Blog
- Blog
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
On Friday, June 12, 2020, New York State passed a package of police reform bills in response to weeks of widespread demonstrations. The reform measures (1) ban the use of chokeholds by law enforcement officers, (2) give the state attorney general power as a special prosecutor in cases of police-involved…
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
On March 7, 2020, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo issued Executive Order 202 (the “Order”)1. The Order found that “a disaster is impending in New York State, for which the affected local governments are unable to respond adequately” and, as a result, the Governor exercised his executive authority and declared “a…
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
According to a 2019 report, the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s (“MTA”) Traffic Mobility Review Board (“TMRB”) will meet behind closed doors to consider how best to institute “congestion pricing.”1 According to the MTA, the TMRB — which is tasked with recommending toll prices for drivers entering Manhattan’s central business district —…
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
Many people have heard of New York’s Freedom of Information Law (“FOIL”) and its federal counterpart, the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”), but few understand how it works in practice or how to enforce the rights that those laws grant. At its core, FOIL gives the public the right to…
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
In March of 2019, a Rochester resident sued the City of Rochester (the “City”) seeking to compel the City to provide footage from police body cameras under New York’s Freedom of Information Law (“FOIL”). The City resident specifically sought footage of body cameras worn by police officers who allegedly shot…
- By: Jacob H. Zoghlin, Esq.
- Government Accountability
On June 5, 2019, the Observer published an article on a potential Open Meetings Law violation by the Chautauqua County Planning Board. The article alleges that, at a June meeting, the Board was considering an application involving the acquisition of land for soccer fields for Jamestown Community College. Before presenting…