Highlands Current Audio Stories

Seeks own lawyer for ethics case

A Putnam legislator accused of ethics breaches in a complaint filed by the county attorney over her son-in-law's attempted purchase of a government-owned property is suing to stop his office from choosing who will represent her.

Toni Addonizio, who represents Kent on the Legislature, alleges in a lawsuit filed May 30 in state court that Putnam's Law Department approved her request for a county-funded lawyer but "has outrageously and improperly" asserted that it has the right to choose who will defend her against the complaint filed by Compton Spain, who heads the department as county attorney.

Both Spain and the county are named in the lawsuit, which says that Addonizio asked the department for "a counsel of my choosing" when notified that the Putnam Board of Ethics scheduled a hearing on the complaint for April 28. (Amid the dispute, the hearing was canceled.)

Addonizio's request for a county-funded attorney is based on a state law, adopted by Putnam, that requires it to defend employees in federal and state civil cases for "any alleged act or omission" occurring while they are working.

Municipalities are exempt from the requirement if they are the ones bringing the case against an employee. The law also entitles an employee to choose their attorney if the chief legal officer of a municipality, such as a county attorney, or a judge determines that a conflict of interest exists.

In response to Addonizio's request, the Law Department said its insurer verbally concluded that she was ineligible for legal assistance but, "after careful review," it would select one of the firms from its list of contractors - Roemer Wallens Gold & Mineaux - to represent her. The department also said that Addonizio could choose to pay out-of-pocket for an attorney who is not on its approved list.

"There could not be a more patent conflict of interest than the complainant in a politicized ethics proceeding selecting the accused's attorney," said Jeffrey Gasbarro, who is representing Addonizio in the lawsuit.

Spain's 191-page complaint, filed with the Board of Ethics in June 2024 and also forwarded to the Attorney General's Office, accuses Addonizio of failing to disclose that her son-in-law, Byron Voutsinas, was the buyer initially agreeing to purchase a county-owned property at 34 Gleneida Ave. in Carmel.

According to Spain, Voutsinas sought to use Addonizio's influence with the Legislature to include parking spaces from a nearby county-owned lot in the sale. He also claims that the agreed-upon price, $600,000, represented a "veritable windfall" from a recommended listing price of $900,000 and market studies valuing it as high as $1.2 million.

Spain's office moved to void the contract, arguing that Voutsinas failed to satisfy conditions for the sale to be finalized, including getting the Legislature's approval, which never occurred. After Voutsinas filed a claim accusing the county of breach of contract, Spain successfully petitioned a judge to have the contract canceled.

During a May 2024 meeting of the Legislature's Rules Committee, then chaired by Addonizio, lawmakers accused the Law Department of filing the petition without first getting their approval. Addonizio "spoke frequently and freely on the matter," but should have recused herself, said Spain.

The Legislature's former counsel, Robert Firriolo, defended Addonizio in a response to Spain's complaint sent to the ethics board. He also accused Spain of failing to disclose, when asked on his employment application about criminal convictions, that he was found guilty in 1993 of criminal contempt of court.

A judge found Spain guilty under state Judiciary Law, which does not classify the charge as a misdemeanor. Because the penalty can include jail time, Firriolo argues it is equivalent to a misdemeanor as defined under state Penal Law.

New Cold Spring store honors spirit of late shopkeeper

Brown letters taped to the door of Segundo Beso boutique in Cold Spring read, "Be More Doucette," a nod to Stephanie Doucette, who championed keeping industry footprints "as light as a kiss."

The Spanish name of the new store, which fills a space at 65 Main St. formerly occupied by Doucette New York before Doucette died suddenly in May 2024 at age 52, translates as "second kiss" - a reference to what Doucette described as her mission to "rescue forgotten fabrics."

Melinda Huff, a friend and collaborator of Doucette's, plans to maintain that mantra by saving offloaded spools of fabric marred by machinery errors and other imperfections from landfills. The store also stocks designs by other like-minded creators.

"It's my personal mission to keep Stephanie's spirit alive at Segundo Beso, not just by giving new life to discarded fabric and material, but also paying forward her disarming kindness and honesty," Huff says.

In a back workshop filled with tape measures, sewing machines and other accoutrements of the trade, Huff and her partners make alterations, experiment with prototypes and create custom outfits. The changing area's curtain is a canopy of sewn-together blue jeans.

