Results matching “deposition”

George Adde, 66, claims he sustained a herniated disk in his lower back when other passengers fell on him during the 2003 Staten Island ferry crash, which killed 11 people and injured many others. Taxpayers have spent $66.9 million settling 161 of the 171 cases filed in the aftermath of the accident, including a $6.5 million payout to a man who lost part of his right leg. Adde was probably counting on a million or two to help him cope with his back pain, but there was just one teensy problem with his lawsuit.

Mayor Bloomberg was back in court for the third time in three months, giving a three-hour deposition in the second discrimination case he's had to deal with lately—this one brought by the Justice Department after complaints of unfair hiring practices from the Vulcan Society of black firefighters. The Times reports Bloomberg testified that he "did not recall receiving a report more than six years ago warning him about sharp differences in the passing rates between white and minority candidates for firefighter jobs." The mayor was not expected to testify until he went off about the case, unprompted, during his Congressional testimony in support of Sonia Sotomayor. The case may now head to trial this fall to determine if there was intent in the city's alleged negligence. A lawyer for the Vulcans said, “We’ve presented documents to him showing that the proportion of blacks in the Fire Department...is lower than the proportion that was in the Fire Department in the 1990s. (Bloomberg) dismissed that as minor differences — unimportant — at the same time that he said that he and the city have a great interest in expanding diversity."

After initially being given a pass from testifying in the federal case against the FDNY's alleged discriminatory practices with its entrance exams, Mayor Bloomberg has been ordered to give a deposition in the case due to his eagerness to expound upon it while giving testimony before Congress during Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings. The News says the deposition was ordered "as a result of Bloomberg's blabbing" and the Times suggests next time he testifies, the mayor "might want to stick to the subject." Bloomberg voluntarily spoke at length about the FDNY case while relating it to a similar one in New Haven that Sotomayor had decided on (a ruling he disagreed with). The federal judge in the FDNY discrimination suit said, "The mayor's sworn testimony before Congress indicates his personal involvement in the events at issue in this litigation." Last week a judge ruled the entrance exams "unfairly excluded hundreds of qualified people of color" and the case is now heading toward its penal phase. When asked about the judge's orders, the mayor said, "I have to talk to our lawyers, but normally I give depositions when asked."

Since Michael Jackson coverage officially died on Sunday (R.I.P.), it's time for Janet to get some headlines. The Daily News reports that a Manhattan judge has finally ruled on a 2005 case involving a Bronx man who claimed to have been beaten by the singer's bodyguards at Marquee. The man, Leonard Salati, was attempting to give Jackson his phone number in February 2004 at the Chelsea hotspot, and that's when the alleged beating occurred. He promptly sued Jackson for $120 million and, in 2007, a judge had allowed the case to go forward and said Jackson had to give a deposition. Recently, a new judge told the man to "Beat It" (sorry) due to a lack of evidence. Now that his case has been dismissed, there's no word on if he'll attempt to sue the security company involved... but we're guessing Janet never called.

Remember how Donald Trump was suing a NY Times business editor Timothy O'Brien and the publishers of his book, TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald, for $5 billion, because The Donald felt it misstated his wealth by billions (Smith's estimate: $150-250 million)? Well, as a hearing is scheduled to take place today, the Wall Street Journal pored over a 2007 deposition that Trump made about his wealth. He said, "My net worth fluctuates, and it goes up and down with markets and with attitudes and with feelings, even my own feeling," and when asked if he's "familiar with the concept of net present value?," Trump replies, "The concept of net present value to me would be the value of the land currently after debt...Well, to me, the word 'net' is an interesting word. It's really — the word 'value' is the important word." Ever the cheerleader, the real estate developer explains, "Would you like me to say, oh, gee, the building is not doing well, blah, blah, blah, come by, the building -- nobody talks that way. Who would ever talk that way?" [via Daily Intel]

The State Senate has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by their former official photographer, who says Governor Paterson fired him because of his race, back when Paterson was Senate Minority Leader in 2003. In his civil rights lawsuit, Joseph Maioriello of Schenectady said John McPadden, then Paterson's chief of staff, explained he was being fired because some senators wanted to replace him with "a minority photographer, a black photographer." Maioriello, who had been a Senate employee for 26 years before he was fired, said McPadden also told him, "You got to remember who Sen. Paterson is. Sen. Paterson is black." In a sworn deposition, Paterson denied the allegations, claiming he didn't see well enough to have fired Maioriello because of his race. Paterson would have been required to testify had the case finally gone to trial, and one source "close to the lawsuit" tells the Post that the size of the settlement—$300,000—suggests "that the state wouldn't have made out very well if it had gone to trial. If nothing wrong happened, why is the state paying out this kind of money?" Shhh... It's late Friday afternoon—by Monday it'll be like this never happened.

According to court papers unsealed yesterday, hedge fund manager J. Ezra Merkin was apparently warned that Bernard Madoff's investments were shady back in the 1990s. Merkin, currently accused of funneling $2.4 billion into Madoff's fund, is being sued by NYU—which lost $24 million of its endowment through Merkin's fund. Fox Business, which filed a motion to have the documents unsealed, reports that Merkin employee Victor Teicher, a former financial analyst convicted for insider trading, told Merkin that Madoff's fund didn't "smell right" and "were inconsistent with what could possibly take place in reality." Teicher also said in his deposition that Merkin's accountant said Madoff's work "looked like a fraud." When news of Madoff's fraud this past December surfaced, Teicher sent Merkin an e-mail: "The Madoff news is hilarious; hope you negotiate out of this mess as well as possible; I'm yours to help in any way I can; unfortunately, you've paid a big price for a lesson on the cost of being greedy," and followed up with another, "I guess you did such a good job in fooling a lot of people that you ultimately fooled yourself."

