Stories from

The folks at Lighting Design Innovations want to give something back to their community, so they are offering to donate hardware, software, lights and wiring to illuminate the cupola atop the Old Courthouse 365 days a year.

Paul Mercier, a partner in the company, told members of the County Legislature about the proposed donation at a meeting of the Public Service Committee earlier this week. The committee voted to accept the donation, which is valued at $7,500.

"For us, the significant aspect of being here is we believe in community," Mercier said.

LDI is a multinational corporation with headquarters in Batavia and an office in Western Canada and clients spread throughout North America, Mercier said. They chose to base the company in Batavia because his partner is from Batavia and they like it here and think it's geographically well placed for their business.

"People often ask why we’re in Batavia and I always say, it’s the best place to be," Mercier said. "It’s the best place to be for business. If you take a string on a map and go 500 miles we hit a great deal of the population and I can tell you that within that 500-mile string, we are working in all of it right now."

Mercier shared a few slides of municipal lighting projects installed by LDI.

Then he presented mock-ups of what the Old Courthouse might look like with illuminated decorative lights.

While LDI is donating just enough equipment to illuminate the copula, it's Mercier's hope that other people in the community will step forward with donations sufficient enough to enable the entire building to be illuminated. As part of his presentation, Mercier showed Photoshopped mock-ups of what the courthouse might look like when fully illuminated.

The lighting system consists of LED lights that can display millions of colors that shine on an object, such as the cupola, with color designs being made by software attached to the lighting system.

Assistant County Manager Matt Landers said the new system will replace a conventional lighting system that is used on special occasions. The electricity cost between the less-efficient system and the new LED system used more frequently will be about the same, Landers said.

Mercier, Landers and county staff did meet one evening recently for a demo lighting of the cupola. 

“What I was surprised by that night is how from how far away you can see the cupola," Mercier said. "It is truly a beacon from all directions.”

Once the lighting is installed, which Mercier said is an easy process, he thinks legislators will be eager to see the entire building illuminated.

"You’ll love the way it is, we have no doubt about that, but we think you’ll want to consider a second and third phase that you can celebrate all over again that you’ve illuminated something else on the courthouse," he said.

The cause of a fire that destroyed a house in Alabama where an elderly man was living has yet to be determined.

The fire at 8006 Alleghany Road, Indian Falls, was called in shortly after 5 p.m. with smoke and flames showing from the back of the residence.

Pembroke Chief Jamie Waff said dispatchers received several calls reporting flames showing, so the fire immediately went to a second alarm with Town of Batavia, Darien, Corfu and Alabama joining Pembroke, Indian Falls and the Town of Batavia's Fast Team joining the initial response. East Pembroke, Akron, Newstead and Oakfield were also toned out later.

"With manpower issues during the day, right at five, along with the fire, we went right to a second alarm for manpower," Waff said.

The wind from the southwest quickly pushed the fire from the rear of the house to the front.

The resident reportedly kept a lot of items in the house and the first firefighters in found the back of the second floor piled with garbage bags filled with stuff, so the firefighters were initially pulled out until the situation could be better assessed for their safety.

The resident, who was outside when firefighters arrived, was placed in a patrol vehicle after deputies arrived on scene so he could stay warm. The deputy requested a medic to check him for possible smoke inhalation. 

There was a dog and some cats inside the residence, but Waff didn't know the status of the animals at the time we talked.

A house fire, with flames showing in the rear, is reported at 8006 Alleghany Road, Pembroke.

Pembroke and Indian Falls dispatched along with the City of Batavia Fast Team.

UPDATE 5:17 p.m.: Working structure fire. Additional response from Town of Batavia, Darien, Corfu and Alabama.

UPDATE 7:15 p.m.: I just returned from the scene of the fire. At the time I left, smoke and a small bit of flame were still showing, but firefighters seemed to have things under control, though it was looking like the fire could continue in that condition for some time. An older man lived in the house and was placed in a deputy's car for warmth until an ambulance arrived to check him for possible smoke inhalation. The fire spread from the back of the house to the front and got into the attic. A dog escaped the fire, we're told, but the status of cats living in the house is unknown. More later tonight with photos, probably in a separate post from this one.

