The NYPD's combative culture comes under scrutiny as a federal investigation looms

Plus: Are you going to Fashion Week or just fashionable? [View this email in a browser.]( Gothamist relies on your support to make local news available to all. Not yet a member? [Consider donating and join today.]( [The NYPD's combative culture comes under scrutiny as a federal investigation looms]( [first image]( [Today's newsletter is curated by James Ramsay]( Weather: ☀️ Sunny, highs in the upper 70s. It's Tuesday in New York City, where federal agents recently seized the phones of NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban, his brother, his chief of staff and three other police officials. Lawmakers, activists and former police officials say this federal investigation comes amid a culture shift at the NYPD — led by Mayor Eric Adams — where [top brass have gotten special treatment, lashed out against critics and shielded themselves from discipline](. Here's what else is happening: - Expect a few days of bad traffic in Manhattan: The [United Nations General Assembly comes to town today]( followed by a 9/11 memorial ceremony tomorrow. - Mayor Adams canceled most of his scheduled events yesterday after [testing positive for COVID](. - New Yorkers could soon get questionnaires from their health insurers asking for their race, ethnicity, gender, preferred language and sexual orientation as part of a state initiative that [seeks to address disparities in health care](. - In response to a pair of lawsuits arguing that Gov. Kathy Hochul is required to launch congestion pricing because the tolling program was already passed into law in 2019, Hochul’s legal team wrote in a new court filing [that the issue should be decided "at the voting machine."]( - Disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein was removed from his Rikers Island cell and [rushed to Bellevue Hospital for emergency heart surgery]( over the weekend, officials said. - Dozens of street vendors rallied in Corona, Queens, yesterday to protest recent actions by the NYPD to [confiscate and trash vendor carts](. - New York City students are all eligible for free OMNY cards — unless they live within half a mile of their school. [Some families say that's unfair](. - A 40-year-old lawyer from Park Slope has been charged with arson and criminal mischief after [allegedly setting an Israeli flag on fire]( during a campus protest at Columbia University in the spring. - State Sen. Zellnor Myrie, who's running for mayor, [is a renter](. ($1,300 a month, good for him!) - The Jets had a stinker of [a season opener]( last night. - Meet the [three new castmembers]( joining Saturday Night Live this season. - Legendary actor James Earl Jones [has died]( at the age of 93. - Behold [the athleticism and gracefulness]( at the U.K. hobby horse championship. - Take a look at all the photos of this 4,000-square foot SoHo loft that's been occupied and lovingly renovated over five decades by artist Sal Linday and her family. [Then look at the realtor's renderings]( of what the new owner (asking price: $4.495 million) can turn it into. - Venezuela's autocratic president Nicolás Maduro has declared that Christmas in his country [begins on October 1](. [“So another boss gets away with something that if I was a detective and I did that, I would have been fired for.”]( - David Sarni, a retired NYPD detective, on how [THE LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY FOR HIGH-RANKING COPS HURTS MORALE FOR THE WHOLE DEPARTMENT]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Are you going to Fashion Week, or are you just a fashionable New Yorker?]( Are all these stylish people on the subway headed to an official fashion show, or do they just look this good for the love of the game? We asked. [In Windsor Terrace, a housing dispute ensnares Mayor Adams’ sweeping reform plan]( The industrial laundry company Arrow Linen Supply filed an application last year to change zoning rules on U-shaped lots along Prospect Avenue in Windsor Terrace to allow for the construction of a pair of 13-story towers with around 240 apartments combined. [We Rely On Your Support]( [NYC had significantly fewer homicides and shootings in August compared to past years]( The statistics are especially significant because violent crime tends to surge in the summer, and August is generally a month when gun violence is more prevalent as the hot weather brings people outside and encourages large gatherings, experts say. [I visited the huupe, NYC’s 1st public ‘smart basketball hoop,’ in the East Village]( The Tompkins Square Park smart hoop will actually remain disconnected from the internet in order to prevent people from streaming inappropriate content on the backboard. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.