December 17, 2002

New York Atty Gen Eliot Spitzer sues former operator of one of state's largest and most troubled adult homes for mentally ill; seeks $12 million in damages to compensate hundreds of residents of Seaport Manor in Canarsie, Brooklyn, who were subjected to what state lawyers describe as years of scandalous care and deplorable conditions; lawsuit is milestone in oversight of New York's adult homes, which were once considered promising alternatives to grim phsyciatric wards that state began closing in 1960's; mental health experts see them as little more than sprawling flophouses that keep mentally ill isolated from society; they are so loosely regulated that they have often faced only modest penalties even after state inspectors cite them for grievous violations; Spitzer's office began investigating Seaport after home was focus of article in The New York Times last spring; Pataki administration, which did little to punish Seaport's operators, moved to revoke their license after Times article; home is now nearly closed; Seaport operators named in lawsuit are Baruch Mappa, Martin Rosenberg and Emil Klein; former administrator Esther Elizabeth Rosenberg is also defendant in lawsuit, as is assistant administrator Seth Fried; photos (M)

FBI releases crime statistics that show New York City is safest big city in America, ranking lowest among 25 largest cities; although total violent crime and property crime across country increased by 1.3 percent during first six months of year, crime dropped by 6.5 percent in New York, among sharpest declines on record; crime rate is also lower than many smaller cities; graph compares statistics for 2001 and 2002 in several crime categories (M)

Kevin J Arquit, global co-head of law firm Clifford Chance's antitrust practice and former senior official at Federal Trade Commission, will become partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, firm best known for its roster of blue-chip corporate and investment banking clients; Arquit is taking along partner Aimee H Goldstein; defections are latest hit to image of Clifford Chance, which was formed from 2000 merger of British firm of same name and New York firm of Rogers & Wells; several other top partners have left since merger; Clifford Chance continues to receive negative publicity, most recently when firm's junior lawyers prepared memorandum describing 'profound problem' at firm; Arquit insists decision to leave is personal choice; photo (M)

Oil's Role in Venezuela With oil prices up, it is becoming increasingly clear that control of the oil industry is central to resolving Venezuela's crisis. PAGES A15 AND C1

Bernard Holland reviews Lyric Opera of Chicago production of Massenet's Thais, featuring Renee Fleming; photo (M)