An administrator for a private Jewish school in Brooklyn has claimed that city inspectors were writing a summons for the empty school until he opened the school’s doors.
In a video that was posted to social media on October 26, the administrator shows a female inspector around Yeshivat Shaare Torah. The inspector said, “Obviously there’s nobody here.”
“So why are you writing me a summons?” the administrator, who filmed the encounter, asked.
“Please don’t record me,” the inspector responded.
“You’re giving me a summons outside,” the administrator retorted. “How can I not record you? If I hadn’t opened the door you would have put a summons on my door.”
The inspector then said that they have “a list” of schools to inspect in areas listed as red and orange under Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo’s color-coded designation for COVID-19 restrictions. Schools in red and orange areas are not allowed to be open.
“We revisit these schools,” the inspector said. “If we find these schools are open, summons go out.”
The administrator again asked why a summons was being written outside, since nobody was inside the school. The inspector then stopped talking and was about to walk down the stairs when a male inspector asked why the school was open. The female inspector responded that it wasn’t.
“There’s only staff here, there’s no kids,” she said.
The administrator followed the female inspector as she walked down the stairs, stating, “Seems like you guys have a list that you just holding around giving summons to whether we’re open or closed.”
The female inspector then told her male colleague “to tell them that this gentleman is recording me.” The female inspector proceeds to tell someone on the phone that school isn’t open and the only people that are present are those doing administrative work.
The female inspector again told the administrator not to record them, prompting the administrator to respond: “You guys came in here to give me a summons without even checking the facts and I’m wrong for recording?”
https://twitter.com/SVNewsAlerts/status/1320797290299334659?s=20
https://twitter.com/SVNewsAlerts/status/1320798645382483971?s=20
A spokesperson from Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office told the Journal that the city does “not write summonses preemptively. An inspector came to inspect, and when no children were found inside, did not issue a summons.”
When the Journal told the school administrator this, he responded: “Maybe they usually don’t [write summons preemptively]. I wouldn’t know. But they did in this case — the video stands on its own merit.”
City officials say they reached out to the inspector in the video but haven’t heard back.
New York City Councilmen Chaim Deutsch and Kalman Yeger denounced the inspectors in the video.
“They made ZERO attempt[s] to confirm if the school was closed before writing the summons. (It WAS closed),” Deutsch tweeted. “This keeps happening-it’s not an isolated incident. Orthodox Jews continue to be targeted in NY.”
In the words of the inspector: they have a list of schools to issue summonses. They made ZERO attempt to confirm if the school was closed before writing the summons. (It WAS closed)
This keeps happening-it’s not an isolated incident.
Orthodox Jews continue to be targeted in NY. pic.twitter.com/Mm6qgwFAhN
— Chaim Deutsch (@ChaimDeutsch) October 26, 2020
Yeger similarly tweeted, “This terror being inflicted on law-abiding New Yorkers by City Hall has sadly become standard. Here is a CLOSED school about to receive a summons. Fortunately, the Quota Agents were caught by school management. @NYCMayor de Blasio, this must stop NOW!!!”
This terror being inflicted on law-abiding New Yorkers by City Hall has sadly become standard. Here is a CLOSED school about to receive a summons. Fortunately, the Quota Agents were caught by school management. @NYCMayor de Blasio, this must stop NOW!!! pic.twitter.com/NoXBvjLbH4
— Kalman Yeger (@KalmanYeger) October 26, 2020
The Sergeants Benevolent Association (SBA) police union also tweeted, “[De Blasio’s] been very consistent in targeting the Jewish Community! Anyone know why?” President Donald Trump retweeted the SBA’s tweet, boosting the audience it reached.
He’s been very consistent in targeting the Jewish Community! Anyone know why? https://t.co/PgXqz8WEsB
— SBA (@SBANYPD_Archive) October 26, 2020
The incident at Shaare Torah occurred after the Brooklyn kosher café Mixed Greens was issued a summons for keeping their doors open, even though they weren’t allowing indoor dining. City Hall rescinded the citation upon review.
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