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3 weeks ago | 
newsday.com | Tiffany Cusaac-Smith |Arielle Martinez
Nearly one-third of New York residents who are five and older spoke a language besides English at home over a five-year span, the U.S. Census Bureau said Tuesday.
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4 weeks ago | 
newsday.com | David Olson |Arielle Martinez
Long Island state legislators are advocating for boosting resources for the office that probes doctor misconduct after Newsday revealed long-stagnant funding, a significant drop in serious physician penalties and much longer investigation times. State Sen.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | David Olson |Arielle Martinez
In 2014, the state office that looks into doctor misconduct averaged less than nine months to conduct an investigation. By the end of 2023, the lengths of those probes approached two years. For a disciplinary system that critics say already favored physicians over patients, this has further tipped the scales, a Newsday investigation found. "Delay is our best strategy," said Douglas Nadjari, a defense attorney in Uniondale who has represented doctors facing potential punishment from the state.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | Tiffany Cusaac-Smith |Arielle Martinez
Most Long Island towns and villages saw modest population growth between 2023 and 2024, helping to reverse years of declining trends in the Northeast, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau released Thursday. Experts say what’s fueling the estimated population growth is a confluence of factors that includes a modest rise in housing stock and an uptick in immigrants flocking to Northeast communities.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | David Olson |Arielle Martinez
Law enforcement arrested Dr. Frank Pollaro in January 2024 after seizing his laptop with thousands of images and videos of children as young as 4 years old being sexually abused by adults. It wasn’t the first time. Federal agents caught the Babylon cardiologist with similar child sexual abuse material in 2009, and he pleaded guilty. But the New York State Health Department’s physician discipline board allowed him to continue practicing for 15 years after that first arrest.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | David Olson |Arielle Martinez
Law enforcement arrested Dr. Frank Pollaro in January 2024 after seizing his laptop with thousands of images and videos of children as young as 4 being sexually abused by adults. It wasn’t the first time. Federal agents caught the Babylon cardiologist with similar child sexual abuse material in 2009, and he pleaded guilty. But the New York State health department’s physician discipline board allowed him to continue practicing for 15 years after that first arrest.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | David Olson |Arielle Martinez
A Newsday investigation found dozens of doctors on Long Island who held state medical licenses without restrictions or penalties for months or years, despite criminal convictions, felony arrests, civil judgments, other states’ disciplinary actions, bans on treating Medicaid patients, legal settlements that involved fines, or sexual abuse allegations. Video Player is loading. Current Time 0:00Duration 0:30Remaining Time -0:30Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.
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1 month ago | 
newsday.com | Darwin Yanes |Arielle Martinez
As data breaches and other cyber incidents become more common at schools, experts say districts must be well-equipped to defend themselves against threats that could leave children at greater risk of identity theft.
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2 months ago | 
newsday.com | Dandan Zou |Arielle Martinez
More Long Island students attended school consistently last year following an alarming surge in chronic absenteeism — but the absence rate was still higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic, a Newsday analysis found. The overall rate of chronic absences for Island schools dropped from 19.4% in 2022-23 to 17.6% in 2023-24, according to state data. Across the region, more than 100 out of the Island’s 124 districts had fewer chronically absent students in 2023-24 than the year prior.
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Mar 27, 2025 | 
newsday.com | Peter Gill |Arielle Martinez
Amir Porterfield’s mom misses everything about the 15-year-old who loved to bake cupcakes and play football at Copiague High School. "The little jokes, the hugs, the kisses," said Iesha Kyles, 34. "I miss the yelling and the bickering amongst my children — my house is a little quiet these days."Seventeen months ago, Amir stayed late after school to watch a volleyball game, then parted with friends and began walking home.
