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CHJCC Gag Order: D.A. Hynes not Intimidated

In a series of statements issued over the weekend, the Catholic League distanced itself from the edict issued by the Beth Din of Crown Heights, warning residents against bringing “to any media outlet, information about any resident that could, if publicized, lead to an investigation or intensified prosecution by any law-enforcement agency”.

In a statement issued Friday on its website, Catholic League spokesperson William Donohue said:

“In an edict to its 10,000 members, the Beth Din of Crown Heights warned against creating bad relations with the police. Fine. But it also said [click here and see #4] that ‘No one shall bring to any media outlet, information about any resident that could, if publicized, lead to an investigation or intensified prosecution by any law-enforcement agency’. In other words, if a rabbi rapes a kid, no one is to report it to the cops.”

The statement continued, “I am writing to Brooklyn D.A. Charles Hynes asking him if he would have any objections if the Diocese of Brooklyn adopted the same policy.”

Shortly afterward, Mr. Donohue posted that he is “happy to report that Brooklyn D.A. Charles Hynes responded quickly and honestly to my news release on the Beth Din of Crown Heights controversy.”

According to Donohue, Hynes’s email said in part that “in the 21 years I’ve served as Brooklyn’s District Attorney I have never been deterred by anyone including the various Beth Dins in Brooklyn from fulfilling my responsibilities as the Chief Law Enforcement Official of Kings County.”

Hynes went on to say that “nothing can interfere with my authority to investigate and prosecute any allegation of crime in my County.”

In an attempt to distance itself from the Crown Heights ruling, Mr. Donohue added that “this is reassuring. I want to make it clear that D.A. Hynes has the support of the Catholic League—we very much appreciate his forthrightness.”

It should be noted that the ruling has not been universally accepted by all Crown Heights residents, and has been publicly challenged by many of its residents who see portions of the ruling as tantamount to obstruction of justice and as one that allows criminal behavior to go unreported by its victims.

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38 Comments

  • Rabbi Hynes

    I think that he should be part of our bais din. He is not afraid to speak the truth

  • shocked

    It has been unheard of until now for someone to speak out against a Bies Din, and it all starts from the fact that we Yidden dot respect our Botie Dnim, so how can we expect from a Goy to respect it either. It is a very sad time for Yidden who are Shomer Torah Umitzvos, to see our Toah and Rabbonim being shoved down the toilet.

  • SHOMRIM SIX

    TO D.A. HYNES, THEY USE YOU WHEN THEY NEED YOU. THEY USED YOU TO TRY AND TAKE DOWN THE SIX MEMBERS OF SHOMRIM. YOU FAILED, AND NOW THEY TURN ON YOU. THEIR IS NO HONOR AMONGS THEIVES.

  • Ethical opinion please!

    I think the Assistant D.A. is a Lubavitcher living in CH. What does he think?

  • Beware!

    D.A. Hynes, if you believe in justice, then why did you let the CHJCC pressure you in going forward with a bogus trial that was the laughing stock of your court and the justice system?!!! To advance your political agenda or theirs? Well, this edict falls in the same category, they want to advance their political agenda and they don’t care for anyone who stands in their way – one day is was the Shomrim, today it’s you, tomorrow there will be someone new. The CHJCC has one message, we are your friend as long as you do what WE want you to do, if not, we’ll do what we have to to get you out of our way! Beware!

  • See how the corrupt slams the corrupt!

    They are both wrong!
    The beis din is clearly putting CH residents at risk by deterring victims from reporting crimes.
    And Hynes is wrong, because for a hefty bribe, his office has many a time been deterred from enforcing the law!
    Caught between the two is the normal, law-abiding citizen. Ouch!

  • kudos to #2

    This whole thing is over-blown, as usuual. The intention of the bais din was simply NOT to have too many irresponsible spokespeople speaking to further their own agendas. This has been a problem in this community going back to just after the riots in “91.

    One of the responsibilities of the CHJCC is to represent the community to city agencies, including the police department. If you have issues, complaints, etc. GO THROUGH THEM. What’s so hard to understamd!?

  • MOISHE BINYOMIN YOSULSON

    theire is no beis din, theire is no one whom to critisise, a beis din needs 3 rabbonim and theire is only 2 rabbonim (if they can be called rabbonim at all…) AND TO YOU SO CALLED RABBONIM: IT IS TIME TO BECOME -POSHUT MENTSHEN-YOU WILL NOT FULL THE WORLD ONLY YOUR SELFS…

  • To my dear, sad buddy, Moe

    Moe, you are a real moron. Mr. Hynes is not Jewish, that’s #1. Secondly, he is more supportive and HELPFUL to Crown Heights than the CHJCC which supports meseira, thievery, violence etc.

