible ....

And so ...

Now he governor, Mr. Ravi Batra ....

Selling close access to him to the highest bidders ....

While we are without justice, thanks to Mr. Eliot Spitzer ....

Who we deem for sale ....

And so, Mr. Ravi Batra ....

Consider us the Sicilians ....

Or the Africans ...

Or the Greeks ...

And you be Cicero this time ....

And so ....

Posted by: John Galt | June 11, 2007 4:18 PM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli...rta.html?page=2

[Livyjr]

October 9, 1990

Hon. Raymond J. Elliott, III
North Greenbush Town Court
2 Douglas St.
Wynantskill, N.Y. 12198

Dear Judge Elliott,

Enclosed herewith, please find a copy of the People's Notice of Appeal from a dismissal in the North Greenbush Town Court on Tuesday, October 2, 1990.

Mr. Jones (one of the defendants in the Federal Civil Rights lawsuit) contacted this office and requested this course of action.

By way of judicial economy, I hereby move to reargue the Motion to Dismiss in order to afford the People an opportunity to be heard on this matter.

The complainant in this case feels that there has been an injustice, and has sought the assistance of this office.

We have agreed to accept the responsibility to represent the People in this case.

My understanding of the events which took place in your court on October 2, 1990 clearly demonstrate that Mr. Jones is not familiar with the criminal justice system!

Mrs. Jones, while her actions were, without a doubt, inappropriate and arguably contemptuous, I do not believe such actions warrant or give rise to a dismissal.

Furthermore, as PLAINTIFF'S familiarity with the law has been demonstrated in another action pending in your court, I sincerely believe adequate representation of the People's position should be provided by this office!

By copy of this letter to PLAINTIFF, I am making this motion returnable on October 30, 1990, the same date that PLAINTIFF has another motion returnable.

Respectfully submitted, Richard J. McNally, Jr.
Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney

- O'CONNOR "BIBLE" SUBMITTED TO THE FEDERAL SECOND CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS ON BEHALF OF THE RENSSELAER COUNTY DEFENDANTS, pp. 118-119

EXCERPTS FROM MARCH 15, 1989 REPORT OF INVESTIGATION OF NEW YORK STATE HEALTH COMMISSIONER DR. DAVID AXELROD CONFIRMING PLAINTIFF'S ALLEGATIONS OF MISFEASANCE AND MALFEASANCE IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THE RENSSELAER COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

Consultants may also have evaded the realty subdivision regulations.

An apparent inappropriate alteration of County Health Department approval for part of Algonquin Estates, Poestenkill (T), occurred recently.

The State Department of Health has referred this matter this matter to both the N.Y.S. Education Department and the Rensselaer County District Attorney.

- Taken from page 93 of the O'Connor BIBLE submitted to the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City in this matter on behalf of defendant REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino and her co-defendants, in or about November of 2005

And this appeal argument on November 30, 1992 was quite important, to all of us, because it involved the "PRECURSER" intimidation tactic employed against this same PLAINTIFF by Rensselaer County, only that time using false criminal charges, which ultimately backfired against Rensselaer County, as this appeal transcript clearly demonstrates, because of the strong "DUE PROCESS OF LAW" provisions that are built in to the New York State Criminal Procedure Law to protect the innocent from malicious prosecution for political purposes by the "modern state"!

The dialogue from that appeal on November 30, 1992 between Rensselaer County Court Judge M. Andrew Dwyer and Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney Richard McNally who had been hounding the PLAINTIFF through the criminal courts of Rensselaer County since 1990 on false testimony and manufactured evidence is as follows, and we were there to not only hear what transpired, which is important, in and of itself, since it is an official transcript, BUT MORE .....

BECAUSE OF WHAT WE SAW, with OUR OWN EYES, which was JUSTICE, true justice, finally be effected in that particular portion of this long night of terror for OUR PLAINTIFF:

JUDGE: There is a MOTION on, that I might as well dispose of first.

That is PEOPLE v. PLAINTIFF.

Apparently, it is pro se.

Mr. McNally, are you here for the PEOPLE?

This is a legal question.

I don't see that argument is necessary!

MCNALLY: This is a Motion to Dismiss!

JUDGE: A Motion to Reargue a Motion to Dismiss!

MCNALLY: I have no position, other than to say, the Court, in its previous position, left me without any recourse other than to not oppose a Motion to Dismiss, in my opinion!

JUDGE: That is your position?

MCNALLY: That is my position!

JUDGE: THEN YOU CONSENT TO THE DISMISSAL?

MCNALLY: I do, Judge, based upon the fact that the Court, in its previous Decision, left me with an untenable position at trial!

JUDGE: How closely did you read the decision?

MCNALLY: Very!

JUDGE: The District Attorney consented?

MCNALLY: It was the Court's opinion at trial that there was other evidence out there, and I can affirm that there IS NOT OTHER EVIDENCE ON WHICH TO BASE A PROSECUTION AND THE COURT RULED THE EVIDENCE THAT WAS PRESENTED INSUFFICIENT, AND I HAVE NO OTHER EVIDENCE!

JUDGE: And you take the position that you have no further evidence, at all?

MCNALLY: No further evidence, Judge!

JUDGE: Then it is dismissed!

MCNALLY: (to PLAINTIFF) Good job!

PLAINTIFF: Thank you, Your Honor!

(Whereupon, matter concluded)

- EXCERPTED from pages 121-124 of the O'Connor BIBLE submitted to the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City in this matter on behalf of defendant REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino and her co-defendants, in or about November of 2005

And here ...

A young reader wants to know ....

What exactly was it ....

That Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney Richard McNally had no evidence of at that MOTION HEARING in Rensselaer County Court on November 30, 1992 .....

And what exactly was DISMISSED by Rensselaer County Court Judge M. Andrew Dwyer on November 30, 1992 ....

And how is it relevant to what happened in either 1989 or 2001 in connection with this matter ....

And that is an excellent question ....

And God bless the young people for having the courage to ask it ....

Is my thought anyway .....

And what Assistant Rensselaer County District Attorney Richard McNally had no evidence of .....

Was that PLAINTIFF was IRRATIONAL .....

As he was alleged to be ....

In a criminal information ....

That McNally had been prosecuting since Janaury of 1990 .....

The so-called IRRATIONALITY TRIALS in Rensselaer County in the State of New York ....

Which were the next level up on Rensselaer County's ESCALATING SERIES OF PUNISHMENTS for PLAINTIFF that Kenneth Van Praag had discussed with New York State Regional Public Health Director Dr. Ian Loudon in the October 13, 1988 letter posted above here a few days ago .......

