New York Gov. David Paterson is expected to sign a ban on text messaging while driving, a law that already exists in Rockland and Westchester. That comes as a new federally funded study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute shows a crash is 23 times more likely while texting than not. The study grabbed headlines because it monitored truck drivers by video camera as they covered more than 6 million miles and proved what anyone with any commonsense should know: Driving and texting don’t mix, in a big way.
Yesterday, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-New York, introduced a bill that would require states to write laws to prohibit text messaging by drivers or risk losing 25 percent of their annual federal highway money.
Now, here’s the interesting part about the New York bill — it is what’s known as a “secondary law.” That means an officer must have some other reason to stop a vehicle before citing a driver for the offense, in this case texting while driving.
So, if it’s such a danger, why isn’t worth a primary law? If it’s not the threshold of a primary law, or an offense that a cop can stop you for, why then bother with it being a secondary offense?
And will any such regulations stop people from texting and driving? Did it stop people from talking on the cellphone, non-hands-free? Or did chatty drivers just have to develop a “ditch-the-phone” move when they pass a police cruiser?

The latest installment of Editorial Spotlight, The Journal News Editorial Board’s community affairs Web cast, brings together three senators who represent portions of the Lower Hudson Valley to discuss the future of the post-coup state Senate.

Joining us Tuesday at 1 p.m. will be Senate Deputy Majority Leader Jeffrey Klein, D-Bronx; Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers; and Sen. Thomas Morahan, R-New City.
Watch LIVE at Editorial Spotlight. View the program on demand at Editorial Spotlight, click “on demand” and select the program from the list at right.

Readers can submit questions in advance for possible use during the
interview; e-mail tprinciot@lohud.com.

A Mount Vernon man who was being held on murder charges and was mistakenly released from Westchester County jail had readers expressing concern about the danger of this particular situation and whether this type of thing happens more than is publicized. The suspect, Vetal “Jerome” Bonhomme has since been apprehended. Read the latest update.

One reader wrote:

That’s a mistake that shouldn’t happen.

Another added:

Absolutely, this was a horrible accident, and thank God nobody was injured or worse.

There is also debate about what should be the consequences for the two corrections officers who were responsible for the bungling.
One poster wrote:

To fire these two officers would be wrong. There is such a change-over of officers qualified to work the booking division, it’s a miracle more mistakes aren’t made.

Another added:

Yes, they should be disciplined, but more importantly, the situation should be corrected so as not to be repeated. To even contemplate ruining the careers and the lives of these two officers is unforgiveable.

The DWI arrest of a Putnam Valley mother, Suzanne Kristofferson, with 5 children in the car has readers buzzing about the latest incident in a string of arrests of mothers drinking and driving with kids in the car. Read the story.

One reader kicked off the discussion by writing:

What the heck is it with these women? Drunk driving is wrong … putting kids in the car is even worse. Then letting them out without bail, maybe they need to begin setting some high bonds on them, just for having the kids in the car.

Another added:

Another upstanding mother. Can you imagine getting a call that one of your kids was being driven around by (her)?

Drinking and driving is a sore topic for readers and, as usual, they are calling for harsh punishment for anyone convicted of the crime.

Here’s one reader’s take on the situation:

There is nothing this woman can say to defend her actions. I don’t want to know what a hard life she has, don’t want to hear it. She put herself and people in danger. Prosecute to full extent of the law and get her off the road.

Another continued:

It’s bad enough to have your own kids in the car, but to have someone else’s kids in the car is a disgrace. … It’s time to make this charge more than a misdemeanor, considering a child’s life could be taken due to recklessness and stupidity.

News that a surgical technician who once worked at Northern Westchester Hospital Center in Mount Kisco was arrested in Colorado on charges of potentially spreading Hepititis C to patients at a center there has readers talking about whether people here are at risk and what could be done to prevent health care workers from spreading communicable diseases. Officials at Northern Westchester Hospital said that the woman was addicted to painkillers and would take patients’ syringes of fentanyl, inject herself and then put the used needle back. (Read the whole story.)
One reader said:

What a betrayal of patients — extremely disturbing, frightening and disheartening. Hope every former patient involved in this is OK.

Another readers was worried on a personal level:

My mom and my husband both had surgery at Northern Westchester Hospital during this time. Thanks for the double dose of stress.

Many readers were concerned about hiring practices and how employees are screened to prevent problems like this. One reader asked:

I would like to know how a hospital hires someone like that. Don’t they check her previous employment history? And you would think she would have to take a drug test.

A nurse replied:

(Health care facilities) should make drug testing standard and random! Patients deserve quality care and they trust us to provide that care, I can’t even begin to tell you how devastating Hep C can be. My heart goes out to those infected.

