CENTRE STREET, Aug 13 – Two
NYC Council Members, Queens Borough President Donovan
Richards and dozens of everyday New Yorkers spent the last
week court-watching, in the same arraignment parts that
Inner City Press reports on in lower Manhattan, The Bronx
and Brooklyn and, though not accessible to or access by
this group, the Federal courts.
On August 13 they held a press conference
in front of 100 Centre Street, and Inner City Press live
streamed and "Spaced" it on X, here.
At the end, Inner City Press asked about the role of the
District Attorneys; Manhattan DA Bragg's office is right
around the corner on Hogan Place.
A representative of the Legal Aid
Society noted that at a recent NYC Council meeting about
disparities in arrest and processing, even as NYPD
attended, none of the DAs did.
"NYC Council Members Sandy Nurse and Restler, Assembly Member Emily Gallagher etc hold a press conference to release findings from a week of action in courthouses" pic.twitter.com/rh97h4eANN
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) August 13, 2026
A man from Channel 7 asked about an
answer he got from Mayor Zohran Mamdani; a woman from WBAI
asked what Mamdani has done about the criminalization of,
as she put it, public urination and drinking outside of a
paper bag. An arrest for blocking the sidewalk and
not having an ID was mentioned, as well as one for not
speaking English. Farebeating on the MTA subway could
result in 24 hours in Central Booking, but not so on
suburban LIRR and Metro North.
Council Member Lincoln Restler
described his court-watching in Brooklyn. Assembly Member
Emily Gallagher of Williamsburg and Greenpoint spoke to
the man from Channel 7 and others.
Another speaker mocked an ADA seeking
bail for the theft of paper towels from a CVS. Reference
was made to sweeps of homeless camps in Hell's Kitchen,
and to a report; we'll aim to publish it when we get
it.
For now, with live video on X no
longer working, see a YouTube stream here,
the "Space" here
(unclear how to get it go work with video), and videos here
and here
