Hundreds Without Power In Brooklyn, More Asked To Cut Back

BROOKLYN, NY [NY1] — As of Sunday evening, Consolidated Edison was still working to restore power to hundreds of Brooklyn residents, while thousands more were forced to sweat through another summer scorcher without any air conditioning after the utility asked them to cut back on non-essential electrical appliances.

Rikers Guard Accused in Cop-Killer’s Escape Plot

NEW YORK , NY — A jail guard is under investigation for allegedly trying to help an accused cop-killer escape from prison.

The Rikers Island officer slipped a handcuff key to Lee Woods, one of three men charged with killing Brooklyn police officer Russel Timoshenko, according to the Daily News.

Politics Failed, but Fuel Prices Cut Congestion

NEW YORK, NY — Soaring gas prices and higher tolls seem to be doing for traffic in New York what Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s ambitious congestion pricing was supposed to do: reducing the number of cars clogging the city’s streets and pushing more people to use mass transit.

In May, with gasoline at more than $4 a gallon, traffic at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s bridges and tunnels dropped 4.7 percent compared with the same month the previous year.

Circling for Parking Wastes Gas, Harms Environment

NEW YORK, NY — New York City drivers waste hundreds of thousands of miles just looking for a parking space.

That’s the finding of a new study by the group Transportation Alternatives.

Bill Passed Authorizes Traffic Agents To Enforce “Block the Box” Violators

ALBANY, NY [NY1] — City and state officials are looking to up the ante on drivers who sit the middle of an intersection.

It’s already illegal to “block the box” –- but currently, only police officers are allowed to hand out tickets. However, today the State Senate and Assembly passed legislation that increases enforcement by giving traffic enforcement agents the right to ticket drivers, as well. They also want to double fines.

A Young Man From Omaha, Who May Perfectly Represent Brooklyn

BROOKLYN, NY — Moments before Yosef Abrahamson, 16, accepted an award for the essay he’d written in a competition sponsored by the Police Athletic League, an officer approached him to complain about his fedora. The hat, an essential wardrobe item for Hasidic men, was gaudy, the policeman told him, and what’s with all these kids today and their nose rings and their attitudes. A second police officer, overhearing the conversation, came over to steer away the first one, who reappeared a few minutes later to apologize. He’d never seen a Hasidic Jew, he told Yosef.

Jackson Heights City’s Parking Ticket Capital

A trip to Jackson Heights, Queens, will get you some great food, a colorful trinket – and likely, a parking ticket.

The neighborhood, along with adjacent East Elmhurst, is the parking ticket capital of New York, according to new numbers obtained by the Daily News.

More in the Extended Article.

Lawn Litter Woes? Call A Notary

Litter on your lawn? Call a notary public.

That’s what fedup homeowners may have to do if they want a new state law banning the dumping of menus, leaflets, handbills and circulars on their doorsteps and lawns enforced.

The law leaves enforcement to the Sanitation Department, which is planning to require complaints to be notarized.

New York City Braces for Heat Wave

NEW YORK, NY — If you haven’t installed your air conditioner yet, Friday might be the day to do it.

That’s because New York this weekend will be sweltering through a brutal heat wave, the first of 2008.

Daytime highs will soar above 90 degrees from Saturday to Monday, according to Accuweather.com. And the high humidity will make those afternoons feel as though it’s hotter than 100.

NYPD Officers to get Bigger Paychecks

NEW YORK, NY — Under a new contract, members of the NYPD will soon be getting a raise.

Officers in top positions can expect a raise from $59,588 to $65,382. New officers will now start at $35,000, a jump from $25,000.

Protesters Arrested at Bell Verdict Rallies

NEW YORK, NY — The Rev. Al Sharpton and nearly 200 demonstrators were arrested Wednesday as they blocked traffic at the height of the evening rush hour to protest the acquittals of three detectives in the 50-bullet shooting of an unarmed black man.

Police estimated that about 190 people were arrested, including Sharpton, two survivors of the shooting and the slain man’s fiancee. They lined up and peacefully put their hands behind their backs as police arrested them on disorderly conduct charges.

Patrols Pulled off Brooklyn Streets After Threat to Shoot Cops Exposed

BROOKLYN, NY — Dozens of cops were pulled off the streets in Brooklyn Saturday night after NYPD officials were tipped off to a plot to shoot patrolmen, police sources said.

Officers were taken off their foot patrols in East New York, and cop cars were positioned to block a route to the 75th Precinct stationhouse on Sutter Ave. for fear of a drive-by shooting.

The extraordinary measures were taken after a confidential informant – who works with the Brooklyn narcotics squad – told police around 6 p.m. there was a plan to shoot up the Brooklyn stationhouse, sources said.

Retail Gas Hits Record $3.50 A Gallon

NEW YORK (AP) — Rising gasoline prices tightened the squeeze on drivers Monday, jumping for the first time to an average $3.50 a gallon at filling stations across the country with no sign of relief.

Crude oil set a record for the sixth day in a row — this time closing above $117 a barrel — after an attack on a Japanese oil tanker in the Middle East rattled investors.