Seeking to broaden local relationships, she jumped at the chance to partner with the Garrison Art Center on a juried group exhibit, Urban Jungle, which includes 13 pieces, including six sculptures, displayed throughout the store.

Many businesses in Beacon and Philipstown display work by local artists, but this one offers more gravitas: Last week's opening attracted a crowd that spilled onto the sidewalk and filled up the benches outside.

The partnership emerged after Catherine Graham, executive director of the art center, attended a marketing workshop sponsored by the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce and met matchmaker Michael Dardano.

"For years, I've been trying to get nonprofits and private businesses together, and this came about pretty fast," says Dardano, who runs BuzzPotential, a social media and marketing firm in Westchester.

The exhibit includes items that evoke a jungle groove, like the manipulated photo "Spring Growth" by Sandra Belitza-Vasquez, and "Wandering Flowers" by Vivien Collens, a series of five sculptures that brighten a picture window.

Many artistic items lean into a gritty city vibe, like the touched-up photo "Red Firebox - Bklyn" by Mitchell Brozinsky, which captures a graffitied streetscape in Greenpoint long before the Yuppies moved in. The mossy yellow grunge on the building and the gray sidewalk looks like it could be scraped off.

Philipstown resident Jane Soodalter's close-up photo of rusted machinery presents the illusion of rough texture rising from the surface. A wall-mounted, mixed-media piece by Maxine Feldman suggests an urban street grid.

The sculpture "Modern Ruins" by Lisa Knaus, who teaches at the Garrison Art Center, sits in a precarious location, ripe for getting knocked over or being mistaken for goods on sale. (The store carries accessories beyond clothes.)

Covered with melted glass that looks like bright glaze or colorful paint, the brick and other components are attractive. Knaus makes clay objects and dislikes throwing things away. After her car windshield shattered, she found a use for the shiny pile.

The work fits with the store's exposed brick decor, but for Knaus, the material contains symbolic meaning. "I'm really into bricks," she says. "For me, using the glass is a bling-like way to connect with the history of civilization."

Segundo Beso, at 65 Main St. in Cold Spring, is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday to Monday. See segundobeso.com. Urban Jungle continues through July 13.

Federal cuts threaten AmeriCorps program

For more than 10 years, the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference's stewards have built and maintained trails, removed invasive species and prevented an untold number of hikers from hurting themselves.

"We've plotted it out on a graph, and during the times when the trail stewards are on duty, the need for EMS [emergency medical services] is almost completely eliminated," said Hank Osborn, a Philipstown native who is director of programs for NYNJTC.

This is most noticeable at Breakneck Ridge, he said. Before the Trail Conference assigned stewards to the trailhead, local first responders assisted with two or three rescues every weekend.

That may change this season because of cuts to AmeriCorps by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, although a federal court on Thursday (June 5) issued a preliminary injunction to prevent them. The initiative typically provides stipends for living expenses for about 50 volunteers to assist the Trail Conference each spring. Essentially a domestic version of the Peace Corps, the 30-year-old program also offers educational funding for volunteers, such as financial aid for college and the repayment of student loans.

This year, the Trump administration cut funding right before the stewards were scheduled to begin, Osborn said. Volunteers around the country were told to pack up and go back home. State grants have allowed NYNJTC to retain about half of its original crew, and the Trail Conference has launched a fundraising campaign to keep the rest. A matching grant of up to $50,000 is in place through Saturday (June 7), which is National Trails Day.

The money raised so far will provide stipends for stewards at Breakneck every weekend through mid-October, Osborn said. The lower section is closed because of construction of the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail's Breakneck Connector, scheduled to open in 2027. But the upper sections are open, and stewards will be stationed at the flagpole after the first ascent and at key intersections of the Ninham, Wilkinson and Undercliff trails.

"They'll continue to greet visitors, teach Leave No Trace principles and help people figure out the best routes to take so that they don't accidentally stumble into the construction zone," he said.

At the Breakneck trailhead, the stewards made sure visitors knew what they were getting themselves into - a rocky, steep ascent. If they arrived ill-prepared, such as by wearing flip-flops or not having water, stewards directed them to a more appropriate hike. "They keep people who shouldn't be going up Breakneck from ever getting hurt or lost," Osborn said.

