Elevator victim Suzanne Hart (courtesy of Facebook)

Both the DOI and the DOB interviewed interviewed employees from Transel Elevator, Inc., the company that worked on several elevators in the building, and reviewed video footage of the lobby and the 12th floor of 285 Madison Avenue to confirm that the elevator was indeed not very safe at all:

"•  Witness testimony and other evidence support the finding of a forensic examination that the safety circuit was bypassed on elevator 9, the one involved in the fatality, allowing the elevator to accelerate upwards with its doors open.

• Workers from Transel Elevator failed to follow basic safety procedures before the incident, such as placing caution tape across the elevator’s door jamb, and notifying DOB to inspect the elevators before putting them back in service, as required by the New York City Building Code."

On the morning of the December 14, 2011 accident, witnesses told both agencies that an elevator mechanic had used a "jumper" wire to bypass certain safety circuits so that it could be used during the busy morning rush. "Jumper" wires are commonly used during elevator maintenance and repairs, the DOB said, but have to be removed once the elevator is back in operation.

Ms. Hart, a Director of New Business Content and Experience at Young & Rubicam, was entering elevator 9 when the elevator doors suddenly shut on her leg, a Fire Department official said at the time. The elevator shot upwards with Ms. Hart still trapped in the elevator door, getting pinned between the first and second floors, with Ms. Hart's body apparently being the one thing that stopped the elevator's momentum.

Ms. Hart, 41, was declared dead at the scene.

Transel Elevator owner John Fichera had his "Private Elevator Agency Director's" license suspended by the DOB today, and the agency will seek to revoke it at an administrative hearing, it said in a press release today. Transel Elevator is forbidden from performing any elevator upgrades or inspections until a new license holder has been appointed.

In addition, the company was already slapped with 23 violations that carry a penalty of at least $117,000.

"The investigation starkly showed elevator safety protocols were ignored," said DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn. "These findings are a caution to all licensed building professionals in the City, especially those in the elevator industry," she added.

The DOI and The DOB have shared their investigative findings with the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance Jr., both agencies announced in their press release.

Last year, Young & Rubicam, a longtime tenant at 285 Madison Avenue,  committed itself to 340,000 square feet of space at 3 Columbus Circle.

drosen@observer.com 

A horse drawn carriage waits to move outside of Central Park (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The following article has been updated to include a statement from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Ruby looked restless. The brown horse shifted in place, turned around, and occasionally poked her white muzzle between the red bars of her 8 by 10-foot stall on the second floor of the Clinton Park Stables. Her golf ball-sized eyes glistened and she sighed, staring out at us all the while. The Observer reached in and stroked Ruby’s snout between the bars, wondering if the horse had any clue of the battle raging around her.

Since the death of Charlie, a carriage horse that collapsed on 54th Street last month, the struggle for—and against—the City’s horse-drawn carriage industry has grown into an all-out war, with the Horse and Carriage Association of New York now filing formal complaints against some of the industry’s biggest challengers. 

The association's biggest critics include the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and the New Yorkers for Clean, Livable & Safe Streets (NYCLASS), which supports phasing out horse-drawn carriages. On Monday, the association filed papers against these two groups with the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the Mayor’s Office, the NYC Department of Investigation, and with the Inspector General of the NYC Department of Health.

Carriage Association president Stephen Malone defends his right to mush.

“Enough is enough,” said the association’s president, Stephen Malone, at a press conference at Clinton Park Stables yesterday.

The complaint includes a request for a full investigation into allegations by former ASPCA veterinarian, Dr. Pamela Corey, who said she was told to issue "misleading and unscientific statements" about Charlie's death.

Among objections against NYCLASS tactics, the complaint also asks the Attorney General to investigate what the association feels is a “glaring” conflict of interest.

“Ed Sayres is both the president and CEO of ASPCA, and the co-president of NYCLASS. In addition to subsequent use of facilities, vehicles, resources and personnel, the ASPCA gave NYCLASS $250,000 at the time of NYCLASS’s founding in 2008,” Mr. Malone said in a statement.

Mr. Malone explained that ASPCA’s Humane Law Enforcement Division oversees and enforces laws pertaining to the horse carriage industry, as required by its NY State Charter and by NYC Administrative Code.

"In my opinion, the ASPCA is not to be trusted," Mr. Malone said.

At hoof, the fight is whether or not the city is putting stress on the horses who clomp down its streets. The Horse and Carriage association argues these horse would have no future without the industry, and it keeps New Yorkers employed. The animal rights groups counter that that is no excuse, and they point to Charlie for proof. The circumstances of his death and the information—or disinformation—that followed have only emboldened each side.

