Police revealed the identity of the 22-year-old man killed in yesterday’s shootout near P.S. 194 in Gerritsen Beach: George D’Amato Jr., the son of a retired court officer.
His father, George D’Amato Sr., told the New York Post:
His devastated dad, George D’Amato Sr., said his son — who “had minor scrapes with the law, nothing serious” — worked at a Duane Reade, but yesterday told him “he wanted a day off.”
“I told him to go to work,” said the father, a former court officer.
“I am retired law-enforcement myself. I know what it’s like. I can’t blame the officer. He did what he had to do,” the dad said.
Over at GerritsenBeach.net they’ve dug up D’Amato’s police record, which appears to be a history of minor property damage and fights. All told, the residents of the community who frequent the site – some of who knew D’Amato – appear to agree the police officer did what he had to do. But always eager to find something to rabidly bicker about, commenters turned to discussing whether the kid “got what he deserved.” Your thoughts?
From the NYPD Deputy Commission of Public Information’s office:
On Monday March 8, 2010 at approximately 1510 hours, in the rear of 3117 Avenue W (P.S. 194), in the confines of the 61 Precinct, police received a 911 call of a man with a gun. Upon arrival, a uniformed police officer encountered a M/W/22 who pointed what appeared to be a silver handgun at the officer. The officer discharged three (3) rounds, striking the suspect. EMS transported the suspect to Coney Island Hospital where he is pronounced dead at 1611 hours. The Investigation is ongoing.
The statement came via GerritsenBeach.net, which also says the person with the toy gun was a Gerritsen Beach kid that lived on Ebony Court. We can’t confirm that.
Related Stories:
BREAKING: Police Shooting Near P.S. 194
(Courtesy of nolastname)
UPDATE #2: As readers of our Twitter account may know, when we hit the scene we heard a few new things circling amongst reporters. Police fired three shots at around 3:10 p.m. at a 22-year-old white male wielding what appeared to be a gun. The object turned out to be a toy gun. The 22-year-old was pronounced dead at Coney Island Hospital. (6:40 p.m.)
Original story
There was a police shooting around 4 p.m. today near P.S. 194, on Avenue W and Knapp Street.
From News 12:
NYPD officials say one person has been shot by officers near P.S. 194. The person was taken to Coney Island Hospital, authorities say. Officials at P.S. 194 say no students were harmed in the incident.
UPDATE: Knapp Street between Avenue W and Avenue V has been closed off by police, and news vans are on the scene. (4:33 p.m.)
When a resident of East 19th Street first began complaining to us – months ago – about the graffiti here, we shrugged it off. We figured, “This is New York City, there’s always going to be graffiti. You just gotta report it and remove it, like everyone else does.”
When the resident continued to complain, saying the vandals were targeting homes, we thought it was weird and worth checking out. But we got caught up in other things and never went to take photos.
To that resident, we’re sorry. Very, very sorry. You’ve sent us these photos and shocked us. Then we went to take a walk of our own and saw even more graffiti, including on residential property. We dropped the ball on this one.
But we’re not the only ones. I’ve seen the way the the police handle your complaints at meetings. They have the same reaction we initially had. But it’s obvious that East 19th Street between Avenue X and Avenue W has a higher level of graffiti and vandalism than surrounding blocks. It could be because it’s not particularly well lit, and the United States Post Office sorting facility, the auto repair shop, and the apartment building prove to be appealing canvases.
Whatever the case, police officers ought to be making more frequent night patrols down the block and local leaders should work with the business owners to install security lights. This is preventable.
More photos after the jump.
Perhaps waiting until the coldest days of the year may not have been in Timmy’s Donuts’ best interests, but the former Dunkin Donuts/Baskin Robbins chain at 2302 Knapp Street (and Avenue W) has unveiled a new change to their cozy little store: a Turkey Hill Ice Cream counter.
Local speculation that Tim Horton’s was taking over can now be set to rest. The selection does not seem to be anywhere near 32 flavors but in the coming (and hopefully warmer) weeks, hopefully they’ll be the coolest new treat in the Bay.
All around New England, the season has changed and the colors have peaked even “better than ever” (thanks to a wet summer). Leaves turned spectacular deep browns, bright reds, and sharp yellows.
Here, on this dead end street in Sheepshead Bay, my life feels like it’s at a dead end, and the only colors I see are the rusty browns of these garbage can covers and bricks, the bright red of this garage door, and the neon yellow of this old Daffy’s shopping bag. And, oh yeah, the blues of the plastic garbage cans are more Mediterranean, not Northeastern United States fall foliage. Come to think of it, that’s a lot of color.
These people, here, on East 16 Street (near Avenue W) felt I was a flight risk, so they locked me up to this gate. I’m just wondering if they take me for a garbage can — not that there’s anything wrong with garbage cans. Just that I’m not one.
At approximately 6 p.m. this evening, emergency services including two fire trucks and paramedics responded to a multiple vehicle accident at the intersection of Batchelder Street and Avenue W. At least one victim was in a stretcher on the ground with a neck brace. It appeared as if three vehicles were involved in the accident including damage to a fourth car that was parked on the corner. The cause of the accident, the number of other victims, and the extent of their injuries are unknown at the time of this writing. Have information on this accident? Post it in the comments below or send an e-mail.
Know your body! Senator Golden is partnering with SHARE to work in the community to reduce the mortality rate of ovarian cancer in New York City. Providing information about ovarian cancer will lead to early detection, and the senator’s office will also be providing information on all types of cancer effecting women.
Date: Monday, October 19, 2009
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Our Lady of Grace Auditorium
385 Avenue W (corner of East 2nd Street)
For more information
call State Senator Golden’s Office
718-238-6044
or
the SHARE Ovarian Cancer Hotline
1-866-537-4273
The Coney Island Avenue Walgreens (at Avenue W) may have opened for business almost a month ago, but they held off on their grand opening until today. After visiting we could see why there was a delay. The event was overloaded (in a good way) with vendors, clowns, soap opera stars, a cappella songsters, snacks, politicians, and the tremendously talented Brooklyn Steppers (oh my!). Get there before the rain, and you may still be able to receive one of the free goodie bags they’ve been giving out. But don’t put anything down for a second – Ray is still fuming over some scoundrel’s successful theft of her potato chips. That thief was a pUTZ!*
*Sheepshead Bites apologizes for any seizures, strokes, or aneurysms caused by our terrible puns. Simultaneously, we deny any responsibility in such an incident.
See photo gallery after the jump.
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For those not following the conversation on our old Walgreens post, Sheepshead Bay’s fifth location of the pharmacy chain opened on Friday, September 4.
The photo above, came in from Kismet via Twitpic/Twitter, and she says the “atmosphere was super friendly, everyone was helpful and pleasant.” In the comment stream, others seem to be saying the same. It appears Walgreens’ 7,000th location is a big hit in the ‘hood, and pulled in more than $9,000 in front-end purchases on the first day.
This Walgreens, on Coney Island Avenue and Avenue W, opened two weeks ahead of schedule, according to commenter “walgreens mgt” – who we can only assume is Walgreens’ savvy social networking flack. He/She (My gut says “she.” Care to confirm, flack?) says a grand opening is coming before October 1, probably around September 28. Walgreens CEO, Greg Wasson, will visit to tour the store.
