A passerby reported seeing smoke coming from the second-story window of a white house on Walnut Street in the City of Batavia. No numerics were given. The location was described as being on the "east side of the road, just south of the bend." Firefighters checked the area and initially reported finding nothing. A moment later they reported smoke coming from a vent.

On Friday, the Genesee County Grand Jury issued indictments against four people as follows:

Michele A. Case is accused of grand larceny, 3rd, a class D felony, for allegedly stealing property in the City of Batavia which had a value in excess of $3,000. She allegedly took $14,207.67 from her employer for employee compensation for time and mileage to which she was not entitled.

Grant A. Sundown is accused of criminal mischief, 4th, a class A misdemeanor, after he allegedly grabbed a cell phone out of the hand of a person on April 22 while she was calling 9-1-1 and threw the phone outside of the residence.

In count two of the indictment, Grant Sundown is accused of criminal mischief, 4th, for alledgely ripping the phone cord out of the wall while the alleged victim was on the phone with 9-1-1.

In count three, he is accused of coercion in the first degree, a class D felony, for allegedly trying to stop the alleged victim from calling 9-1-1 by instilling fear in her, saying he would cause her physical injury.

In count four, he is accused of coercion in the first degree by trying to compel the alleged victim to not call 9-1-1, which is her legal right, saying he would attempt or cause her physical injury.

In count five, Grant Sundown is accused of criminal contempt in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, alleging that on May 25, in the Town of Alabama, he violated an order of protection for the alleged victim.

In count six, he is accused of criminal contempt in the first degree, a class E felony, for allegedly violating a stay away order of protection for the alleged victim. On July 3, he allegedly drove a Ford Explorer into the exterior steps of her residence while she was on the steps in an attempt to hit her.

In count seven, Grant Sundown is accused of reckless endangerment in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, for allegedly driving a Ford Explorer into the exterior steps of the alleged victim's residence on July 3 while she was on the steps in an attempt to hit her.

In count eight of the indictment, he is accused of criminal mischief in the fourth degree, a class A misdemeanor, for allegedly intentionally damaging the steps of the alleged victim's residence.

Paul F. Atkinson is accused of arson in the second degree, a class B felony, for allegedly intentionally damaging a building by starting a fire on June 13 at 3 Orchard Drive in the Village of Le Roy. According to the indictment, he allegedly did this when another person was inside the building.

Rachellyn G. Burek is accused of identity theft in the second degree, a class E felony. The indictment alleges that between December 2006 and August 2007 in the City of Batavia, she used Time Warner Cable services amounting to $965.41 by using the Social Security number of another person knowingly and with the intent to defraud.

In count two of the indictment, she is accused of attempted identity theft in the third degree, a class B misdemeanor. She allegedly tried to obtain Time Warner Cable services on Feb. 12 in the City of Batavia using the Social Security number of another person knowingly and with intent to defraud.

A two-car accident, believed to be with minor injuries, is reported at 409 Bloomingdale Road on the Tonawanda Indian Reservation. There was air-bag deployment. Alabama Fire Department and Mercy EMS are responding.

UPDATE 3:55 p.m.: One person was transported to Strong Memorial Hospital. All units back in service.

Elba/Byron-Bergen (3-1) rolled over Holley 28-0, with all of the Lancers' points coming in the first half. Zack Gilliard completed 10 passes for 171 yards and two TDs. Matt Ramsey caught three passes, all for touchdowns, and had 107 receiving yards. Zack DuBois had 121 yards rushing. Nate Jonathan led a powerful Lancer defense with 10 tackles and a sack. Brandon Naylor, in only his second game up on varsity, recorded nine tackles, including his second sack of the season and his third forced fumble in two games. Holley is now 1-3.

Alexander played tough again, but came up short in overtime in a 17-14 loss to Notre Dame. Notre Dame, with four wins, remains undefeated on the season. Notre Dame put together its victory with an interception by Tim McCulley and four plays later, McCulley booted a 35-yard field goal. McCulley was 9-18 passing for 95 yards and two TDs. Nick Conklin carried the ball eight times for 56 yards. Nick Taylor had 13 tackles and Doane McCulley had nine and a sack. For Alexander (0-4), Austin Heberlein had 11 carries for 65 yards and Lucas Phillips added 109 yards rushing on 13 carries. Mark Farnsworth completed nine passes for 131. Alexander had 338 total yards compared to ND's 249.