McNally took the public statements of REPUBLICAN Deputy Rensselaer County Attorney Gordon Mayo and REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive John L. Buono that PLAINTIFF was a VIET NAM VETERAN suffering from this made-up disease of POST VIET NAM SYNDROME ....

And he "constructed" or "manufactured" a criminal case out of those false charges or assertions of Mayo and Buono ...

Which he then "used" to harass PLAINTIFF through the courts of Rensselaer County .....

To deny PLAINTIFF access to a GRAND JURY in Rensselaer County .....

And to protect Gary James "JIMMY DAWG" Horton of Poestenkill, New York ....

Who had, as one of Rensselaer County's MORE PAINFUL AND LESS HUMANITARIAN APPROACHES towards the PLAINTIFF ...

Run the PLAINTIFF down on December 29, 1989 as PLAINTIFF was crossing Liberty Lane in that same town of Poestenkill .....

Where PLAINTIFF has resided for over fifty years .....

And where he is a respected licensed professional engineer in the State of New York ....

As well as being a decorated and respected Viet Nam combat veteran ...

And so ...

It was those false criminal charges that Judge Dwyer dismissed on November 30, 1992 .....

On the grounds that the prosecution of PLAINTIFF on those PATENTLY FALSE CHARGES was a violation of PLAINTIFF's CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS in the State of New York .....

This DISMISSAL coming almost two full years after the false charges of IRRATIONALITY and CRIMINALITY were first filed in Poestenkill Town Court by New York State Trooper Gary Kelly in January of 1990 ....

To cover over Gary James "JIMMY DAWG" Horton's December 29, 1989 vehicular assault of PLAINTIFF on Liberty Lane in the Town of Poestenkill ....

And it is the admission by McNally that he had no EVIDENCE OF IRRATIONALITY that makes this EXHIBIT DIRECTLY RELEVANT to what happened in 2001 ...

Where Rensselaer County was ONCE AGAIN FALSELY ASSERTING that PLAINTIFF was mentally ill and dangerous ....

Based upon nothing more than this fabricated and manufactured alleged "LONG PSYCHIATRIC HISTORY" that allegedly required Dr. John Christian Braaten of Northeast Health, Inc. in the City of Troy, New York to ORDER the New York State Police to take PLAINTIFF into custody for TRANSPORT to Northeast Health's secure psychiatric facility in the Samaritan Hospital in Troy, New York ....

Where PLAINTIFF was to be "TREATED" by Dr. Adrian Anthony Morris ......

A co-defendant of Braaten .....

Who had also allegedly falsely certified to the Office of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York ....

That he had examined the PLAINTIFF ....

And had found him to be mentally ill and dangerous ....

So as to justify PLAINTIFF's INCARCERATION in the Stratton VA Hospital secure mental health facility in Albany, New York .......

After he escaped the "net" in Rensselaer County ...

And had fled to the Stratton VA Hospital ....

In fear for his life ..

Seeking sanctuary there on federal territory .....

Only to find another AMBUSH waiting instead ....

And so ...

The McNally Transcript at pages 121-124 of the O'Connor BIBLE submitted to the federal Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City in this matter on behalf of defendant REPUBLICAN Rensselaer County Executive Kathleen Jimino and her co-defendants, in or about November of 2005, goes directly to the unconstitutionality and illegality of the actions of the defendants on August 22, 2001 ....

And so .....

"McNally launches bid for DA - Democrat cites lengthy courtroom experience in Rensselaer County"

By BOB GARDINIER, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Tuesday, June 12, 2007

TROY -- Democrat Richard McNally announced his run for district attorney Monday, referring to himself as a "lunch-pail lawyer" and taking some shots at the current Republican administration.

In a fiery speech on the courthouse steps before a large crowd of local and state Democrats, McNally cited his nearly 20 years of experience in area courtrooms.

"I have tried cases in every court in this county from Hoosick Falls to Castleton, from Stephentown to Schaghticoke," McNally said with his wife, Karen Carlson, and daughters Sarah, 9, and Eloise, 6, by his side.

"I have been on both sides of the courtroom in some of the most serious criminal cases in this county in the past 20 years."

McNally will try to become the first Democrat to head the Rensselaer County district attorney's office in 15 years and the first Democrat elected to the post since retired Supreme Court Judge James Canfield in 1989.

McNally has some experience in the office.

He served as first assistant to Democrat Louis J. Catone, who lost to Republican Mary O. Donohue in 1992.

Catone was preceded by Canfield who won an assignment to the state Supreme Court in 1991 leading to Catone's short appointment.

More recently McNally, a 1987 graduate of St. John's University School of Law, got a job that gave him a unique perspective on the job he seeks.

He has served in the county court complex as a conflict defender for the public defender's office.

McNally will run against Republican Greg Cholakis, picked by the GOP after the current district attorney, Republican Patricia DeAngelis, decided not to seek re-election.

DeAngelis' one term in the $119,600 a year post has been a bumpy ride.

She and her office suffered several reversals on cases and DeAngelis had been chastised by higher courts for courtroom antics and prosecutorial errors.

"Hot-dog lawyering and courtroom histrionics are the mark of an unprepared prosecutor," McNally said.

"Blather and bluster do not win convictions; good, sound case building, diligent preparation and vigilant watch for the unexpected wins convictions."

McNally lives in Valley Falls, where he serves as village attorney.

He has served in both the district attorney's office in various jobs over the years and in the public defender's office.

Cholakis lives in Troy and works as a public defender in the county courthouse named for his late father, federal Judge Con G. Cholakis.

The Troy resident has been with the office for 14 years and has been practicing law for 15 years.

His sister, Kiki Cholakis, is a Family Court judge.

Bob Gardinier can be reached at 454-5696 or by e-mail at bgardinier@timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

"Senate GOP, good-government groups spar over campaign finance"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 6:23 p.m., Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- Campaign finance reform, one of Gov. Eliot Spitzer's top priorities in the waning days of his first legislative session, may be taken off the table Tuesday by the Senate's Republican majority.

The Senate GOP will hold the first meeting on campaign finance in its Elections Committee after fending off the Democratic governor on the issue by promising public meetings.

After the committee hears from an elections law scholar, Sen. Joseph Griffo, an Oneida County Republican, "is expected to announce a statewide series of campaign finance reform round-table discussions," according to the meeting announcement.

Senate majority spokesman Mark Hansen wouldn't say if those meetings would be done in time for a bill to be drafted and passed in the session scheduled to end June 21.

"I think this is posturing," said Barbara Bartoletti of the League of Women Voters, which has pushed campaign finance reform as the key to reforming Albany.

