Morning News Brief

Judge Melissa Cianfrini

A man from Byron has been sentenced to 5 years for raping a minor in a Target parking lot.  21 year old Shawn Myers was convicted of forcing a person less than 17 years old on January 28th 2021.  The girl suffered physical injury and still suffers emotional trauma from the rape.  Myers, a volunteer firefighter who suffers from PTSD, anxiety, and depression, was assured that prison staff would make sure he had access to his medication.  The judge, Melissa Cianfrini, told Myers that he should spend the time in prison learning not to force people to do things against their will and learn a trade.

A 3 year old in Rochester is in the hospital with life threatening injuries after being shot while sitting in a car in front of Clinton Grocery.  Just before 6pm on Wednesday night two people opened fire at each other on Scrantom Ave, between the store and gas station.  Police were on the scene and chased the shooters to a home on Sullivan Street where multiple people were arrested and 2 handguns were seized.  The child was taken by ambulance to Strong Memorial Hospital where he went into surgery.  Mayor Malik Evans said “We are dealing with individuals who have no regard for life. Not for their own life, and not for the people living in these communities that are sick of it. The vast majority of people in this neighborhood are good hardworking people.”  The shooting remains under investigation.

There is a frost advisory for Friday morning for most of Western NY.  Temperatures in the lower to middle 30s will result in frost formation. The lowest temperatures will be further inland away from the lakeshores.  Frosts can kill vulnerable plants if they are not covered. 

Former Governor Andrew Cuomo says he wants to move forward.  In a video posted online, the 64-year-old Cuomo said being forced from office more than a year ago gave him time to reflect.  Cuomo said he plans to do a weekly podcast and he’s “starting a political action committee to elect the right people to office.”  He also said he was “starting the Gun Safe America Project,” with more details to be announced.

Governor Hochul says she is putting an additional 50-million dollars towards public safety. Local police departments will receive a total of 30-million-dollars to upgrade technologies and another 20-million will be used to support pre-trial services. This is in addition to the 227-million-dollars that was put aside in the state budget approved earlier this year. The funding comes on the heels of Hochul promising those in law enforcement that she will assist them in any way possible.

Governor Hochul has a commanding lead against Lee Zeldin in the latest Siena Poll.  She is ahead by 17 points.  The lead currently stands at 54 to 37 percent, which is up slightly from 53 to 39 percent in August.  At the beginning of September a different poll showed she was only up by 4 points.  The New York Times warned 2 weeks ago that polling has been misleading and democrat candidates would assume their lean is much smaller than shown in polls.  Election Day is a little over a month away, on Tuesday, Nov. 8.

A football player from Geneseo High School is recovering from a life threatening injury sustained during a game on Friday.  Senior Julian Huffman was rushed off the field during Friday’s game against York with a severe brain injury.  Officials are unsure what happened to cause the injury, between plays Huffman collapsed on the field.  Huffman was rushed to Strong Memorial Hospital for emergency surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain.  He has been up and walking and talking for short periods of time according to a friend of the family.  He hopes to continue playing and play in college.

Cornerback Dane Jackson was back in practice Wednesday after being ambulanced off the field on Friday.  The Buffalo Bills are dealing with a long injury report early in a season which they entered with high expectations.  In the secondary, safety Micah Hyde is out for the season with a neck injury. Hyde was injured in the same game as Jackson. Safety Jordan Poyer was limited in practice on Wednesday. Cornerback Christian Benford is week-to-week and recently had surgery on his hand. Star cornerback Tre’Davious White started the season on the reserve list after an ACL tear ended his 2021 campaign.  Tight end Dawson Knox and defensive tackle Ed Oliver were also limited in practice Wednesday due to injuries. Ryan Bates (concussion protocol), Dion Dawkins (illness), Jake Kumerow and Jordan Philips did not practice due to injury.