ASPCA spokeswoman Elizabeth Estroff explained in a statement that the society has no firsthand knowledge of any complaints filed against them and could not comment on the allegations. Ms. Estroff added that the ASPCA has voluntarily performed carriage enforcement for several decades.

“Remaining steadfast to this commitment, our carriage horse enforcement work has been carried out with objectivity and fairness and always within the bounds of applicable law," Ms. Estroff said in the statement. In another statement on Charlie's death and Dr. Corey's allegations, Ms. Estroff  said the ASPCA was "frankly perplexed by Dr. Pamela Corey’s recent statement."

At a NYCLASS event yesterday afternoon, the Observer asked the group's executive director, Carly Marie Knudson, if they were aware of the complaint against ASPCA and NYCLASS.

"We have not received full disclosure on any of that information yet," Ms. Knudson said. Though she explained that information "just came across our desk this morning," Ms. Knudson first answered our question explaining the information NYCLASS has received was likely the "same article" the Observer read.

Back at the stable, after Mr. Malone announced the association's intent to file complaints that day, Demos Demopoulos, an executive officer of Teamsters Local 553, likened the horses to the working class he represents. "That's why they get five weeks vacation, more than I get," he said.

"In essence, this is an attack on working people, the working people of this industry," Mr. Demopoulos said. Teamsters Local 553 represents the drivers, workers, and small businessmen of the Horse and Carriage Association.

City Councilman James Gennaro, who represents the 24th district in Queens, also came to the stables support the association's announcement.

"It just seems patently unfair," Councilman Gennaro said. "If you have an institution whose mission statement is to get rid of an industry, is that really an appropriate entity to be enforcing against the carriage industry?"

Councilman Gennaro sponsored a bill, Local Law 10, requiring carriage horses to have larger stalls, five weeks of vacation per year and blankets in cold and wet weather. The bill, which passed in April 2010, also requires horses to be in the stalls from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m.

"What we wanted to do was codify what was standard practice," said Horse and Carriage Association vice president, Eva Hughes.

But despite these restrictions, animal advocates continue to unite against the industry.

At NYCLASS' event on Monday, more than 50 supporters lined up on the steps of City Hall, chanting "Hay, hay, we say neigh, horses off the streets today." At the rally,  NYCLASS celebrated 55,000 signatures collected on a petition calling for the City Council to pass Intro. 86A, which would eventually replace horse-drawn carriages with "horseless carriages": electric cars with an old-time-y vibe.

The discourse over the issue, over the carriage horses, has always been horses versus jobs, horses versus people," said Patrick Kwan, New York state director for The Human Society of the United States, at the rally. "But we are proving, once and for all, that it doesn't have to be this way."

Ms. Knudson also announced a new goal at the rally.

"Our next goal is 75,000 signatures by New Year's Day," Ms. Knudson said to cheers from the crowd lining the City Hall steps behind her. "I think we got it—maybe we can go for a hundred if we're really lucky!"

As usual, the pro-animal contingent was packing star power. Emmy-award winning actress Kathy Najimy made an appearance at the rally, where she explained she was "deeply saddened" by the carriage horses, in addition to implying all NYC tourists are, ugh, huge.

Actress Kathy Najimy spoke on the steps of City Hall at a New Yorkers for Clean, Livable & Safe Streets rally.

"Beautiful, gorgeous horses are not meant to be in busy, traffic-y streets pulling really heavy passengers and carriages," Ms. Najimy said.

In addition to Ms. Najimy, several politicians have also shown support for the bill, including Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and City Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito. In addition to ultimately phasing-out horse-drawn carriages, Intro. 86A would increase working restrictions on when horses are allowed to work, as well as increase medical checks and necropsies. Intro. 86A is set to be heard in January.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio expressed his faith in electric cars.

"I am convinced," Mr. de Blasio said. "We see electric cars being used all over the world now. There's no question we can make this technology work in New York City."

In addition to Mr. de Blasio,Councilwoman Mark-Viverito and 14 other City Council members support Intro. 86A. When asked about his colleagues's support, Councilman Gennaro said most of the Council members behind Intro. 86A all voted for the bill he sponsored in 2010.

"This law, Intro. 86A, did exist back when Local Law 10 was being debated...It was my reform bill versus the car bill," he said. "Pretty much everyone who was supporting the car bill back then ended up voting for my bill."

Two other advocacy groups, the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages and In Defense of Animals, also announced Monday that they sent a letter to the president of the ASPCA, Mr. Sayres, asking for him to release carriage horse industry accident reports since January 2009.

