Newspaper Page Text
Police decoys stop
mugging of Hasidim
NEW YORK - Orthodox
Jews in Hasidic communities
clustered near the center of
Rockland County were free last
weekend, for the first time in
years, from the harassment —
and sometimes brutal assaults
— they encountered as they
walked at dusk through country
lanes to Sabbath services in
their small synagogues.
The peace comes after the ef
forts on the July 4 weekend of a
special tactical police squad
organised by the Ramapo
Township Police Department.
Police decoys dressed in the long
black coats and fur hats of
Hasidic rabbis arrested 11 young
people over the holiday weekend
on charges of harassment, dis
orderly conduct and unlawful
use of fireworks.
The Rockland County District
Attorney, Kenneth Bribetz, said
he would recommend maximum
jail sentences when the cases
come up in Ramapo Police
Court, even though most of
those charged are first
offenders.
“These cases should serve as a
deterent to end bullying in a
community that asks only to be
left alone to observe its own
ways,” Gribetx said.
The names of those arrested
were not disclosed because all
but one of them, who is 19 years
old, are under 15.
The two Ramapo Police Com
missioners, Guy Cerulli and Mac
Wortman, who also serve as
members of the Town tttuncil,
speed to form the task force.
Hardly a weekend passed
without several incidents of
harassment. Cerulli said,
“They’re easy targets.” Wort-
man said, “They look different;
they behave differently, and
there’s all those rumors that
they don’t pay taxes that fuels
latent anti-Semitism.”
Bomb rocks
Amitayhome
by David Etttngar
WASHINGTON (JTA) - A
bomb explosion Monday mor
ning ripped the home of Morris
J. Amitay, executive director of
the American-Israel Public Af
fairs Committee (AIPAC), in
nearby Rockville, Md. Neither
Amitay nor his family was hurt
but the explosion killed the fami
ly dog.
The force of the explosion,
which was described by an
neighbor as sounding like a'
“sqpie boom," shattered win
dows in homes five blocks away.
A fire department spokesman,
surveying the extensive damage
done to the house, said the
Amitays were “very, very lucky”
to be alive.
The explosion occurred about
3:15 Monday morning while
Amitay, his wife Sybil, and their
three children, aged 9,12 and 14
were still asleep. About 400 feet
of electric cord was found
leading from the site of the
blast. The bomb was planted
outside the family room directly
below where the Amitays were
sleeping. Their dog was in the
family room when the explosion
occurred.
According to a local
businessman who is also an
Orthodox rabbi and serves as a
liaison between the Orthodox
Jews and the local community,
the Hasidie Jews are not
affluent enough to establish
large houses of worship, so
many of them use quite modest
buildings in private homes to
meet the requirement of
worshiping in a place that is in
walking distance of their home.
Rumors that many Hasidim
had obtained exemption from
real-estate taxes because their
homes were used as religious
centers gained credence in the
community when members of
the Universalist Life Church
cited the practice as a precedent
in their fight for property tax ex
emptions.
The town building inspector’s
office indicates that 63 parcels of
property are tax exempt, but
these include institutions ser
ving the entire Jewish popula
tion of Ramapo. Officials es
timate that about half the
town’s population of 85,000 is
Jewish and that no more than 4,-
000 of these are members of
Orthodox groups.
“Many outsiders don’t unders
tand that large religious in
stitutions are foreign to these
groups,” said Wortman. “In the
Hasidic East European tradi
tion, the shul (synagogue) must
be within easy walking distance
and is just as holy a (dace as any
large temple. It vf a cultural
difference.”
Capt. Thomas PugHaae of the
Ramapo Police Department said
the tactical squad was organised
last month to deal with a broad
variety of growing problems in
addition to the harasment com
plaints.
0UT000R5 INDOOR POOL
& HEALTH CLUB-NEW IN000R
ICE SKATING RINK
JERRY LEWIS THEATRE CLUB
NIGHT TENNIS-FREE GOLF
Fun-filled sctivities-Rock ‘n Roll
band-Supervised Day Camp
Night Patrol-Dietary Laws
VoilVtNTION CROUPS 0UI SPfCIW.IT
W JACKIE MASON
AUG. 20
ALIZA KASHI
AUQ..2Z
Now More Beautiful
Than Ever!
Our bttutifuNy redecorated
cocktail lounft-tht perfect
meet mg spot and place to relax
And our redecorated lobby -
new lovelier and livelier.
Ask about
Summar MidWatk Specials
CHARLES a LILLIAN HOTEL
BROWNS
Loch Sheldrake. NY. 12759
Hotel Tel: (914) 434 5151
FOR RESERVATIONS. 01*1
212-868-4970 1
OUT Of TOWN CALL COLLECT
or See Your Travel Arent
A deal is madel
' ' •' ' ,/
Monty Hall helps dedicate
minibus lor Beth Hayeled
Monty Hall, the TV celebrity
famous for his “Let’s Make a
Deal,” officiated at the presenta
tion of a minibus to Beth Hayel
ed, a residential educational
facility in Jerusalem for very
young children. Beth Hayeled is
sponsored by American Mizrachi
Women.
The minibus, which was inner-city facility. Above (1-r)
donated through Variety Club are Mr. and Mrs. Hall, the
by Mr. and Mrs. Milton Mortis,
in memory of the mother of
donors Mr. and Mrs. Moritz and
Dr. Maxine Miller, chairwoman
Milton Moritz, will enable the of AMW in Israel. In the
youngsters to make outings and foreground are two Beth Hayel-
field trips away from their ed children.
TBS SMORGASBORD
Located at Marietta Mini Mall
110 Cobb Parkway (North US 41)
(On* Light NorVi of H—VWi M.'on Rourtons;
2nd of Its Kind In this Area
Formerly: Morrisons Food Service (C4J Buffet)
ALL YOU CAN EAT
LUNCHEON.
DINNER.
Tax and Beverage Included
Children under 8 Years..V4 PRICE
Infants under 2 Years...FREE
Luncheon: Monday-Saturday-11:00 AM-3.00 PM
^ Dinner: Monday-Saturday-5:00 PM-9:00 PM /Tj
Sunday-Dlnner All Day - 11:00 AM-9:00 PM
Every Friday Night Specie! Feature
FRIED SHRIMP ft ONION RIN<
Every Sunday AN Day Special Feature
BAKED NAM ft ROAST
We Welcome Croupe From
In Our Party Room
Phono 424-8372
Page 3 THE