State police are investigating yesterday's incident of a couple jumping from the Tappan Zee Bridge while naked, resulting in the woman's death and the man being critically injured. State Police investigator Joseph Becerra said, "There's an ongoing investigation to determine what their reasons were. We're looking at whether they were distraught or if there were other underlying issues." One paper's sources suggest that the woman may have hesitated before jumping and that the man pushed her. more ›

Yesterday, Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo announced that former NYPD chief Joseph D'Amico would head the NY State Police, saying, "Chief D’Amico brings extraordinary police credentials and a fresh perspective to the State Police, which will be a significant asset in re-establishing the good reputation of this distinguished force." The State Police has been embroiled in various scandals with previous governors—Pataki's State police head stopped a NYPD probe of his campaign finances, Spitzer had Troopergate, Paterson had the state police's involvement in his aide's domestic violence incident. The Post's editorial board says D'Amico will need a big broom. more ›

Pedro Perez, the acting superintendent of the NY State Police, resigned yesterday amid an investigation into his intervening role in the domestic violence case of former Paterson aide David Johnson. He took over as chief just a week ago after Police Superintendent Harry Corbitt, also implicated in the scandal, stepped down. Perez claims he’s leaving not because he acted wrongly, but because he lacks support from the administration and his fellow officers. But Joseph Barrett, the president of the New York State Police Investigators Association, which represents detectives, says, "The position that the State Police find themselves in now is the result of the actions of a few high-ranking officers in management positions, and Acting Superintendent Perez was one of them." more ›

NY State Police Superintendent Harry Corbitt has stepped down from his position as the scandal surrounding the alleged abuse by a Paterson top aide continues to grow. Governor Paterson and members of the State Police security detail assigned to protect him have been accused of pressuring an alleged domestic violence victim into dropping her legal action against the aide, David Johnson. Of course, yesterday Corbitt partly blamed the media glare for his departure, "It’s very difficult, but when your character is being attacked every day and you really don’t have a recourse to defend yourself. Any individual who is criticized constantly feels that pain. And in most cases there is some way to fight back. But in public service there is not. I’m not an elected official, I’m a public servant, I’m a cop. A good cop." more ›

Following allegations that a top aide to Governor Paterson bullied an ex-girlfriend into dropping domestic abuse charges with the help of state troopers, two politicians want to keep law enforcement officials from straying again. Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries and Senator Eric Adams have proposed the creation of an investigative commission for "systemic misconduct, abuse of power and inappropriate political intervention" with state police. According to Adams, the problem isn't the officers but politicians who abuse their influence. "Many of our state police officers are merely trying to do their jobs. And we want to create an atmosphere where they can do their job free from intimidation, free from any political maneuvering," he said. more ›

More disturbing details about the State Police's involvement in an alleged domestic abuse incident concerning a close aide to Governor Paterson. The NY Times reports that the aide, David Johnson, "reached out to the commander of the governor’s State Police detail the day after an altercation with his girlfriend and asked the commander to call the woman, according to a person briefed on the commander’s actions." The commander, Major Charles Day, was authorized by his superior "to contact the woman, the person briefed on the sequence of events said, and Major Day did so on at least three occasions." more ›

The hits keep coming for Governor Paterson today! Besides NY1 reporter Josh Robin Tweeting that Paterson's aides couldn't find the governor (spokesman says that Paterson was in NYC) and Rep. Nita Lowery (D-Westchester) saying that he should resign, now the Staten Island Advance says that it's been weeks since Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch has spoken with Paterson. more ›

In the wake of the NY Times' article about the Governor's and State Police's possible interference in an abuse claim against an aide to Governor Paterson, state Commissioner of the Division of Criminal Justice Services and Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Denise O'Donnell turned in her resignation today. O'Donnell, who oversaw many agencies including the State Police, now says she was misled by about the alleged interference: Back in January, "I was assured by Superintendent Corbitt that the State Police were not involved." more ›