Pembroke dropped to 1-3 with a loss to Attica, 14-6. Wyatt Chittenden gained 107 yards on the ground.

Baker beat Oakfield-Alabama 54-22. The Hornets are now 0-4 on the year.

Le Roy beat Batavia, 48-35 (coverage).

Genesee Region standings:

1. Barker, 4-0
1. Notre Dame, 4-0
3. Attica, 3-1
3. Elba/Byron-Bergen, 3-1
5. Holley, 1-3
5. Pembroke, 1-3
7. Oakfield-Alabama, 0-4
7. Alexander, 0-4

Next week's schedule:

Friday: Batavia at Hornell, 7 p.m.; Oakfield-Alabama at Pembroke, 7 p.m.; Attica at Alexander, 7 p.m.; Perry at Le Roy, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday: Notre Dame at Elba/Byron-Bergen, 7 p.m. The Section V website had the wrong time.  We've confirmed the game is at 1:30 p.m.

Here's a pair of pictures I took on my way back from Elba yesterday morning. The top is on Norton Road near Route 262, Elba, and the bottom is on Bank Street Road, Batavia.

Batavia Downs had a packed house Saturday night for Batavia Rotary Club's annual October Brew Fest and Corvette Raffle.

No word yet on the raffle winner.

More than 150 people turned out in Elba today for the Genesee ARC 5K run and walk race.

The overall winner was Michael Richenberg, of Elba, with a time of 17:45, a course record in the seventh year of the race. It's Richenberg's ninth 5K win of the season.

Fifty-one-year-old David O'Leary was second overall and first in the 50-59 age group with a time of 18:43.

Third overall was Michael Skowkronski, 14, of Rochester, with a time of 20:32. Skowkronski won the 13-18 category. The next best time in that age group was 23:05.

The top female runner was Jill Graney, 26, of Buffalo, at 21:57.

Click on the following links for complete results: Overall Results, Award Winners by Age Group, Complete Age Group Results, Walk Results

If you have trouble viewing the slide show, click here.

The Batavia Blue Devils travelled to Le Roy last night to take on the Knights. It was a close game from the start, with each team scoring a touchdown on its opening possession. Le Roy's offensive line became a key factor early on by creating some huge holes in the defense for Tommy McQuillen to run through, allowing him to run for 336 yards on the night, and score six touchdowns (school record).

Batavia's offense was able to keep the score close for most of the game, however QB Brett Scheuerlein threw three very costly interceptions that may have cost them the game. One was intercepted by Tommy McQuillen, and the other two by Ethan Olsowski. Le Roy's offense scored touchdowns as a result of all three interceptions. Both teams appeared strong, and the game could have easily gone the other way if Batavia had maintained better control of the ball.

In the end, Le Roy came out on top, 48-35.

Andy Lowe and Marcus Mistersare also scored touchdowns for Le Roy. John Difante, James Soggs and Justin Washington scored for the Blue Devils. 

Batavia is now 1-3, and will travel to Hornell next week. Le Roy is 2-2 and will host Perry at home next Friday night.

Five-time Grammy winner Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives were in Le Roy on Friday night, playing before a capacity ground at Frost Ridge Campground. 

Prior to the show in the open-air theater, Stuart met with fans who had purchased priority VIP passes and signed autographs.

The Superlatives are Paul Martin on bass, Kenny Vaughn on guitar and Harry Stinson on drums.

Previously: Frost Ridge gaining ground as popular venue for country music stars

Four people were arrested Thursday for allegedly possessing various drugs following a "traffic drug interdiction" detail by the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force.

A traffic interdiction detail uses the probable cause of a traffic stop to detect possible drug activity.

Arrested where:

Jonathan B. Marvin, 35, of Hall Street, Batavia. Marvin is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and criminally using drug paraphernalia, 2nd. Marvin was allegedly found in possession of heroin along with a hypodermic needle. Marvin was jailed on $1,000 bail.

