Monica Shay has died; memorial vigil scheduled in Tompkins Square Park Saturday night

Outside the Shay's apartment building on East 10th Street earlier tonight...

According to various published reports, Monica Shay, 58, was pronounced dead at 3:07 a.m. today in her room at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, Pa. Monica Shay is the third victim to die after the massacre Saturday night at the country home she shared with her husband Paul. Their nephew, Joseph Shay, 43, was killed in the shooting. His girlfriend, Kathryn Erdmann, 37, of Fall River, Mass., was also critically wounded. Her 2-year-old son, Gregory, was shot and killed while he slept.

Paul Shay, 64, and his nephew's girlfriend, Kathryn Erdmann, 37, were expected to survive bullet wounds to the head, the Daily News reported.

On Monday, a SWAT team killed Mark Richard Geisenheyner, the ex-con who police say was responsible for the murders.

Monica Shay worked for the Pratt Institute where she was the director of its arts and cultural management program.

There will be a memorial vigil for Monica Shay on Saturday night in Tompkins Square Park at 8 p.m.

Report: Suspect who shot East Village couple killed by SWAT team in rural Pennsylvania

The Associated Press has this story:

A career criminal suspected of shooting five people, two of them fatally, inside a suburban home over an insurance fraud scheme was killed by SWAT team members after a six-hour standoff Monday, authorities said.

Since leaving prison last year, Mark Richard Geisenheyner, 51, had been vowing revenge on Paul Shay, one of the victims of a weekend shooting in rural Montgomery County, authorities said.

Geisenheyner broke into Shay’s vacation home late Saturday and said, "Guess you never thought you’d see me again," Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Ferman said, citing the accounts of two survivors. He then shot five people in the head, killing Shay’s nephew and a toddler. Shay, his wife and the toddler’s mother remained in critical condition Monday.

Shay and Geisenheyner knew each other from a 2006 insurance fraud scheme that involved Shay’s home, Ferman said. She could not immediately provide details.

Paul Shay, who owns a plumbing company, and his wife Monica live on East 10th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue. Paul Shay and the toddler's mother are reportedly expected to survive. According to the Daily News, Monica Shay is in "grave condition and may not survive."

Previously.

East Village residents victims in Pennsylvania shooting

[Candlelight this evening on East 10th Street, where Paul and Monica Shay live]

News is coming in this evening about a horrific shooting in Pennsylvania involving East Village residents.

According to the Daily News in an article posted at 9 p.m.:

A Manhattan man and a 2-year-old boy were shot to death in a Pennsylvania bloodbath that left two other New Yorkers and the tot's mother clinging to life.

All five victims were shot in the head Saturday night, and cops have mounted a manhunt for the gunman.

The murders happened at the country home of plumber Paul Shay, 64, and his professor wife, Monica Shay, 58, longtime residents of E. 10th St. in Manhattan.

Their nephew, Joseph Shay, 43, was killed in the shooting in rural Bechtelsville, about 100 miles from New York City.

His girlfriend, Kathryn Erdmann, 37, of Fall River, Mass., was also critically wounded - and her young son, Gregory, was killed.

More on this as details become available...

PS
Thanks to EV Grieve reader Vash for alerting us to the story in the first place...

[Updated] 2 cops cleared of East Village rape charges, convicted of misconduct

From The Wall Street Journal:

Two New York City police officers were acquitted of rape and other felony charges but convicted of official misconduct, a misdemeanor, following a trial in which they were accused of taking advantage of an intoxicated woman they had helped into her apartment.

After more than six days of deliberations, a jury found New York City Police Officers Kenneth Moreno, 43 years old, and Franklin Mata, 28, not guilty of rape, burglary and falsifying records. Mata was also acquitted of tampering with evidence.

An update from the Daily News:

The NYPD fired two Manhattan cops Thursday just hours after they were acquitted of raping a helpless East Village woman.

Officers Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata were given the boot because the jury convicted them of official misconduct for going back to the woman's apartment three times without telling their superiors.

"The guilty verdict reached today involved a violation of the officer's oath of office and merits immediate termination," Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. "Both officers will be terminated today."

Both cops face up to two years in prison on the misdemeanor charges when they are sentenced June 28.

Kelly lowered the boom after a relieved Moreno branded the now 29-year-old accuser a liar.

"I thought she made the whole thing up," Moreno said moments after he and Mata were found not guilty of rape charges that could have sent them to jail for up to 25 years.

Gothamist is reporting that there will be a demonstration tomorrow against the acquittal outside the Manhattan Criminal Court building at 100 Centre Street from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Report: Woman stabbed to death in domestic dispute

A 23-year-old woman was stabbed to death in her Clinton Street apartment early this morning, NYPD officials told the Daily News. According to the paper, police believe it was a domestic dispute. From a photo in the paper, it appears the murder occurred at 63 Clinton St. between Stanton and Rivington.

