Already under fire for hiding failing test scores from board members and keeping board members in the dark about dangerous levels of asbestos in city schools, more explosive allegations are being made against Mount Vernon Interim School Superintendent Judith Johnson.
Johnson stands accused of
electioneering and using the school district’s K-12 emergency response system
to get the school budget passed by voters. Johnson even went far as using
taxpayer funded school resources including but not limited to copiers,
computers, and personnel during the last election to get the school budget
passed.
According to sources
familiar with the probe, school board attorneys are investigating the matter to
determine if criminal charges are warranted before the matter is referred to
law enforcement authorities.
The scene of the crime was
Mount Vernon High School, where Jason Pritchard, at the expense of Mount Vernon
taxpayers, printed thousands of flyers and had them put into each and every
child’s backpack in the entire Mount Vernon City School district.
Johnson instilled fear and
anxiety in parents by telling them that a “NO” vote would hurt the kids,
however Judith Johnson did not tell parents that she awarded her crony,
Pennington PTA Vanessa Ritter with a no show $60,000 per year job disguised
under the bogus title of “Web Designer”.
The flyers in question
told voters to vote “YES” for the budget.
Johnson had former school board trustee Delia Farqharson record a
message urging all to vote “YES” for the budget. The recorded message was then illegally
blasted using the K-12 emergency alert system.
The K-12 alert is used to call and notify parents in the event of school
closings or other perilous events.
Johnson’s highhanded
behavior and blatant disregard for the law began long before her arrival in
Mount Vernon. According to a recent
article in the Journal News this past weekend, three guidance counselors
handpicked and hired by Johnson are now facing criminal charges for changing
test scores on standardized tests. As a
result of this flim flam grade changing scandal, Johnson received several
awards, including most improved school district. Johnson was also named superintendent of the
year.
School Board trustees who
are elected at large by members of the public have had a very difficult time
navigating the waters of the Johnson administration. Johnson is deliberately withholding
information, including asbestos reports and failing grades from board
members. To add insult to injury and to
stall board members, Johnson requires that all board members seeking basic
information must file a Freedom of Information request with the clerk of the
board.
Is Johnson fit to continue
to serve as school superintendent? Will
criminal charges be brought against Johnson? Only time will tell. Johnson has failed to realize that she works
for and serves at the pleasure of the school board and the taxpayers and not
vice versa.
It is quite obvious that
Johnson does not believe in transparency.
When it was made public that there are dangerous levels of asbestos
still present in Cecil H. Parker Elementary School, Johnson deployed extra
security guards and even called for a police presence to ensure that reporters
from News 12 did not gain access to inside the school.
Prior to the 9 A.M. press
conference at Parker school, school board trustee Frances Wynn went to the
school to ensure that security was in place to make sure the press did not gain
access to the areas of the school identified in the report that contains mold
and asbestos.
Wynn, who at the time of
the press conference did not see the report, went on the defensive stating that
“the Interim Superintendent hides nothing”. When the News12 reporter asked Wynn about why
the report wasn’t given to board members, Wynn could not answer and began to
speak gibberish. Wynn also admitted to
the reporter that school board members should have been notified and received
the asbestos report.
“I am not employed by nor
do I work in any capacity for the school board,” said Rivers. “The buck stops
with Judith Johnson, she must come clean with taxpayers or resign. It is time
to tighten up or ship out. It is not my
job to inform board members about asbestos when Johnson gets paid over $260K a
year to do what I am doing for free. Taxpayers can no longer afford Johnson’s
arrogance and ignorance of the law.”
Rivers added.
We would like to
welcome our readers back to part 2 of our series on Alan. Alan has no respect for taxpayers. Alan could care less if you were able to put
food on your table or if you had a roof over your head. Alan doesn’t understand because Alan is not
like us, the 99%. Alan is part of an
elitist group of folks whose only mission is to further the corruption, fraud,
and abuse in the New York State Unified Court System.
As reported
earlier, Alan was and still is a very lazy man.
