In NYC Haitian parade case, evidence gathering phase shows parties’ disarray | Part 1 of 3 

BROOKLYN — About a year ago this time, a dispute over $600,000 in reimbursable funds for the 2023 New York City Haitian Heritage Parade came to a head. It resulted in Lionel Lamarre, the parade’s originator, filing a lawsuit against nine defendants, including a former close friend at whose wedding he was the best man decades ago. Now, Lamarre says, he plans to subpoena several entities as he pursues the case more “aggressively.” 

Whether Lamarre files the subpoenas in a case that defendants call “frivolous” and part of a “smear campaign” remains to be seen. But the possibility of it and responses to Lamarre’s claims is emblematic of the disarray highlighted by a Haitian Times probe of the court documents, financial records and interviews with community members. The reporting raises questions about the leadership, operations and intertwining political relationships of two key defendants in particular: Little Haiti BK, Inc., the nonprofit borne of controversy that was supposed to be the fiscal conduit for government funds to the parade’s vendors; and restaurateur Jensen Desrosiers, owner of Anba Tonel and leader of the Haitian Powerhouse, a quasi-political group. It unveils a shift underway at Little Haiti BK; potential missteps in following contracting protocols; and the precarious position of Desrosiers’ restaurant, which faces a default judgment for allegedly owing $200,000 in back rent. 

To some community members, the entire case signals misplaced priorities, at best, if not ineptitude. Several said the group of power brokers is too preoccupied with high-profile cultural events like the parade, at a time when residents and businesses are struggling with concerns such as fear of deportation, other adverse immigration policy, and food and housing insecurity. 

“Everybody is doing a parade,” said a prominent community advocate, who asked not be named for fear of jeopardizing relationships.

“It’s parades and bals, that’s all this community does,” the community leader, who is not involved in the parade suit, said. “But we have people with real needs who need services.”

‘Politics at play’ mode unearths potential issues

To experts in non-profit management and public administration, the mix of intertwining personalities, management shifts, and jockeying for positions is not unusual in the city’s niche communities that rely on elected officials for support. 

“It’s the way New York City grassroots politics plays out,” said John Mollenkopf, director of the Center for Urban Research at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

“It would be different in Park Slope or the Upper East [Side] or Upper West Side, because it wouldn’t be a relatively less affluent immigrant community,” he said. “It’s really looking for material aid, so maybe the people on the Upper West Side [would go] after a museum they want to support or something like that, as opposed to a parade,” Mollenkopf said. 

Still, the interlocking relationships can become an issue if not managed competently. 

“When you start getting organizations that are very interwoven like that, there’s definitely potential for issues,” said Thad Calabrese, a professor at New York University’s Wagner School of Public Policy. He cited transparency, governance and oversight as examples of potential problems that may arise. 

The review of documents and interviews attests to the issues possibly being at play as the parties trade accusations. Over two court appearances in July and September, Judge Nicholas W. Moyne ordered the parties to participate in discovery, the legal process for plaintiffs and defendants to submit proof of their claims or counterclaims. No substantial filings about the claims appear in the electronic record.

In the lawsuit filed in March, Lamarre argued that the defendants conspired with Little Haiti BK’s leadership and others to take control of the high-profile event and asked a judge to block the June 2024 edition that the defendants were planning. In May, a judge dismissed Lamarre’s second claim, allowing that parade to occur. A decision is pending as to who should be reimbursed the funds spent on the 2023 parade that Lamarre spearheaded. 

Accusations of holding back community made

Lamarre also told The Haitian Times in an interview this month that the defendants, along with Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn – a champion of defendant Little Haiti BK – have for too long overpowered community members’ projects.

“They are like a cancer in the Haitian community,” Lamarre said. “They don’t have the knowledge, the academic knowledge or intellectual ability to think or do anything. Whenever somebody is doing [something], they try to steal what you’re doing and pretend that it is their project.”

Bichotte Hermelyn, through an email response to The Haitian Times, said that she had no comment on Lamarre’s opinions.

Glenda Elie, one of the parade defendants and Desrosiers’ partner, told The Haitian Times via email on Dec. 20, that Lamarre filed the suit out of “spite, jealousy and greed,” then listed a litany of alleged transgressions over the years. In response to Lamarre’s allegation of collaborators like her stifling the community’s progress, she said it is people like Lamarre – and The Haitian Times for covering the suit – that harm the community.

“Your statements and comments clearly show a preference to one side of this story and I imagine it’s because your founder, Garry Pierre-Pierre, is as much of a cancer on the community as are his friends Lionel Lamarre and Mahadya Mary,” Elie wrote in response to the email. 

“Creating a frivolous lawsuit which had a purpose of destroying a nonprofit, a small business and destroying the reputation of community members is certainly not a way to move the community forward,” she continued.

Pierre-Pierre, a longtime member of the community, has crossed paths with several parties in the case in varying capacities as The Haitian Times founder. In response to Elie invoking him, Pierre-Pierre said the name-calling is “unfortunate” and her statement a scapegoating attempt.

“Lamarre and Jensen’s friendship went a longer way than [the friendship] between me and Lamarre,” Pierre-Pierre said. “That’s why they went into business together. Now that things went south, they [Elie and Desrosiers] want to blame other people for their predicament.”

Pierre-Pierre also rejected the perception of bias.

“This type of reporting is unfamiliar to some leaders in the community who are uncomfortable confronting the truth,” he said. “There’s nothing personal here at all. We were not the ones who were in business with them.” 

Change in lawyers as case proceeds

So far in the discovery process, both sides have had a change in representation. In late September, the firm that first represented Desrosiers, Elie, Pierre and their companies withdrew from the case. Citing “irreconcilable differences” with the clients in the motion he filed to withdraw, attorney Antoine Wilson, did not specify the issues in order to protect the client-attorney privilege and to avoid any detriment to Defendants.”

In her email response to The Haitian Times, Elie declined to comment on the withdrawal. 

As of this writing, the electronic court files show none of the defendants have attorneys on file. However, Little Haiti BK’s new executive director, Stephanie Delia, said in an interview the nonprofit is represented by Leandre M. John. She also spoke at length about Little Haiti BK’s status under her.

Lamarre too has retained a new attorney, Vincent Bianco, in hopes of pursuing the case more “aggressively,” Lamarre said. 

“By now, the community will know that somebody has stood against that corrupted system they put in place,” Lamarre said. “And in the future, other people will say, ‘Oh, that’s what you’re doing. I’m going to take you to court if you steal my stuff.’ I think that will help the community.”

An appearance scheduled for December was postponed. The next one listed in court files is March 13, 2025.

In Part 2 of this report, The Haitian Times looks at Little Haiti BK, a key defendant in the parade case, as it undergoes a transition under a new leader.

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