"There are eight days left in the session."

"Our lax campaign finance laws and the lack of enforcement can't wait for another year ... this should have been addressed a year ago."

Shortly after the Senate Republicans announced their meeting, the good-government groups announced a press conference to be held just before it.

Spitzer had no immediate comment.

Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has said he supports Spitzer's proposal to dramatically reduce campaign spending limits.

But Bruno has questioned the need for reform and noted that Spitzer can rely on his personal wealth and power as elected incumbent governor to raise campaign funds.

The conflict arose late Monday after a quiet day in which no public statements were made on the state of closed-door, late-session talks.

The Senate Republicans' meeting announcement put Spitzer on notice that the conference is either planning to -- or threatening to -- block Spitzer's campaign finance reform.

Spitzer spokeswoman Christine Anderson declined comment.

Spitzer and lawmakers have held public leaders meetings in an attempt to avoid Albany's notorious late-budget negotiations in which disparate issues are settled in one big deal, then rushed to a vote in the closing hours of the session with little debate or public review.

Some of the biggest items on the table include a capital budget of $600 million to $900 million for statewide projects to be built over several years, although as little as $60 million of which might be spent in the current budget.

Also, expansion of the DNA data base to include samples from all criminals, proposed tax cuts for businesses and senior citizens and raises for lawmakers and state judges.

Another leaders meeting is expected later this week.

[Livyjr]

"Senate GOP, good-government groups spar over campaign finance"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press
Last updated: 6:23 p.m., Monday, June 11, 2007

ALBANY -- Campaign finance reform, one of Gov. Eliot Spitzer's top priorities in the waning days of his first legislative session, may be taken off the table Tuesday by the Senate's Republican majority.

The Senate GOP will hold the first meeting on campaign finance in its Elections Committee after fending off the Democratic governor on the issue by promising public meetings.

After the committee hears from an elections law scholar, Sen. Joseph Griffo, an Oneida County Republican, "is expected to announce a statewide series of campaign finance reform round-table discussions," according to the meeting announcement.

Senate majority spokesman Mark Hansen wouldn't say if those meetings would be done in time for a bill to be drafted and passed in the session scheduled to end June 21.

"I think this is posturing," said Barbara Bartoletti of the League of Women Voters, which has pushed campaign finance reform as the key to reforming Albany.

"There are eight days left in the session."

"Our lax campaign finance laws and the lack of enforcement can't wait for another year ... this should have been addressed a year ago."

The Albany, New York Times Union Capital Confidential BLOG:

"Death By Meeting"

June 12, 2007 at 4:31 pm by Jay Jochnowitz, State Editor

If campaign finance reform didn’t look dead enough this session, this should kill it: the Senate plans to hold a series of five forums on it, starting June 27.

Session adjourns June 21.

Senate Elections Committee Chairman Joseph Griffo suggested there’s not need to rush:

“Campaigns and elections are the very heart of democracy and any reforms to the system need to be aired in public and carefully thought out."

"Involving experts in a public discussion to put together an effective bill is the right way to address the issue rather than trying to rush something through at the end of session.”

The roundtable discussions, featuring invited experts on campaigns and elections, will start with one in Albany on First Amendment issues, and cover, according to the Senate press release, reform efforts in other states, accountability, disclosure, penalties and enforcement, transparency, campaigns by “527” organizations, bundling of contributions, and campaign loans.

Times and places haven’t been announced.

Comments

We’re being fed a bill of goods here by our own NYS Senate with this talk that in some way, shape or manner the First Amendment of the United States Constitution way operates to allow our incumbent elected state officials here in NYS to accept campaign money in any amounts, once they are elected and serving in office ….

We here in NYS are not governed by the 1st Amendment of the United States Constitution in our own state in connection with our dealings with our elected state officials and this question of whether, once elected, they have any right whatsoever to be out there on the street, holding out their hands for money, as if they were beggers or street walkers, when they are instead supposed to be engaged in the people’s business, since that is what they are accepting their paychecks for ……

We here in NYS are in fact governed by the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution, which document dates to 1777, whereas the U.S. Constitutional Convention which ultimately gave us the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights did not even convene until 1787, after the American Revolution was over, when in a time of peace, it was becoming readily apparent that the Articles of Confederation which bound the 13 original states together in a time of war, were woefully inadequate to bind them together in a time of peace ….

And so, we ended up with the U.S. Constitution, circa 1789, here in NYS ….

But the U.S. Constitution does in no way alter the Bill of Rights of our NYS Constitution, or our relationship with our elected state officials here in NYS and in fact, the provisions of our NYS Bill of Rights here in NYS are far superior to the protections afforded to us as NYS citizens when we are in some other state of the union, and not NY, by the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution, including its First Amendment ….

So unless this Senate Elections Committee Chair Joe Griffo dude, a Utica-area Republican, is going to have some recognzed expert on the NYS Constitution in there during this alleged hearing, my take is that these hearings are nothing but a SHAM and a PUT-ON …..

On us, the citizens of the State of NY who are to be the recipients 24/7 of the protections of the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution ….

This Griffo dude is going to try and play us like a Stradivarius violin with this First Amendment public hearing of his, is my thought ….

Having some expert he went out and found somewhere out there coming in to tell him and the senate Republicans that the First Amendment of the United States Constitution supercedes and suspends the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution ….

And more the fools us, if we let him snow us under with yet more pure BULL**** coming out of the halls of government down there in Albany, New York …

And so ….

Comment by John Galt — June 12, 2007 @ 4:36 pm

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

[Livyjr]

"Spitzer Donor Sees Albany as Presidential Test - Skadden Arps lawyer Doug Dunham says that if reforms succeed, Eliot could be the next Grover Cleveland."

By Azi Paybarah

According to one of Eliot Spitzer’s major contributors, the success of the Governor’s reform agenda in Albany could end up being a test run for something much bigger down the road.

“I can certainly see him being a really viable contender for President if he’s able to get all these reforms through,” said Doug Dunham, a major Democratic fund-raiser who is counsel at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

By Mr. Dunham’s thinking, Mr. Spitzer needs to succeed in his plan to flip control of the Republican-led State Senate to the Democrats.

He would then be able to push through his agenda of reform, and could in turn parlay that into a successful bid for the White House.

“Certainly, reforming Albany was significant for prior Presidents from New York—for Franklin Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt and, before that, Grover Cleveland,” he said.

“They were all reform-minded Governors who occasionally had to be a little tough but did get reform packages through the State Legislature."

"Wasn’t always the easiest thing to do, but they succeeded eventually, and that laid the groundwork for giving them national reputations as reformers, setting them up for a Presidential run.”

