A deaf woman was allegedly abducted in Williamsburg early Monday morning, and two people have been arrested and charged with attempting to prostitute her. Steven Benoit, 25, and Jasmine Wilkins, 19, were arrested for allegedly kidnapping the 28-year-old woman, who hasn't been identified. “They told her to be a prostitute, and she wanted no part of it. They were punching her in the face and pulling her hair," the victim's grandmother, Grace Schenk, told the Post. more ›

A deaf woman is suing a Bronx hospital, claiming that a nurse's aide inappropriately touched her under the guise of giving her a sponge bath. "When I see an ambulance with the hospital's name on it, it shakes me. I don't know when I will ever be comfortable staying overnight in a hospital," the woman says in the complaint. more ›

The thousands of police and fire call boxes that are sprinkled across our fair metropolis are not going anywhere. Though the city would really, really, really like to get rid of the 14,500 boxes around town (and save a few million bucks) a judge yesterday denied a motion to let the city take them down. Besides being a win for the deaf, this is also good news for those without cellphones and fans of non-Cemusa-branded street adornments! more ›

It seems that one thief has read (or watched) "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" one too many times: A psychologist says that an accused robber has been faking being deaf and mute for the last three years. And with 64 adjournments under his belt, Wendy Gabriel's plan seems to be working. "There is no dysfunction. He's not speaking because he doesn't want to," psychologist Barry Winkler told the News. more ›

Noise: it's annoying... but now it's also dangerous! According to a new study, New Yorkers are exposed to dangerous levels of street noise each day, which over time can be damaging. Columbia professor and one of the study's authors, Robyn Gershon, says, “That’s the problem with noise. It sneaks up on you. It’s a hidden hazard and a hidden health outcome.” more ›

A custodian at Kings County Hospital Center has been arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a deaf, mute and mentally disabled psychiatric patient as he took a shower. The Daily News reports that 30-year-old Larry Taylor has been accused of attacking a 28-year-old patient on Feb. 11, and has been charged with first-degree criminal sex act and third-degree sexual abuse—both felonies, according to the Times. more ›

A hospital employee is being investigated for allegedly raping a male patient a the shower in the psychiatric unit of Kings County Hospital Center—where a 49-year-old woman died in a waiting room after being repeatedly ignored by staffers. The victim, described in the Daily News as "developmentally disabled, deaf and mute," reported the attack to relatives two weeks ago. After scanning surveillance footage and conducting forensic tests, police are reportedly nearing an arrest. more ›

What with being slammed as racist and losing funding for 16 fire houses the FDNY is having a tough year so far and street alarm boxes are next up on the chopping block. Bloomberg’s rationale? "In the days where everybody has cell phones ... the city would be just as safe without them." The mayor might have a point: 85 percent of the time people use the street boxes to make prank calls and out of 26,666 structural fires last year, only 140 were reported from the phones, reported the Daily News. Getting rid of them would also save the department $2.5 million (still only half of what Anderson Cooper’s historic fire house cost). Other cities like Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Chicago have already trashed their boxes, so what’s stopping New York? Before eradicating the outdated system it will have to come up with a new way for the deaf to quickly contact authorities. more ›

In violation of a ruling by New York State's Human Rights Division, the principal of W. Tresper Clarke High School stood in the schoolhouse doorway and refused entrance to 15-year-old John Cave yesterday, as long as he had his service dog with him. Cave is a deaf teenager with cochlear implants, and this week, the state's Human Rights Division Commissioner Kumiki Gibson declared the school violated two provisions of the Human Rights law (PDF) and ordered that Cave and his service dog Simba be allowed in school. more ›