Thursday Afternoon News Brief

Downtown business owner Matt Gray provided the winning bid of $175,000 this morning for the purchase of the former JC Penney department store. The property had been vacant since Penney’s closed in 2020. Gray said he had no definite plans for the property but noted a possible mix of commercial and housing options. The detailed story by Joanne Beck is available at thebatavian.com.

 

The Transportation Security Administration says the number of guns intercepted at Upstate New York airports rose in 2024. There were a total of 23 weapons seized, an increase of three from 2023 and tying the record set in 2022. TSA officers doing routine screening discovered four of those guns at Frederick-Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport. The TSA says any responsible gun owner should know they can’t have their weapon at an airport checkpoint.

 

Governor Hochul is looking to build support for some of the proposals laid out in her State of the State address. She is especially emphasizing the importance of putting money back in the pockets of working families by boosting the child tax credit to $1,000 for kids up to age four and $500 for children older than that. Any change would have to be approved by the state Legislature.

 

Rochester leaders say the amount of gun violence in their city has seen a sharp decline in recent years. Mayor Malik Evans said yesterday that crime data for 2024 showed a 53% decrease in shootings from 2021. Rochester Police Chief David Smith claims this drop is due to his agency specifically targeting gun violence while also trying to build relationships in the community. However, both Evans and Smith say there’s no time to get complacent.

 

Family members of Robert Brooks have filed a lawsuit in federal court weeks after his death. Brooks was an inmate at Marcy Correctional Facility when he was allegedly beaten by multiple staff members last month. Brooks was taken to a hospital but died hours after being attacked.   The incident was captured on body cameras and his relatives claim state officials oversaw a prison system that brutalizes inmates. Governor Hochul is calling for the employees involved in the assault to be fired.

 

A credit bureau is paying New York State for inaccurately reporting 10’s of thousands of credit scores. New York State Attorney General Letitia James says between March and April of 2022, a coding error caused Equifax to lower customer’s credit scores, causing lenders and insurers to inflate loans and policies. The company estimates roughly 77,000 New Yorkers were impacted. Equifax did notify lenders and insurance companies that summer, with dozens of groups offering remediation to consumers at the expense of Equifax. New York State has reached a $725,000 settlement with Equifax, which has agreed to implement more safeguards to prevent future mistakes.

 

The Buffalo Sabres are back on the winning track after picking up a needed win on home ice. Ryan McLeod scored his first career NHL hat trick and Dylan Cozens also had a goal as the Sabres beat the Carolina Hurricanes four to two at KeyBank Center last night. Buffalo goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen faced 37 shots in the contest and stopped 35 of them. Next, the Sabres host the Pittsburgh Penguins tomorrow night; the puck drops at 7:00.

 

Bills fans have the opportunity to win tickets to the game on Sunday by helping UB/MD Orthopedics & Sports Medicine register AEDs throughout Western New York. The University of Buffalo is looking to become a verifier for the life-saving devices through an app, which helps 911 operators tell people where to find one closest to them in case of an emergency. UB says the person who registers the most AED’s by Friday night will win two Bud Light Club tickets for Sunday. The winner will be announced on Saturday. More information can be found ubortho.com.