    I have not always agreed with Charles Hynes & I’ve stood up & said so. But if I had to choose who is there for us, I’d say he was, above & beyond the Vaad & as much as it pains me, the Rabbonim.

    You see, my poor Moe, the Rabbonim are puppets of a corrupt system. Are you familiar with the expression “he who pays the piper, plays the tune”? The CHJCC controls their salaries, so they are the employers. Like good little employees, the Rabbonim do everything they’re told. Which is why it speaks in Pirkei Avos about the need for impartial judges.

    Lastly, if we have a gag order not to speak ill of the police, don’t you think you should SHUT THE HECK UP about our DA? Surely he is part of the system & you can’t pick & choose what part of the Psak you decide to follow.

    Me? I don’t follow ANYTHING they say. Any shailohs, I go outside Crown Heights. I’m not a stupid sheep.

  • what is going on?

    Can someone explain what is going on? The only logical explanation is that our Rabonim have an unethical relationship with the local police, and individuals have “disturbed the peace” and the rabonim are willing to destroy their relationship with their own community in order keep the relationship with the local police on good standing. Without an explanation our rebanim CAN NOT expect compliance or respect, nor can we know that they have the community’s best interests in mind. I think the best thing would be to disband the vad, disband the BesDin, disban shomrim and shmira, and start over again with a newly elected vad.

  • proudCH-er

    who told you he s jewish?? this is a first… but he is an upright, sincere person..

  • antimesira

    To Moe:

    Last year when the Shomrim Six sat on trial Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes was only able to do what he does, which is prosecute people, only with the help of Jews, Jews who consider themselves frum/religious, Jews who came to testify with hats and jackets (Yechi Kippas and pins), Jews who pretended to need a hat when making blessing on the witness stand, Jews who even sat in the Mesira (witness) stand with a Davar Malchos.

    These Seven Mossrim (http://www.mosrim.com) did what they did with the help – financially and emotionally- and encouragement of people -mossrim of Crown Heights.

    Mainly:
    Paul Huebner
    Henna White
    Chanina Sperlin
    Mendle Hendel
    Elie Poltorak
    Yanklr Spritzer
    Yanky Prager
    Yossi Stern
    Leib Skoblo
    The CHJCC
    The ULY 770 Yeshiva (let them stay in 749 until today).
    And many many more individuals, all the above think themselves as frum Yiddin. All the above walk in 770 like heroes (walking in 770 is not saying much, but still).

    In Short:
    Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes did what the Mossrim leaders here in Crown Heights wanted him to do!

    Since last years Mesira, there is NO more MESIRA!
    Mossrim have no rights when it comes to Mesira!

  • NoMesira

    News Flash: Charles Hynes will be presenting Mica Machshefa with the Helen Thomas Award for Journalistic Bias and Pandering. The award, an ankle length burka, will be presented by Ali Cohen, Sheikh Zaki Tamir, and Chanina Sperlin.

    MC of the event will be Mel Gibson.

    PS Hynes is NOT Jewish.

  • Wow

    This is unbelievable, there are so many illerate people in this world. I don’t love the “edict”, but it never said people shouldn’t go to the cops, it said they shouldn’t go to the MEDIA.

  • Wow continued...

    And asking people not to talk to media- well, there are cases where they shouldn’t, a person who is not sure if something is against halacha needs to ask their personal Rabbi about their specific case. I don’t see how limiting freedom os speech makes sense, and it probably wasn’t wuite the intention anyway, but as for me, I live in this country thank G-d and appreciate the basic right to free speech…

  • an educated consumer

    I have to agree with #18. I sent in TWO respectful, articulate posts to Mica’s Place & neither was posted. Why? Because I dared to disagree with all those calling for this site’s shutdown & the Hershkopfs’ blood in a calm & respectful manner.

    I also (shock! gasp!) dared to disagree with this “psak,” WOW! A shanda! Someone relatively intelligent, educated, & capable of independent thought (a rarity round here!) actually opposes the establishment. Moreover, I spoke against the CHJCC (again, calmly, without rancor or name-calling.)

