Politics & Government
LICH Defenders Appear in Court After Arrests
Civil disobedience display resolved in Manhattan court Tuesday.
Protesters who were arrested in July as an act of civil disobedience appeared in court Tuesday — City Councilman Stephen Levin and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio among them.
Just minutes after appearing in court to defend himself on disorderly conduct charges following his arrest at a protest of the closure of Long Island College Hospital in Cobble Hill, de Blasio tweeted a copy of an injunction to save Interfaith Hospital.
"When community healthcare is put at risk by a heedless rush to closure, we have an obligation to act," de Blasio tweeted to his followers.
According to the Associated Press, de Blasio originally lined up with City Councilman Stephen Levin, who was also arrested, and others who had received summons during last month's demonstration.
"Civil disobedience is something you use when the normal governmental process isn't functioning," de Blasio told the AP. "I came to the conclusion that something more dramatic had to be done to bring attention to the issue, and I'm proud to say that I think it helped bring attention to the issue."
The Public Advocate has been among a large group of voices calling for the city to slow down its plan to close Long Island College Hospital and Interfaith Hospital. While both medical facilities are deeply in debt, critics of the plan to close them say losing hospital beds will negatively impact health care across a wide swath of the city.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.