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Law and Order: West Main Street, Batavia, teen arrested on year-old City Centre mall burglary

By Billie Owens

D'andre J. Cramer, 19, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with: third-degree burglary; fourth-degree criminal mischief; and petit larceny. Cramer was arrested and arraigned on Sept. 11 following an investigation into a burglary which occurred a year ago this month at a shop in the City Centre mall. He was jailed and bail was set at $5,000. The defendant is due in Batavia City Court on Sept. 20. The case was investigated by Batavia Police Det. Thad Mart.

Rachel M. Penepinto, 27, of Vine Street, Batavia, is charged with second-degree harassment. Penepinto was arrested on Vine Street at 4:20 p.m. on Sept. 15 after being accused of threatening to fight a neighbor and kill their dog. She was released on an appearance ticket and is due in Batavia City Court on Sept. 18. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Jason Ivison.

Ryan Matthew Norton, 44, of Bloomingdale Road, Alabama, is charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and second-degree harassment. Following an investigation into a domestic incident which occurred 8:15 p.m. on Sept. 11 on Bloomingdale Road. Norton was arrested, arraigned and put in jail on $2,500 bail. He is due in Alabama Town Court on Oct. 4. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Kevin Forsyth.

Danny D. Williams, 29, of Pearl Street, Batavia, is charged with first-degree criminal contempt and second-degree harassment. Williams was located on Thorpe Street in Batavia and arrested following an investigation into an incident which occurred at 3:39 a.m. on Sept. 8 on Wood Street in Batavia. He was jailed on $20,000 cash or bond bail. He is due in City Court on Sept. 20. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Felicia DeGroot, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Marissa B. Royse, 28, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with: driving while ability impaired by drugs -- combined influence of drugs; following to closely; speed not reasonable and prudent; moving from lane unsafely; and failure to keep right on a two-lane road. She was arrested on Sept. 10 at 11:12 a.m. at 27 Walnut St. in Batavia following an investigation into an accident with injuries. She was issued multiple tickets and released; she was due in City Court this morning (Sept. 17). The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Marc Lawrence, assisted by Officer Stephen Quider. Forty minutes later, at 17 Walnut St., she was allegedly found to be in possession of marijuana following the investigation into the personal injury motor-vehicle accident earlier that hour at 27 Walnut St. She is due in City Court on Tuesday, Sept. 18 to answer that charge. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Stephen Quider, assisted by Officer Marc Lawrence.

Aaron M. Hatt, 22, no permanent address, Batavia, is charged with: unlawful possession of marijuana, criminal obstruction of breathing; criminal mischief in the fourth degree; and second-degree harassment. Hatt was arrested following an investigation into a domestic incident which occurred at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 14 at an apartment on Thomas Avenue, Batavia. He was arraigned and jailed on $2,000 cash bail or $4,000 bond. He was due in Cioty Court this morning (Sept. 17). The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Kevin DeFelice, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Latiqua Shonnel Jackson, 25, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with introducing dangerous contraband into prison in the first degree and criminal use of drug paraphernalia in the second degree. On Sept. 10 at about 2:20 p.m., Jackson was being processed into GC Jail. It is alleged that she knowingly entered the jail while in possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia. She was arrested on the charges Sept. 13 and jailed on $10,000 cash bail. She is due back in City Court on Sept. 20. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Jeremy McClellan, assisted by Deputy Susan Mattice.

Joseph Buckley, 57, is charged with having an open container of alcohol in a city park. At 10:23 a.m. on Sept. 12, Buckley was arrested in Austin Park on Jefferson Avenue. He was jailed on $250 bail and was due in City Court on Sept. 13. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Kyle Krtanik, assisted by Officer Kevin DeFelice.

Scott D. Larnder, 42, Tracy Avenue, Batavia, is charged with failure to appear. He was arrested on Sept. 13 for failing to appear on previous charges. After arraignment, he was released on his own recognizance. He was due back in City Court on Sept. 14. The  case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Catherine Mucha, assisted by Officer Jason Davis.

John Roach

So, Joseph Buckley had an open container of alcohol in a City park in the morning. And instead of being cited and released with a court date, he Is jailed. For what? A beer? The cost of just one day in jail would be more than any fine he would get.

Howard, do you know if there is more to this than originally reported than just having an open container?

Sep 17, 2018, 5:14pm Permalink
Kyle Slocum

Ed,

What money are we to be following here? The extra cost to the city and county to house Buckley? His fines, if he pays any, will not pay for a fraction of his cost of incarceration. So, what is the monetary motivation for the officer to jail him?

I have no idea what happened in this case, but. Generally this is an offense that would be cited with an appearance ticket.

However, if there were circumstances that indicated that the subject:

-was not going to honor the ticket (come to court), or
-that the subject was going to continue to engage in the unlawful conduct after being cited, or
-that the subject refused to identify himself sufficiently so that the officer was confident of the subject's actual identity, or
-that the subject is currently under the supervision of a court, probation or parole department

then the subject would be arraigned. That way the judge can make a decision as to the necessity of setting bail. The officer does not set bail.
The purpose of bail is to insure the return to the court of the defendant. It is not a punishment and, in case you were not aware, the majority of the bail money is returned to the defendant after the case is adjudicated.

Sometimes, judges will release a defendant without setting bail. This will be because the judge is satisfied that the defendant will return and will not re-offend while released. The judge also has direct authority over the defendant after arraignment and can issue a bench warrant as necessary to get the defendant back into court.

The system has its flaws, but the idea that any jurisdiction in NYS is making money off arresting people or jailing them is just not in accordance with reality. The state itself makes the most off of fines and surcharges but look at the stories here on the Batavian about the costs the state lays on the counties and communities. It is obvious that no money is being made off of criminal justice.