    Mica’s Place is a euphemism for bias, hate, & divisiveness. It is NOT fair or balanced reporting, because it will not post anything that a) disagrees with the goose-step mentality of “it’s our way or the high way”; & b), it won’t publish anything written by someone with a good grasp of grammar & style (not to mention knowledge of the topic under discussion.) I know this because I have deliberately misspelled, used poor grammar, & portrayed myself as yet another illiterate Crown Heights peasant & lo & behold! My words of incomprehensible drivel were posted!

    Don’t worry, CrownHeights.info: the public knows that when we want to read all points of view we can get it from this site. You will even allow Shmira’s name to be mentioned!

    Kol HaKovod for lively discussion!

  • We hold these truths to be self evident

    Since when do we need to agree with our Rabbi’s about political strategy??? Hey we don’t even have to agree with our close family members or spouses about these things. In general the chjcc is very pro-democrat. good for them. I still appreciate the services they provide to the community, BUT I am not a democrat, and if they call me, as they have, and ask me to register as a democrat to help them gain leverage etc, well go fly a kite, thanks for your input, this is the USA after all… (Yeah NYC is kind of confused about this compared to the rest of the country…)

  • Livin on the outskirts of a community

    Ma Kesher?

    What is all the whining about?
    Either your part of a community and willing to work with the community or your not. Get over it.

    And to the editor or this line “In other words, if a rabbi rapes a kid, no one is to report it to the cops.”. No, it doesn’t say that. If thats how you interpret it, you clearly have unresolved issues you need to speak to a therapist about. (I suggest one out side the community for discretion.)

    I see it as a way to avoid the whole ”Hedi&Mendy YouTube clip nearing a million hits. So by all means… Keep the dirty laundry in the community. Keep it off national television. I believe the same people wrote the doctrine on not having a television in the home regardless… so whats all the fuss about?

  • Wanda Ring

    With all due respect, I think the Rabbonim did go a bit too far over here. Their words were not carefully chosen. If the intention was to prevent media circuses and confusion in the public eye as to who speaks for the Crown Heights Community, fine. No individual outside the appointed community leaders has the right to represent him/her self as speaking on behalf of the community.

    The Psac went far beyond this and should be clarified and cut back somewhat. Maybe there is a core point here though that individuals in the community should themselves cut back on some of the inflammatory political rhetoric which has been all too prevalent, and increase in ahavas yisroel and shalom in the schuna.

  • ch resident

    when the cop on the street gives a ticket or harasses someone on the street or is looking and creating problems in the streets of CH, it is because this edict is coming from on high. There is someone in the place of authority in the decision making capacity who is making these rules and it only gets filtered down to the police on the street. Who are the bosses who are doing this? this is not done in BR or Williamsburg. CHCC has to form relationships etc.

  • crown heigts resident

    Allyou itiots voted in rabbi shwei it serves you right
    crown heigts resident

  • Better Dead than COLLIve

    Mica represents the worst of what some of Chabad has become today. Pandering to incompetent politicians and authorities, Barney the Dinosaur love everyone nonsense, pics of beardless former chassidim who throw a few bucks around in exchange for coverage (including one of the most notorious slumlords in CH whose rental policies are a major reason for the increase in crime in the shechuna), and coverage of events of little import by third string shluchim who are just on shlichus because their fathers or shverim gave them jobs and who undoubtedly are also paying her for coverage.

    She printed coverage of utter nonsense (apology to the mother of the victim of Martin Grossman AH) by an out and out former Lubavitcher who blogs against Chabad and insults the Rebbeim. I pointed this out to her and to Yudi Ceitlin and was ignored. That was the last straw for me – if I want to read farbissiner nonsense so I can brech after a few too many lechaims I can read the Failed One or Ha’aretz.

  • Chayalee

    Ever heard of censure? Reminds me of the fascist regime in the 1930s with Mussolini. Later adopted by hitler himself rematch shemo. Propaganda and censure??!! We are better than that. Remember Dina demalchusa Dina …

  • Suck up to goyim

    Hynes, you are not the first tough guy. Stalin was there before you. He too said that no jewish rabbies will interfere with his persecution of the jews.

    Now all you liberals in crown heights, keep sucking up to our freindly media and freindly law enforcment who will be your savior from all sorts of victimization and abuse.

    But when they take away your religous freedom, as hitler did, and as hynes will, don’t complain

  • blame game

    Don’t blame Hyens from the Shomrim Six trial, from his point of view it made sense, Jew were willing to testify against Jews, thats not his problem, he was doing his job.