Speeding on Lower Hudson Valley roads and highways is a perenial topic of debate among residents, so a story today in The Journal News and on LoHud.com about extreme speeders had the forums heating up.
Here’s one reader’s opinion:

Police need to start worrying less about speeders and more about horrible drivers in general. … Speed by itself doesn’t kill, it’s stupid, inexperienced or careless drivers that do.

Another wrote:

I want the cops focusing on the overaggressive drivers, the drunks, the teenagers, the distracted drivers and so forth.

A third offered this solution:

If the speed gun catches you, it should automatically generate a ticket that can’t be cried out of. There should be no warnings, no ‘second chances’. Too many innocent people have gotten killed because of reckless drivers. They didn’t get a second chance.

Comments from law enforcement personnel that troopers rarely pull over drivers going 10-20 mph over the limit because they are concentrating on the extreme speeders provoked a strong response from readers, such as this post:

I’m dismayed that ‘routine speeders’ doing 75 mph are seldomly pulled over by law enforcement.

Another reader continued:

Speeding is speeding, the average garden variety driver who goes 10 or 15 over the limit needs to be reeled in.

Several readers offered suggestions to curb speeding, such as this thought:

Jail time and real punishment for these offenses will do more to stop this irresponsible behavior and endangerment to innocent people. I really do not care if these speeders run off the road and kill themselves but more than likely they are going to kill others who are not speeding.

And finally, one reader had this proposal:

Make vehicles that can’t go over 70!

When news first broke in March about an investigation into the finances of Stony Point Little League, The Editorial Board examined the issue, with an eye toward a disturbing trend of ripoffs to nonprofits, sports organizations and fund-raisers during times of recession. Below is a March 10 editorial. It seems relevant again, after reading Sunday’s article, “Little League thefts on rise,” and earlier coverage, including “Ex-official arrested in Stony Point Little League theft” and “Little League ex-treasurer’s arrest a shock.”

The original March 10 editorial follows, with time elements added in italics.

Step up to the plate

A Journal News editorial

It’s hardly a unique story, especially these days – the numbers don’t add up, and it seems that money’s gone missing. Money of neighbors, of friends, gone. It’s happened in hedge funds, where lax oversight and investors willing to believe a deal that’s “too good to be true” find out much too late that it was. It’s happening in nonprofit groups, where a few volunteers manage sometimes thousands of dollars with little training and less oversight. And now, it appears, it’s happened in Stony Point Little League.

At some point – no one has been exactly clear – it became apparent that Stony Point Little League’s books didn’t add up. Funds were missing from the nonprofit league that lets kids in the northern Rockland town play ball. League officials have declined to put an amount on the missing money, but talk around town ranges from $25,000 to $80,000.

Tough thing to do

So, the local board that runs the Stony Point Little League did likely the hardest thing a group of friendly volunteers could do: It went to the police. An ongoing investigation, now in the hands of town police but possibly heading to the Rockland District Attorney’s office, means we know few details about the Little League situation. But here’s what we do know: These types of crimes, stealing from fund-raisers, taking from neighbors, swiping money intended to help children, aren’t rare. And they tend to spike when the economy tanks.

In Washingtonville, the president of the local soccer club was charged (in February) with embezzling more than $130,000 from the club’s bank account. Four years ago, a Philipstown Little League treasurer was accused of taking $15,000 in league funds. And in 1992, the PTA treasurer of Hempstead Elementary in the East Ramapo school district, a needy school in a needy district, admitted embezzling $35,000 from the organization. Her lawyer at the time blamed the pressure of that recession.

What’s important now is ensuring kids in town can still play ball. Certainly, many in town are stung by the revelations, and even feel betrayed by a league that promised safe, healthy fun for kids but was reckless with their hard-earned money. And this comes on the heels of former resident James Nicholson being charged with securities fraud and bank fraud (in February), with many of his former Stony Point neighbors falling victim.

Earning back trust

The league must work hard to gain back confidence. The fact that this much money could go missing in the first place should deeply disturb every board member. And it’s come to light that the organization did not file taxes for the past three years, another embarrassing fact for board of directors. Steps have been made in the right direction. The league has formed a finance committee. Computerized record-keeping is being instituted. Other committees have been formed to help with other tasks, and national and regional Little League officials have been contacted for legal and administrative support.

Stony Point Little League is far from alone in their lax oversight. Little League Baseball and Softball Treasurer Elissa Singer last month used her column on Little League International’s Web site to tackle the issue of financial problems in Little Leagues. Her column lists tips for protecting a league from financial problems, and many suggestions match the action already taken in Stony Point.

What next

Stony Point Little League, like many sports organizations, has grown in recent years. It has needed to raise more fees to cover costs for things that used to be the purview of volunteers, from umpiring games to staffing the snack shack. That’s meant more cash and less elbow grease.

