A 13-year-old Staten Island honors student who was sexually assaulted at her high school had insult added to devastating emotional injuries when officials kept the classmate suspected of the attack in school – and later put the pair in the same summer class, the girl’s outraged mom told The Post. If that weren’t bad enough, the charges against the student arrested for molesting freshman Kelsey Balzafiore were dropped after the Staten Island District Attorney’s Office inexplicably failed to inform a judge it was ready to try the case – despite being warned to do so by her lawyers. “I feel like I was treated like I did something wrong,” the petite Kelsey, now 16, told The Post. “I feel like I was being punished. I don’t want this to happen to other girls. This whole experience since the attack has been an absolute nightmare.” A Staten Island civil jury likely will soon hear of her shocking treatment by school officials and DA Daniel Donovan’s office after Robert Swen allegedly attacked her at New Dorp HS. Tomorrow, her lawyers will ask a judge to set a trial date for her negligence lawsuit against the city, the Department of Education and the NYPD’s school safety division. “The system failed Kelsey. The insensitive way they treated her was truly, truly abominable,” said Justin Blitz, one of her lawyers. Spokesmen for the city, Education Department and Staten Island DA declined to comment. Swen adamantly denied the charges. “I didn’t do anything. I’m not guilty . . . She’s just making it up,” he said. Kelsey’s nightmare began Oct. 20, 2005, when she asked if anyone had a dollar so she could buy bottled water. Then-16-year-old Swen said he had money and led her down the hallway, Kelsey’s lawyers said. “Swen then grabbed her and dragged her down a stairwell to the basement, where he forcibly kissed her, opened her pants and groped her private parts,” said Bryan Swerling, another of Kelsey’s lawyers. The girl’s mom, Loretta Rice, said that when she complained at school the next day, cops who were called arrested Swen on sex-abuse charges after having Kelsey point him out in front of other students. Swen was suspended for a few days, said Rice, who claimed officials suggested Kelsey could leave through the back door to avoid him, or transfer. Kelsey spent six weeks at home before transferring to Wagner HS. Months later, when she was attending summer school at Tottenville HS, Swen “walked into her class,” said Rice. Afterward, officials merely moved him out of her class, not the school. Kelsey – who ended up receiving intensive psychological counseling – received another blow early in 2007, when the criminal case against Swen was dismissed because a Staten Island prosecutor failed to respond as “ready for trial” as required by law. Kelsey’s lawyers said they previously called the DA’s office 15 times and urged prosecutors assigned to the case to make such a response. Click Here to read the article on the New York Post. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