Usually, Breakneck stewards spend their weekdays on trail maintenance. But with fewer stewards, the crew instead will help with rebuilding trails at Harriman State Park damaged in the July 2023 storms.

Despite the partial closure at Breakneck, Osborn expects a busy season. "With all of these changes at the federal level, it appears that the need for nature and to get out into the woods for people is more important than ever before," he said.

To donate to the National Trails Challenge, see dub.sh/trails-challenge. For information on volunteering, see nynjtc.org/trail-crews.

District would pay $30K to $42K per vehicle annually

As it waits to learn whether it will receive grants to purchase four electric buses, the Haldane school district is considering whether it should lease instead.

Under state law, all new school buses must be zero-emission starting in 2027. Districts must be fully electric by 2035.

Haldane is considering a partnership with Highland Electric Fleets, a Massachusetts company that leases electric school buses. Emily Parish, a manager with the firm, traveled to Cold Spring on Tuesday (June 3) to make a presentation to the school board about its "turnkey fleet electrification services."

Electric buses typically cost $400,000 each, or three times a bus that burns diesel. Parish said Haldane would pay between $30,000 and $42,000 a year to lease each bus, depending on the amount of grant money the district receives from state and federal sources.

In addition to the buses, Parish said that Highland Electric would provide charging stations, electrical capacity, electricity, bus management software, driver training and maintenance assistance. The buses would be driven by district employees and housed on campus.

The vehicles would be provided under a "capital lease," which under state law is capped at eight years. (Legislation has been introduced to extend the limit to 12 years, which is the typical lifespan of a school bus.) Haldane voters would have to approve the contracts.

"For a small district like Haldane to attempt the transition independently would be very difficult," said Carl Albano, the interim superintendent. "They have the knowledge, and it minimizes risk."

Adam MacNeil, Haldane's director of facilities and transportation, said that, given the district's inexperience with electric buses, partnering with a firm like Highland Electric "allows us to focus on other things."

"We have never outsourced our transportation," noted Board President Peggy Clements during the meeting, calling it a source of pride. "The district has done a very good job of buying buses and maintaining" buses. She added that the transition to a lease agreement "is another kind of risk."

Highland Electric has assisted Haldane with grant applications, including a bid to obtain $170,000 for each bus from the federal Environmental Protection Administration. The district can also apply for state grants.

Parish said she was optimistic the EPA would continue its bus grants despite the cost-cutting and turmoil in Washington D.C. "Hopefully we get some news in the next couple of weeks," she said.

Highland Electric said it has contracts with 130 districts across the country to manage some 900 buses, although it does not yet have any agreements in New York. Parish said her firm is also pitching the Scarsdale district on its services.

Eclectic mix of musicians to perform at Howland

Of the 14 saxophones, from tenor to contrabass, Brad Hubbard gravitated to the baritone.

"It's my voice and just a different animal for me," he says. The instrument facilitates honking - the twisted mouthpiece resembles a gooseneck.

Hubbard plays several woodwind instruments, but when the New York City Ballet orchestra selected a piece from West Side Story with a baritone sax part, or if Woodstock-based Americana mainstay Professor Louie & the Crowmatix wants that low-end presence, he's a go-to.

Though he graduated from a classical music conservancy that eschewed jazz, Hubbard enjoys bending genres and playing unlikely styles.

"When I first came to New York, I got hired by a country guitarist because I knew all the old songs, though I can't sing a lick," says the North Carolina native, whose voice still resonates with a faint twang. "I'm grateful for my education, but it's taken my entire professional career to recover from it in some ways."

On Sunday (June 8), Hubbard will perform at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon at Composers Concordance, an annual confluence of eclectic musicians. Nine composers, five of the players and conductor Gene Pritsker created works specifically for the concert. (They call themselves the CompCord Ensemble.)

"This is about as 'winging it' as classical music gets," says Hubbard. The instrumentation (including members of the B3+ brass trio) consists of horn, trumpet, piano, clarinet, bass trombone and, of course, baritone sax. Roger Aplon, one of the three poet narrators, and pianist Debra Kaye live in Beacon.

The concert is an offshoot of the New York City-based collaborative Composers Concordance, which presents a packed schedule of performances. Hubbard has participated in all six of its concerts at the Howland Center.