In 2004, Mr. Dunham co-chaired the Committee of New York Lawyers for Kerry-Edwards, which reportedly raised $2.6 million.

By 2005, when Mr. Spitzer’s campaign was kicking into high gear, so was Mr. Dunham’s level of local contribution.

According to state Board of Elections records, Mr. Dunham gave thousands of dollars to both Mr. Spitzer and his running mate, David Paterson.

Not long after Mr. Spitzer’s landslide victory in November, the Governor turned his focus to taking over the Republican-held State Senate.

So did Mr. Dunham.

“I’m going to be working toward a fund-raising event in late spring,” Mr. Dunham said.

The purpose, he said, is to “raise money for winning back a Senate Democratic majority in ’08.”

When asked for comment, Mr. Spitzer’s spokeswoman, Christine Anderson, e-mailed this statement:

“Eliot is entirely focused on doing the job New Yorkers elected him to do."

"He is working hard every day to pass his budget and wider reform agenda and to bring about real change for the people of the state.”

You may reach Azi Paybarah via email at: apaybarah@observer.com .

This column ran on page 8 in the 2/26/2007 edition of The New York Observer.

http://www.nyobserver.com/20070226/2007022..._newsstory2.asp

"Senate GOP ignores Spitzer timetable on campaign reform"

By MICHAEL GORMLEY, Associated Press

Last updated: 6:33 p.m., Tuesday, June 12, 2007

ALBANY -- The Senate's Republican majority set their own timetable Tuesday for reforming New York's campaign finance laws, ignoring Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer's priority of tightening the laws by the end of the legislative session.

Senate Election Committee Chairman Joseph Griffo announced the Senate majority will begin its "round-table" discussions with invited experts on June 27 -- a week after the legislative session ends.

Those meetings could be followed by the public hearings that Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno had promised weeks ago.

nwhile, Spitzer still insists the Legislature must agree to substantial reforms of Albany -- including campaign finance reform -- before he will agree to another bill that would lead to pay raises for lawmakers

governor also asked for a new bill that would take the lawmakers' raise proposal out and let the widely supported measure to increase judges' pay stand alone

"ave long said that until we get the changes in government structure that I believe are necessary, I would not be supportive of a pay raisepitzer said.

"t continues to be my posture."

"We'll see how it plays out."

"I'm more than happy to have conversations about pay raises when -- if we get those other issues dealt with."

"I just think the first statement to the public needs to be: `We understand the people's business,'" Spitzer told reporters.

In an Albany tradition Spitzer hoped to avoid, the Legislature and the Democratic governor appear headed to a last-minute, big deal on disparate issues.

That could include Spitzer's campaign finance reform and the legislative pay raise most earnestly sought by the Assembly's Democratic majority.

It's also likely the proposed New York City traffic congestion fee could be a last minute issue.

The plan, supported by the Senate's Republican majority on behalf of its major benefactor -- Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is intended to reduce pollution and traffic in parts of Manhattan.

The legislative session is scheduled to end June 21.

"It appears like with a lot of issues around here, they are just letting the clock run out," said Barbara Bartoletti of the League of Women Voters.

She said most legislators hate campaign finance reform because, "It's how they get elected and stay elected."

"What we see in Albany is inaction, posturing and rhetoric," said Rachel Leon of Common Cause-New York outside the Senate Elections Committee meeting room.

The good-government groups, including the New York Public Interest Research Group, seek the closing of what they call a loophole in election law.

It allows a company that creates a limited liability corporation to face the same contribution limit as individual -- up to $55,900 -- instead of the $5,000 corporate limit.

An analysis by Common Cause recently found the Senate GOP's campaign committee received $580,000 from LLCs in 2006.

The groups seek to end the "LLC loophole" -- as was done in federal election law -- and to limit contributions by all donors to reduce the influence of money on decisions in Albany and the power of incumbency.

They also want to ban "soft money," contributions to a political party, but are no longer calling on the Legislature to adopt public financing of campaigns this year to level the playing field between incumbents and challengers.

Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who supports Spitzer's campaign finance reform, had no immediate comment.

Griffo, the Republican Elections Committee chairman, said the majority wants to research what changes are needed by talking to national experts.

"We want to do it, but we want to do it right," Griffo said.

"Involving experts in a public discussion to put together an effective bill is the right way to address the issue rather than trying to rush something through at the end of session."

"This isn't Vermont," Leon said.

"We have many compelling reasons and scandals to point to."

[Livyjr]

"Investigation launched after fugitive captured - Albany police chief wants to know how shackled man was able to escape from office"

By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Wednesday, June 13, 2007

ALBANY -- A parolee wanted in a double shooting was shackled and facing attempted murder charges when he walked out apparently unnoticed from the city detective office Monday night, Albany Police Chief James Tuffey said Tuesday.

Duane W. Morrison, 20, of Brooklyn, was caught four hours later in Schenectady, prompting Tuffey to launch an internal investigation into how the 6-foot-1-inch, 240-pound suspect escaped.

Back in custody, Morrison was arraigned Tuesday morning in city court, one of three men charged with the Sunday night shooting that left Deontint Davis, 26, of Albany, clinging to life.

Morrison had slipped out of a second-floor interview room at the detective office above South Station between Arch Street and Morton Avenue at 9 p.m. Monday night, Tuffey told reporters.

He was captured by a fugitive task force at 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

At the time of his escape, Morrison was being held on the parole warrant, shackled at his ankle to the floor, police said.

fey declined to discuss details of the escape -- including how police believe Morrison fled custody, whether his escape was captured on security cameras, how many officers were in the building or how he got to Schenectady.

The Office of Professional Standards, the department's internal affairs unit, began its probe by daybreak Tuesday, Tuffey said, vowing to "retrace every step" and make the results of the investigation public.

Investigators began interviewing on-duty officers late Monday night and into Tuesday morning, Tuffey said, adding that department policies would be reviewed.

"He was in our detective office, and that's all I want to say until the investigation is complete," the chief said, adding: "We believe we know what exit door he used."

The ranking officer at the time was a detective lieutenant who the chief declined to identify.

Tuffey stressed that city police -- working with federal marshals, drug enforcement agents and Schenectady Police -- were able to recapture Morrison.

Asked whether the public was ever in danger, the chief responded: "He was a danger before we brought him in," referring to Morrison's initial arrest.

The escape comes at an awkward moment for the chief and the department, less than a week after discord between Tuffey and the Albany Police Officers Union, spurred by a contract fight, spilled into public view.