Now, though, Stony Point Little League needs that volunteer spirit back. “This is a very challenging time for the Stony Point Little League, but the Board of Directors is committed to sustaining the level of baseball and softball that we’ve delivered for decades,” a March 2 letter from the League to parents states. “More so than ever before, we will need your support and enthusiasm to help us navigate this difficult situation.”

Yes, mistakes were made. Now it’s time to help fix them. The league – and every other nonprofit organization struggling with fewer volunteers, higher operating costs and a tight economy – needs people willing to pitch in and offer their skills and talent, and their elbow grease. And more people willing to help watch the store. The lesson’s been learned.

A Journal News editorial

Find out more

Little League Online, the Web site for Little League Baseball & Softball, offers “Tips from the Treasurer: Protect Your League, and Yourself, from Financial Problems,” with Little League Treasurer Melissa Singer, former controller of Little League International.

Go to www.littleleague.org and search for “Tips from the treasurer.”

A highly contagious and destructive fungal disease that attacks tomato and potato plants, and was responsible for the potato blight in Ireland in the 1840s, has appeared in the Lower Hudson Valley and has home gardeners warily examining their plants for signs of infection. (Read the story)
One reader posted:

Keeping my fingers crossed here. Will also keep an eye out around the neighborhood, but I would really hate to tell one of my neighbors that their garden is infected.

One reader suspects the disease has already hit close to home:

I bought one plant and I noticed the leaves were yellow recently. I just thought it was from too much rain, now looking at the picture, I think my plant has this. I was looking forward to growing my own. I guess it’s a goner.

One home gardener shared that while there is no sign of the disease, the recent hail storm caused some damage:

I planted the largest garden I have ever attempted to maintain this year, a 30×30 lot. I have been lucky thus far this year. All of my plants were raised from seed started indoors and have been growing well. The hail storm did some damage to a few of my tomato plants … but for the most part, all looks well for now.

And, finally, a reader wondered if there is any way to avoid contagion:

This report gives me a heads up on what to look out for. But I do have one question, is there a way to prevent this fungus from getting into your gardens?

The appointment of Richard Ravitch as lieutenant governor by Gov. David Paterson in an attempt to break the long-standing stalemate in the state Senate isn’t necessarily impressing readers. Ravitch is the former head of the Metropolitan Transit Authority and was the architect of the controversial MTA bailout plan passed recently.
One reader described the latest development like this:

Is Paterson’s dog and pony show going to help or hurt the situation in Albany? … From the look of things this might be another dynamic to the circus show that we are unwittingly spectators of.

Readers are also debating the merits of the appointee. Here’s what one person had to say:

Ravitch is a lifelong hack who once presided over the MTA – an unelected board with the unlimited power to pick the pockets of working people.

Another countered:

No, this was actually a good move by Gov. Paterson. If anything happened to Paterson, I’d much rather have Ravitch running New York than Espada. Could you imagine — Gov. Pedro Espada.

Mostly, readers are predicting that this will end up bogged down in the courts rather than prompting any constructive work in Albany. And they are still calling on voters to put a real end to the political shenanigans at election time.

We can all sit here and complain, but in reality the fault lies with each of us as complacent sheep who either don’t vote or vote along a party line or how a union suggests how we vote rather than voting for individuals who have the interest of the people and state first rather than their selfish selves. If you mad about this, then do something about it and for Pete’s sake don’t forget about it come election time.

East Ramapo’s school board wants to move next year’s school board and budget election up a week because the state-designated day (May 18) falls on Shavuot, which commemorates the giving of the Torah to Moses. (See story here.)

Should it be moved, considering nearly 10,000 voters are observant Jews, and therefore couldn’t vote after sunset, when the holiday starts? Or is there enough time, and other alternatives, such as voting before sunset (polls are open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.) filing absentee ballots, to accommodate their needs? Polls School officials say so many absentee ballots would overwhelm district clerks.

In 2003, Kaser moved its spring village elections because it conflicted with Purim. (New Square didn’t move its spring election that year, though, because on Purim, unlike Shavout, observant Jews can still write and drive.) This year, spring elections were moved because the state-designated date landed on St. Patrick’s Day (there’s actually a state law that prevents village elections from being held on March 17.) In 2007, the Rockland Board of Elections took some heat for scheduling a training session for election inspectors during Rosh Hashannah. An observant couple was offered a different training time. That year, state lawmakers moved primary day to Sept. 18 after it fell on Sept. 11, a move of sensitivity. Also, as East Ramapo School Board President Nathan Rothschild points out, the IRS has modified the April 15 tax filing deadline if the day occurs during Passover.

So, what’s your call? Should the State Department of Education move up the voting date for East Ramapo next year?