Though classical music and the jazz-oriented sax make strange bedfellows, he points to famous crossover musicians who fused classical training with other forms, including cellist Yo-Yo Ma and bass player Edgar Meyer, who jumped from Beethoven to country.

Bluegrass banjo player Bela Fleck and jazzman Wynton Marsalis, who recorded three trumpet concertos by Haydn, Hummel and Mozart in 1983, arrived at classical from other genres. Hubbard also recalls the Kronos Quartet's stirring string arrangement of "Purple Haze," by Jimi Hendrix, in 1986.

Like jazz, "there's plenty of space for improvisation in Baroque music," a precursor to the classical period, along with "many compositions called 'theme' and 'variation,'" he says. "The continuo [underpinning bass or cello lines] are also open to alteration and interpretation."

Hubbard got his start in the 1990s with the New Century Saxophone Quartet before branching out. In addition to teaching at the Beacon Music Factory, he honks with the Funk Junkies and Hot Wrk Ensemble, which plays original music along with Beatles and Dolly Parton covers.

On Saturday (June 7), the Hot Wrk crew will perform at the Kingston Public Library with Beacon violinist Gwen Laster. Blame Google (or human nature) for the creative spelling. According to Hubbard, "people are weird - so weird that all kinds of crazy stuff comes up [when searching for 'hot work'], none of which has to do with music."

The Howland Cultural Center is located at 477 Main St. in Beacon. Tickets for the show, which begins at 5 p.m., are $20 at dub.sh/CompCord2025 or $30 at the door. Tickets for seniors and students are $10.

Municipalities to share resources

The Putnam Legislature on Tuesday (June 3) approved the county's participation in a blanket agreement calling for its six towns and three villages to share road equipment and personnel.

The agreement covers road maintenance, repair and construction, and weather emergencies such as snowstorms and flooding. Participants agree to share vehicles and other equipment and allow access to their highway facilities. According to a draft of the proposal, the goals are efficiency and cost savings.

Thomas Feighery, the county public works commissioner, told the Legislature's Physical Services Committee last month that the pact is the first intermunicipal agreement of its kind in the state. "We're pretty excited about it," he said.

Richard Othmer Jr., the highway superintendent for Kent, pitched the proposal to the Cold Spring Village Board in April. He said it will eliminate the "ridiculous amount of paperwork" needed for separate agreements with each municipality.

"I consider it like NATO," said Othmer, who cited the cooperation between Kent and East Fishkill during major flooding in July 2023. "Let's create one document that we all sign, and we're all for one and one for all."

Philipstown has yet to sign the agreement. Kathleen Foley, Cold Spring's mayor, said on Wednesday (June 4) that the village attorney is reviewing the proposed contract but the board supports "signing in principle and, in fact, is happy about this move to share services. It just makes sense."

While Nelsonville does not have a highway department and contracts for road maintenance and services like snow and ice removal, its board approved the agreement last month. "The spirit is amazing, and the effort put in to do this is great," said Mayor Chris Winward.

Secret purchase

Legislators on Tuesday approved a request from the Sheriff's Office to use $531,563 in seized assets to fund an unspecified equipment purchase for its emergency response team. When the Protective Services Committee took up the request last month, Sheriff Kevin McConville asked its members to discuss the purchase in a closed-door session "due to the sensitive nature of the procurement."

Before calling for the executive session, committee Chair Paul Jonke said he had an "offline conversation" with McConville and decided that "discussion of the nature of this procurement would imperil the safety of our officers." On Tuesday, Jonke said the equipment "would make our law enforcement personnel safer when they come upon a scene where there's a crisis" but did not offer specifics.

Under state Open Meetings Law, legislators can hold closed sessions for matters they determine "will imperil the public safety if disclosed."

Election security

Legislators approved $56,000 to replace a chain-link gate at the entrance to the Board of Elections' property in Carmel with one that opens and closes automatically.

A security assessment of the property, which also hosts a Sheriff's Office facility, flagged the gate as a risk. In addition to being in disrepair, it must be left open during snowstorms for plowing, according to the county.

The Board of Elections building was renovated last year with a new roof, landscaping, siding, drainage and Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility and signs.