The union president, Christian P. Mesley, said many of the younger officers resent what they see as Tuffey's bullying style of management and the union overwhelmingly rejected the city's latest contract offer as a message to department brass.

The union is in the midst of fighting Tuffey's new policy governing how long before work officers must refrain from drinking alcohol.

Tuffey is seeking to fire one officer who allegedly violated the policy last fall and suspended a sergeant who did not promptly report the alleged transgression.

Tuffey also has been under pressure from the Common Council to address what some of its members see as a gun violence problem.

Meanwhile Tuesday, Davis, one of the two victims in Sunday's shooting, remained in the intensive care unit at Albany Medical Center Hospital with rifle wounds to his shoulder and head, friends and authorities said.

"He's the peacemaker, that's what they call him," said Valerie Riley, who described herself as a close friend of Davis.

"He's a wonderful guy -- always smiling, always trying to help somebody."

Riley said Davis was an innocent bystander.

She said he had recently been working in a Central Avenue store with his father.

"I can feel the prayers," Riley said.

Jerry Cooley, 26, who was shot in the left leg, was no longer listed as a patient at St. Peter's Hospital on Tuesday, according to hospital officials.

Cooley is on parole for a drug sale conviction.

The two were shot on the porch of 84 Third Ave. with a .22-caliber rifle, according to court records.

Morrison was picked up by police Monday for questioning in connection with Sunday's shooting.

He and two other men -- identified as Tavarus Blackwell, 19, of Brooklyn and Siheen Drayton, 21, of Albany -- were charged with two counts of attempted murder in connection with the shooting, which police said appeared to be retaliation for a dispute Saturday.

Authorities declined to elaborate on what led up to the shooting or what led them to Morrison, Drayton and Blackwell.

Morrison's parole would have ended in late May had he not violated the terms of his release by failing to keep appointments, said Mark Johnson, a spokesman for the state Division of Parole.

Tuffey said his prior arrests included robbery.

In addition to attempted murder, Morrison is charged with felony second-degree escape and misdemeanor criminal impersonation for giving police a false name -- Shawn Battle -- apparently in an effort to conceal the fact that he had an active parole warrant, authorities said.

All three defendants are being held at the Albany County jail without bail.

Carleo-Evangelist can be reached at 454-5445 or by e-mail at jcarleo-evangelist@ timesunion.com.

[Livyjr]

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

"Death By Meeting"

June 12, 2007 at 4:31 pm by Jay Jochnowitz, State Editor

If campaign finance reform didn’t look dead enough this session, this should kill it: the Senate plans to hold a series of five forums on it, starting June 27.

Session adjourns June 21.

Senate Elections Committee Chairman Joseph Griffo suggested there’s not need to rush:

“Campaigns and elections are the very heart of democracy and any reforms to the system need to be aired in public and carefully thought out."

"Involving experts in a public discussion to put together an effective bill is the right way to address the issue rather than trying to rush something through at the end of session.”

The roundtable discussions, featuring invited experts on campaigns and elections, will start with one in Albany on First Amendment issues, and cover, according to the Senate press release, reform efforts in other states, accountability, disclosure, penalties and enforcement, transparency, campaigns by “527” organizations, bundling of contributions, and campaign loans.

Comments

Comment by John Galt — June 12, 2007 @ 4:36 pm: We’re being fed a bill of goods here by our own NYS Senate with this talk that in some way, shape or manner the First Amendment of the United States Constitution way operates to allow our incumbent elected state officials here in NYS to accept campaign money in any amounts, once they are elected and serving in office ….

We here in NYS are not governed by the 1st Amendment of the United States Constitution in our own state in connection with our dealings with our elected state officials and this question of whether, once elected, they have any right whatsoever to be out there on the street, holding out their hands for money, as if they were beggers or street walkers, when they are instead supposed to be engaged in the people’s business, since that is what they are accepting their paychecks for ……

We here in NYS are in fact governed by the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution, which document dates to 1777, whereas the U.S. Constitutional Convention which ultimately gave us the U.S. Constitution and its Bill of Rights did not even convene until 1787, after the American Revolution was over, when in a time of peace, it was becoming readily apparent that the Articles of Confederation which bound the 13 original states together in a time of war, were woefully inadequate to bind them together in a time of peace ….

And so, we ended up with the U.S. Constitution, circa 1789, here in NYS ….

But the U.S. Constitution does in no way alter the Bill of Rights of our NYS Constitution, or our relationship with our elected state officials here in NYS and in fact, the provisions of our NYS Bill of Rights here in NYS are far superior to the protections afforded to us as NYS citizens when we are in some other state of the union, and not NY, by the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution, including its First Amendment ….

So unless this Senate Elections Committee Chair Joe Griffo dude, a Utica-area Republican, is going to have some recognzed expert on the NYS Constitution in there during this alleged hearing, my take is that these hearings are nothing but a SHAM and a PUT-ON …..

On us, the citizens of the State of NY who are to be the recipients 24/7 of the protections of the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution ….

This Griffo dude is going to try and play us like a Stradivarius violin with this First Amendment public hearing of his, is my thought ….

Having some expert he went out and found somewhere out there coming in to tell him and the senate Republicans that the First Amendment of the United States Constitution supercedes and suspends the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution ….

And more the fools us, if we let him snow us under with yet more pure BULL**** coming out of the halls of government down there in Albany, New York …

And so ….

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

John Galt, are you saying that the NYS Constitution does not protect an individual's right to free speech or that the US Consitution does not apply to citizens of NY?

It would seem that if a NYS law restricts an individual's right to free speech in violation of Article I section 8 of the NYS Consitution it is likely that it would be violative of the US Constitution.

It would also seem that if a NYS law was violative of the First Amendment of the US Consitution it would likely be violative of the NYS Constitution.

Comment by phill — June 13, 2007 @ 7:21 am

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

[Livyjr]

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

John Galt, are you saying that the NYS Constitution does not protect an individual's right to free speech or that the US Consitution does not apply to citizens of NY?

It would seem that if a NYS law restricts an individual's right to free speech in violation of Article I section 8 of the NYS Consitution it is likely that it would be violative of the US Constitution.

It would also seem that if a NYS law was violative of the First Amendment of the US Consitution it would likely be violative of the NYS Constitution.

Comment by phill — June 13, 2007 @ 7:21 am

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

Comment by John Galt — June 13, 2007 @ 3:51 pm: phill, to answer your question as fully as I can, Sect. 8 of ART. I of the Bill of Rights of the NYS Constitution, which is part of OUR organic law here in NYS, most certainly does protect our right to free speech as NYS citizens within NYS:

§ 8. Every citizen may freely speak, write and publish his or her sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that right; and no law shall be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech or of the press. In all criminal prosecutions or indictments for libels, the truth may be given in evidence to the jury; and if it shall appear to the jury that the matter charged as libelous is true, and was published with good motives and for justifiable ends, the party shall be acquitted; and the jury shall have the right to determine the law and the fact.

