How to spend July 4 weekend in Queens
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You don’t even need to get out of town to celebrate Independence Day in style.
Read MoreDeportation halted for pregnant mom arrested by ICE outside Queens Family Court
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Advocates say ICE’s presence in and around courthouses endangers immigrants, who are less inclined to seek justice as victims or witnesses for fear of deportation.
Read MoreMets officially play at 41 Seaver Way
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The city unveiled Seaver Way on Thursday, as the 2019 Mets geared up for the final game of a four-game series in Philadelphia.
Read MoreActivists at City Hall demand answers in death of Layleen Polanco
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“It’s been 19 days now since Layleen Polanco was found dead in her cell at Rikers and we’ve had no action from the city.”
Read MoreKorean restaurant owner convicted of exploiting employees
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Kum Gang San restaurant on Northern Boulevard in Flushing. Photo via Google.
By Phineas Rueckert
A Korean restaurant owner in Flushing, convicted of underpaying and denying overtime to employees, is in more hot water after a panel of judges found that he attempted to circumvent paying out the $2.7 million judgement by transferring properties to family members.
Ji Sung Yoo, the owner of the restaurant Kum Gang San, was found guilty of wage theft in 2014. One former employee alleged that Yoo forced bussers to work 20-hour days without overtime pay. Yoo also reportedly forced them to do other denigrating tasks without receiving any overtime, such as mowing his grass, shoveling snow in his driveway, and picking cabbage at his friend’s farm on their day off.
In March 2015, Yoo was asked to pay $2.7 million dollars in back wages and damages to the former workers. In order to avoid paying the judgement, Yoo allegedly transferred several properties — in Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan — to family members, which allowed him to claim he was insolvent and couldn’t pay out the judgement.
Yoo has since filed, and subsequently lost, two appeals in the Second Circuit Appeals Court — with the most recent coming on June 6.
“Too often, low wage immigrant workers can obtain a back-pay award in court but have no means to enforce judgment to collect from dishonest employers,” Jackson Chin, Senior Counsel at LatinoJustice PRLDEF, said in a statement earlier this month.
On June 18, Yoo and his family faced a civil contempt hearing, which never took place according to Kenneth Kimmerling, the Legal Director of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, who was contacted by the Eagle.
“It’s been resolved — that’s all I can say,” Kimmerling said of the case.
Advocates rally for Layleen Polanco at City Hall Wednesday
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Activists will “demand accountability and lay out policy changes that must happen to end the convergence of carceral systems that led to Polanco’s death.”
Read MoreMinnesota public housing activists warn of NYCHA’s new ‘Czar of Privatization’
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“He’s going to destroy public housing.”
Read MoreMath Rocks: Queens Native Rick St. Hilaire brought the noise at MoMath last weekend
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Quadrivium began in February of 2018, and has featured eight performances that fuse music and math — bringing a new beat to the National Museum of Mathematics.
Read MoreMayor’s Office files lawsuit against alleged $5m illegal hotel operation
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The complaint names Astoria resident Elvis Tominovic as the leader of the operation, and states the scheme generated $5 million from 60,000 guests at 36 buildings.
Read MoreSave the bay: Bill to protect against Jamaica Bay dumping passes Senate
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“Jamaica Bay is a critical natural resource and an environmental jewel that needs to be carefully protected.”
Read MoreE-bikes could become legal across New York with vote Wednesday
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Activists have hailed the bill, sponsored by Queens Assemblymember Nily Rozic and State Sen. Jessica Ramos, as a breakthrough piece of legislation.
Read MoreBartlett Dairy to open Queens distribution facility in vacant JFK lot
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The plant will open in 2020 and will create more than 165 permanent jobs, as well as an estimated 70-90 temporary construction jobs.
Read More12K runners compete in Queens 10K
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Among the runners were more than 2,500 Queens residents, including second-place finisher Patricio Castillo, from Flushing, who finished with a time of 30:06.
Read More‘Ants in an ant farm’ — Queens schools contend with chronic overcrowding
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The reasons for overcrowding are complex — a combination of demographic growth, housing development, shortsighted policy and other factors.
Read MoreNew York state might be getting a new Democratic primary date
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By moving its primary date to April 28, New York would increase its delegate count by 25 percent, to 327.
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