According to the Daily News, a white NYPD sergeant in Brooklyn is being investigated for allegedly using a racial slur against a black officer. Sgt. Sean McLaine, of the ever-troubled 79th Precinct in Bedford-Stuyvesant, has been accused of calling Officer Roberto Stokes "boy" several times. Stokes's lawyer, Norman Siegel, said the incident was indicative of a culture of racism within the NYPD: "In the year 2011, somebody calling an African-American officer a boy is simply unacceptable. This incident is part of a larger problem of race with that precinct."
White NYPD Sergeant Accused Of Calling Black Officer Racial Slur
Video: Police Looking For East Flatbush Shooting Suspect
Police have released this surveillance video of a man suspected of shooting a 9-year-old boy in the leg. The boy was biking through East Flatbush at 8:30 p.m. on Friday when shots rang out from a nearby barber shop. The boy was struck in the leg, but was able to bike home, and from there he was brought to Kings County Hospital.
Kid Shot in East Flatbush Doesn't Want to Go Outside
Can you really blame him? A 9-year-old boy shot in the leg while biking through East Flatbush on Friday night told his mom he doesn't want to play outside ever again. The boy had moved to the neighborhood with his family from Canarsie the day before, and was biking down Church Avenue around 8:30 p.m. when he was struck by a shot fired outside a nearby barber shop. A man claiming to be the intended target of the gunfire said, "I knew what was going to happen. All of a sudden, shots started firing and I see the little boy go down." However, he doesn't seem to be giving up the name of the shooter, if he knows it.
Boy Shot In Leg While Riding Bike Through East Flatbush
A 9-year-old boy was rushed to Kings County Hospital last night after being shot in the leg while biking through East Flatbush. His family had just moved to the neighborhood the day before, and the boy had been biking down Church Avenue—a block away from his new home—around 8:30 p.m. He then stumbled on a gunfight.
Air Traffic Controller Let Kids Do Job Twice, Pilot Defends Him
After news broke yesterday that an air traffic controller at JFK airport let his young son clear planes for takeoff five times on February 16th, it emerged that the father did it again the next day with the boy's twin sister. The controller, Glenn Duffy, 48, of Stony Brook, Long Island, has been suspended, along with one supervisor; they'll both draw full salaries during the investigation. The Post has audio of the girl clearing planes for take off—she sounds even cuter than her brother, and a pilot can be heard telling her "nicely done, see you later." Now, these shenanigans may seem reckless to the layman, but professional pilots insist it was all completely harmless.
Kids Say Darndest Things When Taking Over JFK Control Tower
[UPDATE: This wasn't the first time!] An air traffic controller at JFK airport brought his young son to work last month and let the bright young lad do his job for him. Now the FAA is investigating all the employees who were in the tower that day, and an audio recording of the child's instructions to pilots has surfaced. Listen:
Brooklyn School Bus Driver Ignores Bleeding Boy
A first-grade boy from Brooklyn, who suffers from a seizure disorder, took a tumble after being hit by a fellow student on his school bus this week... only to receive no help from the driver. According to the Daily News, the driver never even called for help when Armani Baker was clearly injured. Instead he kept driving and dropped the crying boy off at his stop, as he was bleeding from his head.
Pre-Teen Stabbed Repeatedly and Dumped from Car
A twelve-year-old was stabbed many times and tossed from a car last night in Queens. A driver noticed the bleeding boy wandering around 9:10 p.m., away from Highland Park near the Jackie Robinson Parkway, reported the NY Post.
Boy with Asperger's Syndrome Rides Subway for 11 Days
A 13-year-old boy with Asperger's Syndrome—a form of autism that often causes difficulty with social interaction—spent 11 days in the subway system last month. In a heartbreaking Times article, Francisco Hernandez Jr. tells how he took refuge in the subway for over a week because he got in trouble in class and "didn't want anyone to scream at me" at home. He says nobody spoke to him the entire time he rode the trains, and when the reporter asked him if he "saw any larger meaning in that," Hernandez replied, "Nobody really cares about the world and about people."