By DAN MANGAN A 13-year-old Staten Island honors student who was sexually assaulted at her high school had insult added to devastating emotional injuries when officials kept the classmate suspected of the attack in school – and later put the pair in the same summer class, the girl’s outraged mom told The Post. If that weren’t bad enough, the charges against the student arrested for molesting freshman Kelsey Balzafiore were dropped after the Staten Island District Attorney’s Office inexplicably failed to inform a judge it was ready to try the case – despite being warned to do so by her lawyers. “I feel like I was treated like I did something wrong,” the petite Kelsey, now 16, told The Post. “I feel like I was being punished. I don’t want this to happen to other girls. This whole experience since the attack has been an absolute nightmare.” A Staten Island civil jury likely will soon hear of her shocking treatment by school officials and DA Daniel Donovan’s office after Robert Swen allegedly attacked her at New Dorp HS. Tomorrow, her lawyers will ask a judge to set a trial date for her negligence lawsuit against the city, the Department of Education and the NYPD’s school safety division. “The system failed Kelsey. The insensitive way they treated her was truly, truly abominable,” said Justin Blitz, one of her lawyers. Spokesmen for the city, Education Department and Staten Island DA declined to comment. Swen adamantly denied the charges. “I didn’t do anything. I’m not guilty . . . She’s just making it up,” he said. Kelsey’s nightmare began Oct. 20, 2005, when she asked if anyone had a dollar so she could buy bottled water. Then-16-year-old Swen said he had money and led her down the hallway, Kelsey’s lawyers said. “Swen then grabbed her and dragged her down a stairwell to the basement, where he forcibly kissed her, opened her pants and groped her private parts,” said Bryan Swerling, another of Kelsey’s lawyers. The girl’s mom, Loretta Rice, said that when she complained at school the next day, cops who were called arrested Swen on sex-abuse charges after having Kelsey point him out in front of other students. Swen was suspended for a few days, said Rice, who claimed officials suggested Kelsey could leave through the back door to avoid him, or transfer. Kelsey spent six weeks at home before transferring to Wagner HS. Months later, when she was attending summer school at Tottenville HS, Swen “walked into her class,” said Rice. Afterward, officials merely moved him out of her class, not the school. Kelsey – who ended up receiving intensive psychological counseling – received another blow early in 2007, when the criminal case against Swen was dismissed because a Staten Island prosecutor failed to respond as “ready for trial” as required by law. Kelsey’s lawyers said they previously called the DA’s office 15 times and urged prosecutors assigned to the case to make such a response. Source: NY POST Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A Manhattan man claims that cops who arrested him for disorderly conduct slammed him down on a car hood, repeatedly struck him with a baton and Maced his eyes while he was handcuffed on a Bronx street. And he appears to have cellphone video to prove it. The crude footage of the June 20 incident involving demolition worker Raphael Jefferson shows police officers cursing at bystanders, calling Jefferson a “faggot” and shoving the 20-year-old against a parked car’s bumper after allegedly Macing />The video also shows an officer loudly smacking an object onto the street near Jefferson’s head as he lay face-down on the ground and another officer wiping the sole of his foot either on or near the Harlem man’s pants. “He was treated like an animal,” said Jefferson’s lawyer, Justin Blitz, who has filed a notice of claim against the city, the first step to a planned police-brutality lawsuit. “There can be no legitimate justification for hitting and striking a man who is handcuffed on the ground.” The Police Department says Jefferson was busted for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after he “became irate” when officers stopped him for drinking alcohol outside a store at East 167th Street and Washington Avenue. Jefferson said he was not drinking but that he drew the cops’ ire when he walked away from them as they approached an acquaintance who was drinking a beer. “I heard the officer say, ‘Stop. Where you going?’ ” Jefferson said. Jefferson said he was handcuffed and had his face shoved into a hot car hood. Then, after Jefferson was placed on the ground, a cop “hit me about two to three times in my lower back and in my neck,” he said. Jefferson said he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct on the advice of his then-lawyer and received a sentence of time served after spending two days in jail. When asked for comment, a police spokesman mentioned Jefferson’s past arrests for drugs and burglary. NYPD Internal Affairs officers interviewed Jefferson last week. Last month, two NYPD officers were placed on modified duty after separate incidents involving them were videotaped. One tape showed a cop shoulder-tackling a bicyclist in Times Square. The other showed an officer repeatedly striking a man on his legs with a metal baton as other cops tried to handcuff him. Click Here to view Article by New York Post Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A Manhattan man claims that cops who arrested him for disorderly conduct slammed him down on a car hood, repeatedly struck him with a baton and Maced his eyes while he was handcuffed on a Bronx street. And he appears to have cellphone video to prove it. The crude footage of the June 20 incident involving demolition worker Raphael Jefferson shows police officers cursing at bystanders, calling Jefferson a “faggot” and shoving the 20-year-old against a parked car’s bumper after allegedly Macing his face. The video also shows an officer loudly smacking an object onto the street near Jefferson’s head as he lay face-down on the ground and another officer wiping the sole of his foot either on or near the Harlem man’s pants. “He was treated like an animal,” said Jefferson’s lawyer, Justin Blitz, who has filed a notice of claim against the city, the first step to a planned police-brutality lawsuit. “There can be no legitimate justification for hitting and striking a man who is handcuffed on the ground.” The Police Department says Jefferson was busted for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after he “became irate” when officers stopped him for drinking alcohol outside a store at East 167th Street and Washington Avenue. Jefferson said he was not drinking but that he drew the cops’ ire when he walked away from them as they approached an acquaintance who was drinking a beer. “I heard the officer say, ‘Stop. Where you going?’ ” Jefferson said. Jefferson said he was handcuffed and had his face shoved into a hot car hood. Then, after Jefferson was placed on the ground, a cop “hit me about two to three times in my lower back and in my neck,” he said. Jefferson said he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct on the advice of his then-lawyer and received a sentence of time served after spending two days in jail. When asked for comment, a police spokesman mentioned Jefferson’s past arrests for drugs and burglary. NYPD Internal Affairs officers interviewed Jefferson last week. Last month, two NYPD officers were placed on modified duty after separate incidents involving them were videotaped. One tape showed a cop shoulder-tackling a bicyclist in Times Square. The other showed an officer repeatedly striking a man on his legs with a metal baton as other cops tried to handcuff him. Click Here to view Article by New York Post Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A New York woman on vacation in Las Vegas was injured due to a faulty elevator at a hotel and required multiple surgeries on her knees.  Following our client’s deposition, Schulman Blitz, LLP was able to negotiate a very favorable settlement! Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A retired bookkeeper and grandmother from the Bronx was seriously injured when she tripped and fell on a defective sidewalk.  Her injuries were extensive and she required surgery followed by a month in a rehabilitation facility.  Schulman Blitz, LLP sued the owner of the adjoining apartment building and procured a favorable settlement for our client. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

Schulman Blitz, LLP settled a case in the middle of a trial for our client who was an executive with an international clothing manufacturer.  She was injured when she was struck by a car in midtown Manhattan as she walked to work.  During the trial, we reached a settlement of $50,000 with the insurance company for the car. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A husband and wife who were trapped in a burning building in upper Manhattan.  They suffered carbon monoxide poisoning and post-traumatic stress disorder.  Schulman Blitz, LLP procured a substantial settlement for them at a mediation with the insurance companies for the defendants. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

Schulman Blitz, LLP represented a man who had just landed and JFK airport from Singapore and was in a taxi cab on the way to Manhattan when the cab stuck the median on the Van Wyck Expressway.  Our client fractured his leg.  A settlement of $75,000 was reached with the taxi cab’s insurance company before the lawsuit was commenced. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A schoolteacher who was injured on the job when she slipped and fell due to a water leak in a public school in Brooklyn.  Schulman Blitz, LLP sued the City of New York and recovered a favorable settlement for our client. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

Schulman Blitz, LLP settled a case against the City of New York for $150,000 for our client who was injured by a city employee who was driving a City vehicle and hit our client as he was crossing the street. The City’s defense was that the driver of the vehicle was not employed by the City at the time of the accident.  During the trial, Justin Blitz, Esq. proved to the jury that the the defendant driver was employed by the City at the time of the accident.  After receiving this favorable verdict from the jury, the case was settled for $150,000. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.

A recent immigrant from the Dominican Republic was injured when a defectively maintained shower door collapsed on her.  Schulman Blitz, LLP sued the building owner.  A settlement of $45,000 was reached shortly before trial. Contact Blitz Law Group LLP today.