even the attorney general seems not to understand or care that ny pml sec 109 does not apply to nassau otb or and is unconstitutional
ny const art 1 sec 3 is safely hidden from barbara underwood's sight
a lawyer is simply a high priced errand boy
Claude Solnik
Long Island Business News
2150 Smithtown Ave.
Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348
Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays
Stop scratching on holidays
Published: June 1, 2012
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
Officials: NY Catholic dioceses subpoenaed in sex abuse investigation
The state attorney general's office has also launched a clergy abuse hotline and an online complaint form to provide information as part of the investigation.
New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood is seen in Albany on May 15. Photo Credit: AP/Hans Pennink
The New York attorney general's office has subpoenaed all Roman Catholic dioceses in the state as part of an investigation into sexual abuse of children by clergy, church officials said Thursday.
The subpoenas are part of a civil investigation into how the eight dioceses reviewed and potentially covered up allegations of extensive sexual abuse of minors in the state, a source familiar with the investigation said.
Attorney General Barbara Underwood does not have the power to take criminal action, and is seeking to join with district attorneys on a criminal investigation statewide, the source said. District attorneys are the only authorities that have the power to convene grand juries to investigate these matters.
The attorney general's office also launched a hotline and online complaint form for victims of clergy abuse and others with information.
Sex abuse victims advocates hailed the decision, saying it was a major breakthrough that might lead to the type of grand jury report released last month detailing the alleged sexual abuse of children by clergy in Pennsylvania over decades.
Richard Tollner, who says he was sexually abused by a priest in the Diocese of Rockville Centre in the 1970s, said he was "elated" by the state's investigation.
“This is very good news for victims, their families, and those out there who still feel that the church hasn’t met up to its burden" of telling the full truth about the abuse, Tollner said.
The Archdiocese of New York said Thursday it had received a subpoena and would cooperate with the attorney general.
"While we have just received a subpoena, it is not a surprise to us that the Attorney General would look to begin a civil investigation, and she will find the Archdiocese of New York, and the other seven dioceses in the state, ready and eager to work together with her in the investigation," Joseph Zwilling, a spokesman for the archdiocese, said in a statement.
The archdiocese since 2002 has shared with the 10 district attorneys within the archdiocese "all information they have sought concerning allegations of sexual abuse of minors, and has established excellent working relationships with each of them," Zwilling said. "Not only do we provide any information they seek, they also notify us as well when they learn of an allegation of abuse, so that, even if they cannot bring criminal charges, we might investigate and remove from ministry any cleric who has a credible and substantiated allegation of abuse."
The Diocese of Rockville Centre, which ministers to 1.5 million Catholics on Long Island, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
William Donohue, president of the Manhattan-based Catholic League, said Underwood was singling out the Catholic Church and not investigating other institutions.
The move "is manifestly unjust and indefensible," Donohue said in a letter to Underwood. "Are you saying that the sexual abuse of minors is peculiar to Catholic institutions?"
John Salveson, who alleges that he was abused by a priest in an Oyster Bay parish starting in 1969 when Salveson was 13, said the attorney general's decision was great news.
“The missing piece in this issue has been the civil and criminal authorities getting involved, the attorneys general, to hold these institutions accountable," he said. "This is what should happen in every single state."
Underwood also said Thursday any victims and others with information can call a clergy abuse hotline or use an online complaint form to provide information as part of the investigation.
Victims and anyone with information about abuse can call the hotline at 800-771-7755 or file a complaint online at ag.ny.gov/ClergyAbuse, the attorney general said in a news release.
“An investigator will review all allegations; the Attorney General and our law enforcement partners will seek to protect victims’ and witnesses’ identities,” it said.
In August, the Pennsylvania state attorney general's report detailed the alleged sexual abuse of at least 1,000 children by about 300 priests over a 70-year period.
The New York attorney general’s Criminal Division said last month it was seeking to partner with district attorneys to investigate and, if warranted, prosecute any individuals who have committed criminal offenses that fall within the applicable statutes of limitations.
“The Pennsylvania grand jury report shined a light on incredibly disturbing and depraved acts by Catholic clergy, assisted by a culture of secrecy and cover ups in the dioceses," Underwood said Thursday. "Victims in New York deserve to be heard as well — and we are going to do everything in our power to bring them the justice they deserve."
The attorney general noted that many cases of abuse may not be able to be prosecuted because of New York’s statutes of limitations. Under current law, victims only have until age 23 to file civil suits or seek criminal charges for most types of child sexual abuse, Underwood said. Some of the most serious child sex crimes have no time limit for bringing criminal charges, but that applies only to abuse that occurred in 2001 or later.
Underwood said she has repeatedly urged the legislature to pass the Child Victims Act, which would allow all victims to file civil suits until age 50 and seek criminal charges until age 28.
"Make no mistake: the only way that justice can fully and truly be served is for the legislature to finally pass the Child Victims Act,” she said.
The State Assembly has passed the act in the past, but it has languished in the State Senate. The Catholic Church has vigorously opposed passage of it, saying it could bankrupt the church by opening it to multimillion-dollar court settlements.
Instead, several dioceses, including New York and Rockville Centre, have launched Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Programs in which victims receive financial compensation but must agree not to sue the church. The amounts awarded are far less than what victims might receive in court cases, according to attorneys who have handled such cases.
Underwood urged victims to take part in the civil investigation, "even if they believe that their information may be outside the statute of limitations for a court case," the statement from her office said.
"All victim information will be helpful to understanding and reforming the institutional approach of the Church, regardless of whether an individual case can be prosecuted," it said.
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