"Unfortunately, although the ASPCA's Humane Law Enforcement Division performs a  'police type' function, they are not subject to the Freedom of Information Law and are therefore not really accountable to anyone," said the coalition's president, Elizabeth Forel, in a statement.

asanders@observer.com

On June 19, a Friday, the Department of Investigation released a report that contained a damaging allegation that a city worker was instructed not to report a faulty standpipe that later played a role in the fire. The result, as to be expected from the timing, was a relatively small pickup in the media beyond a story in the Daily News. [Update: The report actually did get carried by a number of other outlets including the Times and NY1.]

Following up on the report, the city’s Department of Buildings sent out an announcement this Friday that it was taking disciplinary action against two employees involved with the building, issuing them “letters of reprimand,” and moving them off the Deutsche deconstruction project. The employees were disciplined for not ensuring their subordinates were properly trained, which was another criticism that the Department of Investigation raised.

The supervisor involved in the standpipe incident, Robert Iulo, had been dismissed.

Here’s part of the statement from the Department of Buildings:

On the day of the fire, and in the months prior, Robert Iulo, former Executive Director of the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center Task Force, supervised the DOB inspectors assigned to the 130 Liberty Street site and the members of the Buildings Enforcement Safety Team (BEST), which specializes in the inspections of high-rise construction operations. As indicated in the report, Iulo failed to ensure that the four inspectors permanently assigned to the 130 Liberty Street site received proper training to perform their duties and that their inspections were performed in an adequate manner. The report also states that Iulo instructed an inspector not to issue a violation and a Stop Work Order when a standpipe breach was identified on the 28^th floor, notwithstanding that the condition was ultimately corrected. As a result of the DOI investigation, DOB served Iulo with disciplinary charges on February 17, 2009. Three days later, he retired with the charges pending.

Thomas Connors, Executive Director of Construction Site Safety, and Christopher Santulli, Acting Assistant Commissioner of Emergency and Safety Operations, have been issued letters of reprimand for failing to ensure that the inspectors were properly trained. As indicated in the report, Connors and Santulli were aware that the inspectors were not adequately trained but failed to follow up to ensure that they received training. Both employees no longer have any supervisory role in the ongoing deconstruction operations at the 130 Liberty Street site. Connors, who had an initial role in directly overseeing the inspectors, will be required to undergo additional leadership and management training.

ebrown@observer.com

Edward Marquette was charged with falsifying business records, a felony, after he admitted he lied on paperwork and did not make a March 4 inspection of the crane, according to the city. However, the crane was inspected after March 4, including the day before the March 15 collapse, and in a statement, Buildings Commissioner Patricia Lancaster said “it is unlikely that a March 4 inspection would have prevented this horrific accident.”

Release below:

CITY ARRESTS DOB CRANE INSPECTOR FOR FALSIFYING INSPECTION ROUTE SHEET

-- Inspector Allegedly Falsely Claimed he Inspected East 51^st Crane on March 4, 2008 --

ROSE GILL HEARN, Commissioner of the Department of Investigation (DOI), today announced the felony arrest of EDWARD J. MARQUETTE, a DOB Inspector assigned to DOB’s Division of Cranes and Derricks, for allegedly making a false entry in his Inspector’s Route Sheet for March 4, 2008, falsely indicating that he performed an inspection of the crane located at 303 East 51^st Street, Manhattan. On March 15, 2008, this crane collapsed causing the death of seven individuals. MARQUETTE is being prosecuted by the New York District Attorney’s Office. PATRICIA J. LANCASTER, Commissioner of the Department of Buildings (DOB), whose office assisted DOI with this investigation, joins Commissioner Gill Hearn in this announcement.

MARQUETTE, 46, of Manhattan is charged with violating New York State Penal Law Sections 175.10, Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree, and 175.35, Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, both class E felonies. If convicted, he faces up to four years in prison. MARQUETTE joined DOB as an Inspector on October 29, 2001. His annual salary is $52,283.

DOI began its investigation of the March 15^th fatal crane accident immediately after the accident occurred. As part of the investigation, DOI began gathering all of the relevant documents relating to, among other things, prior DOB inspections of the East 51^st Street crane. DOB’s records indicated that on March 4, 2008, DOB received a complaint from a citizen who said that the East 51^st Street crane did not appear to be properly braced to the building. The complainant further said that the upper portion of the crane appeared unsecured. DOB records indicated that on March 4, 2008, DOB responded to this complaint, specifically by an inspection conducted that day by MARQUETTE and that two days later, on March 6, 2008, the complaint was disposed of with no violation warranted based upon MARQUETTE’s March 4 inspection, which reportedly revealed that the crane was erected according to the DOB-approved plans. DOB has confirmed that an inspection of the crane did take place on March 14, 2008, the day before the collapse.

On March 16, 2008, the day after the fatal accident, investigators first interviewed MARQUETTE and obtained a copy of his Inspector’s Route Sheet for March 4, 2008. During the March 16 interview, MARQUETTE informed investigators that he had conducted the March 4 inspection of the East 51^st Street Crane and that his inspection revealed no problems with the crane.

