Sunday, October 14, 2012


The Journalist Blogger That Got Pedro Espada, Still Ignored By Main Stream Media

By Gary Tilzer



At First Rafael Martínez Stood Up to Pedro Espada Alone Putting His Life in Danger  . . .  13 Years After He Started His Investigation of the Former Senator's Corruption He Watch, the U.S. Attorney Declared "The Espada Era Is Over"

Martínez: "Pedro All Your Family Should Be in Jail" Video

Media and Political Bias Against Blogger Martínez Changed NYS History

If there was any value left in the local Pulitzer or TV news Emmy awards, a journalist who most of his City Hall colleagues try to ignore, discredit and humiliate because they feel he is not worthy of their status, should win this year. Rafael Martínez Alequín, long a pariah among the City Hall press corps, did what his colleagues don’t bother to do anymore, investigative reporting.



If the Media, Pols and DA's Used the Corruption Information Martínez Uncovered Years Ago, the Democrats Would Still Be in Control of the State Senate
Not only did Martínez break one of the biggest corruption stories of the decade, the ignoring of his finding led to one of the most disgraceful era in Albany history.  The takeover of the State Senate by the GOP and the disgusting deals that the senate democrats made with Espada to make him their leader to buy back the chamber. Martínez was ignored because he is an independent blogger who writes the truth.  Main Street Media owned by corporations are more concerned with sticking with a news narratives that kiss the ass of incumbents and lobbyist who do their businesses favors.  DN Editorial "Espada was abetted by many in Albany who should have known better — including every state senator in 2009 and 2010."


Martínez Watch NYC Reporting Change From the Dignity, Power and Ability of Murray Kempton To A Generation of Crap Reporters With No Shame
The media hires young snarky clueless reporters who do not have the ability to understand how to do investigative reporting, or the will.  Most of today reporters generate stories from elected officials or the lobbyist that work for them. Or they copy each other stories adding gossip. It was only after Espada voted with the GOP, putting Sprinkles the Clown in charge of the Senate, that the prosecutors started real investigations into Espada’s health care clinic and subpoenaed Martínez’s video and materials.  All the MSM has done is report on what the prosecutors have done to Espada. Only Martínez generated origional informations on Espada which the prosecutors used to go after him


The physical Violence and Threats Martínez Received at the Hands of Espada Thugs was covered up by the Bronx D.A. and the Media
Martínez was attacked and threatened at a campaign rally at Amalgamated Houses Co-op, when he attempted to ask Espada a questions about his out of district residency and illegal uses of non profit medical heath care organization funds. Martínez asked Espada if he used his health center funds to pay for his campaign? For asking that question the reporter was attacked by Espada son Alejandro. His camera was broken and he was warned to end his investigation of the health care funds or face death.  Pedro yelled at Martínez as he was being attacked by his son, "He's trying to teach you manners, Papa."  Before being taken to the hospital the 76 years old Martínez was threaten by another Espada campaign workers saying her brother would put him in a body bag if he did not leave Pedro alone.  Martínez had to get an order of protection against Ms. Marzetta Harris an employee of the senator's health clinic and sister of Espada's Soundview Health Clinic Board Chairman.


Martínez's Investigative Reporting Uncovered How Espada Used His Health Center As A Personal Piggy Bank and As His Campaign Machine
After the threats the Harris sisters hung on after Espada was force to leave the health center by the AG, which in effect keep him in control to collect $$$ for himself and his family.  Espada thugs were embolden into attacking Martínez and using the health center as their personal piggy bank because they considered MSM journalists and local prosecutors as no danger to them. The Bronx DA did all he could to get Espada son off the hook, when he prosecuted the attack on Martínez caught on video. The video that caught the younger Espada pushing the 76 year old reporter to the floor breaking his camera forced the DA Not to do something.   In the end Pedro son got a sweet heart deal that was limited to paying Martínez $432 for the broken camera.  Martínez read a letter in court how he was opposed to the light settlement.