A lawsuit against the MTA is about to go to trial surrounding the rape of a woman on a G train platform in Queens three years ago. And the victim, now 25, told the Daily News this weekend that she forgives her attacker ("I know he was sick in the head"), but not the token booth clerk at the 21st Street station, "I can't forgive those five seconds when I stared into his eyes, screaming for help, imploring him with my tears and all I got back was a cold stare."

The New York Supreme Court has ruled that Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. must submit to a deposition by attorneys representing Donald Trump, who is suing Times business editor Timothy O'Brien and the publishers of O'Brien's book TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald. Trump is seeking $5 billion in damages because he says the book grossly underestimated his net worth at $150 million to $250 million, instead of the billions and billions he claims. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Trump contends that being labeled a mere millionaire hurt his "brand and reputation" and undermined the "perception of Trump as a businessman of extraordinary means and ability (which he is)."

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: A jumper on West 141st St in Manhattan, there was a shooting at Clay Avenue and 167th Street in the Bronx, and a major vehicle accident at West 8th St And Neptune Ave in Brooklyn
• After nearly ten years of not talking about the 1999 New York nightclub shooting involving her ex-boyfriend Sean "Diddy" Combs, The NY Post reports that J.Lo will have to speak out at an upcoming deposition.
• The New Yorker cartoonist Ed Arno, died one month ago today at the age of 92, in Forest Hills, Queens. See some of his cartoons here.
• American Airlines announced that they will be cutting 42 flights at New York's LaGuardia Airport; the airline is reducing service as they face soaring fuel costs.
• According to an awkward moment between Charlie Rose, Graydon Carter and Jann Wenner...Condé Nast might be in talks with Wenner about acquiring Rolling Stone magazine.
• The ringleader of the body parts smuggling scheme was sentenced to 18 to 54 years in prison; Michael Mastromarino said, "I'm sorry for all the emotional pain I've caused."
• The production company behind The Real World will also produce Project Runway when it moves to Lifetime.
• The Northside of Williamsburg has lost a signcon: the lot on the corner of Berry and North 7th that used to house a Mobil gas station has had its sign taken down. The sign has been up since the early '60s.

Earlier this year it was reported that 50 Cent wanted his ex-girlfriend, Shaniqua Tompkins, and their son out of his Dix Hills, Long Island home (a wish he had enforced by a judge). While 50 didn't live there, the deed is in his name, and he pays Tompkins $6,700 a month, including cash for her to find a new home for their son and her boyfriend (who has been living under the rapper's roof).

Who knew that Laura Bush and daughter Jenna Bush's children's book tour would prompt violence? The Post reports a wheelchair-bound girl was assaulted by a Bush protester after the Bushes' 92nd Street Y appearance on Tuesday.

Andy Pettitte has always wanted the ball in his hand with the game on the line...until now. Faced with the prospect of having to publicly contradict his friend, Roger Clemens, Pettitte asked to be excused from tomorrow’s hearing in Congress. Representative Tom Davis told Newsday last night that the Pettitte deposition matched McNamee’s in “most details” but Roger Clemens’ deposition says Pettitte is mistaken. As a result, Pettitte has been excused, along with Chuck Knoblauch and Kurt Radomski setting up a one-on-one showdown between Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee.

Irene Boland, the co-author of Wind the World Over, works in the sustainability office of the EPA. Her office covers Region 2 (New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) helps people pursue green living through their built environment. You can find out more about her office at the EPA on their website. Irene resides in Brooklyn, "under the BQE." How did you and your co-author, Vanessa Kellogg come up with the...

One less headache for Knicks coach and General Manager Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden: The Reverend Al Sharpton has called off his boycott and protest of Knicks games. Now, if only the Knicks can convince their fan base all is not lost! Last month, a jury believed former Knicks marketing VP Anucha Browne-Sanders' allegations that Thomas and Madison Square created hostile work environment and awarded her $11.6 million. Thomas said, during an 11-minute...

Reverend Al Sharpton is calling for a boycott of the Knicks unless coach and General Manager Isiah Thomas issues a formal apology for testifying that it was alright for black men to refer to black women as bitches. Thomas' distinction became public last month after a deposition was released in the sexual harassment suit of Anucha Browne Sanders. The female executive was suing the Knicks organization after she was fired while accusing the team, and Thomas, of sexually harassing her. Thomas testified that it was okay for black men to refer to black women as bitches, while he considered it less acceptable for white men to do so. Sharpton objected:

"We are calling on him to apologize because of what came out during the deposition . . . when he said it was all right for black men to call black women 'bitches.'"

Anucha Browne Sanders gets the cover treatment from the Post and Daily News after a jury believed that Knicks coach and president Isiah Thomas and that Madison Square Garden (the owner of the Knicks) were liable for sexual harassment. amNY, though, chose to put Isiah Thomas on its cover, with an inset of Knicks owner James Dolan, next to the headline "Rotten to the Court" - oh snap!

The sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a former Knicks executive finally offered up some soundbites from Knicks president and coach Isiah Thomas. And they weren't too good for the Knicks!

The NY Times reported that the city settled with a protester who was kicked in the head back by a high-ranking police officer in 2003. Apparently the city wanted to avoid trial, because activist Cynthia Greenberg had "planned to offer as evidence a videotape of the encounter." If you watch the video, via I-Witness Video, you can definitely see someone's knee hit Greenberg's head.

is what your 4-6% is getting you.

Farash is now suing Warburg Realty, charging the incident resulted in him selling his $1.4 million apartment for $500,000 less than market value. He also says it's left him suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

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