UPDATE: Reader submitted photos.

A Batavia resident accused of menacing a police officer with a knife nearly a year ago has until Tuesday to decide if he will withdraw his guilty plea on a weapons charge and take his case to trial.

Bill A. Thomas, 57, first entered a guilty plea to criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, on July 21. When he was supposed to be sentenced in November, he tried to withdraw his guilty plea and asked for a new attorney.

While Thomas wasn't allowed then to change his plea, he was given time to find a new attorney.

Today, with Michael Mohun, normally the judge in Wyoming County, presiding in County Court for this case and one other, the case took another twist.

After hearing Officer Peter Flanigan read a victim's statement, District Attorney Lawrence Friedman argue for a harsh sentence and Jamie Welch, representing Thomas, advocate for a probationary sentence, Mohun summoned both attorneys to the bench.

There was a short conversation, then Mohun said he and the attorneys would meet in chambers to discuss a procedural issue.

Nearly two hours later, the attorneys, judge, defendant and his family members were all back in court after several private discussions involving all parties.

Mohun announced that when Thomas entered his guilty plea there was a procedural error related to what he admitted to and what was stated in the SCI (Special Court Information, a document used in lieu of a Grand Jury indictment). The procedural error could potentially invalidate the guilty plea, and that is why Thomas now has a chance to reconsider his plea.

Since Welch is new to the case, joining only after Thomas entered his guilty plea in July, Welch said he hasn't reviewed all of the evidence. Also, Thomas would like more time to think through his decision and confer with his family.

In his statement, Flanigan recalled a potentially catastrophic confrontation at 4 a.m., March 16, when he entered the Thomas home on State Street. He said Thomas moved aggressively toward him with a knife, and after Thomas failed to obey his verbal commands to drop the knife, Flanigan said he realized he would have to shoot Thomas to protect himself. As he reached for his pistol, the brother of Thomas entered the hallway in an attempt to leave the house, and he came between Flanigan and Thomas. Flanigan said he no longer had a clear shot at Thomas and the situation defused at that point.

The confrontation -- in which Flanigan said he both knew he might have to kill Thomas and that his own life was in danger, causing thoughts of his family and coworkers to flash through his mind -- left him shaken and he described having times of trouble sleeping and displaying other symptoms of stress, he said. 

Friedman spoke next and said that Thomas was prepared to go to trial until Interim Judge Micheal Pietruszka proposed a plea settlement, which both sides then accepted. Friedman said Thomas was a lucky man -- lucky to be alive, lucky that he wasn't charged with a more serious crime, lucky to get the plea offer he did and given his good fortune, but the serious nature of the crime, he should be given no leniency in sentencing.

Welch noted that his client never had a prior violent felony charge and it had been nearly two decades since his last criminal conviction, a misdemeanor, and it's been since 1996 that he was convicted of a felony, a DWI. Therefore, he said, he deserved a probationary sentence with credit for time served (he's been in jail for 11 months).  

While Flanigan noted that Thomas hasn't admitted to threatening the officer, Welch said when a blood sample was taken from Thomas at 8 a.m., four hours after the alleged confrontation, Thomas had a BAC of .22 and has said he doesn't remember much about that morning and doesn't believe he would have threatened a police officer with a knife.

The defense attorney also noted that even though police had control of the crime scene from the time they arrived until the investigation was completed, there was never a knife found on Thomas or at the scene.

Davon Shaquille St. John, 18, of Oak Street, Batavia, is charged with assault, 2nd. St. John is accused of assaulting somebody while confined at the Genesee County Jail at 8:49 p.m., Monday. He was jailed on $10,000 bail.

Wayne L. Pierce, 75, of Alexander, is charged with forcible touching. Pierce is accused of inappropriately grabbing a female employee at the Ben Go's gas station in Attica.

Bishop Williams, 23, of Genesee Street, Le Roy, is charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance, 4th, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, 4th. Williams is accused of selling Suboxone in May while in the Village of Wyoming. He was arrested by Wyoming County Drug Task Force following an investigation. He was jailed on $15,000 bail.