 
Espada's Physical Attack On A Reporter Doing His Job, Goes Unnoticed in the Bronx's Courts and By Fellow Journalists
IMPACT STATEMENT OF RAFAEL MARTíNEZ ALEQUIN
TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE JOSEPH DAWSON
Bronx Criminal Court, January 14, 2010
"Your Honor in the name of Justice you must appoint a special prosecutor to investigate and make the proper charges in this case. The same political machine that supports Senator Espada is critical for the reelection of the Bronx DA. In fact the political operative who works for Espada represented the Bronx DA in a case where he was accused of not living in the Bronx. I am appalled at the way our County legal system allowed Alejandro Espada to get away with a simple “slap on the wrist. Even considering my limited understanding of the criminal justice system, Alejandro should have been convicted of assault. Pedro Espada Jr., who avoided even being charged, should have been convicted of being an accessory to a crime. He encouraged his son, Alejandro to attack me. And then, as I was being assaulted, he said to me “this is to teach you manners papa. . . " Rafael Martínez
 

The DA Espada Fix in the Bronx Allowed the Corruption to Go On . . .  It Also Allowed An Attack on A Journalist in NYC By A Pol to Be Cover Up
The Media Even Ignored the Fact that the Bronx DA Protected the Espada Thugs Who Attacked Martínez, A Fellow Journalist
Espada knew that if you’re a member of the ruling political class of the Bronx, the mainstream media and DA's will protect you. Bronx power broker Stanley Schlein Protected Espada  Boss Schlein worked for Senator Espada and helped DA Johnson win an important residency case when he first ran for office. Schlein is also the right hand man to the powerful Bronx County Leader Carl Heastie, rules the Board of Elections and still has a working relationship with the powerful Rivera family (he was the lawyer for State Assenblywoman Noemi Rivera who tried to knock the man who beat her Mark Gjonaj off the ballot for assembly).  If DA Johnson wanted to be reelected (which he does) there was no way that DA Johnson was going to go after Espada's before his protection was ended.  Espada became road kill when he joined Monserrate and held the state hostage for over a month with no government, that the NYP called the A;lbany circus.  Once you embarrassed the establishment the protection deal is canceled.  If you look at the establishment coming down on Vito Lopez after his sexual harassment case became public, you can concluded that the city's rulers are OK with corruption as long as those pols doing the stealing don't embarrass them in public.

After MSM the Espada Protection Deal Ended Reporters Like WCBS TV's Marsha Kramer Used Martínez's Residency Video Without Giving the Him Credit

Rafael Martínez also produced a video in which he interviewed several Bronx neighbors of State Senator Pedro Espada, who had never seen Espada in the building before. The excellent video, which shows Espada’s car parked later that night at his real home in Mamaroneck, proves outright that Senator Espada had never lived at the Bronx address which he listed as his official in district State Senate residence.


As Reporters Ignored Espada Until the Albany Take Over, It Put Martínez More in Danger . . . All Reporters Cared About Was Getting His Videos
On Martínez's video, an old lady tenant was confronted by Espada, who was at the time second-in-line to be Governor, in an attempt to intimidate her, took a picture of her while Martínez was interviewing her.  After Espada's state senate GOP take over Martínez's was question by the media and prosecutors and asked to supply videos and other information to them.  Main Stream Journalist and bloggers who stop making fun of Martínez's speech and accent only moments before they asked him questions for copies of his Video's. They used his stuff but never credited him or wrote about how Martínez's investigative reporting uncovered Espada's corruption years before they wrote their stories. Former senator’s Bronx pad up for sale


The Mayor and Member of the City Hall Press Tried to Take Away Martínez's Press Pass and Kick Him Out of City Hall
David Seifman from the NYP and a guy named Michael Blood from Daily News both tried to convince other journalist in Room 9 that Martínez did not deserve a press pass.  They were working on behalf of the mayor (as they often do) who canceled Martínez press pass.  It took Norman Siegel defending Martínez to defeat the Mayor’s NYPD attempt to not renew Martínez's press pass. Bloomberg wanted to limited his blue room press conferences to only puppet reporters who do  his bidding.  He wanted to end the real questions that Martínez has been firing at mayors for the last 30 years. Siegel’s lawsuit resulted in Martínez getting a new press pass, that open up press passes to other bloggers.  Martínez said a lot of the old media blame him for losing their parking permits.  With Espada headed to jail Martínez is content that his work is done. Don't worry Martínez is not going anywhere, he still has a lifetime of stories to tell and corrupt pols to fight against. “You’re still alive?” Pedro often called to the 79-year-old journalist as he attended everyday of Espada Trial.  Yesterday at the plea deal Martínez told Espada that "I am very much alive and your going to jail"  Journalist Espada Breaks Through City Hall's "The Media's Wall of Silence"



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