NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: Student Activist Released from Federal Detention, How an Outdated NYPD Form Landed a Person in Jail, Century-old Elm Trees Struck by Disease and NYC’s Queer History Book

Episode Date: April 30, 2025

A federal judge orders the release of Pro-Palestinian student activist Mohsen Mahdawi from detention. Plus, an NYPD paperwork snafu has landed someone in jail. Also, the Prospect Park Alliance is cutting down one-third of the trees in the Dog Beach Elm Grove because of Dutch elm disease. And finally, historian Marc Zinaman released a coffee table book documenting 100 years of queer history in New York City.

A student activist is released from federal detention, how an outdated NYPD form landed a person in jail, century-old elm trees struck by disease, and New York City's queer history books. From WMYC, this is NYC now. I'm Jenei Pierre. Pro-Palestinian student activist Mosin Mehadawi is free to return to Columbia University's campus, at least for now. A federal judge in Vermont ordered Mahadawi's release from federal detention while court proceedings in his deportation case continue. A judge ruled the 34-year-old was neither a flight risk nor a threat to public safety. Mahadawi has been a legal permanent U.S. resident for more than a decade.

He was detained by U.S. immigration officers on April 14th in Vermont, on ground that his views were a threat to U.S. foreign policy. The judge's order allows Mahidawi to return to his home in Vermont and continue attention. spending classes at Columbia. A paperwork snafu has landed someone in jail. According to records obtained by WMYC, the NYPD used an outdated 11-year-old form to put a person in jail when the law states they should have just been released with a ticket to appear in court. And it has to do with changes in the law in 2020. That's WMYC's Charles Lane.

He says the change is something called desk appearance tickets. Essentially, you get arrested and you're fingerprinted and processed, but instead of waiting for hours or sometimes days to enter a plea at arraignment, you're given a summons to show up at court at a later date. Arraignments can be a very slow process, and so the idea that lawmakers had was for low-level crimes to don't make those people wait around in jail all day, have them come back another day. That's the law. It was enacted in 2020, and it says for misdemeanors like shoplifting or drug possession or harassment, these people, are given tickets and released. Charles says there are exceptions to the law. That's where this form comes in.

There's a number of conditions where police are supposed to hold defendants for arraignment instead of giving them tickets. Things like if they skipped their last court date or if there's a new offense on top of one that they're already in court for, just things like hay crimes or sex crimes or domestic violence or, you know, other things. Prior to the 2020 law, there were even more exceptions that the NYPD used. and the form Charles got his hands on was from 2013 before the law. But it was used as recently as 2024 after the law.

So NYPD used a form written for the old law with more exceptions on it, and someone was jailed based on this old paperwork. The form Charles obtained was redacted, so we don't know the person's name. But what I got says that this person was denied a desk appearance ticket on grounds that are not in the current law. An officer consulting an old form held a person in jail for reasons that are no longer legal. This person was arrested for obstructing government administration, which is a very broad category for nonviolent crime that may include something like yelling at a police officer or blocking an intersection during a protest. These charges are very frequently dropped. An NYPD spokesperson didn't offer an explanation for why the old form was used in 2024.

But Charles says the NYPD issues desk appearance tickets at a much lower rate than other departments in the state. Last year, NYPD issued 25,000 desk appearance tickets, but had they given them out at the same rate as other departments, it would have been 50,000. And we know of at least one case now that it was because of old paperwork. But for the other 25,000 people, we don't really know what their story was. That's WMYC's Charles Lane. The Prospect Park Alliance is cutting down one third of the trees, in Dog Beach Elm Grove because of Dutch elm disease. More on that after the break.

The Prospect Park Alliance says it has to cut down three nearly century old trees. WMYC's Catalina Gonella recently visited the grove. I'm at 50 right now. Arborist Malcolm Gore is counting the rings on a tree stump at the top of a hill in Prospect Park. I got to 90. The tree that stood here just a few hours ago

is estimated to have been around 100 years old. It was one of nine American elms that make up the dog beach Elm Grove, a popular spot named after the nearby dog swimming area. They have lots of limbs that are equal size, all kind of branching out in different directions. So people find them very beautiful because we have like this sprawling, wide type of stature to them. Gore is with the Prospect Park Alliance.

He says the tree died after being infected by Dutch elm disease, which can kill trees. Here, high foot traffic and a drought last fall added to the elm's stress. Two others in the grove have also died. They're marked with a red bullseye. Gore says they'll need to be cut down too. It hurts, you know, I've put a lot of work into this grove and we lost one. this spring we lost three, so it's sad to see them go, but it is part of the job also. You know, you kind of, you learn to live with it.

He says removing the trees reduces the risk of the disease spreading to the groves other trees. It'll also prevent dead limbs from potentially falling on anyone walking by. He explains the commotion to curious park goers like Brian Wachtell. I mean, Dutch Elma is like a famous killer of these trees, so I know that this is the park's little collection, here is so sad to see and losing so many. A fence to prevent foot traffic is being reinstalled after Park staff took it down to remove the first tree.

It'll remain in place for at least a year to help the soil recover and hopefully preserve the health of six remaining trees. That's WMYC's Catalina Gonella. Several years ago, historian Mark Zinneman watched two back-to-back documentaries about the legendary Studio 54. This led him down a rabbit hole of New York City history.

WMYC's Ryan Kaila explains. The documentaries mentioned all these other clubs, Crisco Disco, Gigi's Barnum Room, The Mineshaft, that sounded amazing. We're nightlife spaces in history were not meant to be photographed or documented in, like, historic archives or mass media. And so where do you start to look for imagery? Ziniman began sharing his research on Instagram and connecting with people who had personal stories and, photographs from the era. Now he's releasing a coffee table book, documenting 100 years of queer history in New York, from Harlem speak-easies and prohibition to mob-run drag clubs in the 40s.

Queer happened here is out now. Before we end the show, how about a cool fact about the city we all love? On this day, April 30, 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States, and the ceremony happened in. at Federal Hall, right on Wall Street. The now museum and National Memorial served as the country's capital building back then. Washington's inauguration was attended by hundreds of citizens, both houses of Congress, American officials, and New York State nobles,

as well as diplomats from France and Spain. And before the inauguration, a military salute was fired by artillery near Fort George. Pretty cool, right? Well, that fact is courtesy of Mount Vernon.org. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jenae Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow.