RyeCity REVIEW THE
February 9, 2018 | Vol. 6, Number 6 | www.ryecityreview.com
Killian to run for Senate again By JAMES PERO Staff Writer
Priska Diaz, a mother of two and founder of Bittylab, has reinvented the baby bottle by introducing an air-plug that removes air from the bottle which helps to prevent gas build up in babies using them. For story, see page 6. Photo/Taylor Brown
Westchester lawmakers ban gun shows on county property By FRANCO FINO Staff Writer In a 12-5 vote on Feb. 5, the Westchester County Board of Legislators, BOL, passed a law banning gun shows on county-owned property, codifying an executive order signed earlier this year by County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat. The vote was split down party lines, as the BOL’s five Republican county legislators voted against the bill, which will not impact gun shows on properties that the county doesn’t own. Earlier this year, Latimer signed an executive order on Jan. 2 banning gun shows on county
property, fulfilling one of his promises during his campaign against former County Executive Rob Astorino, a Republican. The former senator signed the executive order just one day into his new role as county executive. The BOL passed a similar ban on gun shows last year while Republicans made up a majority of the legislature. At the time, the bill was approved in a 9-8 vote, with all Democrats voting in favor of the policy in order to block a gun show that was to be held at the Westchester County Center. However, Astorino vetoed the bill and the gun show was held on the county property anyway last year. Gun shows on county proper-
ty were previously banned after a shooting that was orchestrated at Colorado’s Columbine High School in 1999, in which 13 people were killed by two students of the school. Around that time, former County Executive Andy Spano, a Democrat, issued the executive order banning gun shows. In 2010, Astorino lifted the ban on gun shows with the intention of allowing them to be held at the County Center. A show that was scheduled for 2013 at the county center was cancelled after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in 2012. With the BOL passing the legislation, the law will now become permanent, meaning current and
On Feb. 5, the Westchester County Board of Legislators voted to ban guns shows on county-owned property, solidifying an executive order already in place from County Executive George Latimer. Photo courtesy Wikipedia.org
future county executives cannot change the gun show policy without the vote of the local Legislature. CONTACT: franco@hometwn.com
Former Rye Councilwoman Julie Killian, a Republican, will take another shot at the state Senate by running for the seat vacated by Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, earlier this year. This will mark Killian’s second run at the very same seat for state Senate District 37, which encompasses much of Westchester County’s Sound Shore, after a failed bid to defeat Latimer in 2016. The position in Westchester’s 37th Senate District has been left open since Jan. 1, and a special election will be held on April 24 after Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, set a date last month. Killian will join a now two-person field of potential Republican nominees that includes former prosecutor Dan Schorr. Bedford attorney Sarmad Khojasteh, announced this week that he would drop out from the race. Killian’s bid for state Senate was confirmed by a press release sent out by Khojasteh on Feb. 5, which stated that he will endorse Killian for a Republican nomination process slated to take place on Feb. 7, after press time. “I am ending my campaign today and supporting Julie Killian in this race,” Khojasteh said in a statement on his campaign webpage. “I have spoken with Julie and she has assured me that she will continue to promote policies that help lower and middle-income New Yorkers achieve financial security and upward mobility.”
Killian has served on the Rye City Council since 2012, and in her bid for New York state Senate in 2016, she ran on a platform of political reform in Albany, as well as greater emphasis on combating an opioid epidemic in the county and nationwide. If given the nomination, Killian would square off against Democratic nominee and state Assemblywoman Shelley Mayer, who was chosen to lead the charge for Latimer’s vacant seat during a convention process in January. Mayer will look to build off of a wave of Democratic wins throughout the county this past November and elsewhere that capitalized on opposition to President Donald Trump, a Republican, and a reinvigorated Democratic votership. The 37th Senate District encompasses the cities of Yonkers, White Plains, New Rochelle and Rye; the towns of Eastchester, Harrison, Mamaroneck, Rye, Bedford and North Castle; and the villages of Harrison, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, Mamaroneck, Larchmont, Rye Brook and Port Chester. Killian could not be reached for comment as of press time. CONTACT: james@hometwn.com