UNLOCK Rocah v. Costa Court Case

I unlocked the paywall, added all the court filings, and wrote a Smart Brief

UNLOCK Rocah v. Costa Court Case

Paid subscribers got a preview of my article last week on the Mimi Rocah v Matt Costa dispute which has spilled over into a highly unusual court case in New York State Supreme Court. It is a case with wider implications than the two underlying DWI cases. A decision on Judge Costa’s Motion to Dismiss is now pending.

Due to strong interest in the story I have taken three steps:

  • Unlocked the Substack article (linked below) so anyone can read it — feel free to share it.
  • Published a Smart Brief^ version of the Substack article on Talk of the Sound (linked below)
  • Converted my 1,000+ iPhone photos of the papers filed in the case into PDFs and linked PDF files to both the Smart Brief on Talk of the Sound and in the original Substack article.

Thank you for reading Words in Edgewise. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Smart Brief: Westchester DA Takes New Rochelle Judge to New York Supreme Court

Unlocked Substack:

Westchester DA Battles New Rochelle Judge in New York Supreme Court over Her Ability to Enforce the Law in his City
WHITE PLAINS, NY (July 28, 2022) -- The Westchester County prosecutors office says the flawed decisions of a New Rochelle Judge to toss out vital evidence in two cases is an “improper arrogation of power” and brings into question her “future ability to enforce the law in New Rochelle”. The Judge scoffed at the claims in a recent court filing. He says he…

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^Smart Brief refers to articles written in the Axios Smart Brevity style which is designed to allow readers to skim the article in under a minute, get the basics of the story, and provide links for readers who wish to dig deeper

If you want to know more about Axios Smart Brevity style there is a Ted Talk, an online video course at AxiosHQ, and an upcoming book.

Read more

SMOKING GUN: New Rochelle City Manager’s Shifting Story on Flowers Park Bid Collapses Under Developer’s Own “Return Everything” Letter

SMOKING GUN: New Rochelle City Manager’s Shifting Story on Flowers Park Bid Collapses Under Developer’s Own “Return Everything” Letter

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (December 5, 2025) — A November 20, 2025 letter from the attorney representing the sole bidder on New Rochelle’s withdrawn Flowers Park redevelopment project directly contradicts City Manager Will Melendez’s latest claim that the city never surrendered the original proposal. The letter, obtained through a

lock-1 By Robert Cox
Administrative Appeal of Denial of FOIL Request for Records Related to Bid Number 5820 – Request for Master Redeveloper Proposal Submitted by The Young Companies LLC

Administrative Appeal of Denial of FOIL Request for Records Related to Bid Number 5820 – Request for Master Redeveloper Proposal Submitted by The Young Companies LLC

Dear City Manager Melendez This letter constitutes my administrative appeal, pursuant to Public Officers Law (POL) § 89(4)(a), of the City of New Rochelle’s denial of my Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request dated October 30, 2025, and subsequent renewed and expanded requests dated November 13, 2025, and

By Robert Cox