5 charges dropped in mailman beating
A MANHATTAN JUDGE tossed five of seven charges Friday against a Tribeca man accused of beating up his mailman.
The top count at Steven Migden’s trial — attempted robbery in the first-degree — was tossed out, along with others, on the grounds that the white plastic mail bin was not a dangerous object.
In April 2015, Migden allegedly slugged letter carrier Vincent Edwards in the shoulder and kicked him after he fell to the ground. Migden is also accused of whacking Edwards with a hard, plastic mail crate.
The judge dismissed the five charges against Migden shortly before jury deliberations began.
The jury must now decide if Edwards was sufficiently injured in the attack inside the Harrison St. high-rise. Defense lawyer Joseph Conza argued in his summation that the injury to Edwards’ hand in the scuffle was “superficial.”
Prosecutor Mary Vitale argued security footage clearly shows Migden trying to hurt the U.S. Postal Service employee .
Deliberations will resume Monday morning in Manhattan Supreme Court. THE DISH is spicy and sweet. The news is sour.
Chef Peng Chang-kuei, who created the legendary Chinese entree General Tso’s Chicken, died this week from pneumonia. He was 98. Peng spent most of his life in the kitchen, first as a banquet chef for the Nationalists before they were ousted by Mao’s Communists in 1949.
Peng fled the revolution and ended up in Taiwan, where he continued as a top government cook. His date with destiny came in 1952 when he was assigned to prepare a meal for visiting U.S. Admiral Arthur W. Radford.
The master chef wanted to create an entirely new item and the resulting battered chicken in a spicy sweet sauce was dubbed “General Tso’s Chicken” in honor of the legendary Qing Dynasty military and political leader Zuo Zongtang.
Peng moved to New York in 1973 and opened his own restaurant, Peng Garden, on E. 44th St. near the United Nations. He moved back to Taiwan in the 1980s. His funeral will be on Dec. 15 in Taipei.