Local Politics · Queens County
Former Queens City Councilmember Eric Ulrich's bribery trial continued Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026, in Manhattan Criminal Court, where prosecutors played wiretapped phone calls from January and February 2022. The recordings allegedly show Ulrich, then serving as a special adviser to Mayor Adams, directing Michael Mazzio's daughter through the hiring process for a Department of Correction position that doubled her salary. Prosecutors claim the job was provided in exchange for payments from Mazzio, who is also accused of giving Ulrich $10,000 in Mets season tickets to resolve towing licensing issues. Ulrich faces charges of accepting more than $150,000 in bribes during his time in office. The trial also featured calls involving Anthony and Joseph Livreri, who pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy and bribery for paying Ulrich $4,000 in 2022.
Crime · New York, NY
Rashaun Donovan, 48, was arraigned Oct. 27 in Queens Criminal Court on charges including attempted murder in the second degree after allegedly stabbing his 23-year-old nephew and a 39-year-old man with a kitchen knife inside his home at 133-35 149th St. during a confrontation on the night of Friday, Oct. 23. Police from the 113th Precinct responded to a 911 call just after 9:30 p.m.; an officer discharged his firearm at Donovan's sister, who allegedly approached officers with a knife in hand, striking her before EMS transported her to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in stable condition. The police-involved shooting is under investigation by the NYPD's Force Investigation Division. Judge Thomas Wright-Fernandez remanded Donovan into custody without bail.
Crime · Queens County
Dr. Fazul Yusuf, 72, of Flushing, was arrested by the NYPD Special Victims Squad and arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on charges including two counts of sexual abuse in the third degree, two counts of forcible touching, endangering the welfare of a child, and two counts of harassment in the second degree. The criminal complaint alleges two incidents on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at his home-based medical practice at 57-07 146th St., involving a 20-year-old patient and a 15-year-old patient. Yusuf pleaded not guilty before Judge Indira Khan, who set bail at $10,000 cash with additional bond conditions and issued a temporary order of protection. The NYPD investigation remains ongoing; authorities are asking other potential victims to contact the Sex Crimes Hotline at 212-267-7273 or Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS.
Community News · Queens County
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. and eight other elected officials sent letters Tuesday to Mayor Zohran Mamdani urging the city to acquire a privately owned parking lot at 47-11 90th St. in Elmhurst, believed to contain the remains of more than 300 freed slaves buried since the early 19th century. The group also asked the city Landmarks Preservation Commission and the state Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation department to consider designating the site as a landmark or historic site. The lot dates to 1818, was used by St. Mark's African Methodist Episcopal Church beginning in 1828, and was sold off in the 1930s before being purchased in 2009 by developer 90 Queens LLC for planned luxury condos. In August, The City Reporter revealed the site had been paved over and used to store vehicles towed under an NYPD abandoned-vehicle program.
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Public Safety · New York, NY
At its Oct. 28 board meeting, MTA New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said an investigation into two violent altercations between EAGLE fare-enforcement agents and riders will conclude mid-to-late the following week. The probe examines a Brooklyn incident in October involving allegations that agents injured public school aide Kyle Taylor, and an August Bronx confrontation in which agents threw a man to the ground and restrained him. The MTA has suspended EAGLE Team operations pending both the investigation and a broader review of the unarmed civilian security squads. The City Council's Progressive Caucus has called for permanently halting EAGLE Teams' use on buses, while MTA Chair Janno Lieber defended them as vital to combating fare evasion. Board members also raised questions about background-check practices for former law-enforcement hires and whether body-worn cameras should be added.
Local Politics · New York, NY
Registered New York City voters can cast ballots in the November 3 general election or vote early through November 1. The guide lists candidates for state races including Governor and Attorney General, as well as City Council and Congressional district seats. Five city ballot proposals cover simplifying public-space use, reducing contractor paperwork, speeding street-safety projects, streamlining building permits, and setting contribution targets for the rainy day fund. Full candidate and proposal details are available at nycvotes.org.
Public Safety · New York, NY
A disciplinary trial for off-duty NYPD officer Wayne Isaacs, who killed unarmed 37-year-old Delrawn Small in a July 4th weekend road confrontation in East New York, Brooklyn in 2016, is scheduled for Jan. 13, 2027. Isaacs was acquitted of second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter charges in 2017, but the Civilian Complaint Review Board substantiated misconduct charges against him in 2020. NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Trials Rosmarie Maldonado recommended dropping the disciplinary charges late last year, but Commissioner Jessica Tisch overrode that recommendation to proceed with the trial. The proceedings will determine whether Isaacs violated department guidelines and could result in termination.
Housing & Development · Queens County
Queens recorded 106 first-time foreclosures in the third quarter of 2026, tying the fourth quarter of 2024 for the second-lowest mark since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a PropertyShark report. The figure represents a 36% year-over-year decline from 165 filings in Q3 2025, though Queens still led all five New York City boroughs in foreclosure volume. St. Albans ZIP code 11412 accounted for the most first-time filings among Queens neighborhoods with 11. Despite the drop in completed foreclosures, pre-foreclosure lis pendens filings rose 26% year-over-year to 697, also the highest among NYC boroughs. Citywide, first-time foreclosures fell 23% while pre-foreclosures increased 10% over the same period.
Housing & Development · Queens County
Construction is underway at seven sites in Astoria, Queens, combining to bring hundreds of new housing units to the neighborhood. Projects range from a topped-out 6-story mixed-use building with 43 units at 37-04 34th St. to a planned 26-story tower with 198 apartments at 37-09 36th Ave. A 16-story mixed-use building with 234 rental units is being developed at 35-17 42nd St., while a 9-story condominium building with 87 units and a companion 14-story building are progressing at 32-16 38th Ave. and 38-12 33rd St., targeting first-half 2028 completion. A 6-story residential building at 31-03 37th Ave. is expected to top out in November, supported by a $45.6 million loan from Ponce Bank.
Education · New York, NY
Scores of adjunct professors at the City University of New York continue to experience delayed paychecks, with some owed more than $10,000, CUNY officials acknowledged. The Professional Staff Congress received 110 late-pay complaints this semester, down from over 1,000 in Spring 2025. CUNY attributes the delays to late payroll submissions at individual colleges and notes that senior college payments route through the state comptroller's system due to split funding. Union representatives say the root cause is CUNY's reliance on semester-to-semester rehiring of its 11,000 part-time faculty, who make up 52% of instructional staff. Over 50 adjuncts have joined a union grievance seeking outstanding pay for teaching courses with more than 90 students.
Community brief · New York, NY
The MTA announced Wednesday that starting Thursday through Saturday, costume-clad riders on the New York City Subway, Long Island Rail Road, and Metro-North Railroad can collect novelty station-sign stickers and Halloween-themed collectors' maps at select stations. Two subway locations per borough will feature temporary spooky renamings such as "Slime Sq-42 Street" for Times Square-42 St and "Ghoul Central Terminal" for Grand Central Terminal,…
