If Mayor Ernie Davis brought crack-cocaine to the Democratic interview the Mt. Vernon Community needs to Demand Answers!!

In the online blog Mount Vernon Exposed, it was reported over the weekend, that Mayor Ernie Davis brought crack-cocaine to the Democratic interview process. 

"I just wanted to show you we need to be paying more attention to what our youth are doing," Mayor Davis told the committee according to a source who was part of that interview process.

If this is true, there are several things wrong here, 

1. Mayor Davis who is on probation was in possession on a controlled substance which is a violation of his probation and against both state and federal laws, (an average citizen who has never broke the law would have been arrested)

2. Mayor Davis travels with a member of the MVPD on his detail at all times and this individual didn't see anything wrong with this

3. Reginald Lafayette and the Democratic Committee thought in their infinite wisdom that this action made Davis the candidate that should represent the party in the upcoming election.

Come to City Council Meeting this Wednesday May 26, 2015 at 7pm and demand answers. You must call (914) 665-2351 before 2:30pm if you want to speak at the Council meeting.

Many feel Davis should step down from office and not run for re-election, if this is true at the very least, his probation officer needs to look into this to determine if he has in fact violated his probation.

Mount Vernon officer costs city $937,000 of Taxpayer Money

Mount Vernon Officer Costs City 937 000

Carl Bell's firing as Mount Vernon top cop draws outrage at council meeting

The firing of Mount Vernon Police Commissioner Carl Bell by Mayor Ernie Davis continues to be a hot-button issue in the city nearly a month after Bell was let go.

Damon Jones, a Mount Vernon resident and the head of the Westchester chapter of Blacks in Law Enforcement, criticized Bell's termination as he addressed the City Council during its meeting Wednesday.

"How are we going to fire a commissioner who is holding officers to accountability?" he asked. "There are some police officers that are out of control."

He said the victims of police brutality are African-American.

"The only people they're abusing are people who look like us," he said.

Davis, who has sole responsibility over the police commissioner, has refused to comment on why Bell was fired -- an issue that Samuel Rivers questioned.

"An answer from the mayor that he doesn't discuss personnel matters is not good enough," Rivers said.

None of the council's five members addressed Bell's firing. Council member Roberta Apuzzo, the head of the City Council's Public Safety Committee, said she was "looking forward to having a dialogue" with Jones.

"I've been around here since 1986, and we've had 12 police commissioners. Something's wrong with that equation," City Council President Yuhanna Edwards said.

Jones said he plans to write letters to the Department of Justice's civil rights division about police abuse of Mount Vernon residents.

In a Monday letter to Mount Vernon city Attorney Nichelle Johnson, Jones said the organization would continue to question the motive behind Bell's firing.

"This has completely jeopardized the process of accountability and transparency in the Mount Vernon Police Department," Jones said.

Several members of the police force are under investigation by the FBI and U.S. attorney's office for possible ties to gang members, Newsday reported Feb. 22. Sources familiar with the investigation said the probe was in its preliminary stages and was not focused solely on officers from any one race or any particular hometown.

FEDERAL PROBES

Davis, who is the target of a separate federal probe into his finances, has said he knows nothing of the Police Department probe. Sources have said that Davis and Bell have been kept in the dark about the police investigation.

Bell, who is taking time off before deciding his next career move, told Newsday he appreciated the support he has received from Mount Vernon police officers and city residents since he was fired.

"It's nice to know there are people who appreciate the job I did," Bell said. "But I'm looking forward, not looking back."

Davis fired Bell on Feb. 19, ending Bell's 2 1/2-year tenure as commissioner. The firing came after a year in which shootings and homicides spiked in Mount Vernon and relations between Davis and Bell -- who was appointed in August 2010 by Davis' predecessor, Clinton Young -- deteriorated.

The mayor on Feb. 28 appointed Richard Burke as deputy police commissioner. Burke -- a former Mount Vernon police lieutenant who retired in 1994 after 21 years with the force -- will run the 205-member Police Department until a commissioner is named.

Sources said that Davis' first choice for the commissioner's job is former Mount Vernon Police Officer Terrance Raynor, who heads the 35 investigators of the Westchester County district attorney's office.

Raynor attended Burke's swearing-in March 1 and said afterward he had not applied for the job. He didn't give a direct answer when asked whether he was interested in the post.

Last year, there were 10 homicides and more than 20 shootings in Mount Vernon. Only two arrests have been made in the homicide cases. The 10 killings surpassed the combined total of the previous two years.

Mount Vernon needs leadership

This is an editorial in the Journal News. If other people can see the problems with our city, why cant we?

Why is there is always a negative story written about the city of Mount Vernon? Corruption and mismanagement are the topics of almost every story.

When I drive through the downtown business district of the city, I notice garbage on the sidewalks, in the street gutters, and overflowing public garbage baskets.

This is a disgrace to the city and the department in charge. If someone like myself is noticing this, why are the people in public office not taking notice? What has happened to this once-beautiful proud city?

The people in this city who care need to unite and elect politicians who will take charge and turn this city around.

This city is the embarrassment of the Lower Hudson Valley. When I speak to people about Mount Vernon, especially nonresidents, I always get the same “Mount Vernon is a mess” response. This is wrong and totally unacceptable for any city or town.

People say it is too late to turn the city around. Put good hardworking honest people in office and in every department in the city.

This city needs caring leadership, people who take pride in their jobs, people who put their heart in the city for a better Mount Vernon.

 This city needs a major change, people are moving out of the city, and the school system is a mess as well.

What has happened to the memorial field renovation? Another mismanaged project that has come to a halt?

Anthony Caparelli

Yonkers