RyeCity REVIEW THE
April 20, 2018 | Vol. 6, Number 16 | www.ryecityreview.com
Killian, Mayer at odds over sex harassment claims
More than 3,000 members of the Jewish community came together in Hartsdale on Sunday, April 15 in celebration of the 70th anniversary of the creation of Israel in 1948. For more, see page 6. Photo/Aggie Photography
Commissioner Corcoran promotes veteran officer Michael Kenny Public Safety Commissioner Michael Corcoran has promoted one of Rye’s long-tenured police officers to the rank of sergeant. Detective Michael Kenny was officially promoted on March 26 during a ceremony that was held in City Hall, in which Mayor Josh Cohn, a Democrat, served as the guest speaker. “This is a very proud day for the city of Rye,” Corcoran said. “Sgt. Kenny is a longtime Rye resident and is well respected in the community, particularly with issues involving the youth in our city. I am confident that he will be an outstanding supervisor and continue to be
Rye Police Department Detective Michael Kenny has been promoted to the rank of sergeant by Public Safety Commissioner Michael Corcoran. Photo courtesy Rye Police Department
a role model for our officers.” Kenny joined the Rye Police Department and began working on patrol in 1999. A longtime city
resident, he graduated from Rye High School and then attended Iona College in New Rochelle. The newly promoted sergeant
previously served as a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. In addition to his patrol function, Kenny is involved in the training operations of the Police Department. Kenny is an FBI-certified firearms instructor and defensive tactics instructor, a TASER instructor and an expandable baton instructor. He was promoted to the department’s Detective Division in 2014. According to City Manager Marcus Serrano, Kenny earns an annual salary of $117,851. The promotion does not come with an increase in salary, Serrano said. -Reporting by Franco Fino
A race for a pivotal state Senate seat is turning contentious in its final days as an April special election draws close. Last week, Republican candidate Julie Killian, who is running against state Assemblywoman Shelley Mayer, a Democrat, for an open seat in the Senate’s 37th District, called for Mayer to drop out of the race following a story published in The Daily News claiming that she ignored the sexual harassment claims of Senate staffers. Mayer was chief counsel of Senate Democrats at the time. “By allowing the sexual harassment of two women who were seeking her help to continue until after the next election [in 2010], Shelley Mayer has conclusively demonstrated that she does not possess the character or moral compass to continue serving in the state Legislature,” Killian said in a statement. Holding an impromptu press conference on April 13 in front of one of Mayer’s headquarters in the village of Mamaroneck, Killian called on her opponent to resign amidst a sea of supporters. from both sides, who chanted and waved their respective signs. According to the Journal News, profanity-laced fights between supporters of both sides took place. In a Daily News article, two women, Julia Lilkendey and Shana Wittenwyler, claim that while they were Senate staffers, they were stalked and sexually harassed by a male supervisor dating back as far as 2009. Both women say that despite informing Mayer of the events, the Assemblywoman did little to help the situation.
Doug Forand, a Mayer spokesman, has denied the characterization of those events in a statement, claiming that Mayer reported the issue to her superior although no action was ever taken. It’s unclear what effect the allegations will have on Mayer’s campaign who has often touted women’s equality and equal pay as a part of her platform. Democrats are hoping for another strong turnout to follow on the heels of Election Day 2017, which saw area Democrats win seats across Westchester County due in part to growing discontent with some of the policies of President Donald Trump. Whether that turnout will translate into an April special election though, remains to be seen. Killian, having served previously as a Rye City councilwoman, does have some name recognition and familiarity within the Senate’s 37th District, which is comprised of the city of Yonkers, town of Eastchester, plus all of the communities that makeup the Sound Shore region. However, according to the county Board of Elections, the district’s enrollment numbers in 2017 favor registered Democrats by 28,000 voters. -Reporting by James Pero
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