If this was the safest part of town....it wouldn't have happened in the first place.....and not isolated....we just don't hear about it.... thanks to the efforts of who is leading the bandwagon...
We have been assured repeatedly by the biggest puppets that there is no violent crime around Proctor's. They tried to suppress this gang attack but the truth has leaked out. Nobody went there before this. Downtown is a mess with Rudnick's the last decent retail store moving out and Erie worse than ever. Real renaissance below Erie?
Every time I drive down Erie towards Glenville from 890, I am stunned at the lunacy of merging into ONE lane at basically probably the busiest intersection in the city, save Brandywine & State.
Monday, September 30, 2013 By Kathleen Moore (Contact) Gazette Reporter
SCHENECTADY — News of an attack on a 49-year-old man and his teenage daughter at Bow Tie Cinemas left business owners and customers stunned Monday.
The assault happened three months ago, but no one knew the disturbing details until Friday, after three teenagers were indicted on felony assault charges and others were charged as juveniles. As many as 15 people were involved in the attack, police said.
Some business owners said they first heard the news when customers came in asking about safety downtown.
Caught by surprise, they did not have at hand the area’s crime statistics — showing downtown is one of the safest neighborhoods in the city — to reassure people.
They also didn’t have any details on safety at the cinema, and they strongly wished they did. They questioned why none of the economic development agencies had informed them.
But some of those agencies were taken by surprise, too.
“To be honest, up until it hit the paper, we weren’t even aware of it,” said Colleen Merays, assistant director of the Downtown Schenectady Improvement Corp. “I certainly wish I did know about it in advance of this.”
If they had known, they could have offered a reassuring statistic: this has never happened before at the cinema.
The movie theater’s security company provided Metroplex Development Authority with a log of every incident in the past two years. Items ranged from janitorial calls to the rescue of a girl who couldn’t open the door of a bathroom stall.
There was only one violent incident — the one on June 29.
In that case, a Niskayuna father hushed teenagers who were running up the aisles and banging on garbage cans during a late-night movie.
When he, his two daughters and a friend of the girls left at the end of the film, the group of teenagers ambushed them, according to the detailed indictment.
They beat the father until he fell down, and then kicked him repeatedly. He suffered a severe concussion and a broken hand.
His 15-year-old daughter tried to come to his rescue. They punched her in the face and snatched away her cellphone.
quick response
A cinema employee called police, and they arrived before she even finished giving her information to a dispatcher. They arrived so quickly that they were able to grab one suspect running from the cinema, and later arrested others based on security camera footage.
Details of the incident were available to the media soon afterward, but because it was initially classified as a misdemeanor arrest of one person, police did not publicize the case and the incident was reported only briefly as a cellphone theft in The Gazette.
At first, the extent of the man’s injuries wasn’t clear, and police lodged misdemeanor assault charges. The grand jury upgraded the charges to felonies because of the severity of the injuries.
But someone from Bow Tie knew right away that the incident was serious. That person called Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen just after the incident. And he took it seriously, too: at 6 a.m. that morning he was speaking with top management at Bowtie headquarters.
And then no one said anything publicly. Not to the media, not to the business owners, not to DSIC.
Gillen said he wasn’t told that a father had been attacked in front of his daughters, or that he was taken away by ambulance. He thought teens had gotten into a fight with each other.
“I had a completely different impression of it,” he said.
He added that it was clearly an isolated incident.
“This is the only time there was any kind of incident” at the cinema, he said.
“The police arrived almost instantly,” he said. “They made arrests. The system worked.”
But no one worked to manage the public relations fallout.
Merays said DSIC could have used its email list of every business owner to tell people about it — and offer the relevant safety statistics.
“An innocent bystander. You really can’t downplay it,” she said. “I’m sure we would have let people know. You definitely, when it’s a potential customer or safety question, you want to be able to respond.”
But not every business owner objected to the lack of notice.
“Keep it quiet. They did the right thing,” said Pizza King employee Sean Richards. His fellow employees were surprised at this, one of them saying, “Really?”
But he argued that Metroplex must have tried to keep it a secret — and for good reason.
“If they find out, you’re going to lose customers,” he said. “From a business standpoint, it was smart to keep it quiet.”
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
"In the beginning of a change, the Patriot is a scarce man, brave, hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, however, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a Patriot."
You and your family or friends go to a movie theater. Some others are making noise, disrupting your abiity to watch the movie. You ask/tell them to be quiet.
How many times have we all done that? More often it might be some 5 year old whose making noise sitting close enough to you that it's annoying and you might call out to the parent "can you keep him quiet please....?" Or maybe the kid is in the seat in front of you standing up and disrupting your view and you say something to the parent, not a whisper but not yelling so loud the whole theater can hear you. But in a normal voice, but annoyed voice, think of what you might say, "hey, can you sit your kid down, I can't see," or "hey, can you take your kid and sit in the back row if he wants to stand in the seat."
This is what seems to have happened in that June incident to start. A family's enjoyment of a movie was disrupted by some kids, the father said something to those who were being disruptive, in that same way.
And apparently after the movie let out, this assault happened.
This incident was NOT, I repeat NOT, an incident involving people belonging to two rival gangs.
It WAS an gang level style assault on INNOCENT people trying to enjoy a movie!