Odanis Betances, 21, of Morris Avenue, Bronx, is charged with petit larceny. Betances is accused of stealing $125.99 in merchandise from Kmart.

Brian James Lipinski, 33, of Richley Road, Darien, is charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument. Lipinski allegedly used a counterfeit bill to pay for food delivered to his residence.

Jarvis Davon Seymore, 33, of Michigan Street, Rochester, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, unlicensed driving, aggravated unlicensed driving, and speeding. Seymore was stopped at 1:51 p.m., Monday, on Clinton Street Road, Stafford, by Deputy Chad Cummings.

Boys Basketball

• Batavia 57, Greece Odyssey 46 FINAL
• Oakfield 66, Attica 51 FINAL
• Byron-Bergen 58, Alexander 44 FINAL
• Cal-Mum 60, Letchworth 51 FINAL
• Le Roy 53, Warsaw 50 FINAL
• Kendall 50, Notre Dame 49 FINAL
• Pembroke 69, Holley 48 FINAL
• Lyndonville 60, Wheatland-Chili 34 FINAL
• Geneseo 66, Pavilion 48 FINAL

Press release:

Strength in Numbers Entertainment announced the 2017 dates for the annual American Warrior Concert sponsored by Red Osier Landmark Restaurant to be held June 2nd and 3rd at "The Ridge NY" on Conlon Road in Le Roy.

For the past four years the event was held in Southern California, but going into its fifth year Strength In Numbers Entertainment owner Dan Clor insisted on going back to his roots and producing the festival in his hometown.

The American Warrior Concert is known for serving as a tribute and to honor the military's active and retired personnel. The American Warrior Concert 2017 will be giving away up to 2,000 General Admission show tickets to veterans and active duty military alike.

This event also donates to a nonprofit veterans' organization of its choice. This year’s event beneficiary is Warrior House of WNY Inc., in Medina, an organization that uses the outdoors to help heal veterans mentally and spiritually. Rochester Vets Center and Honor Flight Rochester will also be in attendance to provide our veterans with additional beneficial information. If you are a veteran or are still active duty, and would like to see the show for free, please contact us and we will make sure that your name is included.

The American Warrior Concert headliner will be none other than Weapon-X, frontman Dan Clor's military inspired heavy band. All other acts scheduled to date include D-ZL, Audibull, Diana Zinni, James D Jackson, Jason Wallace, Ryan Whyman, Black Valentine, Invictra, Kenny Drury, Johnny Bauer, The Dirty Bourbon Blues Band, Delano Steele, 1916, Danny B, Le Roy High Marching Band/Chorus, Dave Riccione Blues Trio, Shawn T, Greg Chako Jazz Trio, Woody Dodge, Ball Cheeze Psychotics and Justin Williams. These acts represent a wide variety of music, something for everyone’s musical tastes.  More acts are being added to the bill.

Clor, a military man himself who is a Marine veteran having served overseas in Iraq sums up the benefit concert with, "American Warrior Concert 2017 -- A celebration of our troops, veterans, and American way of life." The concert is an all-ages event featuring one main stage, a side stage, an acoustic stage, VIP tent, music lesson tent, open jam tent, camping, craft beer, BBQ, vendor booths and is scheduled to have 20+ bands perform.

If you are a local business that would like to be involved with our American Warrior Concert as a sponsor, vendor or contributor please contact us at the number/e-mail above.

To purchase concert tickets click here.

To rent a campsite click here.

      Leonard Hahn

A teen from Le Roy has been charged with multiple counts of rape in the first degree following a joint investigation between Attica PD and the Genesee County Sheriff's Office.

The investigation began with a single complaint when a student revealed information about an alleged sexual encounter to a school official in Attica.

During the investigation, additional children came forward and made similar allegations. 

Leonard E. Hahn IV, was subsequently arrested by Attica PD.

Assisting in the investigation were investigators Tim Wescott and John Dehm of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office.

The victims are all under age 11.

The Justice for Children Advocacy Center in Batavia assisted in the investigation.

Hahn was jailed on $100,000 bail or $200,000 bond. He is being held in Genesee County pending further proceedings in Genesee County and Wyoming County.

