When Chief John Kapica first took over as Police Chief almost 18 years ago - Halloween night was one of the most aggravating evenings for residents and the police. Residents experienced property damage throughout the town. Teens roamed the streets scaring property owners. At times cars were burned. Chief Kapica, to his credit, addressed the problem by assigning many police to different sections of the town on Halloween night. He advised school districts to notify students that they would be taken into police custody if caught defacing property. We even sent a police bus to neighborhoods to take gangs of teens who were causing trouble to the police HQ.
Every Halloween night since the Chief took office, the Chief & I have patrolled the streets of Greenburgh on Halloween night. We have stopped by at homeowners who have experienced problems in the past and we check the police radio during the evening --monitoring activity around town.
I am very pleased to report that last night was the quietest Halloween in memory. Although we saw some police confiscate eggs in one neighborhood, Halloween pranks were minor -almost non existent.
Chief John Kapica will be retiring as Chief at the end of this month. I want to thank the Chief for his leadership --helping to make Halloween a safe experience for children and parents. The town will continue to provide the police with the resources necessary on Halloween night. I will continue to patrol the streets of Greenburgh on Halloween night with the police department. Captain John DeCarlo, who assumes office as Chief, was part of the team that organized our successful response to Halloween night and is committed to continuing town wide patrols on Halloween
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52 comments:
Not too good with the house burglaries and car breakins but fantastic with the egg confiscations.
Why don't you patrol all the roadways not only on Halloween just to see how disgusting and dirty Greenburgh has become.
many of the complaints that have been made about certain vehicles always parked on the roads have gone to deaf ears.
Come see for yourself the problems that we the residents who drive to and from schools have to put up with.
The police will not take care of the situation unless the mighty one gives the orders.
The only thing that we the residents are good for is to pay thru the nose for the big salaries plus all the parklands.
Be a sport and visit the areas we wont bite but we do expect some answers from all the complaints that were made from dirty roadways,
illegal parking ,work being done during the weekends to refurbish homes into multi family,construction being done posibly without permits.
If these sites have permits why is it that the town inspectors pass all this by.
when the town could be making a lot of money .
The is no sense in complaining to the building dept. because there is too much paper work on each complaint.
Paul didn't you notice that it was raining? Could that be the reason it was quiet?
No of course he did not mention the rain. ,another example of openness and transparency. The streets were empty.
I feel safe knowing that Feiner and the new chief will be on joint patrol.
Smoking joints are illegal
Mr. Feiner not only deleted the entire topic that this post originally appeared in at greater length but he has also deleted it here today.
Taken from Mr. Rosenberg's launch of his new invective against me.
Scroll up to 10/31 @ 10:13am for the substantiation.
"I had a good idea that Mike would be fired a few days before the famous speech to the ECC, because two members of the Town Council told me with anger that Samis had foiled for a Kolesar document before they, as Board members had even received it. Indeed, I became angry with Samis because I believed that he was the major cause for Kolesar’s firing. To him it was more important to be constantly on the attack, and if compromising Kolesar was the result then that was OK with Samis."
Mr. Rosenberg ends his posting(s) with the caution that does not intend to respond to me further at length because:
"Now go to it, Samis and friends. There will be nothing more from me except short postings that say “He lies again.”
10/31/2009 10:14 AM"
Following this I authored a number of posts asking Mr. Rosenberg to confess to his own sins but he has, so far, decided to take the blog equivalent of the fifth amendment.
It is fitting and ironic that according to Mr. Rosenberg's take, that Mike Kolesar was fired because he leaked information. That has not been verified and will be decided by a Court at such time when and if Mr. Kolesar decides to do so and has the funding to pursue such a remedy.
But for the purpose of outing Mr. Rosenberg and to pose the notion that what's good for the goose is good for the gander, let's take a short trip down memory lane -- short because I do have an offline life to attend.