This is a government paid theater, a FOR PROFIT business, making money and NOT PAYING TAXES!!!! Rather the taxes due on that building are pad via the STEALING by the dems & plex of the money belonging to the financially struggling homeowners in the city
And the dems and plex keep a gang asssault on INNOCENT family totally quiet. A big secret. Just like the big secret by the desm when Stratton SECRETLY put a raise for himself into the budget some years ago and thanks to Pat Z and I believe Vince Riggi as well, it was a secret no more.
This news piece is yet another item that makes Schenectady the laughing stock. The fact that the houses are NOT selling well enough to the point that the city leaders are so embarrassed at their failures that they turn to desperate measures such as monthly gala open houses and bus tours is just another reason that the city has become the laughing stock - but you notice the city keeps the failure of the home selling measure a big secret - they will NOT provide the numbers. The issues of the police department has made the city a laughing stock - and police issues continued under the dem leadership!!
Just heard Riggi on the radio talking to Paul. Riggi was surprised so we know the dems kept it a secret. If you heard the show, Paul suggested to Vince that Vince might suggest to McC that he (McC) address the city's keeping everything over this incident a big secret, that is when the mayor and council get together for the budget unveiling.
But let's remember that a certain non-taxpayer cheerleader for the dems and plex says that the mayor and his team are doing a wonderful job in the city and that the renaissance continues.
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
Cops will be right there, as soon as they're done downtown looking for a person or persons not wearing any pants somewhere in the area of the Bowtie. Can't have that in our downtown. Residents be damned. Almost fell out of my chair when that call came across the scanner. There may have been two of those calls somewhat similar, not 100% on it though. Drugs might have been involved, any surprise?
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
Gillen lies again. He is the most consummate professional liar I have ever come across.
The next time it happens they will try to cover it up then too. They can't help themselves because their whole life is swimming in a sea of lies. They would not know a truth if it bonked them on the nose. Look at the idiot who posts here as an apologist. It is as if he never left his armchair and drove about the city.
"While Foreign Terrorists were plotting to murder and maim using homemade bombs in Boston, Democrap officials in Washington DC, Albany and here were busy watching ME and other law abiding American Citizens who are gun owners and taxpayers, in an effort to blame the nation's lack of security on US so that they could have a political scapegoat."
these things are happeneing every single day in SCUMnectady!!!! The media just takes it's marching orders from GOV ALMIGHTY....and with holds any info that they are 'told' to with hold!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
The media outlets are nothing more than propagandists!!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
That is 100% true. They are in lockstep with the political class and order. They do not see themselves as having an adversarial relationship in any way to power, they are there to help centralize power, as if they are part of the official political class, And they know this but will not admit it, and put on a fake act of indignity when this is suggested.
"While Foreign Terrorists were plotting to murder and maim using homemade bombs in Boston, Democrap officials in Washington DC, Albany and here were busy watching ME and other law abiding American Citizens who are gun owners and taxpayers, in an effort to blame the nation's lack of security on US so that they could have a political scapegoat."
This story was covered up by Galesi & Gillen because it hits too close to home!
An average, well-meaning Dad takes his girls to a movie only to get harassed and assaulted by a gang of teens.
It's NOT an 'average' crime ...it's a crime which frightens many of us. Why? Because many of us are THAT parent! We accompany our children to the movies/dinner/events, we try to do the best we can do for them and to have a gang assault happen to us...with our children present!? It goes far beyond any 'typical' crime.
Shame on all those who covered this up! I'm not asking for a media circus, just for some truth. The truth is Schenectady cannot control the gangs...they are infiltrating even the 'safest' areas.
Someone called Ray Gillen just after the incident. How did whoever did that come up with the idea of calling Ray Gillen, of all people? Sounds like a plan, to me. Like they were expecting this sort of thing, as I have been. Who is Ray Gillen? Why would he be called, in case of emergency? Does his number appear in the front of the phone book, with the police, ambulance, and fire department numbers? I repeat, WHO THE HELL IS RAY GILLEN, that he should be called over a police matter at a private business? "The system worked". Notice he is giving himself the status of an elected government official, or king, or something. We need to get rid of these unelected, largely non-resident rulers, pronto. The system worked, if by the system, you mean a family unsuspectingly goes to a movie, but this family is apparently naive enough to expect not to have their paid-for entertainment disrupted by the gang that rules over the theater, so they stand up to the thugs and suffer the consequences, so Mr. Gillen gets called to manage the fallout. That system worked. How many incidents have there been where nobody said anything, and just left the theater and never returned? If the police get called because a family gets assaulted at a taxpayer assaulted theater, that is the police doing their job, not the system working. Why isn't there a security guard in the theater? Downtown isn't one of the safest neighborhoods because it isn't really a neighborhood. I'm so sick of outsiders telling me what it is like here. Like I said, a banana republic, without the bananas.
They should hire L4L. This has parallels to the attack on the Pizza delivery man over at Yates. BTW, judges often tell people who get released from jail or prison that they can't return to their original community, they must to to Schenectady. Why then, didn't anyone prevent the murderous thug from that heinous incident from coming right back here? Why must we always be the last stop in the waste treatment system? That theater is going to go out of business now, and deservedly so, since their method of dealing with this foreseeable security issue was, apparently, to have Ray Gillen on speed dial. He should be fired. This is dangerous.