    The blame of that Mesira stays in the streets of Crown Heights as ‘antimesira’ wrote above.

  • My Comments

    I’m not one of those people who love to complain about how terrible Crown Heights is. In fact, I was not raised here, and I chose to move here, and start a family here. I was married here, and I send my children to schools here. I know Crown Heights has its flaws, but this is my home, and this is where I choose to be. Crown Heights is a special place and I strongly believe the Bracha of the Rebbe is strong here. Something I know we all believe.

    It’s with all that said that I am so saddened to see what is unfolding around us. If there is a PR war being fought here, everyone is losing, and losing badly. No one group will be able to stand up and say “can’t we all get along”, because each group is seen to have its ties to rival groups.

    The only people that will end this divisiveness will be the people themselves. It’s not this group or that group, it’s not that body or this body. It’s us! It must begin with us. At first I thought it was the websites that were the problem, but I think it’s too easy to place the blame on them. Many of the problems stem from the comment sections.

    While we can put pressure on all the websites to better moderate the comment sections, wouldn’t it be better if we moderated ourselves? After all, the articles may be written by the websites, but the comment sections are ours alone.

    As for the issue at hand, people on the street will only continue to talk and get agitated unless they hear from the police and are assured that they are safe. The recent murders and the discovery of a dead body near the Lubavitcher Yeshiva on Crown Street only serve to scare regular people. When people are scared it’s easy for them to believe the police are the bad guys.

    No one wants the police to be successful more then the residents of the town they are sworn to protect. But the police and the leaders of our community must do a better job in showing that this is serious and that they have a handle on the situation.

    If everyone does their part, and we, the people, do our part in moderating our own speech. This will go a long way in repairing the current situation.

    As someone who wishes to continue to raise his family here and spend many more years getting Nachas from my children and this community I really hope we can get passed all of this.

  • #21 ur rite

    i cant agree with#21 more. i worte something. and it was an opinon other then her motive and it was not posted. it was not bias at all. just a respectful opinon. so if you really want to know whats on the ppl minds. reed this website not the website paid for by sperlin and co. zakie i voted for you. what a mistake. amnot looking to take sides i just want the truth and it seems like it wont happen or i shall not give up. wel wait until something really stupid happends and we will wake up

  • They-re stupider than they think we are

    How stupid does the Catholic League think the general public is?

    It is crystal clear to all that Mr. Donohue is ashamed of what so very many Catholic Priests have been shown to have committed, and now he’s grasping at straws to try to minimize Catholicism’s “elephant in the living room,” by trying to make it look like Orthodox Judaism is COMPARABLE to Catholicism in this problem area.

    Not to minimize the SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER degree to which this abuse occurs in our Orthodox world! But for the Catholic League to interpret the Beis Din’s recent edict this way is ABSOLUTELY JUVENILE!

    Even those Crown Heights Jews who don’t agree with the recent edict do not for a minute have any reason to think that the Beis Din is trying to keep Frum victims of abuse from reporting it! There are issues with the edict, but that is not one of them! The edict was issued for other reasons!

    If frei Yidden or goyim want to read things into the edict that only confirm their prior prejudices against the Yidden, that’s their problem.

  • Victor Ostrovsky

    It is no secret that the Brooklyn Administration for Childrens Services (“ACS”) and the Brooklyn Family Court Judges routinely get pressured by the Crown Heights Hassidic Jewish Community to either squash or destroy any and all Sexual Abuse allegations or investigations against Crown Heights residents/sexual abusers. If you are a Pedophile/Child Sexual Abuser, move to Crown Heights, New York. The FBI, NYPD, and ACS is powerless to either investigate, prosecute, or convict you there. And Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Andrew Cuomo, Assemblyman Dov Hikind, and Andrew Weiner will do nothing to help those sexually abused children either. This city sucks.

  • Catholic worried about Jew rapists? HA!!

    Why is the Catholic church worried that rabbis will rape kids? I thought that was a Catholic problem. Hey, Donahue, don’t try to throw your problems on our laps!!

  • Mesira still lives on!

    PAUL HUEBNERS $144 MILLION DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST THE SHOMRIM SIX IS STILL VERY MUCH ACTIVE.

  • Milhouse

    #28, Dina demalchusa was dina in Mussolini’s Italy too, and in Germany and in Russia, no less than in America. Now what was your point again? Or did you have one?