Anyone with additional information is asked to contact his or her local law enforcement agency.

Statement from Bethany Town Supervisor Carl Hyde:

As a Veteran, a taxpayer and a lifetime resident of New York I find it very unsettling that Governor Cuomo wants to dissolve local municipalities into a single County government.

First off he (the Governor) would like to remove “Home Rule” from our communities.

For those that don’t know what “Home Rule” is, it is the right to local self-government including the powers to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals and welfare, to license, tax and incur debt. The freedom of choice, non-interference, non-intervention, political independence, self-reliance and self-subsistence.

So ask yourself why does the Governor want to do this?

The Governor is also trying to extort our municipalities into consolidation by withholding $715,000,000.

In AIM (Aid & Incentives for Municipalities) funds unless the municipalities have a plan to consolidate services by August 1, 2017 or it goes to a voter referendum at November’s election. If it doesn’t pass the Governor wants Municipalities to try it again in 2018.

Can a Governor be so out of touch with the Municipalities in his State you may wonder? Yes he is. The Municipalities already have shared service agreements to help each other in times of need. These agreements have been in place for several decades! And there is NO duplication of services.

There are 58 Counties in the State of California (for example) and only 1 County (Colusa) has kept their “Home Rule.” All the other Counties have to ask permission from the Governor to do anything. See how that’s working for them or should I say NOT working for them.

The Constitution was written by the people for the people to eliminate Kings, Queens and Dictators.

Go to your Town Board meetings, your Board of Supervisor meetings and your County Legislature meetings. Call or visit your Assemblymen and women and your Senators.

Ask questions and get informed as to what is going on in New York State.

A property-damage accident is reported in the area of 5768 Clinton Street Road, Batavia.

A caller reports smelling smoke coming from one of the vehicles.

No injuries are reported.

Town of Batavia fire dispatched.

UPDATE Noon: Mercy EMS requested non-emergency.

Bryn Luckey once again came up with the winning shot, hitting a three-pointer at the close of the game to give Le Roy a 37-34 win over Warsaw.

Luckey finished with eight points, as did Libby Loftus. Lydia Borrelli and Ceci Tillson each had seven.

Girls Basketball

• Warsaw 34, Le Roy 37 – FINAL
• Odyssey 41, Batavia 30 FINAL
• Rochester Prep Kendall – not yet available
• Geneseo 47, Pavilion 40 FINAL
• Letchworth 35, Cal-Mum 33 FINAL

Hockey

• Churchville-Chili 6, Genesee Ice Devils 4 FINAL

A power outage affecting 471 National Grid customers is reported along Clinton Street Road in Stafford and is also, we are told, causing a power outage at Genesee Community College.

The outage was reported at about 4:30 a.m.

A repair crew has been assigned, according to National Grid. The estimated time of power restoration is 8:30 a.m.

The area affected runs along Route 33 from about Seven Springs Road to nearly Route 237 and includes parts of Horseshoe Lake and up to Byron Road.

UPDATE 8:40 a.m.: The ETA for repairs has been revised to "assessing conditions."

UPDATE 8:57 a.m.: The size of the outage area has been reduced to 137 customers, between Clinton Street Road and Byron Road. The college is no longer included in the outage area.

UPDATE 10 a.m.: Not sure when power was restored to the entire area, but power has been restored.

Members of the Batavia Rotary Club were introduced to a new fundraising concept at their lunch meeting today that as far as anybody knows hasn't been tried in Genesee County before.

It's called a meat raffle and Andrea Aldinger, pictured, has participated in such raffles in Wyoming County.

She demonstrated the raffle for members today because the club will be hosting one April 7 at the Sacred Heart Social Center.

How a meat raffle works is, people pay to attend, in this case $5, and then they can buy raffle tickets for each item as it becomes available. For example, the person running the raffle holds up five pounds of bacon and says the bacon will go to the next auction winners.  Participants then have five minutes to buy raffle tickets, each numbered from 1-7, for $1 each. Then the person spins the raffle wheel and each person with the winning number (yes, there can be more than one winner) wins five pounds of bacon.  