Boy Flees From Kidnapping Attempt In Astoria
A man between 30 and 40-years-old allegedly tried to abduct an 8-year-old boy in Astoria Wednesday morning and the police are on the search for him. Police said the man, who was wearing a beige baseball cap, gray hoodie, and a long gray overcoat, grabbed the boy by the wrist and pulled him along saying "Come go with me." The boy broke away from the man and ran crying for help; his mother tried to confront him but he got away. Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or online.
6-Year-Old Boy Escapes School, Wanders Queens for Hours
The mother of a 6-year-old Queens boy is outraged at police for what she's calling a slow response time to her son's disappearance yesterday. Shortly before 3 p.m., the boy was in the courtyard at P.S. 80 at dismissal time and managed to walk through the gate without anyone stopping him. He wandered Jamaica, traveling four miles from the school before finally being located at his father's Rockaway Boulevard office—two hours after he was found missing. And that's also when police finally showed up!
Teen Shoots Himself in Penis
A 15-year-old Brooklyn boy was arrested yesterday after accidentally shooting himself in the penis. The Post's stupid headline is, "So much for packing a, um, rod," and there are going to be plenty of bad jokes about going off half-cocked in the comments, but we can't help but pity the kid. Khamir Grant told cops he was walking home from Amersfort Park in East Flatbush around 1:30 a.m. Sunday with a gun in his waistband when the piece began to slip into his pants. When Grant grabbed for it, he accidentally pulled the trigger, firing a bullet "right through his penis," in the Post's words. Grant staggered home, told his mother what happened, and they took a livery car to Kings County Hospital, where Grant was released after treatment and then arrested. He's charged with reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon—the same charges levied against Plaxico Burress, who last year shot himself in a nightclub under similar circumstances, albeit with less catastrophic results.
Boy Killed by Cab Driver in East Harlem, No Charges Filed
There are conflicting reports about the cause of a taxi-on-pedestrian accident at 112th Street and Lexington Avenue in East Harlem yesterday afternoon, but this much is certain: 8-year-old Axel Pablo is dead, and the driver of the cab, Akim Saiful Alam, was released without charges. Witnesses and police tell the Daily News that Alam, turning left from Lex onto 112th, slammed into Pablo as he stopped to pick up his mother's cell phone while crossing the street. The impact knocked Pablo out of his shoes.
Child Was Left Alone In Subway Motorwoman's Cab
A second witness has come forward to corroborate claims that a subway train operator on the No. 4 line allowed an 8 or 9-year-old boy into the motorwoman's cab and maybe even let him drive the train a little. And the witness, Nessa Hampton, 53, says that not only was the boy in the cab with the female operator, but he was left to hang out there by himself while the unidentified woman exited the train at Union Square. According to her report, the motorwoman was gone for several minutes as she chatted with a colleague operating a No. 6 train across the platform. Hampton tells the Daily News, "He was right next to the controls. Suppose he touched something and the train started moving. There was no way this woman could have ran back to the train and stopped it." But not to worry—the motorwoman has explained to MTA officials it was physically impossible for the boy to operate the train because it requires 20-pounds of pressure. (Or a cinder block to override the dead man's switch!) Still, as Hampton told her daughter at the time, "somebody's going to get in a lot of trouble for this." Both the motorwoman and the conductor—who is believed to be the boy's relative—are currently suspended without pay.
MTA Motorwoman, Conductor Suspended For Letting Kid In Cab
A train operator did indeed allow a boy into the cab at the front of a Lexington Avenue 4 express train on Sunday, NYC Transit has confirmed. The 8 or 9 year old boy was apparently a relative of the conductor, who along with the motorwoman has been suspended without pay, pending further investigation. It's still unclear whether the unidentified motorman actually let the boy drive the train, but the witness who prompted the investigation claims he heard her saying, "It's green, speed up...Yellow, slow down." Speaking to the Daily News, a co-worker described the motorwoman, who's been on the job since 1993, as "cautious and attentive... I don't think the kid was driving the train. I think at most she was just showing him [how to drive]." Oh, that's all! But what if this kid had seen the new Taking of Pelham 123 and decided to pull a Travolta? (Or even a Luis Guzman?) Transit officials are taking this one very seriously, and the motorwoman could very well be fired because letting unauthorized visitors into the cab, regardless of age, is against the rules. And letting them drive the train is kinda frowned upon, too.
