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Criminal Justice

Criminal Justice

FDNY vs. NYPD


Later this month, members of the New York City Fire Department and the New York City Police Department will face off for the 32nd time on the football field. The game, which garnered national attention in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks that killed eight active players and staff from the fire department’s team, symbolizes the friendly rivalry between these two vital city agencies. But recent conflicts and events highlight how easily a rivalry can escalate into a feud, and only add to the worries of New Yorkers concerned about how effectively the city’s emergency workers will respond should another large-scale terrorist attack occur.

Bruised Image for FDNY

Both agencies have had more questions then answers this year. Loutish behavior among firefighters grabbed headlines, with a New Year’s Eve firehouse brawl in a Staten Island firehouse leading to the suspension of five firefighters. Several reports of firefighters drinking or even using drugs while on duty led the department to implement a new, random drug testing policy.

Meanwhile, the police department was forced to handle the shooting death of 19-year-old Timothy Stansbury Jr., which occurred on the rooftop of the Louis Armstrong Houses in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and led many to scrutinize the way the police handle the vertical patrols done routinely in public housing developments.

Among those worried that police might be too eager to use their weapons is the fire department, at least according to an internal fire department safety memo sent to all firehouses last month and reported by the New York Post. In an incident similar to the Stansbury shooting, two firefighters opened the door leading to the roof of a public housing development, only to be confronted by two officers pointing guns at them.

Unlike the Stansbury shooting, the officers quickly holstered their weapons. The memo also mentioned that police department’s Operation Impact, which deploys officers to flood high-crime areas, including some public housing developments, frequently used rookie and inexperienced officers. Whether or not the memo was meant as oblique criticism of police procedures, the fact that it became public will certainly do nothing to improve the already-rock relationship between the two agencies.

Responding to Crisis

The most recent and serious disagreement between the two agencies is actually a longstanding one: who should be in control during a major emergency, such as a terrorist attack?

As reported by the Wall Street Journal, this dispute has at least some of its roots in the first World Trace Center attack in 1993. Then, police swooped down in helicopters to the top of one of the towers, despite not having authorization from the fire department, which was in charge of coordinating the rescue effort because of the bombing.

Though the door to the roof was locked, police managed to rescue 28 people. In the long run, however, the rescue angered the fire department, which considered the helicopter mission “a cheap publicity stunt”,” the Wall Street Journal reported.

At that time, confrontations between police and firefighters responding to accident scenes were fairly common, causing bad blood between the departments. In recent months, however, as the city tries to formalize its plans for how to coordinate its emergency response resources, the police department has been aggressive in trying to be the lead agency for nearly all emergencies.

The thinking is that, because the next terrorist attack could occur in an unexpected way, even seemingly routine emergencies such as a water main break should be handled by police. The fire department reportedly wants to be the lead agency not just at fires, but also at explosions and emergencies involving hazardous materials, damaged buildings and certain plane crashes.

"Police want to be in charge of everything. We're supposed to play nice in the sandbox. That seldom works because there's egos involved," Deputy Chief Nick Visconti, who represents chiefs for the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, told the Associated Press.

The Citywide Incident Management System, as such an overarching plan outlining responsibility for specific emergencies is called, remains a work-in-progress. Federal guidelines were approved in March, and the city remains at work trying to put together a plan that keeps all agencies happy and residents safe.

“Two Competing Cults”

In a recent court ruling related to a St. Patrick’s Day street fight between members of New York’s Bravest and New York’s Finest, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Sweet described the altercation as being between members of “two competing cults.” The two agencies will have to iron out their differences — at least enough to agree on a disaster plan — to fulfill their duties to make the city as safe as possible.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deliverymen


Earlier this year, 18-year-old Huang Chen was beaten and stabbed to death while making deliveries for his family’s Chinese restaurant in South Jamaica, Queens. The two teenagers who are accused of killing him, then stuffing his body into a box and dumping it in a pond, did so because, according to police, having robbed him of $49, they did not want to be identified.

The gruesome and seemingly capricious nature of Chen’s murder was only the latest in what seems to be a pattern of violent attacks on Chinese deliverymen working in the city. At least five Chinese deliverymen have been killed on the job in the past five years.

Officer Michael Lau of the New York Police Department's community affairs office, however, downplays the racial element in these crimes, pointing out that all deliverymen who work in high-crime areas are susceptible to violence regardless of race. "It’s not just crimes against Chinese delivery people," said Lau, "there are crimes against delivery people in general."

The police department, however, has begun conducting an ongoing series of outreach programs specifically designed for Chinese deliverymen, the latest of which took place in lower Manhattan at the end of March. During the program, which was attended by over 200 restaurant owners and workers, police gave a presentation in Mandarin and English on safety measures that deliverymen could take to protect themselves. In addition, flyers with safety tips were also distributed to command centers in each precinct, and from there to many Chinese restaurants.

Some advocates, however, wonder about the police department's ability to deal empathetically with deliverymen, many of whom are recent immigrants to the United States and who may be undocumented.

"In this day and age, the fact that you may be undocumented presents a problem," said Sin Yen Ling, a lawyer with the Asian American Legal Defense Fund. She added that, undocumented or not, "many immigrants are fearful of the police. Many of them come from a homeland where police aren’t trustworthy."

Officer Lau said that the police have taken steps to address these concerns. An executive order prohibits officers from asking victims or witnesses about their immigration status, a protection that is supposed to continue throughout the entire investigation and prosecution of a criminal case.

In addition, the police department’s community affairs office has also developed a new immigrant outreach program that specifically addresses the fears of immigrants who have a distrust of government officials.

Joyce Stephens of the deputy commissioner’s office said that these outreach efforts have led to a flood of tips being phoned in by members of the immigrant community, albeit anonymously.

