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Distressing bodycam video captured the moment police in Westchester County fatally shot a man accused of stealing fruit – which his father described as a “modern-day lynching.” Three New Rochelle cops — identified as Kari Bird, Gabrielle Chavarry and Detective Steven Conn — confronted Jarrell Garris, 37, at a grocery store on July 3, according to Fox News. “What were you doing in the store? You were eating the food?” one of the two female cops asks Garris as he walks away. Conn tells Garris he is under arrest, but he begins to struggle with the officers as they try...

In a Monday press conference, Governor Andrew Cuomo did not merely single out New Rochelle, in Westchester County, as the first outbreak hotspot—he emphasized, for good measure, the "Orthodox Jewish" identity of the culprit. "We know religious gatherings have been a problem...for weeks," he continued, belying any semblance of neutrality as to which particular community he had in mind when TV producers flashed images of black hat-clad Haredi Jews across the screen. In Kafkaesque fashion, as Jewish Insider's Jacob Kornbluh pointed out, one of the photos appeared to be from 2006. Cuomo's press conference followed his flagging, on Twitter last...

Two weeks ago, an unexpected cluster of coronavirus cases in New Rochelle, N.Y., seemed an unnerving sign that an outbreak that had devastated China and Italy was taking hold in the New York region and could spread rapidly. The state took drastic measures that stirred a backlash, including creating a containment zone. But now, the latest data indicates that the measures may be starting to work. The outbreak, which Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo once said was advancing “unabated” in New Rochelle, has appeared to slow: Over the last four days, only 38 new cases were reported to the county. “Everybody...

It’s not every day you see a detailed map of your hometown splashed across the news. Then again, the National Guard was never asked to set up a containment area there — until now.So if you’re wondering what it’s like to have my New York hometown figure prominently in the story of a virus from Wuhan, China? It’s been completely surreal.New Rochelle, New York, is home to about 80,000 people. It’s a small city, but because it sits in New York City’s long shadow, it’s more like a large suburb. I still remember being a teenager and complaining to...

LT is out today. Yesterday's thread is here: http://freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3823556/posts?page=1

The White House Coronavirus Task Force today recommended 30-day mitigation strategies for New Rochelle, NY due to widespread transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). These mitigation activities are designed to address the effects of COVID-19 on areas that are experiencing community spread. “President Trump has made clear that the Task Force must move decisively to protect the health and safety of the American people,” said Vice President Mike Pence. “These recommendations outline a whole-of-community approach to immediately minimize the impacts of coronavirus in this area. I look forward to the continued partnership between the Task Force and State and local...

In one small suburb on the outskirts of New York City, coronavirus cases jumped from one to more than 100 in less than 10 days. Now the state's governor is trying to catch up to the virus by setting up a containment area around New Rochelle and deploying the National Guard to assist with food deliveries and clean public spaces. "We'll go in, we'll clean the schools and assess the situation," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. "This will be a period of disruption for the community." New Rochelle is about 25 miles outside of New York City. The issue,...

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is deploying the National Guard to enforce a mile-radius coronavirus “containment area” in a Westchester County community dubbed perhaps the “largest cluster” of cases in America. “New Rochelle, at this point, is probably the largest cluster of these cases in the United States,” Cuomo said in a Tuesday afternoon press conference. “And it’s a significant issue for us.”

A Georgia man caught urinating at a Metro Gold Line station in Pasadena Wednesday was carrying a cache of weapons, including a loaded AR-15-type rifle, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Christopher Goodine, 28, was relieving himself at the Sierra Madre Villa station, deputies said. Besides the rifle, he had a handgun, a machete, a rope, a notebook with odd writing in it, a suppressor and two loaded high-capacity magazines and additional rounds of ammunition inside a duffel bag. Deputies displayed those items during a news conference.

Horace Silver, the prolific jazz pianist and composer who cofounded the legendary Jazz Messengers, pioneered the genre known as hard bop and mentored scores of musicians, has died. He was 85. Silver died Wednesday at his home in New Rochelle, N.Y., of natural causes, according to his son, Gregory. Through classic compositions such as “Song for My Father,” “Nica's Dream” and “Señor Blues,” Silver influenced generations of musicians with a style that encompassed all his musical loves: gospel, blues, Latin rhythm. It was music that, in Silver's words, “cooked” and “burned.”

Pianist Horace Silver, whose potent and catchy combination of blues, funk and Latin sounds shifted the jazz landscape in the 1950s and '60s, died Wednesday morning at his home in New Rochelle, N.Y. He died of natural causes, according to his son, Gregory Silver. He was 85. As a bandleader, Horace Silver mentored some of the hottest musicians of his era. As a composer, he devised numerous jazz standards still played today. Silver grew up in Norwalk, Conn. He was 11 when he and and his father stumbled upon a swing band one warm Sunday night. It was the orchestra...

A veterans group alleges in a federal lawsuit that officials violated its free-speech rights when they banned a “Don’t Tread on Me” flag from a city-owned armory. The lawsuit filed last week in federal court says New Rochelle’s action, in addition to being unconstitutional, was “unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious” and betrayed a lack of appreciation of history. The City Council had ordered the flag down in March, citing complaints that the yellow banner with a coiled rattlesnake was making a political statement. The flag has been used as an unofficial symbol of the tea party since at least 2008 and...

The city of New Rochelle, N.Y., has removed the historic Gadsden “Don’t Tread On Me” flag from a military armory, deeming the flag “too partisan” because it often is used by the tea party movement. And in response, veterans groups have tapped the Thomas More Law Center to take up the fight. It was after an official ceremony on March 21 at the New Rochelle Armory that a new American flag was unfurled to replace the previous weathered flag that flew at the location. Beneath the new American flag, the yellow Gadsden Flag was flown, as is common tradition...

The woman who died and was a victim of a botched 33-week abortion has been identified as 29-year-old Jennifer McKenna Morbelli, of New Rochelle, New York. A report from pro-life blogger Jill Stanek says two sources confirmed the identity of the victim. Morbilli died Thursday as the result of fatal complications suffered during an abortion at 33 weeks at the hand of late-term abortion practitioner LeRoy Carhart. The abortion took place at the Germantown Reproductive Health Center in Germantown, Maryland. “Carhart’s alleged victims were 29-year-old Jennifer McKenna Morbelli, pictured right, and her 33-week-old preborn daughter, Madison Leigh,” Stanek reports. “I...

Just in time for Earth Day, Talk of the Sound has reviewed the Local Agenda 21 plan for New Rochelle, NY created under an ICLEI program first announced in 2009 and analyzed changes to the document made after the New Rochelle City Council voted to adopt the plan in 2011. Earth Day falls each year on April 22nd. It is the two-year anniversary of the release of the original GreeNR plan. Talk of the Sound conducted a similar analysis when GreeNR was released in 2010 and many of the concerns we raised were raised at Council. In some cases, items...

NYTIMES picks up story of conflict over New Rochelle Library tax... Liberals attempting to have unelected board raise taxes... Official opposition website at www.NRPL.info by the NR Republican, Independence, and Conservative Parties. -sdk

For anyone interested in the latest information on a girl having a "possible" case of SARS at New Rochelle High School, please visit this Google News Wire or visit the local newspaper's website (nyJournalNews.com). Today the school was loaded with press... WCBS 880, News12, ABC Eyewitness News, and CBS News on scene. (I actually got interviewed for 880). School made absolutely no announcement, other than mentioning that there would be a voluntary faculty meeting after school (SARS was not mentioned when this was announced). -sdk