Lazy people who are in power are afforded the luxury of using our tax
dollars to finance their lavish lifestyles.
The Alan being referred to is Alan Scheinkman, Administrative Judge for
the 9th judicial district, long said to be the most corrupt judicial
district in the State of New York.
While families
were starving and getting kicked out of their homes via foreclosure (cases that
pass through Scheinkman’s court), Alan went on a multi-million dollar taxpayer
funded shopping spree. Alan decided to
hire all of his friends and build a system that would allow him to spend more
time on the golf course and on his sailboat.
Alan hired Nancy
Mangold who is currently making $144,574 per year and her title as listed on
the New York State Unified Court Website is “District Executive”. Just what exactly is a “District Executive”?
According to
SeeThroughNY, Mangold’s job is listed as “Ast Dep Chf Admn” This does not look
anything like the title given to her by Alan.
Alan changed Mangold’s job description because the position as listed on
SeeThroughNY, is a civil service position. What does that exactly mean?
According to NYS Civil Service law, Nancy Mangold’s should have taken a competitive
examination that was advertised to the public.
Mount Vernon
Exposed was told by a source that Hon. A. Gail Prudenti’s office is directly
handling matters pertaining to an investigation in the 9th Judicial
District. Hon. A. Gail Prudenti is the Chief Administrative Judge for New York
State and is responsible for running the New York State Unified Court
System.
The issue of
Alan’s mental fitness again comes into play.
It was earlier reported that Alan had a mental breakdown while he was Westchester
County Attorney. Is Alan mentally fit to
be on the bench? We must not take
lightly that Alan may have a mental illness.
The thoughts that go on in Alan’s head affects well over a million
people in the counties of Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Orange
counties. Would a truly sane person
behave as Alan has publicly displayed? In our previous issue we broke the
exclusive news that Alan put his hand up his wife Faith Miller’s crotch in
pubic while in the presence of other sitting Supreme Court and County Court
Judges.
While unconfirmed
until Freedom of Information Requests are fulfilled, it has been said that
Nancy Mangold went from a grade 12 to a grade 29 overnight and received a raise
of tens of thousands of dollars as part of this multi-million taxpayer funded
shopping spree. Nancy Mangold hired her
son who also went up the ranks pretty quickly.
J Marshall Mangold in 2008, was a
Sr Court Office Keyboard making $33,079.
Today, J Marshall Mangold is a
court attorney making $64, 834. It would
not be complete without Jennifer Jaffe, Nancy Mangold’s daughter in-law who is
Alan’s principal secretary. Does this reek
of corruption and nepotism?
By keeping a
close knit family, the corruption is able to continue. Alan is not really running the courts because
he is never there. Jennifer Jaffe covers
for Alan by deflecting calls of extreme importance to her mother in law who
then deals with the situation. All legal
work is done by James Garfein, Alan’s top tiger in the office. It was told to Mount Vernon Exposed that a
majority of the judges in the 9th Judicial District are not happy
because they are forced to deal with Nancy Mangold who is in her position
illegally because a test was never called for. Nancy Mangold was only legally
allowed to serve in her position for 9 months without taking a test. It was reported that several court employees
in Alan’s building are not happy with Nancy Mangold who is often referred to as
the “Black Widow”.
Sources have
told Mount Vernon Exposed that Jennifer S Jaffe and Nancy Mangold’s son are
married. Is this a conflict of interest?
Jennifer S. Jaffe makes $59, 183 per year.
Nancy Mangold also has quite an ambitious agenda. Sources have told Mount Vernon Exposed that
Nancy Mangold wants her son to become a Judge and take Alan’s position as
Administrative Judge for the 9th Judicial District.
We encourage you
to look at the video attached to this article and to follow our video series of
“Judicial Review”. To be continued>>>>>
Mount Vernon Exposed™® has just been informed that former City of Mount Vernon Councilwoman Eileen Justino’s mother was allegedly involved in a fatal hit and run.According to The Journal News, Bridget Gambone, 85, was arrested by Bronxville detective and charged with felony leaving the scene of an accident which resulted in a death.Gambone was arraigned in Bronxville village court and released without bail.
