_____________ ROCKVILLE CENTRE ____________
HERALD Police HQ hosts open house Page 3 Vol. 33 No. 45
Time to fall back
Cyclones take third straight title
Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday
Remember to set your clocks back, and change your smoke and CO detector batteries
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NoVEMBER 3 - 9, 2022
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Vietnam War vet honored at Yankees game By KEPHERD DANIEl kdaniel@liherald.com
Molloy College is now Molloy University. 23(1 +286(
Courtesy Meghan D’Angelo
6XQGD\ 1RY SEPT.. 21 wAS w an emotional day for Vietnam War veteran and lifelong Yankees fan Lawrence Schnabel, who was publicly honored for the first time during a Yankees-Pirates game. 30
Vietnam War veteran Lawrence Schnabel, 72, of Rockville Centre, was treated to a big surprise during a game between the Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 21. During the seventhinning stretch, Schnabel was escorted out onto the field and introduced with a publicaddress announcement, honored for his service. “It was a big surprise,” Schnabel said. “I was out on the field, and they showed me on the big screen and on TV. It was
awesome.” Schnabel has five children, Brian, Meghan D’Angelo, Caitlin, Paul and Casey, and two grandchildren, Caeleigh Kourie and Siena D’Angelo. His kids arranged for him to be honored at the game, in what turned out to be a multi-year plan. “My children put in a request for it, and it took about three years to go through all the paperwork,” he explained. “It’s a very nice thing that the Yankees do. Every game, in the seventh inning, they honor veterans.” The short ceremony was Continued on page 7
Schools mum on $30M judgment against former teacher Byy DANIE DANIEll oFFNER doffner@liherald.com
A court awarded a former Hewitt Elementary School student $30 million last month over sexual abuse claims dating back to 1979. The judgment went against David Savage, a former fifthgrade teacher at the school, who had been accused of molesting Michael Malvin when Malvin was 10. Now in his 50s, Malvin filed a suit under the state’s Child Victims Act, which allowed anyone with abuse claims to have one last chance to sue, no matter how long ago the alleged activity took place.
Malvin named not only Savage in his 2019 filing with the Nassau County Supreme Court, but also the Lynbrook and Rockville Centre school districts, claiming they were negligent in protecting students like Malvin from abuse. But the school districts didn’t make it to the end of the case. The Lynbrook Union Free School District was dropped from the suit in April, while the Rockville Centre Union Free School District was removed in August. Both districts were removed “with prejudice,” according to court documents, meaning Malvin would not be able to re-file
against them. While documents state the districts were removed “without costs to any party,” it’s not clear if the districts settled with Malvin, or simply were removed. “We cannot comment on the outcome of the allegations that were made against the school district,” said Fredrick Aranki of Block O’Toole & Murphy, one of the lawyers who represented Malvin in his suit. Michael Cibella, who represented Savage, did not return calls seeking comment. Also mum about any potential settlement are the school districts themselves. A number of school board members and
administrators contacted by the Herald declined to comment. But that’s not enough for Jeff Greenfield, a Rockville Centre resident and Nassau County Planning Commission member, who has already contacted the school districts seeking answers. “It’s my experience, when there is a settlement, one that uses taxpayer money, that
amount of money has to be disclosed to the public,” Greenfield said. “We have a right to know how the school board spends taxpayer money. They have no right to sign away the rights of the taxpayer.” Greenfield believes school board members may be under non-disclosure agreements in Continued on page 22