Thursday News Brief

As reported by Tom Tharp this morning: Members of the Batavia City Council want to tax non property tax paying organizations to increase equity. Councilman Al McGinnis says he wants non-profits like churches to pay their fair share of city services such as fire, police and department of public works. He proposed a team of 3 council people and some financial experts to figure out a fee structure for non-profits. There are presently 209 tax-exempt organizations listed for the City of Batavia, though not all of them have a physical address. Council president Eugene Jankowski and Councilman John Canale agreed.

 

43-year-old Gerald Budzinack of Batavia has been arrested. He’s charged with petit larceny following investigation of theft at the Shoe Department on Veteran’s Memorial Drive. Budzinack was issued an appearance ticket and scheduled for Batavia Town Court on October 24th.

 

Nurses at Rochester General Hospital have announced that they’ll be going on strike once again. The Rochester Union of Nurses and Allied Professionals says the strike will start on October 23rd and last five days. The union and hospital have been working since last October to try and get a new labor contract done. The previous strike was back in August and it went on for a few days.

 

Jury deliberations continued today in the murder trial of Kelvin Vickers. The panel began weighing Vickers’ fate yesterday, but stopped without reaching a verdict. Vickers is accused of killing Rochester police officer Anthony Mazurkiewicz and seriously injuring his partner. If convicted, Vickers might be ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison.

 

 

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol says it has seized thousands of dollars worth of faulty hair dryers at the Peace Bridge. The agency says none of the 65 dryers that were taken met the necessary safety requirements for use. The dryers had a total retail value of about $19,500. Anyone who knows about any illegal or counterfeit items that criminals may be trying to sneak into the country is asked to file a complaint.

 

A Buffalo man has been arraigned after being accused of attacking a student. According to the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, 39-year-old Darnell McIntosh entered the office at an elementary school on Lawn Avenue in September and shoved an employee down. He then allegedly pushed the child before starting to punch and kick them. McIntosh is charged with assault and child endangerment and must stay away from both victims.

 

 

 

Work is underway towards building a brand-new stadium for the Buffalo Bills, but additional construction crews are still needed. There will be a job fair at the KeyBank Center from 10:00am until 2:00pm Saturday to try and fill some of those positions. The new facility is located in Orchard Park, not far from the stadium where the Bills play their home games right now. The hope is the stadium will be open in time for the 2026 NFL season. Meantime, the 3 and 2 Bills host the 1 and 4 Giants on Sunday night, with kickoff at 8:20.

 

New York State is taking action to help keep children safe while they are online. One new piece of legislation was announced yesterday that would regulate kids’ unhealthy social media usage. Another measure will ban platforms from collecting and sharing the personal data of minors. Months ago, the US Surgeon General released an advisory about the effects social media has on teenagers. Governor Hochul believes kids are in crisis and adults need to step up and protect them.

 

The Buffalo Sabres will be on home ice tonight as they look to start their regular season with a victory. The Sabres are hosting their longtime Eastern Conference rivals the New York Rangers at KeyBank Center. Buffalo has not made the playoffs in the last 12 seasons, which is currently the longest active streak in the NHL. The puck drops tonight at 7:00.

 

ELSEWHERE…

 

Some new data shows New York State ranks number one in the country when it comes to teenage driver safety. The study conducted by WalletHub took a look at factors such as safety, driving laws, and economic environment when coming up with its report. Since 2003, the Empire State has seen an 80% decline in deadly vehicle crashes where a young driver was involved. The state DMV commissioner says this report is a testament to everyone who helps prepare teens to drive.

 

The Powerball jackpot has finally been won. A winning ticket worth over $1.7 billion, the second-biggest lottery prize in U.S. history, was sold in Frazier Park, California. The prize had been growing since July, when a ticket that was also sold in California won a jackpot worth just over a billion dollars. The jackpot for the next drawing on Saturday is back to $20 million. Please play responsibly.

 

 

 

The chances of winning the Powerball grand prize are roughly 1 in 292 million. But, here’s a way to improve your chances: Buy one ticket daily, every day for 400 years. If you do this, an analysis of data shows you’ll improve your chances of winning by 50%. So, congratulations to the really, really old person in California!

 

New safety requirements are being issued for infant rockers. Eleven infant deaths have been associated with the rocking reclining seats in the past decade. On Wednesday, the Consumer Product Safety Commission voted to move forward with new proposed regulations that would require rockers to be flatter and firmer to prevent children from tipping over.

 

 

It’s not clear when there will be a floor vote to elect a new Speaker of the House. The chamber went on recess Wednesday afternoon after House Republicans in a closed-door meeting chose Majority Leader Steve Scalise as their party’s nominee. The Louisiana Republican still must win a majority vote from the full House to win the gavel and it’s not clear if he has the votes at this time.

 

Actor Alec Baldwin may be facing new criminal charges in the fatal shooting on the “Rust” movie set. A New Mexico judge has ordered Baldwin and other producers to turn over documents related to the planning of the production. Criminal charges against Baldwin were dropped earlier this year, but they could be re-filed. Baldwin insists he did not pull the trigger of a gun that ended up killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Today is Thursday, October 12th, the 285th day of the year.

October 12th in history…

 

…In 1609, the song “Three Blind Mice” was published in London.

 

 

 

…In 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt renamed the Executive Mansion “The White House.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

…In 1928, the artificial respirator, usually called an “iron lung,” was first demonstrated in a Boston hospital. It was used to resuscitate a young girl who had become unconscious from respiratory failure.

 

 

 

 

…In 1971, “Jesus Christ Superstar” premiered on Broadway.

 

 

 

 

…In 1978, Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols was arrested in New York and charged with the murder of his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. He died of a drug overdose prior to the trial.

 

 

…In 1985, television announcer, Johnny Olsen died at the age of 75. Olsen was the announcer for several shows including “Match Game,” “What’s My Line?” and of course, “The Price Is Right.” For the latter, he’s credited for developing the famous phrase “Come on down!”

 

 

 

…In 1997, legendary singer John Denver died at the age of 53 during a solo plane crash.

 

 

 

 

…In 1998, five days after he was beaten and tied to a fence, gay University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard died of his injuries. Two men were charged with his murder.