New Jersey’s top law enforcement official on Monday unveiled new guidelines governing the use of force for the state’s nearly 40,000 police officers, saying the changes would make the state “a national leader in policing reform” and help restore public trust. The new policy, which had been promised after widespread protests against police brutality, sets up a framework for police interactions with civilians, Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said in a statement.

A man accused of setting a train fire that killed a New York City subway driver in March told police he was on the train, had a disposable lighter and set paper on fire but not the “big fire,” according to court documents released after his arraignment Saturday on murder and arson charges. Nathaniel Avinger was also seen on subway station video walking away from the front of the train where the fire was located, and then exiting the station, according to court documents, which identified him as 49 years old. Police on Friday said he was 50. A message was left seeking comment with Avinger’s attorney, Marnie Zien from The Legal Aid Society. Detectives linked Avinger to the fatal blaze after he was arrested Wednesday, accused of groping a transit worker in Brooklyn, authorities said.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday that he has asked airlines flying into the state from the United Kingdom to make all passengers take a COVID-19 test before they get on the plane. The Democrat said at least one airline, British Airways, had already agreed to comply. He is awaiting an answer from others, including Delta and Virgin Atlantic, but was hopeful they would also agree. Cuomo has been calling on the U.S. government to temporarily halt all flights from the U.K. because of the emergence there of a new strain of the coronavirus. Numerous nations have already taken that step out of concern that the newly identified strain might be more easily transmitted.

Police say a motorist has died after he rear-ended a garbage truck on a New York City street. Kenneth Pamphile was driving a 2002 Nissan Altima at about 3:45 a.m. Sunday in Brooklyn when he slammed into the back of a stationary Department of Sanitation truck. Firefighters had to extract the 32-year-old Pamphile from his vehicle before he was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A sanitation worker driving the truck and another standing nearby were not injured. The New York Police Department was investigating. Misaskim was not needed in this tragic incident. (AP)

The number of New Yorkers hospitalized with coronavirus has risen to the highest level since mid-May, according to state figures released Saturday. Officials said 6,208 people were hospitalized with the virus as of Friday — the largest number in the state since May 15. The state on Saturday also reported 127 new deaths and 9,919 new cases. Still, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo said New York “can see the light at the end of the tunnel” with the arrival of the first vaccines. “If we stay tough and be smart by socially distancing and wearing masks, we can avoid the holiday surge the experts are predicting and finally win this war,” the governor said in a news release.

At least 6 people were treated for injuries after an FDNY Engine crashed into a storefront on Sunday night. It happened just before midnight, when FDNY Engine 254 was responding to reports of a structural fire on Bay Parkway when it struck a vehicle, according to authorities. The apparatus then struck a closed commercial building on Avenue U and East 4th Street, police told YWN. One civilian and five firefighters were taken to the hospital. FDNY EMS and Flatbush Hatzolah treated the victims. Thankfully, there were no life-threatening injuries reported. PHOTOS FOR YWN BY M.G. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie released a national TV ad Wednesday calling on all Americans to wear a mask to battle the coronavirus pandemic and avoid ending up “on the wrong side of history.” The 30-second spot comes about two months after Christie, a Republican and longtime ally of President Donald Trump, spent a week battling COVID-19 at Morristown Medical Center. “This message isn’t for everyone,” the 58-year-old former — and possibly future — presidential candidate says in the clip. “It’s for all those people who refuse to wear a mask.” “Lying in isolation in ICU for seven days, I thought about how wrong I was to remove my mask at the White House,” Christie continues.

The FDNY responded to a working structure fire in Boro Park on Sunday morning. The fire started just before 12:00PM at 5108 Fort Hamilton Parkway near 51 Street. Firefighters found heavy fire blowing out the windows prior to their arrival at the scene. Occupants were seen being rescued by the FDNY. Boro Park Hatzolah was on the scene standing by in case they were needed. It was unknown if there were any injuries. JOIN THE TENS OF THOUSANDS WHO ALREADY ARE ALERTED OF BREAKING NEWS LIKE THIS IN LIVE TIME: YWN WHATSAPP STATUS UPDATES: CLICK HERE to join the YWN WhatsApp Status. YWN WHATSAPP GROUPS: CLICK HERE to be added to an official YWN WhatsApp Group.

Three people were killed early Saturday in a three-alarm house fire in Queens. Two firefighters were among the wounded in the blaze that broke out after 5:30 in the Elmhurst section of Queens. Officials said the roof of the three-floor building collapsed. The Fire Department of New York said dozens of firefighters brought the blaze under control about 8 a.m. The cause of the fire remained under investigation. (AP)
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New York City’s Department of Investigation identified several deficiencies in the NYPD’s response to the protests and violence in the spring, “that undermined public confidence in the NYPD’s discharge of its responsibility to protect the rights of citizens to engage in lawful protest.” The DOI identified these key areas: – The NYPD lacked a clearly defined strategy tailored to respond to the large-scale protests of police and policing – The NYPD’s use of force and certain crowd control tactics to respond to the Floyd protests produced excessive enforcement that contributed to heightened tensions. – Some policing decisions relied on intelligence without sufficient consideration of context or proportionality.