Wednesday News Brief

66-year-old Vincenne Mendrysa of Batavia has been arrested and charged with criminal contempt and falsely reporting an incident to law enforcement. Mendrysa was held in Genesee County Jail for CAP Court arraignment.

 

37-year-old Jordan Brodie of LeRoy has been arrested and charged with the receipt, distribution and possession of child pornography, following a similar previous conviction for possession. Brodie became involved in a chat application in which he and others traded child pornography. Investigation revealed he had uploaded at least one image; a search of his phone and social media account revealed more images of children, some as young as six years of age. In May 2021, Brodie was convicted of child pornography charges in Genesee County and was on probation. If he is found guilty of the new charges, Brodie faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

 

The community is safer now that Alexander Kise is behind bars, according to Ontario County Assistant District Attorney Victoria Porter. Kise, now 21, of Canandaigua, not only held a high school student captive in June 2022, according to Porter, but he also threatened the DA’s office and attempted to flee the area. A warrant had to be issued for his arrest when he failed to show up for the verdict announcement. Porter said the 18-year-old victim feared for her life after Kise, who she met on social media, threatened to kill her and hurt her family. Kise’s attorney hasn’t responded to a request for comment. Porter said she believed Kise’s grandmother could face charges. Kise faces up to 57 years in prison when he’s sentenced, which hasn’t been scheduled yet.

 

There are many differing thoughts on the New York Heat Act, which would give more authority over the gas industry to the Public Service Commission. The bill would impose a 6% cap for low-to-moderate income customers and end ratepayer subsidies for natural gas expansion. However, the bill does not have universal support: Senator Borrello believes, if affordability for residents is the purpose of the bill, that the state can do more to make New York more affordable. The state budget deadline is April 1.

 

Organizers of the Lilac Festival in Rochester have announced an expanded lineup of musical performances for this year’s event. Among the bands expected to be on stage include Bellwether Breaks, the Fall Creek Brass Band, The Pete Griffith Group, and The Honey Smugglers. The 126th festival takes place from May 10th through the 19th at Highland Park. For more details, head to roclilacfest.com.

 

A Buffalo man is facing a fine of up to $15,000 for having a loaded gun at Buffalo Niagara International Airport. The weapon was discovered Monday in his front pants pocket when he went through security. The gun had a total of eight bullets inside of it, including one that was already in the chamber. The TSA says this is yet another case of a gun owner not being responsible with their weapon and putting the safety of others at risk.

 

A lawsuit filed by a Rochester Police Department officer is being allowed to move forward by a court. Legal action is being taken against Rochester and Monroe County by Officer Denny Wright. He was brutally attacked while responding to a domestic call on Peck Street in 2019 by Keith Williams. Wright wants compensation for his injuries as well as pain and suffering. Williams is spending decades behind bars for attempted murder.

 

Both the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres are now under the leadership of a brand-new Chief Operating Officer. Pete Guelli replaces the interim COO of the Bills, Josh Dziurlikowski, and Sabres interim COO Rob Minter. Both Minter and Dziurlikowski have new roles with their respective teams. Guelli used to work with the New York Giants where he served five years as that franchise’s Chief Business Officer. He’s a Rochester native and also graduated from SUNY Brockport.

 

The Rochester Amerks start a 3-game home stand tonight as they host Hartford; face-off is at 7:05; Friday night they take on the Toronto Marlies and then Sunday, it’s a matinee game against the Utica Comets starting at 3:05.

 

 

The Buffalo Sabres have come up short in their bid to win a second straight game. Rasmus Dahlin had both goals for Buffalo as his team fell to the Vancouver Canucks on the road last night by a final score of 3-2. Sabres goaltender Devon Levi faced a total of 33 shots in the contest and he was able to stop just 31 of them. The Sabres’s next game is tomorrow night in Edmonton against the Oilers.

 

ELSEWHERE…

March 20, 1991: Eric Clapton’s four-year-old son, Conor, fell to his death from a 53rd floor window of his mother’s apartment in New York City. A grieving dad wrote the Grammy-winning song “Tears In Heaven” in memory of the boy.