We received this statement today from Jessica Joyce, a spokeswoman for Bed, Bath & Beyond:
We are working with the landlord and insurance professionals to reopen as soon as possible. Yes, we did offer reassignments to all of our associates.
The store was closed following a fire in the bedding department Jan. 27 and all of the merchandise, shelving and fixtures have been removed from the store.
Leon Clayton Bloom, 31, of Liberty Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, and coercion, 2nd. Bloom is accused of violating an order of protection by sending a letter to the protected person. He's further accused of trying to coerce her into doing things she has a right not to do. Bloom is currently in custody on another matter.
Rodney Lowell McKenzie, 49, of Weaver Street, Buffalo, is charged with petit larceny. McKenzie is accused of shoplifting at Walmart. He was jailed on $500 bail.
An accident, possiblly with injuries, is reported in the area of 25 Pringle Ave., Batavia.
City fire and Mercy EMS responding.
UPDATE 8:20 p.m.: City fire is back in service.
I'll be out of town for a couple of days to attend to a family matter.
There will still, however, be coverage of news in Genesee County while I'm gone. Billie remains in town. Alecia Kaus is helping out, as usual. We can pick up stories as needed from WBTA. I will, of course, have my laptop with me.
In case you haven't noticed, it's snowing.
So far, light snowfall, but the weather service says it will become heavier this afternoon and travel will become more difficult.
A winter storm warning remains in effect through tonight.
The governor has declared a state of emergency for the whole state, but on the conference call this morning, he mainly talked about the weather impacts Downstate.
Be careful out there.
Photo: Jackson Street
Jesse Woods, 18, of 41 Lake St., Le Roy, is charged with assault, 3rd. Woods is accused of punching a relative, causing bleeding, bruising and a fat lip. Woods was released under supervision of Genesee Justice.
Henry L. Banks, 43, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on City Court warrant for alleged front yard parking. Banks was arrested following a traffic stop by Deputy Joseph Corona and turned over to Batavia PD on the warrant. Banks posted $100 bail.
Five people are accused of gathering at a residence in Le Roy on Saturday for the purpose of unlawful conduct leading to their arrest on marijuana charges.
Members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force executed a search warrant at 9 Union St., Le Roy.
Joshua M. Bratcher, 23, of Union Street, Le Roy, is charged with criminal nuisance, 2nd, and unlawful possession of marijuana.
His apparent guests where charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. They are Samantha L. Pomeisl, 25, of Union Street, Le Roy; Jesse D. VanBuren, 22, of Alwardt Road, Wyoming; and, Alexander A. Chandler, 22, of Bacon Street, Le Roy.
Investigators said they recovered a quantity of marijuana and several smoking devices.
All five individuals were issued appearance tickets.
Assisting in the case were the District Attorney's Office, Deputy Chris Erion and canine Destro, and Le Roy PD.
CORRECTION: We left out a name: Erica C. Puleo, 25, of Union Street, Le Roy. Charged with criminal nuisance and unlawful possession of marijuana.
A person has been struck by a car at the intersection of State Street and Lewis Place, Batavia.
City fire and Mercy EMS responding.
UPDATE 8:05 a.m.: Patient transported to UMMC by Mercy EMS. City fire back in service.
Press release:
Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the arrest of Sarah Waclawski, 25, of Batavia, New York, a Certified Nurse Aide at Genesee County Nursing Home, for causing injury to a resident of the nursing home.
Court documents filed by the Attorney General allege that on March 27, 2013, Waclawski transferred a 100-year-old female resident suffering from dementia from her wheelchair to her bed without the assistance of another staff member, as required by the resident’s individual care plan. They further allege that once in bed, Waclawski decided to transfer the resident back to her wheelchair, again without the assistance of another staff member. Once the resident was back in the wheelchair, she fell to the floor, hitting her head on the wheelchair and sustaining a laceration and pain.
“Families who place their loved one in a nursing home should be able to take comfort in knowing that they’ll receive the best care possible. By ignoring her patient’s care plan and then failing to seek medical attention for her when she fell, Sarah Waclawski showed blatant disregard for the health and safety of her patient,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “My office will continue to prosecute cases like this to the fullest extent and send the message, loud and clear, that this conduct will not be tolerated.”
According to the felony complaint, without seeking medical assistance or advising a supervisor of the fall to conduct a nursing assessment, Waclawski enlisted the help of another aide to place the resident back into bed and then left the room. Approximately 15 to 20 minutes later, Waclawski reentered the room and observed blood on the resident’s pillow. Almost one hour later, a nurse came into the resident’s room and observed Waclawski wiping the resident’s head. The nurse also observed that several used wipes had what appeared to be blood on them. At no time prior to the nurse entering the resident’s room did Waclawski seek medical assistance for the resident.
Waclawski was charged with one count of Endangering the Welfare of an Incompetent or Physically Disabled Person in the First Degree, a class E felony, which carries a maximum prison term of four years. She was arraigned in Batavia City Court before the Honorable Robert Balbick and entered a plea of not guilty. She was released on her own recognizance and is due back in court on March 4, 2014.
The prosecution is being handled by Special Assistant Attorney General Thomas N. Schleif, under the supervision of Regional Director Gary A. Baldauf and Amy Held, acting director of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The investigation was conducted by Investigator Janice Boyd, under the supervision of Supervising Investigator Kathleen Donahue.
The charges are merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Batavia's Bed, Bath & Beyond, damaged by fire Jan. 27, has been cleared of all its stock and today work crews were pulling from the store every last bit of fixture, shelving and even wall.
Smoke odor still permeated the entry way.
A manager said she doesn't know when the store will reopen. She said she didn't know when new stock would arrive. Asked if employees had been offered jobs at other locations, she said we would have to call the corporate office.