D.A. bonuses

A portion of a $266,192 grant from the state Department of Criminal Justice Services awarded in 2024 to implement reforms to evidence sharing with defense attorneys will fund bonuses at the district attorney's office because the D.A. says the reforms increased workloads by nearly 30 percent. The Legislature approved $60,000 in bonuses, with each prosecutor receiving $4,000 to $10,000 and the chief of staff getting $5,000.

District Attorney Robert Tendy wrote in his 2024 annual report, released in February, that grant money is also used for personnel retention, on-call stipends, equipment, training and travel expenses. About a third of the DCJS grant was shared with local law enforc...

There are four Democratic candidates for two open seats on the Philipstown Town Board - Ben Cheah, John Maasik, Nat Prentice and Ned Rauch. They will compete in a primary on June 24 for the two Democratic lines on the general-election ballot in November.

Cheah and Rauch, who were endorsed by the Philipstown Democratic Committee, also filed independent nominating petitions and will appear on the November ballot on the Philipstown Focus party line regardless of the primary outcome. There are no candidates from other parties.

We asked each candidate to answer four questions in a total of 500 words or less. The responses are below, presented in alphabetical order by last name. For information on voting and a link to reader endorsements, see below.

What in your background makes you the best candidate?

Ben Cheah: I believe that a great board member brings passion, dedication, teamwork and expertise - and I'll bring all of that to the Philipstown board.

Ten years ago, my wife Megan and I chose to raise our two sons in Philipstown. We love this community and feel lucky to call it home. Both of us have always been active volunteers. I've served on the Philipstown Recreation Commission, Cold Spring Planning Board (current), as Cub Scouts Pack 137 treasurer and on the Putnam County Industrial Development Agency board. Running for Town Board feels like a natural next step - one I'm genuinely passionate about.

I'm especially focused on the challenges of rising costs and tightening budgets. I plan to be hands-on with budgeting and long-term planning to help keep costs and taxes under control. I bring to the table an MBA in finance from New York University's Stern School of Business; 25 years of project management and executive experience in the film and TV industry; and a strong creative background in sound design for film, with credits on Men in Black, The Big Lebowski, The Birdcage and The Wire.

John Maasik: I've lived in Philipstown for over 20 years: 10 in Cold Spring and 10 in Garrison, where my wife and I raised our two sons. I've spent thousands upon thousands of hours volunteering with community-based organizations, including the Philipstown Recreation Commission, Philipstown Soccer Club, Friends of Philipstown Recreation and Scouting America, in addition to participating in the Haldane turf field effort and the Garrison School Safety Committee. I also helped launch events such as the Castle-to-River Run and Winter Carnival, raising thousands in non-taxpayer dollars and donations for town programs. These efforts have helped me build strong relationships across Cold Spring, Continental Village, Garrison and Nelsonville.

Professionally, I've led large teams and managed multimillion-dollar budgets in the private sector, experiences that have shaped my ability to listen carefully, act with integrity and lead without ego.

The values that guide me most deeply come from my family's story. My parents were Estonian refugees who fled Soviet occupation after my grandfather was killed by the Russians. My grandmother brought her three children to the U.S. in search of safety, freedom and a new beginning. I was raised with a deep respect for civic responsibility, community and the promise of American democracy.

Nat Prentice: Experience, experience, experience. I have had a career in finance and investments. I grew up in Garrison and moved back here 25 years ago. Since moving back, I have attended most of the Town Board's monthly meetings, so I know the commitment that is required to address Philipstown's challenges and opportunities.

I helped create the Town's 2007 Comprehensive Plan, and in 2018 I was appointed chair of the Comprehensive Plan Committee that published an update adopted in 2021. Working on the plan meant partnering with a multitude of people from the North Highlands to Continental Village. I know the town's goals and priorities really well.

In addition, I work with emergency services (commissioner, Garrison Fire District; me...

Another list includes Dutchess, Putnam counties

The U.S. government's list of "sanctuary jurisdictions" that includes hundreds of communities, both red and blue, is confounding critics. They have noticed the list - which includes Beacon, Dutchess County and Putnam County - included misspellings, communities with small immigrant populations and those with strong support for cooperation with federal authorities.

Jessica Vaughan is director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, which favors anti-sanctuary policies and started publishing a list of sanctuary jurisdictions 10 years ago. The CIS list is different from the government's but includes Dutchess and Putnam counties.