A few years back, Mr. Feiner leaked information to Mr. Rosenberg presumably because he sought Mr. Rosenberg's counsel -- although Mr. Rosenberg was neither officially or formally retained by the Supervisor.
This was at the height of the revolt of the then-existing Town Council against the Supervisor. Mr. Rosenberg denied publicly at a meeting of the Town Board that he had received such information from the Town Supervisor. Outraged by this, the Town Council (headed by someone representing themself as Francis Sheehan) had convinced the Chief of Police to launch a forensic investigation of the Town's email system for the purpose of discovery. Shortly after the investigation was underway, Mr. Rosenberg "allowed" that he had lied; but it was ok since it was just a little "white lie" because he wanted to protect the Town Supervisor from harm. Thereupon and for several months later until it died down (as Greenburgh news always does) an anonymous blogger, not me, always referred to Mr. Rosenberg as "white lie Rosenberg". Some of these comments may still exist on this blog in the archives section.
I conclude my coimments by advising Mr. Rosenberg to think about throwing stones when living in a glass house. I would have gone with the pot calling the kettle black but that would give credence to another Rosenberg lie -- "that I (Hal Samis) lie".
But most of all, I hope that Mr. Kolesar reads this and thinks about how it applies to him insofar as Mr. Rosenberg, self-styled insider and expert, has written about "alleged" reasons for Kolesar's termination. One might conclude that the Supervisor and Mr. Rosenberg have provided similar grounds for the Supervisor's termination -- even though other verifiable reasons already exist.
I predict that we'll be reading posts from a crew of new-to-the-blog virgins who have something vital to say. Only those anonymous persons supporting Mr. Rosenberg will receive the coveted Lerman seal of approval. Arf, Arf.
greenburgh is plagued by old, damaged and faded street signage.
for example, at the 4 corners there is a poster for a carnival that took place nearly two months ago.
west hartsdale has a dozen signs that are either unnecessary or so old as to be unreadable.
we dont need xposure - we need to end the visual pollution.
its any easy fix to improve our quality of life that eludes the supervisor who is more interested in creating eyesores like that hideous wall on central avenue.
The new Poice Chief's name is Joe not John
I was astonished at how successful the Supervisor was in preventing Halloween vandalism, and delighted with his good-as-gold promise to continue providing whatever resources are needed to the Greenburgh Police Department.
I am curious about one thing. Just exactly how did you arrange for the soaking downpours to begin promptly at 7:45?
Isn't it curious that Greenburgh is so safe that the Chief of Police, a grown man, is afraid to drive around on Halloween by himself and needs the company of the Town Supervisor.
The Chief even is armed with a weapon.
What other explanation can there be for the Town Supervisor having to ride around with the Chief? The Town Supervisor is neither trained in police work nor has passed any of the department's requirements. He doesn't wear a uniform. He can't issue summons and he wouldn't be allowed to chase after a perp.
Wouldn't the Town Supervisor rather be playing the "Father Knows Best" role and spending Halloween with his daughter?
But that would leave the Chief all alone. Eureeka! Why not have Detective Double Dip take over the Town Supervisor's responsibility.
That way the Chief would be safe and Double Dip could still go out in public wearing his Chesire cat costume.
Boy did the comments about da judge hit you both below the belt.
"Too bad ",You can remove all the comments that you want but we the public know what liars both of you can be .
Both of you should crawl under a shell and stay ther.
This town will be better off without both of you.
is the town insured to take pedestrians in police vehicles. Is it against policy to take pedestrians in police vehicles.
Herbie,
Why don't you come out and play? You need Paulie to defend you by deleting Samis's remarks? Come on Judge, can't you defend yourself or are you pleasing NO CONTEST to the charges?
The town is well run. The few bloggers who devote their lives blogging are upset.
Dear 11:13,
It takes me less time to write 5,000 words than it took you to think of your comment and type it.
