A View To A Kill

While waiting for my train on the Jamaica station platform of the LIRR, I happened to glance around and noticed the proximity of Club Kalua to both the LIRR tracks, station and the AirTrain station, which had an errant shot come its way. Nothing really to make of it but the view was interesting.

Here are two pictures of Club Kalua, scene of the Sean Bell shooting and killing.



Note the Air Train columns in the foreground



and a closer view of Club Kalua

The Changing Landscape of South Carolina and Their Police Vehicles

Well, I don't know what got me to posting about South Carolina (maybe it was because my mother was born and raised there) and my grandmother was one of the few female African American business landowners there. (Hmmmm. I can see another blog topic in the making) I couldn't travel down there anytime soon and I didn't want to write about how the sorry Knicks used the University of Charleston as their practice facility, so I figured since I'm on the vein of vintage police cars, I might as well post some from the State of South Carolina. The oldest is from 1975 (yes, they did have police cars before then) and I couldn't find any older than this one online. So here goes the pictures of South Caroline vintage police cars, showing how these guys chased down, captured or arrested their criminals in years past; hopefully...legally.



1975 Ford LTD




State Police



Charleston Tahoe




Beaufort Police Vehicle




Greenville Police Car

More to come. Anyone wanting to comment on these police vehicles, stories about police, their good or bad experiences with police in South Carolina, feel free to post up to and including, false arrests, emergency rescues, apprehension of criminals, South Carolina police brutality & misconduct or anything else.

The Changing Landscape of New York - Brooklyn

So I went around downtown Brooklyn last weekend to see how much it has changed and I noticed this huge real estate boom. Forest City Ratner, the owners of the New Jersey Nets, are building at least 12 office towers, with some housing private businesses and others housing city, state and federal government offices. For instance, the Klitgord Auditorium on the corner of Jay and Tillary Streets and part of New York City Technical College is being torn down and an office tower is being built there. In exchange for the air rights, Forest City Ratner will be building a state of art gymnasium for the college and they have air rights above the 2nd or 3rd floor of this struction, which, I am told, will be 30 - 40 stories high.

Similarly, the family court building (for those not up on this: this is where New York divorce, child custody, family law, child support and matrimonial law issues are decided) on Jay Street (next to the Brookly Marriott) owns the first 10 floors but Forest City Ratner has air rights for this structure as well. The Brooklyn real estate market is truly booming as you will see from the following pictorial:



This condo development was built directly across from the New York City Brooklyn House of Dentention, a local jail holding facility, connected to the Brooklyn New York Criminal Court building. This was a satellite holding facility for Brooklyn but which has been closed because of budget cuts, overcrowding, police brutality and misconduct complaints. (Boro Pres Demands House of Dentention Closure)

And of course, here is a picture of the Brooklyn New York House of Detention located on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn for those arrested for criminal and civil contempt proceedings. Joined at the hip with the Brooklyn Criminal Court building. The New York City Police Departments Central Booking has be relocated here for arrest processing and holding for arraignments and pre-arraignments (whatever that is, they hold you while they figure out what crime to charge you with?):



As I mentioned before the Brooklyn New York House of Detention is connected via tunnel to the Brooklyn Criminal Court building (See photo)


This is where all criminal arrests are arraigned and processed. This is a Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Bronx and NY New York criminal defense lawyer and NYC police misconduct attorneys playground and it is where most of the police overtime in New York City is spent -- waiting for the district attorney or prosecutor to release the arresting police officer back to regular duty after an arrest.

Right down the street was this new development. Don't know who its by or what its for but it is brand new real estate under construction in Brooklyn. So here it is:



To show the proximity to these projects, I have used existing landmarks in Brooklyn, such as the Brooklyn House of Detention and Brooklyn Criminal Court House. This little beauty is next to Brooklyn NY Landlord/Tenant Court on Livingston Street (See photo)



This is where New York real estate lawyers & Brooklyn NY civil litigation attorneys dwell. They plead cases involving eviction and dispossess in New York. FYI: In New York City, if a landlord illegally evicts you, after you have legally resided on his or her property for 30 or more days, you may call the New York Police Department, where the matter becomes criminal and the landlord may be subject to arrest.