Real estate developer and free EZ Pass fan David Mack resigned from the MTA Board and Port Authority Board after it was revealed he didn't cooperate with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's investigation of the state police's possible political interference. In fact, Mack pleaded the Fifth Amendment 37 times. According to Cuomo's report, a previous state police superintendent "had been pressured to appoint...Mack, a real estate developer and Pataki fund-raiser, to the uniformed post of deputy superintendent, though Mr. Mack had no law enforcement experience. Mr. Mack went on to appear at official functions in a full dress uniform, angering rank-and-file troopers." (Apparently he's a police buff!) Governor Paterson rescinded his re-nomination of Mack to the Port Authority board and called on him to resign, but Mack refused until yesterday. In his statement, Mack said he was honored to serve the state agencies (and said he did so "diligently and faithfully"), "As I write this note during observances of 9/11, I can’t help but remember eight years ago when both the Port Authority and M.T.A. confronted extraordinarily difficult times. more ›

With news that Diane Schuler was intoxicated while driving a minivan on the wrong side of the Taconic State Parkway and crashed into an SUV, killing its three passengers, relatives of the SUV's driver and a passengers are planning to file a civil suit against Schuler's family. Attorney Irving Anolik, representing the family of Guy Bastardi and his father Michael Bastardi, said that there's a "strong fragrance of criminality" and said anyone who knew of Diane Schuler's impaired condition may "possibly be an accomplice... Any person who was aware that she was drinking is an accomplice... It's hard for me to believe that the family did not know that this woman had an alcohol problem or a drug problem." more ›

Is singing the N.W.A. song "F--- tha Police" the best thing to warble while hanging out a car window on a day when there are tons of police patrolling the highways? That's what Floral Park resident Sara Smith, 21, was doing when a trooper pulled over Smith's friend's car on the Southern State Parkway on July 4. Newsday reports that the trooper was told by other motorists that "Smith [was] hanging out of the passenger window of a car." When he got to the car, he "heard her shouting obscenities about the police." The State Police spokesman said that Smith "asked the trooper if he had ever heard of N.W.A."—ha!—and the trooper replied he hadn't. Then the trooper, who said the driver was "apologetic," issued Smith a summons for "disorderly conduct, including obscene language and gestures." more ›

Police are looking for witnesses who may have seen the silver Infiniti SUV "any time after early Wednesday morning," because that's the vehicle a missing Brooklyn woman was last seen in. Laura Garza left the Manhattan nightclub Marquee early Wednesday morning with Michael Mele (pictured), a convicted sex offender, and hasn't been heard from since. State police investigated Mele's upstate apartment, finding a woman's shoe near a dumpster and a large piece of his home's carpet missing. more ›

A study commissioned by the state police has determined that Governor Paterson's security detail is inadequate, so the squad assigned to protect him will be increased by about 45 officers. The Post, naturally, is quick to point out that the beef-up will cost over $4 million – "even as Paterson calls for cuts in state spending." Pataki had about 200 troopers assigned to executive security; the number shrank to 150 under Spitzer. The addition of more cops is something of a surprise in Paterson's case since he previously talked about "an element in the police force... of out-of-control people who had power that were clearly monitoring a lot of the elected officials." Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is investigating these allegations about "rogue members" on the state police squad assigned to protect politicians. more ›

Governor David Paterson explained possible rumormongering by the state police was why he admitted his extramarital affairs and drug use shortly after taking office. Yes--Paterson was essentially afraid of the NY State Police! more ›

Yesterday, the Post reported about a strange and disturbing road rage incident in Red Hook last week. A woman was ultimately repeatedly hit by the driver of a Land Rover. more ›

This morning, federal agents have arrested over 50 members of the Gambino, Genovese and Bonanno crime families in New York City, New Jersey, and Long Island. Authorities are calling this the "biggest mafia bust in more than 20 years." more ›