"The contact that we’re having is worthwhile in building trust," Stephens said, "Even anonymous tips didn’t happen before."

The police department encourages deliverymen to report robberies or assaults as quickly as possible so specific police action can be taken. In the past, the department has used undercover officers to apprehend suspects in areas that have a pattern of assault against deliverymen. Officers have also trailed deliverymen on their routes to see if anybody is waiting to rob or assault them.

Stevens, however, emphasizes the "common-sense" measures the deliverymen could take to protect themselves while on the job.

"Maybe you want to set up some boundaries, like after a certain hour you won’t go into buildings," Stevens said, "You have to feel safe and use instinct, and if you don’t feel safe about going into locations, then don’t go in."

Khairul Effendy, a deliveryman for a Malaysian restaurant in lower Manhattan, said that in his seven years on the job, he has had his bicycle stolen five times, but he has managed to avoid being personally assaulted.

"We’re open until 11:30 PM," Effendy said, "but I’ll only delivery until 11. The area around the
restaurant is okay, but I’m not so sure of the areas to the east and west.

Many deliverymen who work in high crime areas are recently arrived immigrants whose lack of language or job skills prevent them from taking a job in safer areas. In addition, their low profit margins may prompt them to take risks in the hopes of making a few extra dollars.

"Many deliverymen are just scraping by to make a living," said New York City Councilmember John Liu.

Deliverymen in Far Rockaway, Queens reportedly make an average of 60 runs per eight hour shift. Deliverymen often work longer shifts, however, and the frequency of their deliveries make them an easy target for robberies. In addition, deliverymen often venture alone into apartment buildings because they are more likely to get tipped if they deliver food to individual apartments instead of waiting in a lobby.

"The trouble is that there are no quick fixes," said Hyun Lee of the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, "There are a number of things that need to be addressed, such as the lack of job opportunities for immigrants, as well as working conditions so these immigrants don’t always have to work around the clock."

In response to Chen’s murder, members of New York city council, including Liu, Hiram Monserrate and Charles Barron called for a one-day moratorium on restaurant deliveries, suggesting that customers pick up orders themselves. The event was supposed to honor Chen’s memory, and increase awareness among many New Yorkers who take for granted the risks involved in delivering a meal.

"We need to send a message," Liu said, "that it’s not going to be open season on deliverymen or immigrants."

Identity Theft


 

Last year, some 53 million Americans filed their taxes from the comfort and convenience of a personal computer. This year, more are expected to do so. (See Tech Links in the News for the Web sites to file for federal and state taxes, and to file for an extension.) Clearly, the computer-savvy are less worried about transmitting personal information over the Internet.

But in fact, while there are precautions to take when filing taxes – experts recommend the use of a personal computer used only by the tax filer – there is an increasing problem of cyber-crime, and nowhere more than in New York.

This month, Howard Carmack was found guilty of sending over 800 million spam messages from e-mail accounts that he opened under the names of two unsuspecting upstate New York residents.

This is the first case of identity theft -- a crime under New York State law since October 2002--prosecuted by the state Attorney General’s office. New York was one of the last states in the country to enact such legislation. "The guilty verdict shows that those engaged in identity theft and cyber-crime will be discovered, prosecuted, and convicted of their crimes," said Attorney General Eliot Spitzer.

Identity theft is “crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person’s personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception, typically for economic gain” according to the U.S. Department of Justice. These crimes include fraud involving credit cards, telephones, utilities, banks and loans.

Currently, identity theft is a serious problem in New York City. In 2001, New York had the highest number of identity theft victims nationwide. Nationwide, there were over 160,000 victims of identity theft in 2002 according to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. In 2003, the city had almost 9,000 acts of identity theftas compared to Rochester (355), Buffalo (208), Yonkers (147) and Syracuse (91).

While the increased use of computers to store sensitive information is one reason for the rise in identity theft, often criminals steal paper records to get access to personal information. With only someone’s name, date of birth, social security number or credit card number, an identity thief can cause substantial financial damage. In January 2004, New York State passed a law requiring businesses to remove the expiration date and print only the last five digits of credit cards from receipts.

Credit card fraud is the most common type of identity theft. In recent years, criminals have attacked computer systems and used hand-held technology to steal personal information from Automated Teller Machines, a practice called “skimming.” For example, last December three men stole $225,000 from 300 cardholders by stealing personal information from an ATM in a Manhattan candy store.

Currently, the City Council Committee on Consumer Affairs has three bills under consideration aimed at protecting and informing consumers about identity theft. These bills make businesses and the government responsible for protecting sensitive personal information. The first would allow the commissioner of the Department of Consumer Affairs to suspend, revoke or refuse to renew business licenses if the business has violated New York State identity theft law two or more times. The other two proposed laws require city agencies and businesses licensed by the Department of Consumer Affairs to inform citizens when there has been a security breach of their personal information.

At a time when more--not less--personal information is being collected and stored in government and private sector computer databases, it is vital that New York City agencies and businesses be penalized if they are not able to guarantee the security of such information. Moreover, since New York State has been slow in implementing such legislation, it is important that the city move quickly to pass identity theft legislation to stop the high rates of the crime in New York City.

However, in the end, citizens—not governments and businesses--should be the true owners of their personal information and identities. Ken Jordan, an independent writer and digital media consultant, has collaborated with technologists and activists to develop an innovative proposalon how to best give citizens control of their personal information. It envisions a system of “online citizenship” that will not only curtain identity theft but also allow New Yorkers to participate more effectively in decision-making on local issues faced by the city.

Laura Forlano is a doctoral student studying communication technology policy at Columbia University.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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