Gambone is charged with running down popular Bronxville educator Sheryl Chasin.
Eileen Justino lost her re-election bid for City Council in 2009.Sources have told Mount Vernon Exposed that Justino plans to run again in 2011. Mount Vernon Exposed™® will continue to follow this story.
INVESTIGATORS AS THEY RAID THE OFFICES OF ATLANTIC DEVELOPMENT
Mount Vernon taxpayers will now have to pay additional costs because of the reckless and negligent actions of the administration of Mayor Clinton Young, The Mount Vernon City Council, The City of Mount Vernon Planning Board, and Atlantic Development.
On Thursday, August 12th, 2010, an Article 78 proceeding was commenced in New York State Supreme Court against the above mentioned defendant-respondents. On September, 28th, at 9:30 a.m. an application will be made to the court for the following relief:
(a)Annul, vacate and set aside the following interrelated approval ordinances adopted by Respondent City Council of the City of Mount Vernon (the “City Council”) concerning property located at the intersection of Gramatan Avenue and Oakley Avenue (Map Page 165.54, Block 1122, Lots 1, 19 and 20) on Oakley Avenue (Map Page 165.54, Block 1135, Lot 10) and on Crary Avenue (Map Page 165.54, Block 1135, Lot 1) (collectively the “Property”) approving zoning text amendments to the PUD-2 Zone to allow residential and non-residential mixed use development within one-half mile of the Mount Vernon East Train Station subject to certain restrictions;
(b)Annul, vacate and set aside the ordinances adopted by Respondent City Council which established the PUD-2 District (as amended) for the Property;
(c)Annul vacate and set aside the Resolution of the City Council adopting the SEQRA Environmental Findings for the proposed development;
(d)Annul, vacate and set aside the Resolution of the Planning Board of the City of Mount Vernon (the “Planning Board”) approving the site plan for the Project and any environmental findings in connection therewith;
(e)Enjoin Respondent City of Mount Vernon (“Mount Vernon” or the “City”) from issuing any building permits in furtherance of the challenged Ordinances and Resolutions; and
(f)Enjoin Respondent Atlantic Development Group, LLC (the “Applicant” or “Atlantic”) from taking any action in furtherance of the challenged Ordinances and Resolutions.
Bob Dadarria, a Mount Vernon resident, and community activist, was one of the aggrieved parties that retained counsel to bring the Article 78 action against Mount Vernon officials and Atlantic Development. Dadarria and others retained high profile attorney, Albert Pirro Jr, who is perceived by many to be one of the best land use attorney’s in New York State. Albert Pirro is also the ex-husband of former Westchester County District Attorney Jeannine Pirro.
The lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court contains numerous explosive allegations of incompetence and corruption of Mount Vernon City Officials. One of the allegations contained therein, is that City of Mount Vernon officials did not make public many of the documents pertaining to the Atlantic Development project as required by law. There have also been allegations that Mount Vernon City Council members were bribed in exchange for a favorable vote for the Atlantic Development project. The lawsuit as filed with the court validates this theory. This lawsuit comes as no surprise as Mount Vernon taxpayers were skeptical of Atlantic Development, a company under criminal investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office for hiring undocumented workers and bribing City officials.
Atlantic Development also retained Kenneth Plummer of Kensworth Consulting as a lobbyist for the massive, controversial low income skyscraper recently erroneously approved by incompetent Mount Vernon City officials. It has been reported that Mayor Young is a financier and silent partner of Kensworth Consulting.
Mount Vernon taxpayers must remain vigilant in the fight against corrupt Mount Vernon officials. Just today, August 15th, 2010, the was an article in the Journal News about another Mayor Young crony looking to steal 8 city owned properties valued at over $2M dollars for $150,000.