We called the corporate office this afternoon and have not yet gotten a response.
The brother of a man already sent to prison for stealing high voltage hire from businesses in Le Roy has a chance to avoid a prison term after pleading guilty today to possession of stolen property.
Dustin Nicometo entered his plea in County Court in satisfaction of two felony indictments against him that included burglary and grand larceny counts.
Nicometo, now a Bernville, Pa., resident could be sentenced in April to an intermittent jail term followed by a period of probation as part of the plea deal.
The 26-year-old man will need to abide by the terms of his release under supervision until his sentencing date in order to preserve the deal.
On Jan. 21, Michael Nicometo was sent to state prison for at least three and a half years and ordered to pay $86,017.57 in restitution to Dolomite and Troy Manufacturing.
Dustin Nicometo admitted to possessing wiring and equipment from the Troy job, but when asked if he knew the items were stolen at the time, Dustin Nicometo told Judge Robert Noonan, "no."
Noonan asked him why he was pleading guilty if he didn't know the items were stolen.
Nicometo said he didn't know the items were stolen and after a little more back and forth, Noonan explained that in order for him to plead guilty he had to admit that either he knew the items were stolen or he had a reason to believe the items were stolen and Nicometo agreed that he had a reason to believe the items were stolen.
With the sun out this morning, I went for a short drive out to the Bethany area thinking, "the sun before the storm."
Our previous winter storm watch has been upgraded to a warning and between tonight and tomorrow night, we could get up to 10 inches of snow.
Heading down Clipnock Road, I spotted a group of trainers working out harness racing horses.
Bottom picture, a broken barn door on Transit Road.
Logan R. Evans, 22, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, unlawful possession of marijuana and moved from lane unsafely. Evans was arrested following an investigation by officers Stephen Cronmiller and Matthew Lutey into an accident at 1:06 a.m. Saturday in the area of 23 Jackson St., Batavia.
Jacob S. Martino, 29, of Drake Street, Oakfield, was arrested on a warrant for alleged parking on city streets between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Martino turned himself in on the warrant. He posted bail and was released.
Amanda Marie Bowles, 28, of Williams Street, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant. Bowles was arrested by Batavia PD and turned over to the Sheriff's Office. Bowles was jailed on $100,000 bail.
Local Greek yogurt maker Alpina has entered the national television yogurt wars with a series of commercials meant to entertain and inspire.
While industry leaders Chobani and Dannon dish out big bucks to debut commercials during the Super Bowl (including a both praised and panned spot from Dannon for Oikos Greek yogurt featuring the former cast of Full House, and Chobani's ad with Bob Dylan and a bear), Alpina held of until today the release of its new ads.
Press release from Alpina:
The new campaign focuses on individuals facing their challenges head on, or as we like to say “climbing their mountains.” Maybe your mountain is to run a 10k or graduate from college. The point is we all have mountains to climb. So satisfy your taste for the top with Alpina Greek Yogurt, it's encouragement by the spoonful. Alpina. Climb Your Mountain.
The ads will run in select areas in the Northeast, including Western New York, and will feature digital and radio advertisements. Western NY can also look forward to seeing our ads on TV and area buses. To complement the campaign, Alpina is offering a free trial to those who share their mountain with us through a link in our digital ads.
Press release:
Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is using the improved ranking of New York’s milk production in the nation to demonstrate the value of Upstate’s agricultural economy. New York recently passed Idaho to become the third largest producer of milk in the nation. New York’s milk production increased by 2.2 percent in 2013, compared to 0.4-percent growth nationwide, which demonstrates the importance of milk production to the Upstate economy.
“The Upstate agricultural economy is vital to New York’s success, and news of our increased milk production is a good indicator of this fact. Not only is New York’s milk going directly to consumers, it is also going to produce other growing New York products, such as yogurt and cheese,” Hawley said. “We must make sure to enact policies that encourage the growth of our state’s agricultural economy. I will be keeping a careful eye on how the budget proposal affects our family farms, and advocating for policies that help them grow.”
New York’s dairy industry comprises the largest portion of its agriculture economy, and is the number one producer of yogurt in the country, churning out a total of 695 million pounds. Hawley has supported New York’s farming economy by passing the 2 percent family farm tax cap, calling for reduced agricultural regulations, and promoting initiatives to market New York farm products.
Press release:
The Genesee County & Batavia City Youth boards are extending an extra effort to let the community know just how outstanding our local citizens can be. A Youth Recognition Banquet will be held on Thursday, April 3. This event is an opportunity to thank select individuals for their service to the community.
Awards are given in three separate categories. The Youth Recognition Awards are presented to those youth who have performed an outstanding service for their community, and/or have assumed an extraordinary role within their families. The Adult Youth Worker Award is given to a Genesee County youth-serving professional, in a paid position, whose work surpasses normal expectations. The Adult Volunteer Recognition Award is presented to an adult who serves the youth of Genesee County in a volunteer setting.
A community-wide mailing with nomination forms and instructions was conducted. Forms can also be accessed by visiting the Genesee County Web site www.co.genesee.ny.us and clicking on “Youth Bureau. All nominations are due by Feb. 24.
An arrest has been made in what might be termed an 11-month cold case.
On snowy night last March, somebody broke into the Discovery Chapel, 315 W. Main St., Batavia, stayed for a while and left barefooted sometime later.
The police had shoes, socks, footprints in the snow and a little bit of blood.
The blood is what led to the arrest of Shannon G. Cook, 34, of 6269 Byron Elba Road, Byron.
Cook was identified as a suspect through a DNA match after he was required to submit a DNA sample following an unrelated criminal conviction.
Nothing was stolen from the church.
Cook is charged with criminal mischief, 3rd, and criminal trespass, 3rd.
Following ararignment in City Court, Cook was released under supervision of Genesee Justice.
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