Peekskill: Shelter Renews Lease Until 2025
Caring for the Hungry and Homeless of Peekskill (CHHOP), which since 1988 has been the only shelter in northern Westchester County, said on Monday (March 4) it had signed a two-year lease renewal for the facility and Fred’s Pantry.
In 2023, the Jan Peek House provided shelter to 331 people, including 56 veterans. In addition, its housing programs — Turning Point and RISE — assisted 125 people. Fred’s Pantry provided meals in 2023 to more than 18,000 households, including 62 percent who were new to the service. For information, see chhop.org.
Hyde Park: Committee Disqualifies Town Judge
The state Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics in December barred a newly elected Town of Hyde Park judge from hearing criminal cases because of his campaign rhetoric.
The committee of former and current judges concluded that Michael Plass, a former police officer who ran on the Republican/Conservative line, “effectively promised to aid law enforcement rather than apply the law neutrally and impartially” by pledging during his campaign to “incarcerate offenders, exclude drug dealers from the community, ensure maximum sentencing of repeat offenders and protect victims of domestic violence.”
Plass was banned from hearing “all criminal cases; cases in any court involving allegations of domestic violence; all vehicle and traffic law matters; and cases in any court involving purported drug dealers.”
According to Mid Hudson News, Town Justice Jean McArthur has been handling her calendar plus all of the cases Plass would be hearing.
Pawling: Police Find Surprise in Basement
State troopers called to a home on March 2 to investigate a report of a stabbing found a surprise in the basement: a 4-foot-long alligator.
Following an argument over tools, one of two visitors fired several shots from a semi-automatic rifle and the homeowner allegedly stabbed the other visitor, according to the Dutchess County district attorney. After searching the home, the troopers called the state Department of Environmental Conservation, which sent an officer to remove the alligator.
The homeowner and the man who fired shots were each charged with attempted murder. The injured man was taken to Danbury Hospital. [Update: The Mid Hudson News reported on March 21 that the victim had died.]