The City Council failed to take a “hard look” and simply approved the project as presented by the Applicant without regard to multiple adverse environmental and economic consequences. The Planning Board members did not review, or have a reasonable opportunity to review, the most recent revisions to the proposed site plan before voting to approve that site plan with the most recent revisions to that site plan. When questioned following the vote, only one member of the Planning Board acknowledged having reviewed the site plan as then proposed on July 7, 2010 prior to voting on that site plan on July 7, 2010. Due to the last minute submission of the site plan, the Planning Board did not and could not properly review and evaluate the final site plan prior to voting to approve that site plan on July 7, 2010.
Based on the foregoing, The Planning Board’s approval of the site plan on July 7, 2010 was arbitrary, capricious, contrary to law, without any rational basis and not based upon the record before the Planning Board.
One of the most significant issues presented to the City Council as part of the SEQRA review of this project is the potential impact on the public schools should the proposed project be constructed and occupied.
According to the calculations conducted by the City Council, its consultants and the consultants for the Applicant, the projected student generation from the proposed project is sixty-two (62) school children and, significantly, thirty-five (35) of those children would attend elementary school. Upon information and belief, the designated elementary school for the children who reside in the project area is Lincoln Elementary School. Upon information and belief, the designated elementary school for the children who reside in the project area is Lincoln Elementary School.
However, upon information and belief, Lincoln Elementary School is currently approximately one hundred forty-five (145%) percent of capacity and cannot possibly accommodate an additional thirty-five (35) students without severely adversely impacting the school’s ability to properly educate its student population.
The City Council, while aware of the potential severe impact on Lincoln Elementary School, failed to either avoid or mitigate the significant over capacity the construction and occupation of the proposed project would generate.
Instead, the City Council’s only response to this severe and adverse impact was to require that, as a condition to the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy, the Applicant use its “best efforts” to work with the Board of Education to change the attendance zone for the project area so that children living in the proposed project will attend either Pennington School, Columbus School, or Traphagen School.
However, upon information and belief, while these alternate schools are not as overcrowded as Lincoln Elementary School, they are also over capacity.
In addition, no study was undertaken as to the potential impacts to these proposed alternate schools, which are a significant distance from the project area, which is less than a half mile from Lincoln Elementary School.
No review was done to determine how the shift of attendance zones would impact bus routes or the increase in number of children requiring busing or the overall impacts such a disruption of established attendance zones would cause.
Further and more significantly, there is no provision in the findings or any of the approvals in the event the Applicant’s “best efforts” to work with the Board of Education do not result in a resolution of this issue.
The City Council has effectively abdicated its responsibility and obligation as lead agency to study and mitigate this significant, adverse and far reaching impact that could potentially cause seriously detrimental consequences to one or more elementary schools and the education of hundreds of young school children who attend those schools.
Rather than address this significant problem, the City Council has shifted that responsibility to the Applicant and to the Mount Vernon Board of Education to determine how to avoid severe impacts to the children who attend these schools from both existing residences and those who will reside in the proposed project.
The City Council, as lead agency, has for all intents and purposes washed its hands with respect to this significant adverse impact and told the Applicant and the Board of Education to resolve a situation the City Council refused to address.
The City Council not only refused to take responsibility for this severe impact, the findings, as adopted, allow the project to move forward without any mitigation to address the overcrowding issue at these elementary schools should the Applicant and the Board of Education be unable to resolve the issue.
Even if a resolution is eventually reached, the findings are fatally flawed because the lead agency did not address this severe impact, and the City Council has not and will not be able to study whatever solution is reached, if any solution is ever found.
There is now no way to determine what secondary or unanticipated impacts will result from any resolution of this issue if some solution is worked out and, more concerning, what impacts there will be if no solution is ever agreed upon. The City Council has clearly failed to take a ‘hard look” at this extremely significant adverse impact.
Once the Applicant demonstrates “best efforts” the project will go forward and only time will tell what significant impacts will result in the absence of mitigation or what impacts will result from some unknown agreement between the Board of Education and the Applicant.
