NYC NOW - October 23, 2024: Evening Roundup

Episode Date: October 23, 2024

A new study finds banks are charging higher interest rates on mortgage loans to Black New Yorkers. Plus, the Working Families Party finally tracked down Anthony Frascone, the mystery candidate who's running in a competitive Hudson Valley district. Also, WNYC's Samantha Max reports, legal experts expect New York City's subway system to play a central role in the trial of Daniel Penny. And finally, WNYC's Jon Campbell looks into the city's handling of an influx of migrants and its effect on key races in other parts of the state.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm Jared Marcel. A new study finds that black New Yorkers are being charged higher mortgage rates compared to other borrowers. The nonprofit new economy project analyzed lending by Bank of America, Citibank, and JPMorgan Chase from 2018 to 2023. They say black borrowers faced higher interest rates and were more often denied refinancing loans. Will Spiesack is the senior program associate at the nonprofit. He says homeownership has been cited as a way to even the racial wealth gap. But now we're seeing evidence that even through homeownership,

the banks are finding ways to continue to extract additional wealth, additional fees from those black homeowners. A spokesperson for J.P. Morgan Chase says the analysis doesn't take into account credit scores or percent of a property's value covered by the loan. Citibank declined to comment, and Bank of America has not yet responded. The Working Families Party finally tracked down a mystery candidate who's running on their line in a competitive Hudson Valley District. WNYC's Rigged Bergen has more. Earlier this month when I rang Anthony Frescone's doorbell, a man who declined to identify himself, told me to leave my card at the door.

Sure, leave the car. We'll make sure he gets it. Leaders from the Working Families Party, including co-chair Anna Maria Archela, tried again this week. They think Frescone is a Republican plant trying to spoil the close race between Democrat-Modeman. Mondare Jones and freshman Republican representative Mike Lawler. This time, he opened the door. So we want to understand what your intentions really are. So because you made that statement, completely incorrect. Despite their efforts, Frescoen would not talk issues.

He said his platform was Jesus Christ. Jury selection is happening this week in the trial of Daniel Penny, the former Marine charged with choking and killing Jordanili on the subway last year. Legal experts expect one key witness to play a starring role in Penny's case, New York City's public transit system. More on that after the break. This is NYC now. Jury selection is underway this week in the trial of Daniel Penny. He faces charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the death of a homeless man named Jordan Neely.

Prosecutors say Penny went too far when he put Neely in the chokehold for about six minutes. on an Uptown F-Train. As WNYC's Samantha Max reports, legal experts expect New York City subway system to play a central role in Penny's trial. Daniel Penny has said he was listening to music on an Uptown F train when Jordan Neely boarded and started yelling.

Penny says he took out his headphones and put Neely in a chokehold because people were scared. Soon, someone on the subway started filming. Where are the cops? The cops. The four-minute vets. video shows Penny on the floor with his arm wrapped around Neely's neck. The clip went viral.

It underscored deep divides in the city and sparked protests. Justice Ward! Jordan Neely had once danced around the city as a Michael Jackson impersonator. But more recently, he'd been homeless using drugs and cycling in and cycling in and out of treatment for schizophrenia, according to court records. Penny is a former Marine from Long Island. Some people called him a hero. All this was playing out as many New Yorkers were concerned about crime, mental illness, and homelessness on the subway after the pandemic.

Now, jurors will have to decide whether it's reasonable for commuters like Penny to take matters into their own hands when they feel unsafe on the country's largest subway system. The subway is a microcosm of all of this. Todd Spodak is a defense attorney who isn't connected to this case. You're not, you know, in a large area where you could just walk away. You're stuck. Attorney Vinu Vargis says he expects Penny's lawyers to try to pick jurors who can empathize with Penny and other riders who were scared on the subway that day.

I think people are fed up with what they have to deal with on the subway. But Vargis says he doesn't think broader, questions about subway safety will come up much in the prosecution's case. He says the DA's office will likely focus more narrowly on Penny's decision to keep squeezing Neely's neck and we'll tell jurors. He just went too far. You know, the danger, to the extent that there was danger was over, and he kept hold on this guy and he's a trained military guy.

He's not your ordinary citizen. And so he should have known that he was going to kill this guy. Virgis says he's not sure what jurors will decide. It's a tough call and it'll come down to what they think and whether they like him. You know, and I think if he testifies, he'd better be likable. Otherwise, he's going down. Last week, I stopped by the Broadway-Lafayette station. That's where the train stopped after Penny put Neely in a chokehold.

Brooklynite Nadia Bellav told me she knows what it's like to feel scared on the subway. Sometimes people are screaming, sometimes people, I've seen a guy throw stuff, and then you're in the car as it's moving and someone is throwing something, and then at that point you no longer know what the person will do. So you're like, what do I do? Like, I don't want to be in the middle of this if something goes down. Belov says when something like that happens, she normally switches cars at the next stop. So does Alviel, who I also happen to meet at the station.

He says he was friends with Neely, and he says there was no need for a chokehold. Life is bought worth living, but for him to do what he did, he's going to have to pay the price. Al says if he were the one on the train that day, he would have walked away. That's WNYC's Samantha Max. New York City doesn't have any competitive congressional races in this year's general election. But as WNYC's John Campbell reports, the city's handling of an influx of migrants is having an effect on key races in other parts of the state. If you've been on Long Island recently, there's a decent chance you've seen this ad. I'm Laura Gillen, and I'm here at the border of Nassau County.

She's there to talk about a different border between the U.S. and Mexico, some 2,000 miles away. Gillen is running for Congress against Representative Anthony Di Esposito. and she's trying to push back against the idea that Democrats are weak on border security. I will work with anyone from any party to secure our southern border. You probably wouldn't have seen a Democrat run an ad like this a couple years ago. But now, immigration policy is a huge issue in a handful of key congressional races in New York City's suburbs and beyond. And that's thanks in part to the city's struggle to shelter tens of thousands of migrants, some of whom were housed elsewhere in New York State.

I think when it comes to my opponent and I, we are just diametrically opposed. That's Representative Mark Molinaro. His district stretches from the Hudson Valley to Ithaca. He's made border security a huge issue in a tough race against Democrat Josh Riley. His opponent is a lawyer who helped fight against two of Donald Trump's border policies, has ban on refugees from largely Muslim countries, and has pushed to end protections for certain immigrants who arrived as children. This guy works for a Washington-D-Eas law firm.

wanders the halls of Congress, lobbying, advocating, and pressuring for policy. And his policy pressure was to dismantle Trump border security. It's simple as that. Riley's launched his own ad to push back against Republican criticism. On the border, I've opposed the president. And I'll fight for real solutions. He says he wants to hire more border agents and judges to handle asylum claims. He faults Molinaro for failing to support a bipartisan border security bill in the Senate,

which Trump reportedly pushed to kill. And he's got nothing good to say about New York City Mayor Eric Adams' decision to house some migrants in upstate hotels. He's been a complete failure on this. And it's just another example of upstate New Yorkers being forced to foot the bill for stupid policies out of New York City. The races on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley could help determine which party takes control of the House of Representatives.

As it stands, Republicans have a narrow majority. Every seat is on the ballot. November 5th. That's WNYC's John Campbell. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNYC. Catch us every weekday, three times a day. I'm Jared Marcel. We'll be back tomorrow.