There will be 20 such raffles, including not just bacon, but steaks, chickens, turkey, roasts and ribs.

Aldinger said participants need to bring a cooler to hold their meat, because they will win meat.

She also recommended making it a social event, getting a table of 10 as a group and bringing your own snacks and food dishes to eat during the three-hour raffle. The club will provide two kegs of beer, free until it runs out, and sodas will be free. There will also be a hosted bar, hosted by the church.

Raffle tickets will only be sold at the event, but there are separate prizes, including a wheelbarrow of booze and a freezer filled with meat, that people enter to win. See a local Rotarian for tickets.

Two brothers from Rochester involved in the beating of a patron of the Playmates strip club in Byron were scheduled for sentencing in County Court today, but after the attorney for one objected to new evidence brought to the hearing, that sentencing was delayed.

In the first case, Jonathon Lamagna, 19, who previously entered a guilty plea on second-degree assault and second-degree coercion, was sentenced to five years in prison and three years parole.

Scott Lamagna will be back in court Feb. 17 after defense attorney Thomas Burns said he felt "ambushed" by the presentation of recordings of phone calls in jail between Scott Lamagna and family members that Assistant District Attorney Kevin Finnell said showed that Scott Lamagna showed no remorse for his actions, that he was more interested in minimizing his jail time.

The brothers were arrested after a patron suffered serious injuries when they attacked him in the parking lot of Playmates.

Finnell provided a written deposition from the owner of Playmates who said she tried to assist the bloodied and beaten victim by dragging him back into the club and the brothers then continued their assault, kicking him as she tried to pull him away from them.

According to the statement, Scott Lamagna grabbed the victim from by the shirt and punched him repeatedly in the face as the owner tried to pull him onto the establishment's porch. She said she screamed, "Stop, stop, you're going to kill him."

Then Jonathon kicked the victim in the head and ribs, she said.

The victim was described by Finnell as a liver transplant recipient and short in stature and slight in build.  

Before sentencing, Jonathon read a statement, saying, "I feel drugs and alcohol played a part in my actions. I accept full responsibility for what I did."

Via our news partner, WBTA.

Press release:

The Genesee Chorale invites the community to "Summer Daze," a summer-themed choral performance at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 19 at St. Joseph Catholic School at 2 Summit St. in Batavia. This fun concert will depart from the Chorale's classical selections to uplift the audience and melt away the winter doldrums with an afternoon in the summer sun.

“This time of year, the long, dark winter days seem to stretch on forever,” said Director Ric Jones. “We wanted to give our audience a much-needed break from the snow and cold by transporting them to a warm, sunny day through music.”

The concert venue will be decorated for the theme, Chorale members will dress the part, and the Chorale will be accompanied by local musicians on percussion and ukuleles! These fun performances are audience favorites, with familiar songs and performances by the full chorale, small ensembles, and soloists.

Concertgoers will recognize many of the song selections, like the Beach Boys’ "Little Deuce Coupe," Israel Kamakawiwo'ole’s Hawaiian rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," Bob Marley’s "One Love," and many more.

Presale tickets cost $8 and can be purchased from any Chorale member or online at www.geneseechorale.com. Tickets will also be available at the door for $10. In the event of severe winter weather, the concert will be rescheduled for the same place and time on the following Sunday, Feb. 26.

This performance is made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, administered by the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council.

The Genesee Chorale is a community chorus founded in 1971 with members from Genesee County and seven surrounding counties. The Chorale’s repertoire includes a wide variety of music in various styles from motets and madrigals of the Renaissance, to folk, musicals and jazz. The Chorale always welcomes new singers. The Chorale is directed by Ric Jones, who is the owner of Imagine Music Publishing, the musical director of the Brighton Symphony Orchestra and The Middleport Community Choir, and is also the organist at St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church in Medina and Trinity Lutheran Church in Wolcottsville.

Press release:

Batavia High School Student Government in conjunction with Batavia Police Department raised $800 Monday night. The money will be used to give back to a BHS student or students in the form of a scholarship at awards night in the spring awarded to seniors looking into law enforcement or criminal justice.