"The Town is well run"
alternate take:
The problem is that the Town is run like a bottomless well and has been patching frayed or borrowing used rope for years to try and fill a leaking bucket.
When you go into the voting booth the area for write ins is at the top of the panel. Just slide the window open and write in your choice. The windows have numbers that correspond to the position you are voting for. The Supervisor is 10 and the Town Council is 11 and 12.
Lets send a message!!!!!!
Paul what happened to the safety of the children at the Greenville school.
In previous elections there was a chain from one end of the roadway to the other this being for the safety of the children.
What happened this time arround Paul???????
You and your cronnies are running all by your lonesome so that means let's accomadate the people .
We complained throughout the years since disabled persons had a tough time walking to the polls but this time you saw a way to show your true colors.
You and your cronies are a disgrace.
When it suits you you make the necessary changes to make us believe that you are a nice guy but you're fooling yourself.
This time arround the hell with the children.
How much did it cost you to have the chain removed?.
The Return of Haiku Paul!!!
The town is well run,
Only bloggers are upset,
The town is well run
Repeat...
The Return of Heil Paul!!!
Town Board runs for office well
Only taxpayers need fret
The Town is risking ruin
Don't re-elect.
Is the supervisor patrolling tonight or watching the election results. I do not felt safe.
Hal,
It is not much use because Feiner keeps deleting the posts but if you see this before he does, this is what happened:
Kapica personally threatened an African American prisoner by saying that he was going to get a noose and string him up in the parking lot of police hq. People heard this racist rant and Kapica apologized to members of the African American community. Feiner and Sheehan covered it up for political purposes.
Can't wait for those testimonials for the Chief. There is a certain man who could give a really special one. Will there be any apologies scheduled or just more coverup?
When did Kapica apologize for his egregious remarks about an African American man and a noose. I live in this community and did not hear the apology. When and where did it take place. He owes an apology to all people, no matter what the race.
I guess you haven't noticed Kapica is no longer our chief.
Feiner,Sheehan and Morgan covered this up so that Kapica could make an easy exit keeping his pension,benefits and whatever comes with the job.
If we had honest representatives this would have been brought to light when it happened.
By the same token the above three have to have the same mind set as Kapica ,thinking in the same vein, since they did not repremand him or fire him.
I'm not Afro American but had he said anything against my ethnic group I would have had him and those board members relieved of their services in the courts.
The three board coverup members are just as GUILTY as the retired chief.
relieved of their services in the courts? explain exactly the cause of action and your standing to bring a suit, taking into account small details like, um, the US Constitution
Maybe there's no "public" apology because THIS NEVER HAPPENED or, IT'S BEEN BLOWN TOTALLY OUT OF PROPORTION.
Out of Proportion, please expand your thinking. Will the Town Board be apologizing to the entire town for its gross failure to address this incident in any fashion at all? Silence is not acceptable.
All I'm saying is that Greenburgh runs on rumors. And conspiracy theories. If what people are saying happened, and that a horrible thing was said at the police station.....how come the only place it shows up is on this blog? It's the same thing as all the "corruption" at TDYCC. Where is the proof? You can't tell me that any exists because SOMETHING of substance would have come out by now. This town is not that tightly wrapped that all this intrigue can stay under cover - for years. People in the know with access to records like to talk too much. AND, if in fact there are people who actually witnessed Kapica making that alleged statement....then why didn't they go to a more accessible forum - like the paper?
To Anonymous 6:27 PM:
Put your name on your posting or contact me directly (I'm not hard to locate). I'll provide you with a "road map" to the "corruption" at the TDYCC.
Put up or shut up.
Sorry, no putting up/shutting up, Mr. Kolesar. If YOU have so much info on "corruption", WHERE IS IT, and why are the authorities not involved.