The 1st Amendment to the United States Constitution, in the so-called add-on Bill of Rights, which did not come about until after the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, states:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The free speech clause of the Bill of Rights was added on to the U.S. Constitution as an after-thought after 1789, if you will, because people in states like NY were fearful of losing rights under the new federal government that they already possessed as citizens of their own states.

James Madison’s version of the speech and press clauses, introduced in the House of Representatives on June 8, 1789, provided:

“The people shall not be deprived or abridged of their right to speak, to write, or to publish their sentiments; and the freedom of the press, as one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable.”

That language, you will note, is very similar to what the people of the State of NYS already had in OUR Bill of Rights ….

Then a special committee rewrote Madison’s language to some extent, adding other provisions from Madison’s draft, to make it read:

“The freedom of speech and of the press, and the right of the people peaceably to assemble and consult for their common good, and to apply to the Government for redress of grievances, shall not be infringed.”

In this form it went to the Senate, which rewrote it to read:

“That Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and consult for their common good, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

Subsequently, the religion clauses and these clauses were combined by the Senate.

The final language was agreed upon in conference.

Since independent of the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, sect. 8 of ART. I of OUR NYS Constitution already clearly states that in the State of NY, “no law shall be passed to restrain or abridge the liberty of speech”, it can be seen that any attempt by our NYS government to do so would be a violation of OUR rights as NYS citizens here in NYS ….

If our state government attempted to restrain or abridge our liberty of speech here in NYS, I don’t believe, however, that the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution would be of much value to us, since that applies to Congress, and not the NYS legislature ….

And the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution does diddly-squat to protect responsible speech, anyway …

All it seems to do is to cover pornographers, not honest citizens ….

And with that said, with respect to the “strength” of OUR NYS Constitution protecting us as mere common citizens here in NYS, supposedly, anyway, this is what OUR NYS Court of Appeals had to say about the matter eleven years ago, in 1996, in Ricky Brown et al. v. State of New York, 89 NY2d 172:

“Constitutions assign rights to individuals and impose duties on the government to regulate the government’s actions to protect them.”

“It is the failure to fulfill a stated constitutional duty which may support a claim for damages in a constitutional tort action.”

“The underlying rationale for the decision, in simplest terms, is that constitutional guarantees are worthy of protection on their own terms without being linked to some common-law or statutory tort, and that the courts have the obligation to enforce these rights by ensuring that each individual receives an adequate remedy for violation of a constitutional duty.”

“If the remedy is not forthcoming from the political branches of government, then the courts must provide it by recognizing a damage remedy against the violators much the same as the courts earlier recognized and developed equitable remedies to enjoin unconstitutional actions.”

“Implicit in this reasoning is the premise that the Constitution is a source of positive law, not merely a set of limitations on government.”

Now, that legal analysis does not apply anywhere outside of NYS, so that a person in Massachusetts or Texas could not rely upon this law in their home state, and if we were to be traveling outside of NYS, and were to somehow come afoul of the laws limiting speech in some other state of the union, say Texas, we would likely have a great degree of trouble in relying upon this legal analysis regarding constitutional protections here in NYS from the NYS Ct. of Appeals in a court of law in Texas …

The point that I am making above is that neither the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution nor sect. 8 of ART. I of the NYS Constitution overtly give a citizen the undeniable inalienable right to give money to any politicians, and neither give any politicians the right to take money from anyone, once they have sworn their oaths and are now in office ….

For our NYS Senate to be attempting to justify their continuing to take money from people and corporations on 1st Amendment grounds is to me, a life-long NYS citizen, specious and a mockery of us as NYS citizens, as if we were just a bunch of ignorant schlubs out here, devoid of any knowledge whatsoever of our history and our laws ….

Sorry to be overlong, but your question demanded more than a two or three word response ….

And so ..

And by the way, phill, thanks for asking that question in the first place, so that this matter could then be addressed further in here, as it was for me in my formative years here in NYS way back when this stuff used to be taught to us in grade school out in the countryside after WWII …

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

[Livyjr]

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

Comment by John Galt — June 13, 2007 @ 3:51 pm: If our state government attempted to restrain or abridge our liberty of speech here in NYS, I don’t believe, however, that the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution would be of much value to us, since that applies to Congress, and not the NYS legislature ....

And the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution does diddly-squat to protect responsible speech, anyway …

All it seems to do is to cover pornographers, not honest citizens ….

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

Comment by John Galt — June 13, 2007 @ 4:04 pm: As to the weakness and uncertainty of the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Commentaries to the U.S. Constitution provide as follows:

Probably no other provision of the Constitution has given rise to so many different views with respect to its underlying philosophical foundations, and hence proper interpretive framework, as has the guarantee of freedom of expression–the free speech and free press clauses.

The argument has been fought out among the commentators.

“The outstanding fact about the First Amendment today is that the Supreme Court has never developed any comprehensive theory of what that constitutional guarantee means and how it should be applied in concrete cases.”

Some of the commentators argue in behalf of a complex of values, none of which by itself is sufficient to support a broad-based protection of freedom of expression.

Others would limit the basis of the First Amendment to one only among a constellation of possible values and would therefore limit coverage or degree of protection of the speech and press clauses.

For example, one school of thought believes that, because of the constitutional commitment to free self-government, only political speech is within the core protected area, although some commentators tend to define more broadly the concept of “political” than one might suppose from the word alone.

Others recur to the writings of Milton and Mill and argue that protecting speech, even speech in error, is necessary to the eventual ascertainment of the truth, through conflict of ideas in the marketplace, a view skeptical of our ability to ever know the truth.

A broader-grounded view is variously expounded by scholars who argue that freedom of expression is necessary to promote individual self-fulfillment, such as the concept that when speech is freely chosen by the speaker to persuade others it defines and expresses the “self,” promotes his liberty, or the concept of “self- realization,” the belief that free speech enables the individual to develop his powers and abilities and to make and influence decisions regarding his destiny.

The literature is enormous and no doubt the Justices as well as the larger society are influenced by it, and yet the decisions, probably in large part because they are the collective determination of nine individuals, seldom clearly reflect a principled and consistent acceptance of any philosophy.