Sep 19, 2018, 2:25pm Permalink
Ed Hartgrove

Kyle. Like you, I have no idea what the circumstances were, that (warranted?) an arrest vs. a citation. Yes, in my opinion, there probably was something more than merely having a beer that led to incarceration.
As for the "... will not pay for a fraction of his cost of incarceration", I'm a little unsure of what those "costs" are.
I believe the room (cell) is already built & available. Likewise, the jail personnel are paid per year, not per person. Those "officers" are there, whether there's 0 prisoners, or 5. They, most likely, aren't feeding the incarcerated lobster and steak. What's the going price of bologna sandwiches and a carton of milk, nowadays? I do suppose there IS an "extra" cost, for water used during a shower.
OK, I will grant that the jurisdiction isn't "making money" from incarceration. On the other hand, though, "petty crimes" (like, having a beer in the park, or, having a couple marijuana joints in your pocket - just for examples) don't warrant jail time - in my opinion, of course. I'm pretty sure there's others that will say differently.

Kyle. If you happen to see our friend, D. Stowell, tell him I said "Hi". I gotta call him one of these days. It's been a while.

Sep 19, 2018, 10:25pm Permalink
Kyle Slocum

Ed,

The thing you have to remember is that while the offense doesn't warrant incarceration the associated conduct may. There was a video a few years back of an officer who was assigned to enforce jaywalking on a busy street because people were getting hit by cars. One lady refused to accept a ticket. As in walked away from the officer like he was just a random annoyance. He had to stop her by taking hold of her arm and she resisted, pulling away. He ended up physically taking her into custody and she put up a heck of a fight.

The question arises: What do you do? Let the woman opt out of being arrested? Think about it: If nobody has to take a ticket then nobody has to follow the law. Harass your neighbor, litter, speed, let your dog crap on your neighbors yard, drive drunk, you name it. No consequences. Just ignore the officer and go about your day.

So, no, somebody shouldn't be jailed for an open beer in a park. But, as I laid out above, sometimes they earn an exception. In a civilized society you have to agree to the basic system. If an officer accuses you of an offense you take the ticket and you plead your case in court. You do not just opt out of your part of the social contract.

As to how much his fines are going to be, I suspect it will be time served and that is it, unless he bailed out immediately. And maybe even then. If he was drunk and ornery, he may have been done a favor by the police. He got to sober up where he couldn't get himself into real trouble. There have been many times where an early arrest for a minor thing saved everyone the trouble and consequences of a major arrest for a serious thing shortly thereafter.

And, I really should stop in and see Stowell, you are right about that.

Sep 20, 2018, 1:06pm Permalink
Ed Hartgrove

I get it, Kyle. And, I also agree with what you wrote - "If an officer accuses you of an offense you take the ticket and you plead your case in court."

When I was a teen (young, dumb and full of ...vinegar?), I ALWAYS knew when I had messed up. When the "gumball" came on, I knew exactly the reason for it, and, dutifully pulled over and (unhappily) accepted the citation - with just ONE exception: Back in '67, the traffic light at the intersection of Covington and Main (in Perry) was set with such a short "yellow" duration that, you could literally enter the intersection on "green", see the "yellow" come on, and then see the "red", before your vehicle was under the light. It wasn't a secret to anyone who drove around Perry much. One late afternoon, it happened to me. And, of course, the Perry cop was sitting on Main, at the light, waiting for it to turn "green" for him. I KNEW he was gonna stop me for it. I saw the "gumball" come on, in my rearview mirror, as he turned onto Borden, but, I decided that it wasn't going to happen.

I was driving "Wild Thing", a '66 El Camino with a 396. You can ask your uncle Joe about "Wild Thing" - I "traded" vehicles with him one day, and let him use mine, and I drove his '61 Pontiac Catalina. Anyhow, by the time I crested the first hill on Borden Ave., there was no way he was gonna catch me. I ended up pulling into my girlfriend's driveway on the hill on Gardeau, and watched the cop speeding past, heading towards Main, "gumball" still going.
Right or wrong (OK, it was wrong), I had made the decision that I wasn't going to get a ticket for, what I considered to be, an "unjust" traffic light.
Like I said, "young and dumb...".

Sep 20, 2018, 9:17pm Permalink
Daniel Norstrand

To say that no one is making money is just not true, and it's also not true that 5 officers will be there wether 0 or 5 prisoners. Staffing is done based on the occupancy rate. The lower the rate the lower the staffing. Also taken into account is the highest occupancy rate. Especially when considering things like a new jail. So yes while the arbitrary 5 guards will be there wether the rate of occupancy is up or down, if consistently down, the next year should show a corresponding drop in staffing. Most bureaucrats don't want to see their bureaucracies diminished so they take certain actions. Managers don't want less staff as it endangers their job and diminishes their prestige so they take certain actions. Employees don't want to be laid off so they take certain actions. Unions don't want to be diminished so they take certain actions. All for money and power. City managers and county managers and school superintendents all like to have monuments erected as a legacy. Thus even though our population shrinks, our government grows.
A friend used to do some work on my rentals with me. Good guy, and he was down on government waste etc. But he wouldn't say boo when it came to county politics and waste. His wife worked for the county. So no doubt that the double standard exists even in the right minded. If government doesn't have to adhere to the same standards that business does then it's corrupted, and basically becomes welfare. If Government employees make more arrests and/or prosecutions in order to maintain their lifestyle then they're not the type of people we want in such positions. If they fail to uphold the constitution then they're not the type of people we want in such positions.

Sep 21, 2018, 12:15am Permalink

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