And yeah, it's me again - this is a perfect example of all the conspiracy theories going on in this town. Bernard Kerik was found guilty today on - SHOCK - evidence that was duly processed, etc. Where is all the sh*t on the TDYCC? To be FOILED from you records? Come on, if it really existed - and there was so much wrong doing - there are independent folks to go to - OUTSIDE of the apparently oh-so-dastardly Feiner regime.
Why are you afraid to identify yourselves?
You should only know.
The D.A. completed an investigation of TDYCC and concluded that there was no evidence of criminal activity,much to the dismay of Kapica.Divert the attention from racist statements made in the presence of African American employees by the chief, to investigating bogus charges of criminal activity at the Center, was threatening and virtually silenced Town Board members and employees who witnessed it. After all is said and done, the charges of criminal activity did not hold up and all the time and money spent by Police Dept and the DA's office was a waste of time and chief & Feiner got off Scott free.It's all connected and the report will be kept under wraps because it reveals the truth about a real waste of time and money to save the Paul and John from embarrassment.
To Anonymous 1:12 AM:
May an employee work on two different jobs at the same time of the day in two different places and be paid for both of these "activities"? Is that "stealing"? Is this kind of "stealing" a "crime?
May an employee call in "sick" and then on the same day during the same hours show up in another department and work his / her"second" job and get paid for it? Is that "stealing"? Is this kind of "stealing" a "crime?
Is it OK to do this repeatedly?
I know what documentation I saw.
PS.
Not only do I know what documentation I saw, but I can tell the appropriate persons specifically when and where I showed this documentation to Paul Feiner (Monday, September 8, 2008 in the small conference room outside of his office at the end of a meeting that began at 12:30 to initially discuss the 2009 revenue projections for the upcoming budget), Kevin Morgan (in my office in a meeting on Thursday, September 11, 2008 that went from 2PM to 4:30 PM at which he made a great statement "Mike, you have enough C 4 in this office to blow this place" (either sky high or the roof off - I'm not sure about the very last words)), and Francis Sheehan (in my office Friday, September 12, 2008 ( word was getting around fast) that went from 2 PM to 5 PM).
To 11/06/2009 6:27 PM:
Conspiracies do exist. Conspiracy is the most prosecuted crime in America. In 1964, the Warren Report stated that Oswald acted alone in killing Kennedy. By 1979 a Congressional Investigation determined that both JFK and MLK were killed as a result of a conspiracy. So you see, sometimes it takes years for both the truth to come and AND be accepted. It hasn't been that long since Kapica uttered these words. Give it time. The truth will come out and Paul, Sheehan and Morgan will have alot of explaining to do.
Sorry, not buying into the great Greenburgh conspiracy. All this noise continues to land in one place only - this little read blog. Nothing was stopping anyone with clear cut evidence from going to the Journal News or the New York Times. Do I think what Mr. Kolesar desribes around calling in sick/claiming pay for another job went on? Yes, I believe it. Was anything done beyond the hall way conversations? People fired, etc.? We never hear those parts. If the town was aware and did nothing, how come another step wasn't taken? Sorry, ranting on this blog doesn't count as a step.
12:54
Lets see if Paul gives Kapica the same send off he did Regula. With Samis & Co. in the audience aware of the racist allegations, it will certainly be interesting. If Feiner does nothing for Kapica you can bet your bottom dollar it was because of this issue.
Little overlooked Kodak moment,
The Town did not give a big send-off to Regula. After all those years of "service", Feiner presented him with...a certificate of appreciation and, if memory serves, an unframed certificate.
What makes me uncomfortable is when the Council of Civic Associations feel it necessary to join in on the farewells. My memory dates back to such C listers and "stayed too long at the fair" Nora McEvoy, Gerry Iagallo, Alfreda Williams, Eddie Mae Brown and Al Regula. None, as it turns out, deserved the time of day. Everyone knows about Regula and Iagallo, how many of you have forgotten Nora's part in the Town being uninsured?
correction "Barnes" which I lost getting sidetracked of thinking "Barnes scramble".
