Author: Dan Rose

Councilman Peter Koo along with MetroPlus Health Plan are hosting a seminar titled Health Plan Option for Immigrants to educate the immigrant community on the different health care options the city offers. Open enrollment in the health care market place is opening soon and a multitude of options are available to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals and lawfully present immigrants.

The free seminar will take place at the Flushing Library, 41-17 Main St., on Oct. 19 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“Too often, health insurance is viewed as a luxury new immigrants can’t afford, and when a serious emergency occurs, the cost of medical care can quickly spiral out of control,” Koo said in a release. “I encourage anyone who is uninsured and exploring health care options to take advantage of this free seminar.”

A group of Flushing residents joined elected officials on College Point Boulevard and Roosevelt Avenue yesterday to call for the city to ensure that future development doesn’t make and already problematic area even more dangerous.

“Downtown Flushing is undergoing a period of rapid growth that must be balanced with improved safeguards against traffic accidents,” said Councilman Peter Koo. “The 109th Police Precinct and Related Companies have both worked to provide traffic safety agents during periods of high traffic at this intersection, and it must be the responsibility of the City of New York to ensure future development does not turn this heavily traveled roadway into a safety hazard. I will continue to advocate for traffic safety and awareness on all levels of government, but it is important to remember that this responsibility falls on all of us, and if you are involved in an accident it is your duty as a driver, as a citizen, as a human being, to stop, help and report the incident to the authorities. This driver decided to flee the scene, and I encourage anyone with information to contact the authorities.”

The rally came on the heels of a fatal hit-and-run incident that took place over the weekend, where Mariano Contreras was hit by a northbound black SUV just after 1 a.m. Sunday morning.

“It is a tragedy whenever a life is taken, but even more so when it could have been prevented,” said Senator Toby Ann Stavisky. “Drivers and pedestrians must use caution on the road at all times. Traffic lights, harsher punishments on reckless drivers and clearly marked crosswalks are important, but awareness is also key. I extend my condolences to Mariano Contreras’ loved ones and call on the driver to do the right thing and turn themselves in, so that the family may have some closure and grieve fully.”

According to the New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s vision zero website, there’s been an accident along every intersection on a 10-block stretch of College Point Boulevard with at least one injury in the last year with 11 total injuries at the intersection of College Point Boulevard and Roosevelt Avenue.

Police are still looking for the suspect they say fled the scene after striking Contreras. Below is video of the incident, courtesy the NYPD. The vehicle is described as a 2014/15 dark colored Jeep Cherokee.

Jerome Robinson, 26, of Flushing was sentenced to 22 years behind bars for his role in a 2011 July 4 weekend shooting that killed a woman and injured her son.

According to Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, Robinson and an accomplice (Malik Wallace) approached the two victims outside their vehicle, which was parked outside the Pomonok Houses. The two then fired into the car, according to the complaint, killing the woman and injuring her teenage son.

Wallace was sentence to 23-and-a-half years in prison after being convicted of first-degree manslaughter on Sept. 11, 2015.

“This was a senseless slaying of a woman and the brutal assault of her son. It is yet another example of how illegal firearms can devastate families and communities,” said Brown in a statement. “The defendant has now been sentenced to a lengthy term behind bars that will protect the public and punish him for this brazen crime.”