The center says its list, most recently updated on May 30, includes "cities, counties, and states have laws, ordinances, regulations, resolutions, policies or other practices that obstruct immigration enforcement and shield criminals from ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] - either by refusing to or prohibiting agencies from complying with ICE detainers, imposing unreasonable conditions on detainer acceptance, denying ICE access to interview incarcerated aliens, or otherwise impeding communication or information exchanges between their personnel and federal immigration officers."

"That's one thing that I feel is missing from the [government's] list is some documentation as to why they're appearing on the list," Vaughan said.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) list is part of the Trump administration's efforts to target communities, states and jurisdictions that it says aren't doing enough to help its immigration enforcement agenda and the promises the president made to deport more than 11 million people living in the U.S. without legal authorization.

What are the stakes?

The DHS and the U.S. attorney general said they will send official notice to the 500 jurisdictions "regarding its defiance of federal immigration law enforcement and any potential violations of federal criminal law," according to an executive order from President Donald Trump.

The list could be updated when the administration receives new information, but those that remain on the list could face serious financial consequences, including suspended or terminated federal grants and contracts by the Office of Management and Budget. It is not clear what legal actions the government will pursue.

How was the list made?

In response to questions, DHS reiterated that it was compiled using a number of factors, including whether the localities identified themselves as sanctuary jurisdictions, how much they complied with federal officials enforcing immigration laws, if they had restrictions on sharing information with immigration enforcement or had any legal protections for people in the country illegally.

The agency noted in an email that the list will be updated regularly. But experts said it was difficult to understand the criteria.

"It seems quite arbitrary because not all of these states or specific jurisdictions have a policy that limits cooperation with ICE," said Nithya Nathan-Pineau, an attorney with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.

How did communities that support Trump's policies end up on the list?

Several communities said they have been outspoken supporters of the president and his stringent immigration policies and do not understand why they have been included. Among them: Shawano County, Wisconsin; Alexandria, Virginia; and Huntington Beach, California.

Jim Davel, administrator for Shawano County, thinks the administration may have confused the county's vote in 2021 to become a "Second Amendment Sanctuary County" that prohibits gun control measures with it being a safe haven for immigrants. He said the county has approved no immigration sanctuary policies.

What is a sanctuary city?

It is generally understood to apply to state and local governments that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. DHS said it considered "factors like complianc...

This newsletter is the second of two delivered this year to all of our Patron and Guardian members as a special benefit for your generous support. Senior Editor Leonard Sparks revisits a special report that he and Michael Turton did in 2023 to provide background on their reporting about the ongoing opioid addiction crisis. The story was a follow-up to a series we published in 2017.

The resurgence of opioid overdose deaths in New York state after a downturn in 2019 is not just embodied in statistics, but also in obituaries.

Libby Funeral Home in Beacon posted Jonathan Bateman's obituary soon after his death on Oct. 8, 2022. Because he lived in East Fishkill, I did not include his family's tribute in the obits I compile each Friday for our website. But some of the usual "tells" - a young age (30 in this case) and died "suddenly" and "at home" - identified him as a possible overdose victim.

A year later, as I searched online for local people who had lost someone to an overdose, an interview that Yvonne Bateman gave to Spectrum News about her son's death appeared. I found two non-working numbers in her name during an online search, then learned on Facebook that she volunteered for Fareground, the Beacon organization that stocks tiny pantries and community refrigerators with free food.

Someone from the organization passed along to Yvonne my request for an interview. Within two weeks, I stood in her living room, taking the photo that appeared with our story and scanning a wall filled with pictures from Jonathan's too-short life. Those images - spanning childhood to adulthood - deepened his family's tragedy and the scale of loss that is worsening as fentanyl spreads and new poisons like xylazine emerge.

When Yvonne told me about her strolls with Jonathan along the Walkway Over the Hudson, I decided to begin the article with that image. Those moments seemed, for both of them, an island of hope after so much struggle. Jonathan's death months later says a lot about the nature of addiction and the lethality of fentanyl.

What is the solution? I prefer "What are the solutions?" Too many people believe that abstinence is the solution, or that addiction medications are the solution. It's OK to have more than one, as well as an open-minded approach to a problem as complicated as the humans it afflicts.