This is the second year of the event and coincides with the high school "Snowcoming" week where BHS celebrates winter and winter athletes. The senior Class of 2017 beat out staff members and the Police Department team and will be awarded the trophy during the winter pep assembly later this week. 

Top photo: Submitted photo; photos below, by Howard Owens.

Chance the Rapper, fresh off a Grammy win this week, has been added to the lineup of top stars coming to Darien Lake Performing Arts Center this season.

The show is scheduled for 8 p.m., May 31.

The theme park won't be open on that date, though for all other upcoming dates, Live Nation is celebrating 25 years of bringing music to Darien Lake by partnering with the Theme Park to offer free park admission on concert nights.

Other acts booked for the summer include Zac Brown Band, Third Eye Blind, Nickelback, Chicago and the Doobie Brothers, Foreigner, Kings of Leon, Lady Antebellum, and Green Day.

For more on the concert season, click here.

Boys Basketball 

• RCMCS 88, Holley 58 FINAL
• Pavilion 53, Kendall 43 FINAL
• East Aurora 62, Batavia 53 FINAL

Girls Basketball

• Oakfield 63, Attica 41 FINAL
• Notre Dame 43, Kendall 23 FINAL
• Wheatland-Chili 79, Lyndonville 30 FINAL
• Alexander 50, Byron-Bergen 44 FINAL

Press release:

Batavia City School District Board of Education Awards on Feb. 7

Two Board members – Karen Tomidy and Leslie Johnson – each received a Certificate of Completion for finishing a NYS-mandated training for Board of Education members.

Batavia Middle School student Garrett Schmidt was presented with an Outstanding Student Award by Board of Education President Patrick Burk at the February Board meeting. He was nominated by BMS Principal Ashley Grillo, who wrote, “Garrett Schmidt is a stellar student who has transitioned into sixth-grade seamlessly. Even with increased expectations and responsibilities, Garrett is going above and beyond on a daily basis. Not only is Garrett kind and helpful to ALL students, he is meticulous in his work and his effort exceeds expectations. He is a quiet leader, which spurred his nomination to a leadership conference this summer. Garrett will attend the Ambassador Leadership Summit with students from 140 different countries that will enhance and refine his strong leadership potential. He is a student you trust. He works in the Counseling Center during his Home Base time and was even chosen to help a student travel to and from classes due to a broken wrist.”

Batavia Middle School staff members Karen O’Donnell, Laura Kaczmarek, Karen Cima, Jessica Korzelius and Frank Ferri were presented with Outstanding Employee Awards by Board of Education President Patrick Burk at the February Board meeting. They were nominated by BMS Principal Ashley Grillo, who wrote, “These Batavia Middle School teachers are being recognized for their help in organizing the fifth-grade Staycation Field Trip. Mrs. Korzelius, Mr. Ferri, and Mrs. O'Donnell approached the Genesee Valley Educational Partnership about having them come to BMS with devices and other technological resources acquired through the GAMETech Grant. These devices included LittleBits, Cubelets, Lego WeDo Robotics, Lego StoryStarters, and Lego EV3 Mindstorms Robotics Kits. Once the Staycation was approved, Mrs. Cima and Mrs. Kaczmarek organized the Staycation and had the students rotate through various stations throughout the school day. Stations were setup for programming and others were set up for building. The technological modules are hands-on activities that fit into instructional learning standards and learning targets. All the students were engaged in problem solving and creativity at each station. The Staycation took two months to plan, as it was extremely involved. Congratulations to these teachers for thinking outside the box and coming up with an excellent idea for our BMS Students.”

Jackson Primary School teacher Kelly Radley was presented with an Outstanding Employee Award by Board of Education President Patrick Burk at the February Board meeting. She was nominated by Jackson Principal Diane Bonarigo, who wrote, “Ms. Radley serves as a Teacher on Special Assignment for Jackson Primary School and is the District’s Mentor/Mentee Coordinator. She is a highly respected teacher leader and serves the school in many different ways. Ms. Radley can always be seen at evening and Saturday events at Jackson Primary and consistently goes above and beyond to serve the needs of our students, staff and parents, and does this with great enthusiasm. Thank you, Ms. Radley, for making a significant contribution to our school community.”