Tuesday News Brief

59-year-old Michael Loveless of Webster is charged with grand larceny in Batavia. It’s alleged that he entered and drove away with a vehicle that was parked at a local gas station while the owner was inside the store. The vehicle was tracked using its GPS system and located in Lockport with Loveless still occupying the vehicle. He was taken into custody and turned over to Batavia Police. Loveless was arraigned in Batavia City Court and is being held until he returns to court one week from today.

 

 

A combination of windy, dry conditions today will create an elevated risk of wildfire spread across the entire GLOW region. Relative humidity values will drop to as low as 15 to 25 percent, with winds gusting up to 35 mph at times. Despite the recent greening of plants, these conditions may allow for rapid spread of fires if ignition occurs.

 

 

School budget votes are today, which means all residents in Genesee County are voting for district budgets, busses, school board members and personnel among other things. You can vote in Batavia until 9:00 this evening. This year’s budget represents about $4 million more than last year; with a correlating 1 percent tax levy increase. Other points of consideration that are up for a vote: Proposition 1 of the total budget of nearly $59 million. Proposition 2 seeks to establish a new capital reserve of $10 million for 10 years. Election of two Board of Education members to fill two seats, with incumbents Alice Benedict and Barbara Bowman running. If you live north of Main Street, voting is at Robert Morris; south of Main Street, you’ll vote at the High School.

 

The City of Batavia Fire Department is flushing and testing fire hydrants today until 3:00 in the area north of Main Street and west of Bank Street. Service to homes and businesses will be affected; if you notice the water is discolored, you should avoid washing clothes. If it does look discolored, run cold water for about five minutes or until it’s clear. This annual testing is essential to maintain the communities class III Insurance Services Office (ISO) public protection classification, and to assure that fire hydrants are operating efficiently for fire protection purposes. Along with maintaining the fire rating, the test monitors the health of the city’s water system, identifies weak areas in the system, and removes material that settles in the water lines. Checking each hydrant improves fire department personnel’s knowledge of the hydrant locations. If you have any questions, or should notice a hydrant in need of repair, please contact the fire department at 585-345-6375.

 

 

A road construction alert for you to keep in mind: Dewey Avenue from Birchwood Apartments to South Main Street, Madison Avenue, Orleans Avenue, and Adams Street, will experience construction delays and lane reductions for the cold milling of the pavement tomorrow from 7:00am – 7:00pm. All residents on these streets are asked not to park on the roadway during the day and either park in their driveways or neighboring streets. All area motorists are asked to avoid these streets if possible. Portions of this work are weather dependent, and delays may occur.

 

 

New legislation has been signed off on by Governor Hochul that she hopes will help combat New York’s current nursing shortage. The latest measure allows nurses to complete up to one-third of their training through clinical simulations. The governor says this high-tech training is just like working with real patients, and it comes highly recommended by industry professionals. The governor has already said she’s committed to boosting the workforce of nurses by 20% over the next five years.

 

National Grid says that time is running out for customers who are struggling to pay their winter utility bills to get help. People who receive benefits from the Home Energy Assistance Program may be eligible to receive additional emergency benefits to address their past-due balances, but the program closes May 19th. Anyone who wants to apply can do so through the HEAP Local District Contact page, which can be found at otda.ny.gov. HEAP applications for home heating aid closed in March.

 

 

 

A Buffalo woman has been charged with murder in connection with the shooting death of her own grandmother. According to prosecutors, 41-year-old Jamien Harris killed 90-year-old Catherine Jones in November 2021. Harris was caring for Jones, who was suffering from dementia, when the victim died due to a gunshot wound to the chest at her home on Highgate Avenue. If convicted of murder, Harris is facing a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

 

 

The name of the man who was shot and later died after answering the door at his home in Rochester over the weekend has been released. According to police, 22-year-old Jadarius Jathrow-Harris was hit by gunfire at his residence on Shelter Street Sunday morning. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. His murder isn’t being considered a random act of violence and anyone with information is asked to dial 911.

 

A pair of mail carriers in the Rochester area recently fell victim to violent crimes, an issue that’s rising in frequency across the nation. One of them was robbed at gunpoint on Culver Road and Parsells Avenue Saturday morning, just a day before one of their carriers was also robbed near the Westgate area in the Town of Gates. Five postal workers have been robbed while making deliveries in Rochester this year. President of the Letter Carriers Association Branch 210 Kenny Montgomery said things took a turn for the worse in 2020, when the Postmaster General removed Rochester’s Postal Police from the streets. The suspect involved in Saturday’s robbery near Culver and Parsells has since been taken into custody.

