In today's Daily News, I read an article which is right in tune with all the things I talk about from the onset of creating this blog. I've talked about, police corruption, wrongful convictions and a many other topics. I was a little disturbed to read about a bronx man A BRONX MAN who spent nearly 17 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking $22 million in damages. Don Taylor was serving a life sentence when prosecutors admitted that the wrong man had been convicted. He walked away from prison last year after a Bronx judge vacated his conviction. On the word of a single eyewitness, Taylor was convicted of killing Terrence Joyner on Aug. 16, 1987. That witness, Omar Portee, later recanted. He told prosecutors under oath that he lied when he said he saw Taylor pull out a gun and kill Joyner after Joyner got into a beef with another man over drugs. Portee "stated that he had falsely implicated [Taylor] in order to secure a favorable disposition on his own pending cases," said Bronx prosecutor Jeremy Shockett. At the time, Portee had two robbery cases pending. In the 1990s, Portee founded an East Coast version of the Bloods street gang. He is now serving a 50-year sentence in a federal prison. Taylor alleged in his lawsuit that a retired detective, Morris Schwaber, and his partner encouraged Portee to lie on the stand. The lawsuit alleged that Bronx prosecutor James Palumbo knew that Portee was lying, and that he and Schwaber permitted Portee to have sex with his girlfriend in the prosecutor's office in exchange for his continued cooperation. "He never said he was lying," said Palumbo, who is now a defense lawyer. He said Portee's testimony was consistent with the forensic evidence, leading him to believe Portee had seen the murder. He denied letting Portee have sex in his office. Taylor seeks damages for violations of his civil rights. He is seeking $17 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. rgearty@nydailynews.

HURRICANE SANDY DEVASTATION

Many of us are feeling the effects of Sandy's aftermath, which came two weeks ago and ripped through the tri-state, New Jersey, and Connecticut leaving nothing but devastation in its path. When I first heard of it, I thought it was going to come and go with minimal damage but that wasn't the case. Superstorm Sandy, as its being called now really destroyed people's lives. People are left without homes, some lost their cars due to being completely submerged in water. In areas like Coney Island, businesses are washed away. I saw an entire laundromat overflowed with sand and water, I'm pretty sure that business owner filling out insurance claims on their business. In Far Rockaway, where I worked as a construction laborer, that entire area is a disaster zone. People are still without power there and looters took to the streets creating mayhem during Sandy's arrival and departure. You would think that would propel people to band together for the common good but when everything is in a state of emergency, you have chaos! I have been displaced as a result of looters stealing our tools from the site. It's been two weeks now, but I know once the power is back hopefully all things will be back to normal. I have to give alot of credit to the people banding together trying to make sense of what just happened to them. Everyone is in disarray, from the state officials on down. Even gas has become a luxury, you cant even get gas for your car without waiting on a ridiculous line that stretches well beyond five or six blocks-sometimes even ten blocks. People have panicked because the officials have created this monster. They tried to take precaution by closing the ports for gas for preemptive measures, but that only spiraled into whats transpiring now. No gas at the pumps equates to people flooding the gas stations. No one wants to live without gas, so to prevent that they come out in droves trying to get what they need in order to drive to work. Starting yesterday, if your license plate ends in an odd number those are the only people allowed to come for gas unless your walking with a gallon. They've implemented this process to try to alleviate all the long lines at the pump but I don't think this practice going to last. What happens to the people who need gas to get to work for the day? It's all a quick fix to make up for the mayhem they've created. Now, these elected officials are trying to do damage control. It's not the public's fault, people will only react to whats taking place around them. Had the ports been open, none of this would be taking place. On another note, theres alot of underhand shadiness taking place. If you don't think these same officials are stealing gas, your only fooling yourself! Wherever there's gas, you see police and when you come they'll tell you there isn't any gas but yet they're still posted there. Not one to make accusations, but some things just can't be overlooked. New York City, New Jersey and surrounding areas is in a state of emergency. The Fema people have arrived, but there's still hordes of people who lost their entire homes. I got friends who lost all their clothes, cars, but what's important is the fact that they still have life. That in itself is priceless, God please protect our cities and families. I wish everyone a speedy recovery during this tumultous time...