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constit...ent01/07.html#1

As for me, I will take the certainty of the NYS Bill of Rights protecting my rights while a citizen here in NYS over the whims and vagaries of the U.S. Constitution, any day of the week, and the point still remains that nowhere does the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution explicitly give anyone a right to give money to a politician here in NYS, once that politician has taken the oath of office, and more to the point, the 1st Amendment does not give any authority whatsoever to any politician here in NYS to take money from anyone once in office, and while in office …

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4820#comments

[Livyjr]

THE ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

Comment by John Galt — April 10, 2007 @ 7:48 pm

With respect to this issue of “support” for Chief Judge Judith Kaye in her quest for more money for her pocket and for the pockets of her fellow judges in NYS, I personally am signing on to the thoughts of one of our fellow disabled veterans up here which were posted in the NY TIMES EMPIRE ZONE this morning with respect to this very issue:

April 10th, 2007 9:25 am

Emotional press conferences by Chief Judge Judith Kaye in a room filled with members of the state’s highest court, lawyers and representatives of business, district attorney and bar associations aside ….

http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp...sdate=4/10/2007

And flowery press releases by Ravi Batra aside, as well, the REAL ISSUE here has to do with restoring constitutional processes of government with respect to budgeting to WE, THE PEOPLE, who were not at all in attendance at this press conference, nor were we at all represented in this press conference called by Judge Kaye, which is quite a telling statement about where matters now lie in NYS with respect to the lack of independence and integrity of the court system in NYS, given that lawyers and representatives of business were in attendance at this press conference.

In 1996, in Ricky Brown et al. v. State of New York, 89 NY2d 172, the New York State Court of Appeals stated:

“Constitutions assign rights to individuals and impose duties on the government to regulate the government’s actions to protect them.”

“The underlying rationale for the decision, in simplest terms, is that constitutional guarantees are worthy of protection on their own terms without being linked to some common-law or statutory tort, and that the courts have the obligation to enforce these rights by ensuring that each individual receives an adequate remedy for violation of a constitutional duty.”

“If the remedy is not forthcoming from the political branches of government, then the courts must provide it by recognizing a damage remedy against the violators much the same as the courts earlier recognized and developed equitable remedies to enjoin unconstitutional actions.”

“Implicit in this reasoning is the premise that the Constitution is a source of positive law, not merely a set of limitations on government.”

IF Chief Judge Judith Kaye wishes to restore integrity to the state court system here in NYS, and if she wishes the people to believe that the court system here in NYS is not simply another willing mouthpiece for the politicians, perhaps what Judge Kaye should have done was to quote from OUR Constitution at this emotional press conference of hers, and she should not have been seen standing in a room full of lawyers and representatives of business while discussing “horse-trading” with the Legislature, which does not represent OUR interests as mere state citizens, and the “STEAMROLLER”, who is seen by WE, THE PEOPLE as having less integrity than the Legislature.

Judith Kaye appears to want money in her pocket a lot more than she seems interested in equal justice for us here in NYS, for which the sentiment out here in the countryside is that she and her court system are not worth a dime.

And so …

— Posted by Livyjr

http://empirezone.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/0...peace/#comments

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4359#comments

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"Biz leaders rip paltry N.Y. judge pay scales"

BY JOE GOULD, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 13th 2007, 4:00 AM

Rookie lawyers at nearly 100 local law firms make more than state judges - and business leaders say it threatens to lower the quality of New York courts.

Heavyweights such as Zagat survey publisher Tim Zagat, ABC News President David Westin and public relations czar Howard Rubenstein showed up at a breakfast sponsored by the Association of the Bar of the City of New York yesterday to support pay raises for the state's jurists.

"The idea that first-year associates at law firms are paid more than judges is shocking to me," said Zagat, who called the situation "absurd."

Some 98 firms started new hires at $160,000, excluding bonuses, according to a New York Law Journal article.

Meanwhile, pay for New York judges is the second lowest in the nation when adjusted for the cost of living, according to a National Center for State Courts report.

"We all want a first-rate justice system for the State of New York," said Barry Kamins, president of the New York City Bar Association.

"We need it to protect the business interests in this, the business capital of the world."

Top salaries for New York judges have been $136,700 a year since January 1999, while inflation has risen 30% since 1996, the report notes.

In 2004, 28 judges had outstanding pension loans, but as of March, there were 117 judges - about 10% of the entire judiciary - who have outstanding loans against their pensions.

The substandard pay is hindering the courts from attracting and retaining talented judges.

"The future of the judiciary is at stake," said Chief Judge Judith Kaye.

The raises have become a bargaining chip in a stalemate between Gov. Spitzer and the Legislature, according to Kaye.

Legislators have refused to grant judicial pay raises without pay raises for the Legislature.

Spitzer won't approve legislative raises without the Legislature's cooperation on campaign finance reform.

"We're caught in a deadly squeeze," said Kaye.

"The judges are hostage to the other branches of government at the cost of an independent judiciary."

jgould@nydailynews.com

http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/bronx/...pay_scal-1.html

This post has been edited by Livyjr: Jun 13 2007, 04:09 PM

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"Biz leaders rip paltry N.Y. judge pay scales"

BY JOE GOULD, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 13th 2007, 4:00 AM

"We all want a first-rate justice system for the State of New York," said Barry Kamins, president of the New York City Bar Association.

"We need it to protect the business interests in this, the business capital of the world."

http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/bronx/...pay_scal-1.html

ALBANY, NEW YORK TIMES UNION CAPITAL CONFIDENTIAL BLOG:

ITEM: Chief Judge Judith Kaye renewed her threat to sue over judges’ salaries …

JOHN GALT REPLIES: And what a load of crap this judicial salary business is getting to be!

Click on this link:

http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/bronx/...pay_scal-1.html

Which takes you to a NEW YORK DAILY NEWS story entitled “Biz leaders rip paltry N.Y. judge pay scales” by JOE GOULD, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER, Wednesday, June 13th 2007, 4:00 AM, where you will find this following:

“We all want a first-rate justice system for the State of New York,” said Barry Kamins, president of the New York City Bar Association.

“We need it to protect the business interests in this, the business capital of the world.”

end quotes

NEWS FLASH, there, Barry Kamins ….

We citizens of this state don’t have judges here in NYS to protect business interests ….

We citizens have judges here in NYS to protect OUR rights from transgressors like business interests ….

We don’t want judges who are blatantly biased towards protecting business interests here in NYS ….

We want judges who are in there to dispense justice, fairly and impartially …

This sounds like a QUID PRO QUO deal here, to me ….

Big business comes out to lobby on behalf of hefty raises for NYS judges, in return for which the judges then protect the interests of business, against us ...