More photos from the East 10th Street fire/crime scene

EV Grieve correspondent Bobby Williams was on the scene this afternoon for the fire on East 10th Street between Avenue B and Avenue C... (Read more here.) It is now being treated as a crime scene. Several commenters as well as people on the scene believe the resident on the top floor shot himself before the fire started... Please keep in mind that none of this has been officially confirmed by police or fire personnel.

From Sing Sing to... Sing Sing?

From today's NYPD Daily Blotter in the Post:

Two knife-wielding thugs were arrested for stabbing a foe at an East Village karaoke bar, police sources said yesterday.
Fahimul Kahn, 22, and Maeto Tashman, 18, attacked the 25-year-old victim at Sing Sing Karaoke on St. Marks Place near Third Avenue at 5 a.m. Sunday, the sources said.
As the victim was leaving the bar with a cousin, he exchanged angry words with the assailants, and Kahn stabbed him in the chest and leg with a folding knife, authorities said.
Tashman was charged with attempted assault while Kahn was hit with an attempted-murder rap, said a spokesman for DA Cyrus Vance.

Aug. 23, 2009: Remembering Eric "Taz" Pagan

In a comment about the Second Avenue shooting early this morning... a reader noted that Aug. 23 marks the one-year anniversary of the murder of Eric "Taz" Pagan out Forbidden City on Avenue A.

All coverage.

Police investigating robbery on Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place

According to nearby workers, the magazine shop on the corner of St. Mark's Place and Third Avenue was robbed some time late last night. The store was currently closed, though we could see the owner inside.




The officer on duty would only offer that the store was currently closed.

Panty raid

From the Police Blotter in this week's issue of The Villager:

The manager of Victoria’s Secret, 591 Broadway between Prince and Houston Sts., told police that a group of two men and three women entered the place at 5:20 p.m. Mon., March 15, distracted the security guard, and managed to take 96 panty thongs from a shelf, hide them in a big yellow bag and walk out without paying. The total value lost was $4,680, the store reported.

Disarmed and dangerous on Avenue B: Pizza statue maimed

Meanwhile, across Avenue B, we recently noticed that the Finest Pizza and Deli guy at the corner of Fourth Street was missing a few things, such as his sign and right thumb...



And Saturday night, an EV Grieve reader passed by only to discover that his right arm was torn off by some vandals...



...and discarded a short distance away...

Report: Ex-con stabbed to death outside Lillian Wald Houses on Avenue D

According to the Daily News today, a man was stabbed to death outside the Lillian Wald Houses on Avenue D:

One ex-con stabbed another to death outside a Manhattan housing project Tuesday night after their feuding female companions crossed paths, police sources said.

Cops believe Louis Dawson, 34, chased down Luis Johnson, 29, outside a building in the Lillian Wald Houses on the lower East Side about 7:50 p.m. and plunged a knife into his neck, chest and heart, the sources said.

"He stabbed him again and again," said witness Mario Hernandez, 37, of Manhattan. "There was much blood."

According to the NYCHA: Lillian Wald Houses has 16 buildings 10, 11, 13 and 14-stories tall with 1,857 apartments housing an estimated 4,536 residents. Completed Oct. 14, 1949, the 16.46-acre complex is between F.D.R. Drive, Avenue D, East Sixth and East Houston Streets.

A memorial for Taz remains at 12th and A

Whenever the gates are down at the northeast corner of Avenue A and 12th Street...



... you can see that a tribute remains for Eric "Taz" Pagan, the LES resident who was murdered outside Forbidden City last August...

Report: East Village crime stats were fudged to make the area look safer

From the Post today:

A city police captain was forced to retire last year after he fudged crime statistics to make his precinct look safer -- adding to widening concern over the accuracy of NYPD stats and the belief that top bosses pressure supervisors into cooking the books.

Capt. James Arniotes, a 23-year veteran, told The Post that he was busted for reclassifying 23 grand-larceny felonies as petit-larceny misdemeanors in early 2008.

The misconduct occurred while Arniotes, 48, was second in command at the Ninth Precinct in the East Village.

Grand larceny is one of seven major crimes, along with murder, rape, assault, robbery, burglary and grand larceny auto, that the NYPD and FBI track and publicize.

[Image via]

LES crime watch: "if you ask around the neighborhood, you'll find a pretty strong perception that things have worsened over the past year"

At The Village Voice, Graham Rayman takes a comprehensive look at the crime stats in our "crime-free" city, particularly at the 9th Precinct and LES... Here are some excerpts from his article:

Compared to the high-crime years of the late '80s and early '90s, the Lower East Side has far fewer serious reported crimes, according to police statistics. Of the four precincts, only the 9th Precinct showed an overall increase in crime last year, with increases in assault, grand larceny, and rape, and a big jump in burglary. The 5th, 7th, and 13th precincts, meanwhile, all showed overall declines.

On the other hand, comparing 2008 to 2009, there were some increases here and there. Felony assaults in the 7th Precinct jumped by 40 percent last year. Grand larcenies increased, as did rapes. Assaults in the 5th Precinct were up compared to 2007. And the 13th Precinct saw a rise in burglaries.