Child Seen Operating Subway Train on Lexington Line
The MTA is investigating an allegation that a young boy, approximately 8 or 9 years old, was allowed into the train operator's compartment for a little driving tutorial. On Sunday, Jules Cattie, a 41-year-old lawyer, was in the first car of an uptown Lexington Avenue express train when he witnessed "the craziest thing I've ever seen." First he heard the female train operator talking to someone, saying "It's green, speed up...Yellow, slow down." He assumed she was teaching a new MTA worker, but then he saw a child emerge from the compartment.
8-Year-Old Boy Loses Leg When Minivan Plows Into Him
An 8-year-old boy, who had just returned home from school, was standing on a Brooklyn sidewalk with his mother when an out-of-control minivan jumped the curb. The incident occurred when a driver was trying to parallel park on Stratford Road—the driver went into reverse and, according to WCBS 2, "witnesses said the Ford hit another vehicle before going into the building, hitting both the boy and" his mother. The boy, Justin Abuled, was, 1010WINS reports, "apparently slammed through the door of a building and shattered glass severed his leg." And a neighbor told the Post, "His leg was off to the side, he was fidgeting and crying, asking for his mother." Neighbors also packed up the leg on ice and doctors are hoping to reattach it. The Daily News, which says the boy's foot (not leg) was severed, reports that the minivan driver said his brakes failed; no charges have been filed yet.
Boy Breaks Leg in Bronx Elevator Nightmare
Paramedics, the FDNY, and panicked neighbors worked together to save a 7-year-old boy from falling to his death in a Bronx building's elevator shaft yesterday. Milton Apolinaris and his younger brother were on their way to play with a friend when the elevator at 710 Hunts Point Avenue stalled between the third and fourth floors. According to the Post, the boy managed to pry the doors up but when he tried to climb out he got his foot stuck between the floor and the elevator car. One resident tells the Daily News, "He was outside the elevator, but upside down in the shaft. His feet were on the fourth floor and his body was on the third."
Boy Falls To Death From Brooklyn Building
Last night around 7:15 p.m., a boy died after falling from a housing development in Crown Heights. His body was found in a lot near the Albany Houses on Bergen Street. The boy was between the ages of 9 and 12, and neighbors were stunned; one told the Daily News, "I can't get over this. It is unbelievable." The police are investigating what happened: While there was an open window on the 5th floor, the NY Post reports, "It wasn't immediately known where he fell from, but cops believe it's more likely the roof of the 13-story building rather than one of the apartments." If he did fall from the roof, police will also try to determine if the boy jumped, fell or was pushed. Update: It appears the 9-year-old jumped from the roof using a "makeshift parachute" of a plastic bag and strings.
Two Kids Caught in Crossfire in Brooklyn, Queens
Two children are recovering from gunshot wounds after being hit by stray bullets during separate incidents Saturday night. On President Street in Crown Heights, 10-year-old Denia Kearse (pictured) was enjoying a block party when shots rang out around 8 p.m. Her aunt tells channel 7, "Everybody heard pop, pop, pop, and it sounded like it was blocks away. And then, the next thing you know, my niece is bleeding." The stray bullet tore across her chest, chipping her collar bone, and passed dangerously close to her neck. According to the Daily News, she's in Kings County Hospital and expected to recover. Later that night in Far Rockaway, an 8-year-old boy was grazed in the head by a stray bullet as he got out of a car with his aunt around 10:30 p.m. The unidentified victim is in critical condition, and police are still looking for suspects in both shootings.
Queens Boy Missing in the Catskills Found
Three-year-old boy who disappeared from a Catskills campground on Saturday was found a day later. Daniel Niktalov, who lives in Forest Hills with his family but had been camping at the Swing Bridge Campground in Sullivan County, was found less than a mile away after "rescuers from three states" were involved with search efforts.
More Crocs Escalator Nightmares!
A 7-year-old New York City boy has joined a growing number of children who’ve had the horrifying experience of getting their feet mangled by escalators while wearing popular plastic clogs made by Crocs. The boy’s mother says the accident happened in a Kentucky airport:
”All of a sudden I hear this excruciating screaming from Nicky and I turn around and his little foot is being sucked into the side of the escalator. It's just like chewing up his foot.”more ›