On March 19, 2008, based upon information developed by DOI that cast doubt upon whether MARQUETTE had actually performed the March 4^th inspection, he was again interviewed by DOI. During that interview, MARQUETTE admitted to DOI investigators that he had not in fact conducted the March 4^th inspection. On March 19^th, DOI also obtained the original copy of MARQUETTE’s March 4^th Route Sheet. DOI’s examination revealed that the Route Sheet had been tampered with to indicate that the inspection had been conducted by MARQUETTE. Upon questioning by DOI investigators, MARQUETTE admitted that he had falsified the Route Sheet.

DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn said, “Crane inspectors are entrusted by the City with ensuring that cranes are operated in a way that does not compromise the safety of construction workers or the public. This inspector allegedly betrayed that trust at the most fundamental level by not doing an inspection assigned to him and then making a false record indicating that he did. By responding quickly and forcefully in this case, DOI is making it clear that this kind of dishonesty by a City employee will not be tolerated.”

DOB Commissioner Patricia J. Lancaster said, “Based on the preliminary findings of the ongoing investigation, it is unlikely that a March 4^th inspection would have prevented this horrific accident, which we continue to believe was caused by human or mechanical error during the crane jumping operation on March 15^th. Regardless, Edward Marquette’s behavior is reprehensible. Today I suspended Edward Marquette and I support the most aggressive prosecution possible. The Buildings Department will not tolerate misconduct of any kind. Employees found to have acted inappropriately will be disciplined to the full extent of the law, as has been done according to the Department’s Code of Conduct, issued for the first time in the agency's history in 2004 and enforced aggressively since then. I applaud DOI's swift action in bringing charges against this individual."

Commissioner Lancaster added the following points:

• “Crane inspectors are responsible for inspecting and testing cranes to ensure the public will be protected during construction in our dense urban environment. To address the understandable public concern light of this arrest, I have:

• Ordered an immediate re-inspection of 100% of the cranes inspected by Edward Marquette over the last six months.

• Requested the Department of Investigation (DOI) to investigate 100% of Edward Marquette's inspection reports over the last six months. DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn has pledged her full cooperation, continuing our partnership to eliminate corruption within the Buildings Department and the construction industry.

• Requested the Department of Investigation to conduct a thorough review of the Cranes & Derricks Unit procedures and personnel for further recommendations.

• Re-distributed to the Department’s 1,300 employees the Code of Conduct – our ethical code for professional behavior - to enforce the strict standards and zero-tolerance policy I have set for Buildings staff and the construction industry.

• Launched a full operational review of the Cranes & Derricks Unit and ordered crane applications and associated documents be incorporated into the Department's online database for added transparency.

• Since 2002, when I made it my top priority to infuse integrity into the Buildings Department, we have made great strides in eliminating corrupt and criminal activities. The arrest serves as a critical message to our inspectors: you serve on the front line to protect the public by enforcing safety standards and a failure to do so on your part can result in serious consequences."

The investigation was conducted by Michael Carroll, DOI’s Inspector General for DOB, and members of his staff, including Deputy Inspector General Edward Zinser and Chief Investigator Byron Biggerstaff, under the direction of DOI Associate Commissioner John B. Kantor. The Buildings Special Investigations Unit assisted with the investigation. Commissioner Gill Hearn thanked Commissioner Lancaster for her office’s cooperation.

The office of New York County District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau is prosecuting the case, which is assigned to Assistant District Attorney Sean Sullivan.

DOI is one of the oldest law-enforcement agencies in the country. The agency investigates and refers for prosecution City employees and contractors engaged in corrupt or fraudulent activities or unethical conduct. Investigations may involve any agency, officer, elected official or employee of the City, as well as those who do business with or receive benefits from the City.

Yesterday, the Bloomberg administration managed to get into Channel 4's second story that this was a joint investigation with the FBI and the Department of Investigations which put out a 6:17 p.m. press release calling the investigation "longstanding."

The best I could determine from a source familiar with the matter is that "longstanding" means "years." Unclear how many.

Channel 4 reported that the scam may go back to the late years of the Giuliani administration. In the best case for Bloomberg, the fraud was suspected in, say, 2000 or 2001, and was only allowed to continue for the authorities to gather evidence. In the worst, "years" means "two years," and the city was ripped off for half a decade before the feds caught on.

The question is whether it's fair to (partially) blame the victim, DOT, here. Is the apparent situation, in which DOT relies entirely on two contractors for street lighting, and is ripped off by them, the sort of thing that could have happened just as easily in the private sector? Or is it a function of, at the very best, shoddy oversight and a relaxed attitude toward public money? We'll find out.