Seeking the perspective of someone with years of recovery, I read about the struggles of Terasina Hanna, the program manager at the Walter Hoving Home in Garrison, in her online bio. She agreed to a phone interview, and I drove to Walter Hoving several days later to photograph the California native and tour the program's central building, a Tudor mansion.

Many of her full answers from our interview had to be condensed or left out of the article, like when I asked Hanna to describe addiction. "It was a constant of trying to get clean and failing," she said. "And then there's this shame that goes on you because you keep failing and you can't stop."

I've interviewed many recovering addicts and alcoholics. I usually ask about the moment that changed their lives - the one where they decided to seek help. Sometimes they credit moments of introspection in jails or prisons, and other times, sudden flashes of reality when it's clear that death is the only outcome and the pain of getting sober is less than the pain of continuing.

Hanna, now sober eight years, began her journey after another stint in jail, when she decided to try Walter Hoving's program in Pasadena. "You just have to be sick and tired of being sick and tired," she said.

During the tour, I followed her up upstairs, where she showed me offices and then a room with rows of computers. Before the screens, women tapped away on keyboards doing their treatment assignments. For them, treatment is not an end in itself but a first stop on a long journey. Staying sober and rebuilding lives depends on the decisions people make when they leave treatment.

One of the most important, said Hanna, is d...

County executives dispute federal designation

Officials from Dutchess and Putnam counties say they should not have been listed with New York State and other localities, including Beacon, on a roster of jurisdictions the Department of Homeland Security accused of "obstructing" the Trump administration's effort to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

The list, posted by DHS on Thursday (May 29) to comply with a presidential order, includes more than 500 jurisdictions, including New York state, 15 of its counties and 12 of its cities, identifying them as "sanctuaries" for immigrants who live in the country without authorization. [Update: the list was removed by DHS on June 1 but is archived here.]

Those states and municipalities, also including Orange and Westchester counties and Newburgh and Poughkeepsie, are accused by the DHS of "deliberately and shamefully obstructing" federal immigration enforcement and protecting "dangerous criminal aliens."

The agency demanded that they "immediately review and revise their policies to align with federal immigration laws," but also cautioned that the list was subject to change and "no one should act on this information without conducting their own evaluation" of the municipalities.

On Friday (May 30), Kevin Byrne, the Putnam executive, said: "Let's set the record straight: Putnam County is not a sanctuary county and never will be on my watch as county executive. We have consistently worked with our partners in law enforcement and encourage the continued collaboration and sharing of information with all federal, state and local law enforcement."

Despite Putnam being named by DHS as a sanctuary jurisdiction, Byrne also on May 30 posted on Facebook a video in which he accused "liberal journalists at the Wall Street Journal," which published a story about the agency's announcement, of "inaccurately" adding Putnam to the list "before gathering all the facts." He added that "the biased media is wrong and needs to get the facts straight."

In Dutchess, County Executive Sue Serino said on Friday that the county has contacted its federal representatives - Sens. Kirsten Gillebrand and Chuck Schumer and U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan - "for further clarity" and help getting the county removed from the list. "It is unclear how this list was developed, as DHS has not contacted us with any concerns, and the Dutchess County Legislature has never adopted any resolution relating to sanctuary jurisdiction," said Serino.

On Monday (June 2), Beacon Mayor Lee Kyriacou read a statement at the City Council meeting: "It is absolutely not the case that the city is deliberately obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws. While the city has yet to receive any formal communication from the federal government, we remain confident the city is abiding by all applicable state and federal laws and judicial orders. Our city and our Police Department remain committed to protecting public safety, and any statements to the contrary are misleading and inaccurate."

Neither Dutchess or Putnam has approved policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities, and Dutchess sued New York City in 2023 when it began contracting with hotels in the Hudson Valley to house immigrants.

That same year, Byrne and the Putnam Legislature adopted a resolution declaring the county a "rule of law" jurisdiction and pledging cooperation with federal immigration officers to identify "arrested felons and gang-associated" individuals suspected of being in the country illegally.

Beacon restricted its role in immigration enforcement during the first Trump administration, when the City Council in April 2017 unanimously passed a resolution declaring the city to be "welcoming, safe and inclusive."

Its resolution deliberately avoided the word sanctuary (Trump had threatened to withhold funding from "sanctuary cities") but said that city employees and officials will not "stop, question, interrogate, investigate or arrest an individua...