A van carrying members of Stuyvesant High School's junior varsity girls' track team overturned on the way to a track meet in New Hampshire. The crash occurred last Saturday on I-91 in Vermont, when the van "veered into a median and rolled over," according to Vermont State Police. more ›

Troopergate was initially about Gov. Spitzer or his aides using State Police to effectually spy on Spitzer's primary political foe in Albany, Joseph Bruno. (The two also don't appear to like each other on a personal level.) The Governor's communications director Darren Dopp was suspended in the course of the investigation and has since left state employ for a job with an Albany lobbying firm. more ›

More than a year and a half after the death of Nixzmary Brown, the Administration for Children's Services has hired 20 retired NYPD detectives to work as trained investigators consulting with ACS caseworkers. The ACS plans on eventually fielding 120 such investigators. more ›

State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver made a public plea to Gov. Eliot Spitzer to cool down his feud with State Senate Leader Joseph Bruno. The so-called Troopergate scandal began when the Governor allegedly sicced State Police on Bruno to monitor his business travel practices. In the aftermath, Spitzer lost some of his long-time aides when he claimed he knew nothing about the surveillance and they resigned. Darren Dopp recently was hired as a lobbyist after losing his job. more ›

Governor Spitzer can rest a bit easier now: The Albany County DA found that the governor's aides broke no laws when they tried to use the state police to discredit a rival, State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno. DA David Soares will release a report today, but in the meantime, his spokeswoman's statement said, "This office found no illegal conduct. To the contrary, we found that the governor, his staff, and the New York State Police were acting within their authority in compiling and releasing documents to the media concerning the use of state aircraft." more ›

Governor Spitzer's communications director Darren Dopp has come full circle. The aide, criticized for trying to dig up dirt on Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno by way of the State Police's records on Bruno's travel, had originally said he'd comply with the investigation and offer up his e-mail correspondence. But, after being served with a subpoena from the Ethics Commission, Dopp's lawyer Terrence Kindlon said his client would fight it. Now, Kindlon tells the press, "I could not insist that he resist the subpoena." more ›

Darren Dopp, Governor Spitzer's communications director who was faulted for at least co-devising a plan to smear State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno by way of State Police records, is planning on fighting a subpoena from the State Ethics Commission. The subpoena, which asks for Dopp's email that relates to the scandal (beginning January 1, 2007, Spitzer's first day, until a few days ago), is described as "very broad" by Dopp's lawyer Terrence Kindlon who told the NY Times, "It asks for a lot of information that isn’t really mine to give, including correspondence with ink-stained wretches [as in reporters!]. Prudence dictates that we ask a court to look at this and determine what is being legitimately requested.” more ›

A man, who was found not guilty by reason of insanity after he beat his roommate and the man's 4-year-old son to death with a billy club in 1974, left the Ancora Psychiatric Hospital Sunday afternoon when he went on an unescorted stroll around the hospital's grounds. Sixty-four-year-old retired Marine William Enman admitted the killings in 1975, but was spared prison when it was determined that he was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. Enman left the 80-acre property at Ancora during his Sunday stroll with camping gear and survivalist equipment. Now, authorities have expanded the search to Canada. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on 1st Ave. and 92nd St. in Manhattan, a car vs. building on Liberty Ave. and Elton St. in Brooklyn, and a body found on East Tremont Ave. in the Bronx.
• Looking to avoid damaging snail- and e-mail trails or records of phone conversations, aides to Gov. Spitzer who are being investigated in the State Police scandal investigation are allegedly conversing only in person while driving around in black sedans.
• When an uncomfirmed threat arose regarding terrorists driving box trucks packed with nuclear materials to be exploded as dirty bombs in NYC, the NYPD went on high alert. MTA police who man the security at many of the city's bridges and tunnels were just handed radiation detectors and not told anything about what to look for, or even the existence of a threat.
• In order to improve crime stats and make schools appear safer, public school deans are often forbidden to call 911. In the case of a medical emergency like a stroke, one would think that common sense would override that prohibition, but unfortunately it didn't for one young student.
• Bette Midler's husband was briefly manhandled during Fashion Week by security guards who didn't recognize him because he is not a celebrity.
• Leona Helmsley cut two of her grandkids out of her will because they wouldn't visit the grave of their father and her son at least once a year. The other two grandkids received $10 million each.
• A 368-block section of Jamaica, Queens was set to be rezoned today in order to turn it into an airport transit hub, with 3 million square feet of development including hotels and residences.
• If you live in Brooklyn, do you know which police precinct you're in? Brooklyn.com has a list of all of them with a map and direct telephone numbers.