The number of neighborhood kids 15 or younger sent to the city juvenile justice system rose from 38 in 2008 to 54 in 2009. Typically, about half of those admissions were on robbery or assault charges.

The Voice also obtained misdemeanor arrest numbers for the four precincts, which show overall increases from 2006 to 2008 — largely fueled by jumps in burglary and larceny offenses, along with a significant increase in low-level marijuana busts.

For example, misdemeanor arrests in the 9th Precinct jumped by almost 25 percent between 2006 and 2008, largely as a result of burglary and theft cases. Misdemeanor arrests in the 5th Precinct rose by about 20 percent, largely on theft offenses.

Overall, the numbers present a picture of relative order compared to the bad old days. But if you ask around the neighborhood, you'll find a pretty strong perception that things have worsened over the past year, particularly as a result of these loosely organized groups of teens and young men who identify with a given public housing project or city block.

"We certainly saw an upsurge in the past couple of years of the presence of gangs," says Matthew Guldin, a lifelong educator who retired as dean of students for a Lower East Side high school last June. "You knew it was there. I think some of it has to do with the economic downturn. The crisis always comes first in the poorest neighborhoods. With fewer jobs available for teens, parents being laid off, and schools and community agencies losing funding, there are fewer positive options available to engage teenagers during the after-school hours. And I think YouTube, MySpace, texting, the communications technology, exacerbates it."

Previously on EV Grieve:
9th Precinct sees slight increase in overall crime for year; 74 of 76 NYC police precincts see lower numbers

The Post notes a "90 PERCENT SURGE IN BURGLARIES" in the East Village

In response to recent violence in the East Village: Alphabet City Neighbors

9th Precinct sees slight increase in overall crime for year; 74 of 76 NYC police precincts see lower numbers

As the Times noted yesterday:

Police Department statistics show that the number of major crimes is continuing to fall this year in nearly every category, upending the common wisdom that hard times bring more crime.

According to the article, there has been a decrease in overall crime in all but two of the city’s 76 police precincts.

So how about our 9th Precinct? I took a look at the city's weekly crime statistics for the period ending Sunday.

As you can see, there is actually an increase in crime in several categories. The numbers of rapes (12 in 2009; 8 in 2008) and burglaries (267 vs. 192) have increased in 2009 compared to 2008. The total number of crime complaints has increased from 1,363 last year to 1,402 this year. (And at least six of those reported crimes can be chalked up to the "Spiderman-like thief" who burglarized the same East 10th Street building earlier this year...)



However, as we've said before, it's important to keep these numbers in some perspective. For instance, robberies in the 9th Precinct have decreased by 80 percent since 1990.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Post notes a "90 PERCENT SURGE IN BURGLARIES" in the East Village

Spidey's rickshaw stolen -- and recovered on Avenue A

Bob Arihood has the story at Neither More Nor Less.

Police presence on the Bowery

BoweryBoogie had a report yesterday about a man who was shot on the Bowery near Bleecker early Saturday morning.

The Post had a little more on the incident in today's paper:

A gunman opened fire early yesterday on the Lower East Side, wounding two men.

The victims, both in their 30s, were shot on the Bowery near Bond Street at about 4:40 a.m., police said. One was hit in the leg, the other in the arm.

Both were treated at Bellevue Hospital -- but refused to cooperate with investigators looking into what sparked the shooting.

On Saturday morning, there was a strong police presence...



...to set up pylons for the street construction on First Street and the Bowery that blocked traffic for much of the day....

On the increased criminal activity in Stuy Town

We've had several posts in recent weeks/months about the increased crime in the neighborhood. We're certainly not alone. Our friend Lux Living has chronicled the increased criminal activity in Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village. On Sunday, a 28-year-old woman was attacked outside 8 Stuyvesant Oval. As LL reported, "the tenant was grabbed from behind and dragged into the trees near the building's M level where she was choked. She was able to fight off her attacker and nearby neighbors made enough noise to scare him away. Unfortunately incidents like this one are becoming all too common in Stuy Town."

Report: Homicide on Avenue C

Over the weekend, several credible, non-law-enforcement sources confirmed that someone was killed late Thursday night/early Friday morning in an apartment on Avenue C between Eighth Street and Ninth Street. One source close to to the scene noted: "None of the major news outlets have reported it, but it certainly happened. I saw the [medical examiner] outside for a few hours on Friday morning and have heard that it happened in an apartment and was sex related."

The Post reports on the homicide in today's NYPD Daily Blotter:

A New Jersey man strangled his gay lover with a rope in the victim's Alphabet City apartment, police sources said yesterday.

Davawn Robinson, 22, of Paterson, NJ, allegedly wrapped the rope around the neck and wrist of Edgard Mercado, 39, in Mercado's apartment on Avenue C near East Eighth Street at 4 a.m. Friday.

Authorities found Mercado's body face up on the floor of his bedroom. Robinson had fled, police said, but was arrested the next day on murder charges.