News India Times

www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know Indian American NY AG Candidate Outlines Plan Ending “Epidemic” Of Attacks Stemming From Mental Illness & Homelessness R epublican candidate for NewYork State attorney general Saritha Komatireddy announced Septem- ber 2, that, if elected, she will cre- ate an Office of Civil Commitment within the Office of the Attorney General, on her first day in office. Candidate for Attorney General of NewYork Saritha Komatireddy, at Times Square, speaking about her plan if elected in November. PHOTO: Courtesy Komat- ireddy campaign. Standing at Times Square with her campaign banner, Komatireddy said New York is suffering an epidemic of attacks stemming frommentally-ill homeless individuals. The office she plans to establish will be staffed with both law enforcement profes- sionals and physicians — doctors required under state law to certify a person’s mental state for involuntary commitment. Its sole mission: get severely mentally ill, danger- ous individuals off the streets and into treatment before they hurt themselves or someone else. Her pledge comes on the heels of a violent incident on Monday, August 31, afternoon, when a Queens woman with a documented history of mental illness known to the NYPD pulled two knives from a shopping bag and stabbed two strangers in twenty seconds. Erin Piacenti, 32, a bank executive from Chester, New Jersey, died at the hospital. A 68-year-old man who had just stepped off the subway with his wife was stabbed in the side. Police shot and killed the attacker after she refused for four minutes to drop the knives and threatened to kill the of- ficers in front of her. “Nothing about Monday was a surprise,” Ms. Komatireddy said. “It was the latest in a series of attacks that could have been prevented if we had an Attorney General focused on safety and willing to enforce the laws we already have on the books.” Among the incidents cited in her press release are: • May 2026. Ross Falzone, 76, a retired schoolteacher, shoved to his death down a Chelsea subway staircase by Rhamell Burke — still wearing the wristband from the Bellevue psychiatric unit that discharged him one hour after admission. • March 2026. RichardWilliams, 83, an Air Force veteran, shoved onto the tracks at Lexington Avenue-63rd Street by a man living in a Brook- lyn homeless shelter. He died of his injuries. •December 2025. NYU student Amelia Lewis, attacked from behind on Broadway by a homeless parolee with sixteen prior arrests and a document- ed history of mental illness. •December 2024. Debrina Kawam, 57, burned alive on an F train by a man living in a Brooklyn shelter. “Every one of these attackers was known — to police, to hospitals, to the courts,” Komatireddy said. “New York has the legal authority to commit people who are a danger to themselves and others or who are unable to pro- vide for their own basic needs. What it does not have is leadership in the state AG’s office, whose job it is to use that authority. Don’t expect Letitia James to do it; she’s held the office for eight years and never lifted a finger.” Komatireddy said she “…will put cops and doctors in the same office, with one job: find the people everyone knows are dangerous, certify them, and bring them in for treatment. Not after the next Erin Piacenti. Before,” she emphasized, adding, “If NewYork isn’t safe, nothing else matters.”. PHOTO:COURTESY KOMATIREDDY CAMPAIGN By a StaffWriter Candidate for Attorney General of New York Saritha Komatireddy, at Times Square, speaking about her plan if elected in November. Indian American Nithya Raman, Candidate For LA Mayor, Receives Major Endorsement N ithya Raman, an urban plan- ner by profession, a candidate for the Los Angeles Mayoral race come November 3, gained a significant endorsement from a workers union, which may have improved her chances against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. “I have some incredible news to share! Today, UNITE HERE Local 11 endorsed our campaign for Mayor,” Raman said in an email blast Septem- ber 1, 2026. “That’s the union of the 30,000+ ho- tel, restaurant, and hospitality workers who keep Los Angeles running. They don’t hand out endorsements lightly, and they chose us over the sitting mayor,” Raman said. However, Los Angeles Times reported Bass has the support of most unions. Noting that many UNITE HERE members are immigrants, Raman contended, “They chose us because they know I show up on the picket line in real solidarity with workers, not just for a photo-op.” A strong advocate for Los Angeles as a Sanctuary City, Raman was among those who helped write the ordinance on the City Council. If elected in No- vember, Raman says, “I will codify and expand the ban on ICE operations on city property, stop the city from hand- ing immigration agents surveillance data, and expand our deportation defense program. No worker in Local 11—and no Angeleno for that matter— should have to wonder whether the city they serve will stand with them.” On housing for workers, Raman promises to ensure that a hotel house- keeper or a line cook “can actually afford to live near their job by clearing the red tape that stalls new construc- tion and building density near transit using union labor.” Raman won a spot in the June 2 Open Primary which selects the two top vote-getters to vie in November general election. The June 2 primary saw Councilwoman Raman and 13 other candidates face off with no one getting more than the 50 percent needed to qualify as winner, with Bass securing 34 percent and Raman 29 percent, both Democrats. Republican candidate Spencer Pratt received a little over 26 percent and did not qualify. Ballotpedia assesses the non-partisan LA Mayor’s race as a “Battleground Elec- tion.” “In a race where both candidates are Democrats and aligned on most issues, generational and intraparty divisions, as well as attacks on each other’s records, are playing a role,” Ballotpedia said in its analysis. Support for Raman, who has been a City Councilor since 2020, includes the Democratic Socialists. “The race between Ms. Raman [44] and Ms. Bass, 72, sets up a generational contest between the center-left Demo- cratic establishment that has shaped the city for years, and the young, restive progressives who have charged that baby boomers’ housing policies have systemati- cally priced them out of Los Angeles,” the NewYork Times said in its analysis of the race, quoted by Ballotpedia. The NYT also surmised that more voters would head to the polls come November, which could be “a potential advantage for Raman.” However, those who supported Pratt in the June 2 primary, may veer toward Bass, NYT contends, which could make Novem- ber 3 a nailbiter. By a StaffWriter PHOTO:SCREENSHOT FROM INSTAGRAMVIDEO Nithya Raman US Affairs News India Times (September 5, 2026 - September 11, 2026) September 11, 2026 7