And so …

Comment by John Galt — June 13, 2007 @ 6:29 pm

http://blogs.timesunion.com/capitol/?p=4824#comments

[Livyjr]

"Guilty pleas in mortgage fraud case"

The Business Review (Albany) - May 10, 2007

The owners of a Clifton Park real-estate business have pleaded guilty in federal district court to bank fraud and income tax evasion.

Matthew Kupic and Francis Disonell, both 37 and both of Clifton Park, admitted their participation in a mortgage fraud scheme that they ran between March 2000 and August 2003.

The two men were the owners of Team Title Abstractors and Real Estate Consultants, which was located on Route 9 in Clifton Park.

The charges carry potential penalties of 30 years in federal prison and a million dollar fine for bank fraud, five years in prison and a $100,000 fine for tax evasion.

The two men will be sentenced in September.

The two men also agreed to forfeit $600,000 each, according to U.S. Attorney Glenn Suddaby.

Prosecutors accused the two men of defrauding banks and other mortgage lenders by securing excessive mortgages for residential properties through the use of phony loan applications and settlement statements.

They then diverted the mortgage funds for their personal use.

Kupic and Disonell would find below market properties the owner was selling and that needed substantial repairs.

They found buyers for those properties and promised them ownership of income-producing properties and money to make the needed repairs.

Kupic and Disonell would then either provide the buyers with the money they needed to close the deal, or they would put money into their bank accounts to increase the chance of the lenders approving the loans.

That money was then withdrawn when the loan was finalized.

Sales contracts and other documents were falsified as part of the scheme, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Phony documents were used to make it appear the properties would be rehabilitated.

Through a complicated series of multiple purchases, the pair disguised the purchasers' actual financial status.

Once the loans were made the sellers received their actual asking price for the property not the price that the false loan application specified.

Kupic and Disonell shared in the extra proceeds.

Between them the two men were said to have diverted $1.9 million to themselves and others in 54 real estate transactions.

The total amount of the mortgages issued was $3.6 million and in most cases the properties went into foreclosure soon after the deal was done.

http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/...07/daily32.html

[Livyjr]

"Brunswick superintendent to fight for job - David T. Burnham has been on paid leave over unspecified conduct"

By KENNETH C. CROWE II, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, June 14, 2007

BRUNSWICK -- Brunswick Central School Superintendent David T. Burnham, who has been placed on paid leave, has done nothing wrong and will fight to keep his job, his lawyer said Wednesday.

The Board of Education voted 9-0 Tuesday night to place Burnham on administrative leave from his $135,000-post, effective June 5, while his conduct as superintendent is investigated.

"This action was unnecessary and hasty."

"My view was that they were creating issues and perceptions that were unnecessary," said Burnham's lawyer, E. Stewart Jones.

Jones said he could not directly address the conduct issues raised by the school board.

He said it did not involve criminal activity.

"It's conduct that is totally unrelated in his role and function with the school district as superintendent."

"It's purely a private matter," Jones said.

The school board issued a statement after its vote saying it is constrained in what it can say about Burnham's conduct because it is a personnel issue.

"This was an extremely difficult decision that the Board of Education did not take lightly," Mary Roach, the attorney for the school board, said in the statement.

"The board understands that this action will undoubtedly trigger questions and concerns among our staff, students and community members."

"However, as a matter of policy the school district will not comment publicly on personnel matters," Roach said.

Burnham, 59, was named superintendent in December 2006, after serving as interim superintendent.

He previously was superintendent of the Greenville school district.

He also was principal of Philip Livingston Magnet Academy in Albany and John L. Edwards Elementary School in Hudson.

He taught for 18 years in the Voorheesville school district.

The school board named former Shenendehowa Superintendent John Yagielski acting superintendent at a daily rate of $600.

[Livyjr]

"Malta developer says plan isn't tied to AMD - Work on Malta's Ellsworth Commons retail, housing complex to begin in summer"

By DAN HIGGINS, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

First published: Thursday, June 14, 2007

MALTA -- Town officials near Luther Forest Technology Campus expect a boom in retail and real estate near the proposed Advanced Micro Devices computer chip factory.

But the developers of Ellsworth Commons, a dense mix of apartments and shops, expect success regardless of AMD.

Construction on Ellsworth Commons -- a development of 22 upscale townhouses, 310 lofts and apartments, and 73,000 square feet of retail space -- will begin this summer in Malta, about 5 miles from the future home of AMD's chip fab.

Town officials said they want to create a downtown environment, including one that would be attractive to AMD workers.

Neil Swingruber, one of two members of Albany Partners LLC, said demand exists for his project with or without jobs provided by the computer chip manufacturer.

"Of course, any kind of development that creates jobs would be great, but we have been with our project for the last two years, far before AMD offered us any firm commitment," Swingruber said.

He said his other development in Malta, the 235 luxury Steeplechase apartments, is full after a year of operation, showing that rental and condominium demand remains high.

Malta Supervisor Paul Sausville said Ellsworth Commons might have passed muster with the town's Planning Board, but he believes it's too large to be a blueprint for all future building projects.

"We have no ambitions to be Saratoga Springs."

"We want a village environment," he said.

That said, he acknowledged AMD's arrival will make it important for the town to be attractive to employees who will be looking for someplace to live.

Malta is a community of 13,000, many of whom live in far-flung subdivisions and shop at small plazas.

But under a plan begun in 2000, town leaders want to create a "downtown" area that will give the community a center and offer more choices for housing and shopping.

Town officials mapped out a swath of Route 9 near Route 67 around which, they hope, careful zoning and planning will eventually produce a downtown.

"We want it to be walkable and have the shopping and amenities that our residents want," Sausville said.

The Ellsworth Commons plan is the first attempt to bring that vision to life.

It will be built on the east side of Route 9, across the street from Malta Town Hall, not far from Northway Exit 12.

Peter Klotz, chairman of the Planning Board, said Albany Partners designed the Ellsworth Commons project to fit almost exactly with the planning documents the town drew up in the last seven years, as it molded its plan for a downtown.

"In some ways this is the first of that kind -- they looked at our plans and built a project based on what we described," he said.

Klotz, however, also said Ellsworth Commons' proposal, despite hewing closely to the town's plans, is larger than envisioned.

Another large development, called Park Place, is under review by the Planning Board.

It would be just south of the new roundabout on Route 9 at Route 67 and would contain 115,000 square feet in retail and commercial space, 235 apartments or condominiums and 50 single-family homes.

"It would be OK to have two or three large developments like that, but not five or six," Klotz said.

Higgins can be reached at 454-5523 or by e-mail at dhiggins@timesunion.com.