Ailsa Chang

As the Manhattan District Attorney's Office faces criticism of its handling of the sexual assault case against former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the Guinean woman at the center of the case may have immigration troubles coming her way.

Many opposed to the same-sex marriage bill being discussed in Albany say it's impossible to predict what specific legal challenges would surface if gay marriage passed in the state — but legal and political ramifications are likely, experts said.

As the New York State legislature slogs through an extended session in Albany, the long wait has taken a toll on the hundreds of advocates who have flooded the capital building in the last weeks and vowed to stay until issues such as same-sex marriage are duked out.

As the last day of the legislative session came to a close in Albany on Monday, there was still no vote in sight on the same-sex marriage bill — one vote shy of becoming law — that, after four days of closed-door sessions, is still languishing in the Republican-led Senate.

As the week draws to a close, advocates and legislators on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate say they are uncertain when — or if — the bill that had built so much momentum on Monday will actually come up for a vote in the state Senate by June 20, the end of the legislative session.

After four hours of standing without food and water in dress shoes, forgoing bathroom breaks, packing in tightly with other reporters— right under the armpits of the tall ones—a re...

Governor Cuomo has officially submitted a gay marriage bill, and WNYC Reporter Ailsa Chang is in Albany counting the votes. Casey Seiler, state editor for the Albany Times Union, also checks in to discuss the looming deadline for rent regulations, which expire at midnight tonight.

For state Senator Tom Duane of Manhattan, who steered efforts in 2009 to get same-sex marriage passed in New York only to see the measure doomed, it’s almost too good to be true how close New York State is to getting gay marriage legalized this week. 

“I have post-traumatic trust disorder,” said Duane with a smile.

But Duane said the same-sex marriage campaign in 2011 has been different from the 2009 efforts for several reasons. He’s out of the spotlight this time around, and in his place is a governor whom Democratic senators and gay rights activists say has the clout and likability to get the votes to pass the bill. Duane said Andrew Cuomo has been able to connect with individual senators in a way that his predecessor, David Paterson, never could.

As momentum builds for a vote on gay marriage in the final week of the legislative session, five GOP state Senators are considering a yes vote.  Four formerly undecided senators — th...

Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance called on state legislators Friday to pass a bill that would make domestic violence a felony on the second arrest in an effort to help deter attacks.

A city police detective, two firefighters and a funeral director nicknamed "The Undertaker" were among 15 people arrested early Thursday in connection to a high-stakes gambling ring on Staten Island.

Stop-and-frisks performed by members of the New York Police Department have hit the highest quarterly total on record, according to new numbers released by the department.

The New York Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit against the city and police department for conducting allegedly illegal stop-and-frisks of passengers riding in livery cars.

State legislators have introduced a bill decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana in public view. The bill comes on the heels of a WNYC investigation about alleged i...

A victim whose memory is at time shaky and lack of physical evidence is not proof enough that a rape did not occur, prosecutors said Tuesday during closing arguments in the trial of two New York City police officers charged with raping a woman in her East Village apartment.

The defense finished closing arguments Monday in the trial of two New York City police officers accused of raping an East Village woman in December 2008. In his last chance to speak to the jury, the lawyer for Officer Franklin Mata likened the prosecution's rape case against his client to a "bunch of fluff."

Closing arguments have begun in the trial of Officers Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata, who were charged with raping an intoxicated East Village woman in December 2008 after helping her into her apartment.

Closing arguments are underway in the trial of two NYPD police officers charged with the rape of an East Village woman they were summoned to help.

A New York City police officer accused of raping a woman in her East Village apartment testified Wednesday that he never told anyone about the sexual advances she allegedly made toward him because he wanted to be respectful.

A New York City police officer charged with raping a woman in her apartment told jurors Tuesday he was only trying to calm the alleged victim down when she secretly recorded him disclosing he had used a condom.