 

 

Members of the Board of Trustees at Medaille University in Buffalo say the school is going to be closing for good August 31st. Yesterday’s news came just days after a proposed merger between Medaille and Trocaire College was scrapped. In a statement, Medaille officials say that due to the merger being terminated and financial woes, the school has to be shut down. Work will begin soon to help students transfer to other colleges so they can finish up their academic careers.

 

 

Greece police say three people have been arrested in connection with an attempted vehicle theft at an apartment complex in their community. Officers responded to a report of individuals trying to break into a vehicle at Patriots Landing on Sunday. The suspects, 18-year-old Isiah Rivera, a 16-year-old boy, and 15-year-old boy were taken into custody following a brief foot chase. They were all issued appearance tickets and released.

 

 

A Livingston County jail cook is in some legal trouble after being accused of having a romantic relationship with an inmate. Officials say 56-year-old Lisa Falkner also allegedly inappropriately touched the inmate and brought an item into the jail for that individual. She is also accused of altering evidence after finding out that she was being investigated. Falkner is now facing multiple charges.

 

 

 

The Professional Football Writers of America have selected Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin as the 2023 George Halas Award winner. According to the PFWA, the award is given to an NFL player, coach, or staff member who overcomes the most adversity to succeed. Hamlin and Kevin Everett, who was named the winner in 2008, are the only members of the Bills organization to have won the award.

 

 

 

The Buffalo Bills have finalized their 2023 schedule by announcing when the team will be taking the field for preseason games. The Bills will host the Indianapolis Colts at Highmark Stadium on August 12th. That will be followed by road games on August 19th against the Pittsburgh Steelers and August 26th against the Chicago Bears. Buffalo begins its regular season on the road September 11th when they battle the New York Jets.

 

A legendary singer and songwriter is going to be bringing her brand new tour to Western New York later this year. Stevie Nicks is going to perform at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Wednesday, October 4th. Nicks was a lead singer for Fleetwood Mac, and has been inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Tickets for her show go on sale this Friday at 10:00am and they can be purchased at livenation.com.

 

ELSEWHERE…

 

Crime Stoppers WNY is offering a reward for information that leads to the arrest of a man Jamestown police say should be considered armed and dangerous. Whoever provides the tip that leads to 34-year-old Michael Burham being taken into custody will get up to $2500. Burham is suspected to have been involved in a homicide and he’s also wanted on multiple charges. It is believed he’s in Jamestown or the Warren, Pennsylvania area. All tips can be submitted by calling 716-867-6161.

 

 

Taco Bell wants to cancel the trademark “Taco Tuesday.” The trademark has been owned by rival Taco John’s for 34 years. Taco Bell argues the phrase should be freely available to all who make, sell, eat and celebrate tacos.

 

 

Triple AAA predicts air travel over Memorial Day weekend will be busier this year than it was pre-COVID, signaling a true return to pre-2020 travel levels. According to this year’s report, about 3,400,00 (3.4 million) Americans are expected to fly over the holiday weekend, an 11% increase over last year.

 

 

Martha Stewart is now the oldest “Sports Illustrated” swimsuit cover model. The 81-year-old is one of the latest cover stars on the iconic magazine’s 2023 issue. The lifestyle guru and business maven says to be on the cover at her age was a diet and exercise challenge. Stewart says she hopes this encourages older women to ‘look good and feel good.’

 

 

 

May 16 in history…

 

In 1770, a 14-year-old Marie Antoinette married the future King Louis the 16th of France who was 15.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 1866, a bill was passed to allow the United States Treasury Department to begin minting the nickel.

 

 

 

 

In 1939, food stamps were introduced in the U.S.A.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 1980, Elvis Presley’s personal physician, Dr. George Nickopoulas, was indicted by a grand jury on 14 counts of illegally prescribing drugs to Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and nine others. He was eventually barred from practicing medicine.

 

 

 

 

 

In 1984, actor, comedian Andy Kaufman died at the age of 35.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2002, “Mad Magazine” cartoonist Dave Berg died at the age of 81.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2020, department store JC Penney filed for bankruptcy.