NYC NOW - October 3, 2024: Midday News

Episode Date: October 3, 2024

A Manhattan judge is hearing testimony in the case against Daniel Penny, who faces manslaughter charges for fatally choking Jordan Neely on an F train in 2023. Meanwhile, the NYPD is adding more officers and cameras to synagogues and other locations citywide during the Jewish High Holidays. Plus, federal prosecutors say a Brooklyn developer, accused of illegally funneling money into Mayor Eric Adams’ 2021 election campaign, later sought the mayor’s help on a building project. Finally, as Mayor Adams faces multiple corruption charges, Governor Hochul is weighing in. WNYC’s Jon Campbell has details on what she and the Mayor have been discussing.

Welcome to NYC Now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WMYC. It's Thursday, October 3rd. Here's the midday news from Veronica Del Valle. Patton Judge is hearing testimony today in a high-profile case that brought new attention to the issue of subway safety in the city. Daniel Penny is facing manslaughter charges after he choked Jordan Neely to death on an uptown F-Train last year. Penny has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers say Penny was protecting his fellow passengers after Neely began yelling and acting erratically. Penny's trial is set to begin

later this month. Both prosecutors and defense lawyers are expected to ask the judge to bar some evidence they say could prejudice the jury against their case. The NYPD says it's deploying more officers and cameras to synagogues and other locations throughout the city during the Jewish high holidays. The 10-day period between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur also includes the October 7th anniversary of Hamas's attack on Israel. Rabbi Chayam Steinmetz is the senior rabbi of congregation Ki-Aulath-Jashirun on the Upper East Side. He says while the increased NYPD presence is helpful, they've had to hire even more security. enough to make our congregation feel safe. They want thorough security that they can see all the

time. And so what we do is we provide extra security out of our own pocket. NYPD officials say canine units will be sweeping sensitive locations, and additional aerial units will also be deployed. Federal prosecutors say a Brooklyn developer accused of funneling thousands of dollars in illegal contributions to Eric Adams's 2021 campaign. later asked the mayor for help on a building project. As WNYC's David Brand reports, that developer was constructing a 56-unit luxury condo complex that was under a stop work order from the city's buildings department.

To live, Manceroff and four of his employees donated $10,000 to Adams in 2020. Prosecutors say it was an illegal straw donor scheme encouraged by the Adams campaign, and that, in exchange, Manseroff texted Adams directly in 2020. 23, asking for help in lifting the building department's restrictions. Eight days after sending that text, records show the stop work order was partially rescinded, allowing Mansov's company to add additional floors to the project. A building's department spokesperson said the order was lifted because the developer scheduled an appointment with a city inspector. But prosecutors say Manseroff later thanked Adams by text for his assistance.

The building at 408, Lefferts Ave, and Brooklyn is still under construction. Building's wrapped in scaffolding. Some construction workers just invited me inside to see if anyone who was available to talk. No one's talking right now, so I'm just walking around. It's still a skeleton of a building. Mansoroff is now trying to sell the building for just under $42 million. He didn't respond to multiple requests for comment. Adams is denying any wrongdoing.

Stay close. There's more after the break. With a criminal case swore. around New York City Mayor Eric Adams and questions about who's going to remain at City Hall ever present, New York Governor Kathy Hockel is weighing in. My colleague Tiffany Hanson spoke with Albany reporter John Campbell for details on what Governor Hockel and the mayor have been discussing. Let's just talk about why it's important for us to understand what the governor's thinking is right now. Well, the mayor was indicted last week on federal corruption charges. That includes fraud, bribery, and soliciting illegal campaign donations, the indictment alleges Adams accepted these extravagant travel

perks from Turkish nationals in exchange for favors, like pressuring the FDNY to allow a new Turkish consulate to open despite safety concerns. And people have called for Adams to step down, which he said he isn't going to do. But the governor actually has the power to remove him on her own. That's thanks to state law and the city charter. So so far, Governor Hockel hasn't started that process. Remember, prior to the indictment, the mayor had been a pretty significant ally to her. But we do know that she's talked to the mayor multiple times since he's been indicted.

And we also know that she's implicitly using that removal power as leverage in those talks. Well, if we know she's talking to the mayor, do we know what she's pushing the administration to do? Can you tell us about that? Yeah, I've spoken to multiple sources with knowledge of what the governor's seeking, and basically she's pushing the mayor to clean house. She wants him to get rid of some of the aides in his administration that remain under investigation by the feds. And that started to happen on Monday. We saw Tim Pearson, one of the mayor's most trusted aides, stepped down.

He's been the subject of various lawsuits and investigations, and the governor basically said it's a start. I'm working to make sure that the key positions working with the mayor are filled with people that are going to be responsible, but it is ultimately his decision to make those. Then late last night, the mayor's office announced the city schools chancellor, David Banks, would accelerate his departure. He had been set to leave at the end of the year. Now he'll leave October 16th. We also learned some of the governor's top aides held a call with. state agency commissioners and top staffers on Tuesday. They basically told them to increase their

public presence in New York City. They want to project that the government's still functioning. Well, John, there's obviously a power dynamic here. So I'm curious how Mayor Adams is responding to all of this. Well, I mean, the mayor knows that the governor has a lot of power here. And he said positive things about their conversations in public. He's highlighted what they've done together. He's acknowledged that the governor has asked him for things. But this is a political minefield for the governor, too. Mayor Adams is only the city's second black mayor, and so far, some of the city's top leaders in the black community are sticking by them. That's people like the Reverend Al Sharpton and Hazel Duke's of the NAACP. So if Hockel's going to remove the mayor, that means she's

risking alienating those leaders, and more importantly, the communities they represent. spoke with Columbia professor Basil Smichael, who used to be the executive director of the state Democratic Party. If she does this and it doesn't appear as though she has the support of a lot of the black and Latino leaders, I think the voters will feel as though she usurped their power. And that's tough for a governor whose approval rating is already very, very low. All right, John, we've got one minute left here. So just tell us the mayor was back in court yesterday. What's new?

The big thing we learned is there may be more charges to come. Prosecutors say they're weighing additional charges against the mayor or maybe other people in his orbit that they think may be involved in this alleged scheme. And while that may sound like it adds to the amount of allegations against the mayor, his lawyer is trying to make the case that it actually undercuts the government's initial case against them. He's saying, you know, the charges are so weak that prosecutors need to find charges that'll actually stick. That's pretty consistent with the mayor. defense strategy so far. His attorney, Alex Spiro, has motioned to have a bribery charge tossed.

All right. John Campbell, WNYC's Albany Reporter. Thanks so much for joining us to talk about the conversations between Governor Hokel and Mayor Adams and, of course, catching us up on all of the latest. We do appreciate it, John. My pleasure. Thanks for listening. This is NYC now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day. For your top news headlines, and occasional deep dives. Also subscribe wherever you get your podcast. We'll be back this evening.