Based on the foregoing and the City Council’s complete failure to meet its responsibility as lead agency, the Findings Statement adopted on June 29, 2010 is arbitrary, capricious, contrary to law and without a rational basis and must be annulled, vacated and set aside.
Upon information and belief, some of those documents, studies, reports and reviews that the City Council relied upon were and are not included in the public record maintained in connection with the review and approval of the proposed project.
The failure to include all relevant documents relied upon by the City Council in the review and approval of the proposed project in the records available for public review constitutes a violation of SEQRA and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
Based upon the failure to include all relevant documents, studies, reports and reviews in the public record, the findings and approvals were adopted in violation of law and lawful procedure and must be annulled, vacated and set aside.
In connection with the review and approval of the proposed project, the Applicant and the City on June 11, 2009 entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) governing the process and procedures to be followed in connection with the environmental review and development of the proposed project.
The MOU, among other things, set certain deadlines in connection with the environmental review of the project which unreasonably restricted and limited the City Council’s review of the project and the public’s ability to participate in and review the SEQRA process undertaken by the City Council.
The MOU was made in violation of applicable law and constitutes a violation of SEQRA and the regulations promulgated thereunder and illegally committed the City to a course of action without required environmental review.
The MOU also contains numerous terms and conditions not included or studied as part of the environmental review of the project in violation of law and lawful procedure.
Based on the foregoing, the findings and approvals adopted in connection with the proposed project must be annulled, vacated and set aside.
Mount Vernon Exposed™® has learned of another complaint filed against Judge Helen M. Blackwood with the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct. The latest complaint, for a total of three, accuses Judge Blackwood of improper political campaign contributions during the heated campaign for Mount Vernon City Court Judge. Judge Blackwood may have set a new world record for ethics violations by a sitting Judge in a relatively short period of time.
Judge Blackwood’s latest ethics violation takes us into the shadowy and creepy world of the Democratic Party in Westchester County where backroom deals, sexual favors, and envelopes filled with cash are standard operating procedure for securing a spot on the ballot. The truth is many voters do not know the process of how Judges are selected to countywide positions in Westchester County. While many voters think they are voting for a Judge when they go to the polls, the candidates that are being voted upon have been lurking around the Democratic clubhouses for months, and in some cases years, waiting for the chance to become part of Westchester County’s Kangaroo Court. Think again if you think you are voting for the best and brightest in Westchester County.
Judge Helen Blackwood was appointed to the Mount Vernon City Court in April 2009 by embattled Mayor Clinton I. Young. Judge Blackwood faced a bitter primary from two challengers; Nichelle A. Johnson, ESQ; and Tamika Coverdale, ESQ; Judge Blackwood narrowly escaped defeat by a little over 100 votes.
Judge Blackwood’s victory however, can be directly linked to her violation of Rules of the Chief Administrative Judge Part 100; Judicial Conduct; specifically,
§ 100.5 A judge or candidate for elective judicial office shall refrain from inappropriate political activity.
(A)Incumbent Judges and Others Running for Public Election to Judicial Office.
(1)Neither a sitting judge nor a candidate for public election to judicial office shall directly or indirectly engage in any political activity except (i) as otherwise authorized by this section or by law, (ii) to vote and to identify himself or herself as a member of a political party, and (iii) on behalf of measures to improve the law, the legal system or the administration of justice. Prohibited political activity shall include:
(h) soliciting funds for, paying an assessment to, or making a contribution to a political organization or candidate
According to the NYS Board of Elections, Judge Helen M. Blackwood made a contribution of $10,000 on September 2, 2009 to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee for her share of primary costs for the 2009 election, however her running mate Marcus A. Griffith, candidate for City Comptroller, only made a contribution of $7,250.00 to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee.
Both candidates filed reports with the NYS Board of Elections indicating that their respective committee spent money on signs, campaign mailings, literature, etc. Due to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee blatantly violating NYS campaign finance laws, it cannot be determined where or who Judge Blackwood’s of Marcus Griffith’s money went to.