In advance of "Samis is a racist", which my first response would be to counter by posting "Fraudian slip" is to tell everyone how I spent my morning: at the Black Democrats monthly meeting.
I'm sure they were thrilled to have you. File under "some of my best friends are".
Hal,
Don't foget the Town Board named March after Al Regula. The month of AL. That is pretty good recognition.
The Town Board will be honoring Chief Kapica at the Nov 23rd meeting.
I guess the supervisor was not on patrol on Sat when the Chase bank was robbed. I do not felt safe.
Paul: It's Joseph DeCarlo. Didn't you interview him.
I doubt the meeting on the 23rd will happen. Samis's questions about the Chief will be too embaressing for the Board.
Dear Anonymous 11/7/2009 12:54 PM:
You asked IF the Town Board was aware...
I personally briefed three of the Town Board members as I described and there are entries in my Outlook calendar to verify these meetings. There is no IF.
Through March 24, 2009, no action was taken. Ask the Town Board why not? No restitution, nothing.
I am not ranting, merely helping the public with the facts. It's up to YOU to do something.
Mr. Kolesar - why is it up to me? Don't think so. I was not privy to your conversations. This goes back to the extreme passive aggressive nature of this blog ... let's call out a conspiracy and not back it up. Nothing ever gets past the "yes it happened stage and you don't know all the fact stage" or, my personal favorite, let's FOIL docs. Big deal. If it was such a travesty the proper authorities should have been brought in...most possibly by you in your role as a fiduciary.
9:39 Do you pay taxes here in Grenburgh if you do it's up to you to make a report to the necesary agencies concerning the criminality of how this town is being run.
Do you think that all the dogs are sleepng??
You may be sleeping and pray that someone else does all the dirty work for you.
Wake up and do the right thing which is voice your opinions to the proper authorities.
Don't worry you won 't be alone.
We are just waiting for the results from our many complaints.
Dear 9:39 -
PErhaps you are unaware that in several instances of alleged wrongdoing, the alleged wrongdoer and the "proper authority" to whose attention the alleged wrongdoing should be brought are one and the same.
Take for instance the well-publicized, much ballyhooed and vigorously defended Ethics Board. On paper it looks fairly progressive and almost sensible. Right up until the point where it begins to impose penalties on those bringing matters before it for investigation. Not willing to risk your time, energy and a considerable amount of money on legal fees if the Board doesn't find something actionable? Then just shut up and let the government be run by the "professionals" (read the current crop of politicians). Due process in Greenburgh means give the politicians their due - and the public be damned.
Of course sometimes the Ethics Board runs into something so outrageouslly wrong that it sends a report (all it is permitted to do) to the proper authorities so that they can punish the offender. And who are those authorities? The very people whose behaviour has been found to violate the ethics canons - The Greenburgh Town Board.
When I was young the radical left advocated violent revolution - when one looks at the radical leftists sitting as the government and acting with such flagrant disregard for the law - one begins to wonder if they didn't have a valid point.
The next time Paul Feiner says, "I won't enforce the law because I don't believe in it" think about what that really means.
I'm posting this anonymously not because I'm afraid of other bloggers, I'm posting this because I fear the wrath of the petty tyrants at Town Hall.
It's me 9:39. Does anyone actually read the content of the comments?
First of all, I do pay taxes in this town. Second, all I hear on this board are RUMORS. Nothing that has EVER been substantiated to the public. But of course that goes to the conspiracy theorists.
If I had concrete evidence that there was some malfeasance I would be first on line at the DAs office. I have yet to see ANYTHING like that on this blog or in this town.
If criminal acts are occurring, as so many bloggers imply, and, in light of the blog about the ineffectiveness of the ethics board, where is the outrage escalated? I have asked this before. There are many other outlets who could investigate these alleged charges. I do not escalate because I have no basis to do so! The charges on this blog are continuous rantings without substance! And yes Hal, I'm getting to you later on.
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