Queens Criminal Lawyers

More than 125 people turned out Sunday evening for the Queens Village Republican Club’s annual celebration of former President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.

The club, which was founded in 1875, held the dinner at Antun’s in Queens Village.

Councilman Dan Halloran, R-Whitestone, handed out citations from the City Council and U.S. Rep. Bob Turner, R-Forest Hills, was the evening’s keynote speaker.

The Oratorio Society of Queens, which is celebrating its 85^th anniversary as the borough’s oldest performing arts group, was presented with a declaration of honor from Queens Borough President Helen Marshall.

Photos courtesy of James Trent, chairman of the club’s board.

An able cast that includes Tom Hardy, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine and Angela Bassett still cannot elevate “This Means War,” which aims to blend the action and romantic comedy genres, but focuses more on the former than the latter.

In the picture, Hardy and Pine play spies, whom we first meet as they flub the opportunity to take out a criminal mastermind (Til Schweiger).

The inexplicably named FDR (Pine) is the lothario, who attempts to convince sensitive divorcee Tuck (Hardy) to get back on the dating scene.

Through a twist of fate, the two men both end up vying for the affections of Lauren (Witherspoon), who is still attempting to get over a failed relationship.

The men’s rivalry for Lauren gets out of hand and their attempts at one-upmanship soon reach the juvenile level at which Hollywood continuously portrays grown men operating.

And, of course, the picture’s villain is re-introduced at just the right moment to ensure that its heroes must work together to keep their shared love interest safe.

“This Means War” just barely rides along on the charisma of its cast and provides a few laughs. But it’s mostly forgettable.

On the other hand, it’s difficult to forget the sheer awfulness of “Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance,” a film that exists solely for the brief joy of watching Nicolas Cage deliver a few of the most delirious lines of his career.

Otherwise, the picture is an assault on the senses – in 3D, no less.

Is a summary of the film’s events even necessary? Just in case: the titular demon/superhero with the flaming skull and magical chains is called upon to save a child who has been kidnapped by Satan (Ciaran Hinds) and could be turned into the antichrist.

The movie chugs along from one uninspiring action sequence to the next.

Cage, an actor whose manic presence often elevates even the worst of material, is given little to do other than deliver a few lines in a demented whisper and – during one sequence – um, relieve himself into the wind, thereby causing a flame thrower.

If “Spirit of Vengeance” succeeds at any one thing, it’s achieving the near impossible task of making moviegoers pine for the original.

The week’s solitary picture of substance – Markus Schleinzer’s controversial “Michael” – is serious business indeed.

This austere Austrian picture, which debuted at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, tells the tale of a pedophile who has kidnapped a pre-teen boy and keeps him locked up in a room in his home.

The film is not nearly as exploitative as it may sound. In fact, Schleinzer presents the material in a gravely serious, but matter-of-fact, manner.

The performances by Michael Fuith (Michael) and David Rauchenberger (Wolfgang, the kid) are impressive and the director’s spartan set design and camera work strike an uneasy tone.

If I can’t get fully on board with the film, it’s because I can’t exactly determine its reason for existence.

It’s a well-crafted and unsettling experience, but seemingly one without purpose.

In keeping with our theme of fast-food questions this week, we’ve got another issue that Forest Hills might find interesting: Should CitiField sell hot dogs on the Jewish Sabbath?

The New York Daily News profiled an upcoming high-profile suit bent on keeping the Mets’ from claiming they’ve got kosher dogs on the Jewish Sabbath.

The suit argues that if they’re being served on the Sabbath and prepared improperly, the dogs aren’t kosher at all.

So what do you think? Should the Mets’ refrain from selling hot dogs — an iconic baseball food — one-seventh of the time?

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Police in the neighboring 104th Precinct are asking for the public’s help in locating a suspect wanted in connection with an attempted rape.

On Sunday, Feb. 19, a 25-year-old woman was attacked in the confines of the 104^th Precinct at 10:30 p.m. The victim was pushed to the ground by her attacker, who then attempted to rape her.

When she screamed for help, the suspect broke off the attack and ran after stealing the victim’s purse.

The suspect is described as between the ages of 25 and 35, 6-feet-tall, roughly 210 pounds, with black hair. He was wearing a grey jacket at the time of the attack.

A video disseminated by the NYPD is available at right.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
Residents can also submit their tips at the Crime Stoppers Website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or text tips to 274637(CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

A former longtime clubhouse manager for the New York Mets has pleaded guilty to criminally possessing nearly $2.3 million worth of team memorabilia as well as evading city and state taxes, the Queens district attorney announced.

