NYC NOW - Midday News: Primary Day Turns Up the Heat at the Polls, NYC Warns of Heat Stroke, Con Ed Reduces Voltage in Brooklyn, and Family of Queens Teen Killed by NYPD Files Lawsuit

Episode Date: June 24, 2025

New Yorkers are casting ballots in today’s primary election, with candidates making their final appeals as record temperatures grip the city. Meanwhile, city officials are warning residents to watch for signs of heat stroke as the extreme heat continues. Also, Con Edison is reducing voltage by 8% in parts of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Bushwick, Greenpoint, and Williamsburg and asking residents to limit energy use while crews make repairs.Plus, the family of Win Rozario, a Queens teen fatally shot by police during a mental health crisis, is suing the NYPD, the city, and the officers involved.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Tuesday, June 24th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill. Voters are heading to the polls today to cast a ballot in New York City's primary election. Former City Councilmember Ruben Wills was greeting voters outside of an election site this morning in Queens. Will says even if the two frontrunners, Andrew Cuomo and Zoran Mamdani, present them. as opposites now, they would be wise to find some common ground to court voters before November. So I think whichever one of them wins, I think they're going to naturally have to rely on the

other one to secure a base and make sure we can govern effectively. But it's also possible they'll still be in competition with each other. Cuomo said that even if he loses the Democratic primary, he'll run in November on a different ballot line. The Progressive Working Families Party, which says Mamdani is its number one pick for mayor also says it is prepared to run a candidate in the general election. Polls closed tonight at 9 o'clock. The heatway blanketing the region isn't just unpleasant. New York City officials warn the extreme heat could also be dangerous.

According to city data, more than 500 city residents on average die of heat-related causes every summer. Emergency management officials say New Yorkers should be aware of the signs of heat stroke, which can include hot, dry skin, confusion, nausea, trouble breathing, or loss of consciousness, heat stroke is a serious condition that takes place when a person's body temperature rises too quickly. Officials say New Yorkers who witness symptoms should call 911. And Con Edison is asking customers across the fibroles to take it easy out there on their energy consumption today amid this heat wave. Don't use washers, dryers, and other things during the day. Sunny in 95, it feels like 102, sunny and 99 today feeling hotter like 102.

the calm wind. This is WNYC. Stay close. There's more after the break. The family of a queen's teenager who police shot and killed in front of his family is suing the city, the NYPD, and the officers involved. Police killed WN Rosario in his ozone park home after he called 911 in the throes of a mental health crisis. WNYC, Samantha Max is here to tell us more. Sam, this story generated a lot of coverage when happened, including here on WNYC. Well, let's take a minute to remind ourselves what happened and why this was so controversial.

So this was in March of 2024. A 19-year-old named Wyn Rosario called the police on himself, but he was posing as a parent to report what he described as erratic behavior, according to this lawsuit that was just filed by his family. So the lawsuit says that he had experienced depression and anxiety throughout his life. he had even been briefly hospitalized a couple of times. But the lawsuit says that in the last six months he had been feeling better. He was taking medication, getting mental health treatment.

But on this particular day, something was off. So two officers arrive at his family's Ozone Park apartment. They talk outside with Rosario's younger brother. Then they go upstairs to the apartment. From there, body camera footage shows chaos unfolding. Rosario picks up a pair of kitchen scissors. His mom manages to get them out of his hand, but an officer fires his taser, and then Rosario picks the scissors back up again, moves toward the officers.

Throughout this encounter, Rosario's mom is trying to get the scissors away from him, pleading with officers not to shoot, and his brother is begging his mom to get out of the way and crying for officers not to shoot them. Get out of the way. Now, fight from him. Then less Please do not shoot my own. I'm not going to, but

Then less than two minutes after these officers walk inside, one shoots Rosario once in the arm and then four times in the chest according to the lawsuit, and he was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

What does the family hope Sam to get out of this lawsuit? Well, they want compensation for what they consider to be the violation of Rosario's rights. and the emotional distress that they experienced going through all of this, watching him get killed right in front of them.

The lawsuit says Rosario's mom and brother, they actually weren't allowed to go to the hospital after he was shot. Instead, it says that they were taken to the police department for questioning. The officers only informed them of his death after asking their questions, according to the lawsuit, which also says that they weren't allowed to go into their home for three days, even to get medication or feed the family cat. And when they did go home, the cabinets were still covered in blood. The family also wants to see policy change in the city's response to mental health crises.

Here's one of their attorneys, Luna Jurby. This case exemplifies exactly why police should not be handling any response to anything related to mental health. They are ill-equipped. They repeatedly escalate and they cause harm, including death. Rosario's parents and brothers say they want to prevent other families from going through a loss like this. Now, WNYC Sam has reported on multiple cases over the years of New York police officers shooting and killing someone in a mental health crisis. I'm curious, what steps has the city taken to prevent these types of encounters from turning deadly? Well, the lawsuit says that at least 20 people in the midst of a mental health crisis have been killed by police in New York City since

2015. Researchers have found that people with serious mental illness face a higher chance of police use of force. And the city has done some things to try to improve its response to mental health emergencies. There have been new trainings for NYPD officers several years ago. The city launched a program called BeHeard that sends mental health workers to some 911 calls. But it doesn't operate 24 hours a day and it hasn't been implemented in, you know, more than half of NYPD pre-sexuals. still doesn't operate in the precinct where Rosario was killed, and it also doesn't respond in situations where there's a known threat of violence. So they might not have even responded in Rosario's case. Sam, just a couple of seconds left here, but we have to answer this question.

Have the officers who responded to Rosario's 911 call faced any discipline, any criminal charges? So no discipline at this point. The Attorney General's office is still investigating and has not decided at this point whether to bring criminal charges. I should note that the NYPD has not responded to my request for comment. The law department says it's still reviewing the lawsuit. And Patrick Hendry, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, that's the police officers union, said in a statement that this case underscores the difficult reality that police officers face when they're responding to so many calls. WNYC, Samantha Max. Sam, thank you for this. Thanks, Michael. Thanks for listening.

This is NYC Now from WMYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives. And subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See you this evening.