Arun Venugopal

New York, NY —

The city is giving away 250 empty barrels to homeowners in Queens so they can catch rainwater and hopefully avoid sewage overflows. The Department of Environmental Protection's Julie Stein says the homeowners snapped up the rain barrels.

STEIN: They're excited because southeast Queens is an area ...

New York, NY —

The Bloomberg Administration, in its ongoing campaign to limit the number of illegal guns entering the city, claimed another legal victory. As arguments were to begin in a Brooklyn federal court today, a Georgia gun dealer opted out of a trial. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has ...

New York, NY —

A Georgia gun dealer agreed to have its sales monitored.

The decision came a day before a trial was to begin, as the dealer, Adventure Outdoors had earlier rejected the terms of a lawsuit.

Ken Taber is a lawyer with Pillsbury Winthrop, which had represented the ...

New York, NY —

Motor vehicles are the leading cause of accidental death among New York's children.

That's according to a new child fatality report just issued by the city.

According to Health Commissioner Tom Frieden, fires are the second leading cause of accidental death, especially in poor neighborhoods.

FRIEDEN: There is ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Michael Bloomberg delivered the keynote address at the World Science Summit this morning, and used the occasion to defend his ban on smoking. He said the scientific data outweighed the criticism he got from the public at the time.

BLOOMBERG: And I can tell you, ...

New York, NY —

The Port Authority is pushing back the deadlines on three of the towers at the World Trade Center. The agency granted developer Larry Silverstein another four to six months to complete the projects, because Merrill Lynch may be moving in to the complex. Larry Coscia ...

WNYC reporters Bob Hennelly and Arun Venugopal discuss departmental charges brought against seven of the officers involved in the Sean Bell Police Trial.

New York, NY —

Seven police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Sean Bell will face departmental charges. Pending internal trials, they could face a range of penalties, including dismissal.

Four of the officers involved in the shooting - including the 3 who went on trial - were ...

New York, NY —

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told members of the City Council that the NYPD was stretched thin due to low starting salaries, but said an arbitrator could change the salary structure this week.

Kelly spoke during budget hearings, and addressed the challenges of recruiting new officers with ...

New York, NY —

One of four people charged with running the prostitution ring used by former governor Eliot Spitzer, has plead guilty in federal court.

WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

Thirty-two year old Temeka Lewis was responsible for booking clients for the Emperor's Club VIP. Today she stood in federal ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the city's top priority is still the development of the West Side rail yards.

He's dismissed suggestions by Sen. Charles Schumer that the city should let the Port Authority take the lead in developing the Moynihan Station.

The mayor added that the ...

New York, NY —

The city and state may have to cough up $321 million to Goldman Sachs because of delays in rebuilding at the World Trade Center site.

WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

The hefty fines would include free rent - 64 years of it - as well as other ...

New York, NY —

Juveniles who get arrested on the weekend will no longer be at risk of remaining detained until Monday.

Starting next month the city is starting weekend processing for youth, which already takes place for adults. The city's criminal justice coordinator John Feinblatt said kids who commit ...

New York, NY —

Six locations around the city, thousands of protesters and nearly 200 arrests.

It was the opening round in a campaign of civil disobedience yesterday, organized by the Rev. Al Sharpton and members of Sean Bell's family.

Their goal is to pressure federal investigators into bringing civil rights ...

New York, NY —

The City Council wants the Police Department to provide more information on stop and frisk incidents and shootings involving police officers.

At a public hearing yesterday, several council members claimed the NYPD was resisting efforts to become more transparent and that comprehensive information could easily be ...

New York, NY —

WNYC's Arun Venugopal talks with Weekend Edition Host Brian Zumhagen about the reaction to the acquittals in the Sean Bell shooting, and what's next for the NYPD detectives involved.

Guests, including: Patricia Williams, professor of law at Columbia University, writes the Mad Law Professor column for The Nation magazine, Eugene O'Donnell, professor of law and police science at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, WNYC’s Arun Venugopal and Cindy Rodriguez, Richard Aborn, president of ...

New York, NY —

A shocked, angry response from supporters of Sean Bell outside the Queens Courthouse today, when they heard the 3 officers charged in his death were acquitted of all charges. Joining us to explain why the Judge ruled the way he did is WNYC's Arun Venugopal, ...

New York, NY —

It's been exactly 17 months since the fatal shooting of Sean Bell and this morning New Yorkers will finally learn the fate of the 3 officers on trial. Over the last couple days, WNYC's Arun Venugopal has walked the streets Jamaica, Queens - where the ...

New York, NY —

A new public service campaign says New Yorkers looking for social services can now just "3-1-1 it."

That's because the city's customer service line is being expanded to offer information on agencies and nonprofits that provide health and human services. Jennifer Jones Austin is with the ...