A terrible accident in the Bronx: Police believe that an SUV on East Tremont was speeding around 4AM when it crashed into a telephone pole and flipped over. 1010WINS says the vehicle was "ripped apart" at Commonwealth Avenue. Three men were ejected from the SUV and pronounced dead at the scene. A fourth passenger, a woman, died at Jacobi Hospital. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a pedestrian struck at 186th St. and Amsterdam in Manhattan, a child was struck and killed by a car on 130th Ave. and Springfield Blvd. in Queens, and a pedestrian was struck by a Bobcat (motorized work vehicle) on Monroe St. and Catherine Slip in Manhattan.
• Ironic Sans examines the new animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie and finds specific references to it taking place in NYC, but a very unspecific skyline of unrecognizable buildings.
• A candid admission at the blog dailyheights.com and advice that is is a terrible idea and dangerous to wander off the subway late at night while completely intoxicated.
• Sprint has hired Samsung to install a fourth-generation level of wireless Internet known as Wi-Max in NYC by the end of 2008.
• Republican Presidential aspirant Mitt Romney is presenting NYC to the rest of the country as a paradigm of the ills of illegal immigration. Bloomberg News columnist Amity Shlaes contends that he is badly mistaken.
• A pair of NYC sanitation workers sprinted across three lanes of traffic on the Van Wyck Expressway after witnessing an accident last summer, and then kicked through a car's sunroof to pull a woman and an infant from the overturned vehicle, which was smoking and leaking gasoline.
• Gov. Spitzer's aide Darren Dopp will take some vacation time before returning to work, but his suspension has been lifted following his participation in a scandal to embarrass Majority Leader Joe Bruno with the help of State Police.
• Police are looking for a pair of men who pose as plumbers in Manhattan while burgling the apartments of elderly women.

We were skimming 1010WINS when we saw this headline Spitzer Energy Adviser Resigns Amid Threat Investigation. What? An energy adviser was involved in the plot to discredit State Senator Joseph Bruno? But actually it's something nuttier:

Energy adviser Steven Mitnick confirms that he has resigned from his position in the Spitzer administration. more ›

Governor Eliot Spitzer think the State Senate's idea to have Attorney General Andrew Cuomo appointed "special prosecutor" - to investigate misdeeds in Spitzer's office - is "pointless." Spitzer told the Sun, "It seems to me that the attorney general already issued a report that he called complete, and Joe Bruno already called it a complete report. We have the Ethics Commission doing its thing." more ›

Earlier this month, the NY Times had an article about how Governor Spitzer seemed "defiant and chastened" about the battles he was having with State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno. Now, after the Attorney General's office found that Spitzer's aides had been involved in a dirty-tricks attempt to smear Bruno by using State Police records, the NY Times reports the Spitzer is "at a loss for words" and that he will try to rebuild his image.

“This is going to be seen — and I understand it very clearly — it is going to be seen as more than a blemish,” Mr. Spitzer said in the interview, conducted in his Manhattan office. “My feeling is real loss, both substantively and from a perception perspective, about what we’re trying to do. The perception matters, not just because I’m worried about what’s the public perception of me, but because the perception about what we’re doing affects our capacity to do it. more ›