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Hosp. investigation ContinuesNew Police InformationContradicts LICH AccountBY JOHN BLACKMOREIt has been nearly a month and a half since the tragic death of Heights resident Sidney Simkovsky after he had collapsed of a heart attack at the Columbia Street Playground. The controversy surrounding the response to the emergency by both Long Island College Hospital and officers from the 76th Precinct has yet to be resolved. New information concerning the actions of the police in the case came to light earlier this week, information that in one important respect conflicts with earlier statements made by the City%u2019s Health and Hospitals Corporation.An official at NYPD Headquarters made available for the first time summaries of the involvement of the police in the case, gleaned from tape recordings of calls made to 911, the City%u2019s emergency service number. (Two weeks ago, summaries of the 911 tape pertaining to the hospital%u2019s actions in dispatching an ambulance to the scene were released.) The police tapes indicate that the 76th Precinct received the request to aid Mr. Simkovsky at least at the same time, and most likely after the emergency room personnel at LICH did. Yet a police radio car and an emergency service unit arrived on the scene several minutes before the LICH ambulance, which is stationed less than two blocks away from the scene of Mr. Simkovsky%u2019s collapse.According to the police tapes, the 76th Precinct received a call to aid Mr. Simkovsky at 10:50 a.m., and this chain of events followed:10:51 a.m.%u201476th Precinct dispatcher contacts the radio car in Sector Edward. The car proceeds to the scene.10:52 a.m.%u2014The Sector Edward radio car arrives on the scene of Mr. Simkovsky%u2019s collapse.10:56 a.m.%u2014A police emergency service unit, responding to the call for aid, arrives on the scene. Officers with the unit administer pulmonary resuscitation until the ambulance arrives.10:58 a.m.---LICH ambulance arrives on the scene. Mr. Simkovsky is brought to the ambulance (officers with the emergency service unit continue to administer pulmonary resuscitation all the way to the hospital).11:04 a.m.---LICH ambulance arrives at the hospital.11:31 a.m.%u2014Mr. Simkovsky is officially pronounced dead on arrival.The most significant new information contained in this account is that the 76th Precinct received the call during the same minute (10:50 a.m.) that LICH personnel were checking with Health and Hospitals Corporation on dispatching an ambulance. Health and Hospitals acknowledged the LICH request and directed them to dispatch an ambulance at the same time (10:52 a.m.) the 76th Precinct dispatcher was contacting the Sector Edward radio car to proceed to the scene. Yet the squad car arrived a minute later (10:52 a.m.), and the police emergency service unit arrived five minutes later (10:56 a.m.), but the LICH ambulance, stationed a block and a half away, did not arrive untilThree ambulances wait for emergency calls outside Long Island College Hospital on Am ityStreet. The emergency room entrance is a short. 21/2-m!nute walk from the spot in the ColumbiaStreet Park where Sidney Simkovsky died. [Richard Solomon Photo]: even minutes after it had been dispatched (10:58 a.m.).This last datum conflicts with information provided by the City%u2019s Health and Hospitals Corporation that the LICH ambulance arrived at 10:56 a.m. The source at HealthConflicting Evidence SeenIn Comparison of TapesThe discrepancies between hospital and police findings and eyewitness reports in the matter of the collapse and death of Heights resident Sidney Simkovsky in the Columbia Street Park over a month ago has resulted in an ongoing investigation by the District Attorney%u2019s office. Following are tape summaries released to The PHOENIX that demonstrate the conflicting evidence in the case.Police Communications Tape Summary10:50 a.m.%u2014Police communications (from 911) contacts the 76th Preci net to aid Mr. Simkovsky.10:51 a.m.%u201476th Precinct dispatcher contacts police car in Sector Edward. The car proceeds to the scene.10:52 a.m.%u2014The Sector Edward radio car arrives on the scene. Shawn Thompson, an eyewitness to Simkovsky%u2019s collapse, returns from LICH, spots the car, and directs police to the place where Simkovsky had collapsed &from Thompson%u2019s report).10:56 a.m.%u2014A police emergency service unit arrives on the scene. Officers with the unit administer pulmonary resuscitation until the LICH ambulance arrives (supported by Thompson%u2019s report).<4 A . C O %u2014 | I/-NI J ,V,VV %u00ab%u25a0-%u25a0%u25a0%u25a0%u2022 UVI I HIIIUUIOUIW UlllfWon the scene. Officers from the emergency service unit continue to administer pulmonary resuscitation in the ambulance on the way to the hospital (police summary). Thompson reported that the LICH ambulance did not arrive until a few minutes after the police emergency unit had arrived.11:04a.m.