Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Streetsblog

Wednesday’s Headlines: Terror in the Courtroom Edition

Beloved PS 110 teacher Matthew Jensen was killed by a driver on McGuinness Boulevard in May, 2021. File photo: Gersh Kuntzman

Two homicidal villains who mowed down victims with cars will be sentenced today.

In Manhattan, Sayfullo Saipov, who killed eight people with a truck on the Hudson River Greenway in 2017, is facing multiple life sentences for the terror attack, the Daily News reported. In Brooklyn, Tariq Witherspoon will be sentenced to what is expected to be less than a year in prison for the hit-and-run killing of beloved Williamsburg teacher Matthew Jensen, who would have turned 60 this week.

Witherspoon has pleaded guilty to the top count of criminally negligent homicide, but friends of Jensen will be on hand in Danny Chun's courtroom to make sure the jurist appreciates the gravity of the situation. Streetsblog will be there, too.

Also on the agenda today is a presser featuring Transportation Alternatives, Open Plans, Los Deliveristas Unidos, United Parcel Service and other groups demanding better and wider bike lanes to handle the increasingly popular e-bikes and e-scooters. We did a bit of a preview here.

In other news:

    • Harlem political legend Bill Perkins has died (Patch). In opposition to all the lavish coverage the former Council member and State Senator is receiving, we'll always remember him as the person who wanted to deny high-quality bus service to residents of his district, not that we like to speak ill of the dead.
    • Speaking of Harlem, Council Member Kristen Richardson-Jordan has decided not to run for re-election, after supposed attacks from the "Democratic machine" and the media. (amNY, NY PostCity and State, NY Times, Gothamist)
    • The new turnstiles are here! The new turnstiles are here! (Not that the MTA will confirm that, though.) (NY Post)
    • And Chris Christie thinks he's running for president? The guy can't even keep a clean driving record! (NJ Globe)
    • The hospital worker caught in that viral video stealing a Citi Bike from a teenager is now on leave. (NY Post)
    • A corrections officer allegedly pulled a gun on another driver in a fight over a parking space. (NYDN)
    • Finally, residents of a fancy Astoria building are still cutting off public access to public space:

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Forget Free Buses: Mayor Mamdani Should Instead Seek ‘Audacious’ Subway Expansion

The same billion-dollar outlay that Mayor Mamdani hopes to allocate for fare-free buses should be spent instead on rewriting the subway map.

February 2, 2026

Monday’s Headlines: Spotlight on ICE and Ice Edition

The snow continued to give newsmen and women plenty to work on all weekend — and revealed cracks in Mayor Mamdani's icy resolve. Plus other news.

February 2, 2026

On The Road: Delivery Workers Face Scary Trips, Minimal Tips, App Tricks

Delivery workers continue to brave icy roads, freezing temperatures and low tips as Mayor Mamdani vows to help make their jobs less "relentless."

February 1, 2026

The Streetsblog Angle: The 70th Street Bike Lane Is In the Epstein Files!

Somewhere, maybe, Woody Allen finally regrets opposing that bike lane.

January 30, 2026

The Mamdani Effect: Three Delivery Apps Must Pay $5M In Minimum Pay Settlement

A new era: Mayor Mamdani's worker protection department announces new enforcement against UberEats, HungryPanda, and Fantuan for not complying with the minimum pay law.

January 30, 2026

Friday Video: Should We Stop Calling Them ‘Low-Traffic Neighborhoods’?

Is it time for London's game-changing urban design concept to get a rebrand?

January 30, 2026
See all posts