Charles Samuels, 55, who lives in Arverne, pleaded guilty Tuesday before Queens Supreme Court Justice Barry Kron to criminal possession of stolen property and criminal tax fraud, Queens D.A. Richard Brown said.

The defendant has been free on $75,000 bail since his arrest in May.

“The defendant had a dream job that any Mets fan would die for – and he blew it,” Brown said. “He allowed his greed to get the better of him.”

Samuels had amassed almost $2.3 million worth of on-field and game-used Mets memorabilia and collectibles, such as autographed jerseys, bats and baseballs, that belonged to the Mets organization.

The defendant began his career with the Mets in 1976 and became an equipment manager in 1983. He went on to become the team’s clubhouse manager and traveling secretary.

He was fired by the Mets in November 2010.

As part of his plea, Samuels agreed to pay restitution of $20, 843 to the state’s Department of Taxation and Finance as well as $14,738 to the city’s Department of Finance, $24,955 to Sterling Mets, L.P. and $15,000 in forfeiture to the Queens DA’s office.

The defendant is also banned from Citi Field, the Mets’ minor league park in Brooklyn and their spring training facility in Florida, the DA said.

He will be sentenced on April 16. Brown said the defendant is expected to receive a five-year probation.

Samuels possessed hundreds of autographed memorabilia that had been stolen from Sterling Mets. L.P. and was appraised at more than $2.2 million, Brown said.

The memorabilia was recovered in November 2010 from the basement of a Connecticut home belonging to one of Samuels’ friends.

As part of his plea, the defendant also admitted to under reporting the full amount of his income on his 2009 state tax returns to avoid a tax liability for the year, the DA said.

Forest Hills will be home to a new educational and therapeutic services company soon, according to an article in Crain’s New York Business.

Bilinguals Inc, a company that provides English-tutoring and bilingual education to students, is moving from Manhattan to Forest Hills, Crain’s said. The company will set up shop in the second floor of 70-00 Austin Street, currently home to Barnes and Noble, TGI Fridays and several other local businesses.

Muss Development, the owner of the building told Crain’s, adding that the site seemed to be a perfect fit for the educational firm.

Bilinguals was taking advantage of a tax break for businesses that move from space below 96^th Street in Manhattan to other parts of the city, according to the report.

The lease signed for the space was for a total of 12 years, and Bilinguals will take up more than 15,000 square feet of space at the address.

Last year, Barnes and Noble re-upped their lease at the site.

Police in Queens are looking for a woman missing from the nearby 105 Precinct since Feb. 19.

The missing person, Nadaysia McWhite, was last seen at her home at 6 p.m. Sunday. She is 5-foot-2, 110 pounds with brown eyes and black hair.

She was last seen wearing black pants, a black hooded coat and black Ugg boots. She is in good physical condition but poor mental health.

McWhite lives on Springfield Boulevard in Queens Village.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
Residents can also submit their tips at the Crime Stoppers Website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or text tips to 274637(CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

Greenline Organic was a health food store that didn’t last too long in Forest Hills. In a primo location on Austin Street, not far from Natural Market, the store opened, impressed customers, and just as quickly disappeared.

Since its closure last year, the store has remained untouched, with little in the way of development happening there.

It’s a great spot on a great street, however, so we’re curious, what would you like to see replace Greenline Organic?

Vote in our poll below and let us know what you think in the comments.

[Update: 8:20 a.m.: A reader points out that the Taco Bell on Queens Boulevard recently closed, so it looks like local residents will have to travel a little further to get their fix. Thanks for the heads up!]

Did you think fast-food cuisine had hit rock bottom with the Double Down, KFC’s sandwich that replaced bread with fried chicken? You had it wrong. There’s a new sheriff in fast food town, and that sheriff is Taco Bell made with Doritos.

Yes, you read that right.

Taco Bell will introduce a new menu next month that includes taco shells made out of Doritos chips.

So our question of the day is: would you dare eat that? There is a Taco Bell on Queens Boulevard in Forest Hills. How many of you brave locals are willing to put your taste buds — and stomach, small intestines and more on the line — to give the new Taco Bell menu a shot?

Vote in our poll and tell us what you think of the new local taco choice in the comments.

It’s Presidents’ Day, and whether you have work off or if you’re stuck toiling away at the office, things are usually pretty slow.

It’s not a bad time to reflect, either. So in honor of the day, we want to know — who’s your favorite President?

Whether you’re reaching far back in American history or sticking with someone from your lifetime, we want to know what you think.

And both sides try and keep it clean. This is a conversation about what we like, not what we dislike. Let’s try and keep that in mind, huh?