%u2014LICH ambulance arrives at the hospital.Health & Hospital Corp. Tape Summary10:49 a.m.%u2014911 Brooklyn dispatcher receives request to aid man who had collapsed in the Columbia Street Park. The call was made from a luncheonette at Congress and Columbia Streets.10:50 a.m.%u2014Brooklyn dispatcher receives call from Long Island College Hospital reporting a request they had to aid man collapsed in the park.10:51 a.m.%u2014Brooklyn dispatcher acknowledges the call from LICH and directs the hospital to dispatch an ambulance.10:56 a.m.%u2014LICH ambulance reports they are %u201c 1088%u201d (on the scene).11:31 a.m.%u2014 Mr. Simkovsky is officially pronounced dead on arrival.and Hospitals was unavailable this week to reconfirm that it was the LICH ambulance that reported %u201c 1088%u201d (on the scene) at 10:56 a.m.NYPD Headquarters is currently engaged in an investigation of the police actions in this matter. The investigation, ordered by NYPD Commissioner Michael Codd at the request of Councilman Fred Richmond, concerns the report by several witnesses to the scene who reported that the first police officers to arrive would not administer artificial respiration.According to witnesses as well as the police report, the only first aid Mr. Simkovsky received before the arrival of the police emergency unit was mouth-to-mouth resuscitation administered by a civilian on the sc ene. The police source reported that the officers first to arrive were considering taking Mr. Simkovsky to LICH when the emergency unit arrived.An issue still unresolved with the two tape accounts is the action undertaken by LICH emergency room personnel when they were contacted by Mr. Shawn Thompson, a witness to Mr. Simkovsky%u2019s collapse who had run to the emergency room to get help. According to Thompson, the man at the emergency room refused to dispatch an ambulance or send medical care to aid Simkovsky. Thompson said that only after some discussion did the man on duty make a call, presumably to 911 to request permission to dispatch an ambulance (this would be the 10:50 a.m. call listed below).According to the Health and Hospitals Corporation, this proced ure, though indicated for non-emergency requests, is the wrong one to follow with coronary and other cases where time is of the essence. Ac n ^ r i a t H i r e f t i v e n f t h e P r i m o r a t i n nstates that emergency room personnel can dispatch an ambulance without prior clearance in such cases.According to police sources, both the Sector Edward radio car and police emergency unit were able to arrive on the scene so quickly because they were in the general vicinity when the call to aid was received. The LICH ambulances are also in the very immediate area (less than two blocks away).In both the case of the Health and Hospitals tape summary, which shows it took the LICH'ambulance five minutes to get to the scene j >d the police tape summary, \\ h indicates the ambulance Uxik - cn minutes to reach Simkovsk. h amount of response time is Jerable.A brisk walk from th- H emergency room door to tic took this reporter two mint;' :s and ten seconds. This is corrob ' :ed by Thompson%u2019s report that m net the radio car on his way back nm the hospital and directed it the scene in less than two minute-, after the LICH emergency room dispatcher called 911 in his presence.These conflicting reports nave made LICH%u2019s actions the object of an investigation by Brooklyn DA Eugene Gold. The investigation, initiated two weeks ago, is . ing actively pursued. The DA%u2019s office reported no major new developments at press time.According to LICH official Milton Levisan, the hospital%u2019s investigation of the Simkovsky matter has been completed. The hospital personnel involved have been cleared of any charges of incompetence. %u201c As far as we%u2019re concerned, it is a closed issue,%u201d Levisan said. \with.\156 Atlantic Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11201 Tel. 643-1032A community newspaper published weekly, except the first week of July and the !%u00ae%u00bbt week of August by .Advocsts Press serving the neighborhhods surrounding Downtown Brooklyn, including Boerum Hill,Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene, Park Slope, and Prospect Heights.Subscription rate is $5.00 pr yearThe entire contents of the PHOENIX m icopyrighted and may not be reproduce in any form without express permissionApplication to mail at Second Class j>c . > rates Is pending at Brooklyn, New '%u25a0imiiniNiiiiiiimniimHiitiiifiiiiiHiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiitiiiiimiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiff^J a n e 6 . 1974. P H O E N IX . P age