Allegations of Extortion and Bribery
We have all heard stories of Clarence Norman, the disgraced Chairman of the Brooklyn Democratic Party sent to prison for selling judgeships and candidacy’s across Kings County. It appears that this shake ‘em down mentality has found its way across the Whitestone Bridge and into Westchester County.
All three candidates for Mount Vernon City Court interviewed with a screening committee handpicked by Mayor Clinton I. Young a member of the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee Executive Committee, and also the person that appointed Judge Blackwood to the bench. Some of the persons involved in the screening process were; Arnold Keith, ESQ; Jennifer Coker-Wiggins; and Edward Dowdy.
Arnold Keith, ESQ, was recently appointed Commissioner of the Mount Vernon Civil Service Commission by Mayor Clinton I. Young Jr. Jennifer Coker-Wiggins was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Human Resources by Mayor Clinton I. Young Jr. Edward Dowdy is an extremely close personal friend of Mayor Clinton I. Young Jr.
At these meetings, the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee Executive Committee and/or Screening Committee informed the candidates that in order to get the nomination of the Democratic Party it was expected that each candidate contribute a minimum of $25,000 to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee. Democratic enrollment outnumbers Republican enrollment in the City of Mount Vernon 7 to 1. The winner of the Democratic Primary essentially cruises to victory in the November general election.
Judge Blackwood and others who were involved in the ‘screening process’ conspired to disenfranchise the other candidates for public office by expecting that each one contribute $25,000 to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee. In actuality, the expected amount was not $25,000 but that amount was fabricated to discourage other candidates from participating in the election. In the end, only Judge Helen M. Blackwood made a contribution to the Mount Vernon Democratic City Committee.
Judge Blackwood’s ethics violation should be of concern to all Democratic voters in Westchester County. Recently, Mount Vernon Exposed™® has interviewed several Democratic candidates elected to office in Westchester County. These elections reveal widespread corruption in Westchester County Democratic politics. Mount Vernon Exposed™® has learned that extortion and bribery are customary, and those not willing to participate cannot play. In other words, you must pay to play.
Westchester County Democrats have even come up with a scientific formula to justify their criminal enterprise. For example, all NYS Supreme Court, Westchester County Court, and Westchester Family Court justices earn $136,700 annually. NYS Supreme Court judges are elected to 14 year terms and County Court judges serve 10 year terms. Westchester County Party bosses and local committee chairs expect a kickback of 10% of the judge’s salary over a ten year period. The money most likely will be in the form of cash because judges are forbidden from making contributions to political organizations.
Here is an example of how much money is at stake here: $136,700 x 10 years = $1,367,000 x 10% = kickback of $136,700 to be divided up amongst the Democratic Party bosses. The jackpot is slightly larger for Supreme Court Justices. $136,700 x 14 years = $1,913,800 x 10% = kickback of $191,380 to be divided up amongst the Democratic Party bosses.
One can speculate that Judge Blackwood has made her down payment on her judgeship. However, Judge Blackwood did not follow protocol by giving an envelope of cash, instead she opted to give a check and the reason the lid has been blown wide open on corruption within the Democratic Party in Westchester County.
With all of the seasoned politicos consulting with Judge Blackwood, how could she make such a foolish mistake? It has been reported to Mount Vernon Exposed™® that Judge Blackwood’s campaign manager was Gary Stracuzzi, Rye Town Democratic Chair. Stracuzzi also drinks from the public till via his high paying job at the Westchester County Board of Elections. If one wants to find Stracuzzi, one just can simply drive past the Westchester County Board of Elections to see Mr. Stracuzzi outside smoking on the finest cigars that the world has to offer courtesy of Westchester County taxpayers. Mr. Stracuzzi was recently seen leaving lunch with Kathy Davidson, Supervising Judge for Family Court, 9th Judicial District, an indication that his tentacles have extended into Westchester County Family Court.
As we continue to explore this dark, creepy, shadowy world of corruption in Democratic politics in Westchester County also known as District 9, the findings will be unfathomable. In case you are wondering, YES your vote has been compromised.