David A. Showler, 43, of West Main Street, Batavia. Showler is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and criminally using drug paraphernalia, 2nd. Showler was allegedly found in possession of heroin along with a hypodermic needle. Showler was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Ryan M. Bobzin, 22, of West Bergen Road, Bergen, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Bobzin was allegedly found in possession of marijuana and issued an appearance ticket.

Warner Lee Love Jr., 18, of Chandler Street, Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Love was allegedly found in possession of marijuana and issued an appearance ticket.

Assisting in the interdiction detail were uniformed members of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office and K-9 "Pharaoh."

A caller spotted a car in a swamp about a quarter mile west of 7445 Griswold Road, Le Roy.

Initially, Le Roy Fire Department was dispatched, but cancelled after a deputy who responded found the car unoccupied.

UPDATE 6:38 p.m.: The tow truck company inquired about how wet the driver would get retrieving while the vehicle. Deputy: "Not wet at all."

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A car-versus-pedestrian accident, believed to be with serious injuries, is reported at 13 Lake St. in the Village of Le Roy. Le Roy Fire and Ambulance Service and Le Roy police are on scene.

Mercy Flight was called and pilots advised that it needed to be dispatched now to go to Rochester or it would be unable to fly due to weather. Subsequently, Mercy Flight was cancelled.

The location is in front of the Sugar Creek convenience store.

UPDATE 8:49 p.m.: Le Roy fire is back in service.

UPDATE 9:09 p.m.: Le Roy ambulance is now at Strong Memorial Hospital after transporting one patient there.

Michael John Merrill, 46, of West Ferry Street, Buffalo, is charged with petit larceny. Merrill is accused of stealing a can of beer from 48 Deli Express at 1:53 p.m., Thursday. When confronted by the owner, Merrill allegedly ran. Merrill was jailed on $500 bail.

William Ronald Tombari, 40, of Roanoke Road, Pavilion, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and failure to keep right. Tombari was allegedly driving drunk when he was involved in a motor-vehicle accident at 12:05 a.m., Friday, on Route 63 in Pavilion. The accident was investigated by Deputy Eric Seppala.

Shuvon "Bonnie" Williams, 35, of 5 Lewis Place, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd. Williams is accused of violating an order of protection by allegedly threatening the protected person with bodily harm. The incident was reported at 3:08 p.m., Thursday.

Press release:

Four Emergency Services dispatchers from the Genesee County Emergency Dispatch Center, a division of the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, were deployed to Broome County after the recent devastation to that area by hurricanes Irene and Lee.

Broome County Coordinator Michael Ballard requested assistance from his state counterparts to cover shifts beginning Sept. 9 through 13. Staff from Genesee County worked 12-hour shifts answering phone lines and entering calls for service into the CAD (Computer-Aided Dispatch) System to dispatch the appropriate emergency service.

Along with several Broome County Emergency Services dispatchers who were personally affected by the storms, remaining staff were becoming fatigued with the long hours and several days of continual requests from citizens for emergency services. Local authorities quickly realized that additional outside resources would be needed to staff its 9-1-1 Center. 

The New York State’s Office of Emergency Management contacted local Emergency Management offices, including Genesee County Emergency Management Coordinator Tim Yaeger, for additional resources to respond to the Broome County 9-1-1 Center.

One very important stipulation was that the deployment not severely impact the operations of the local 9-1-1 centers that send aid. Without impacting operations at the Genesee County 9-1-1 Center, four Emergency Services dispatchers were deployed within 18 hours of the request. 

Senior Emergency Services dispatchers Gary Diegelman, James Tripp, Daniel Rieks and Emergency Services Dispatcher Robert Tripp are certified members of the New York State Telecommunicator Emergency Response Task Force (TERT), a specialized team trained to handle large-scale incidents or disasters.

In conjunction with other Emergency Services dispatchers from Livingston, Niagara and Monroe counties, they deployed to Broome County (which includes the City of Binghamton) on Sept. 9 through 11.

This team of specialized Emergency Services dispatchers was created after the events of September 11, 2001. Several other agencies within New York State have members who are certified to handle these types of large-scale events.

Genesee County currently has nine Emergency Services dispatchers who are certified to respond in this capacity.  While rare, team members could be summoned not only to handle emergencies within New York State but also to assist other participating states.

Since this program’s inception, Emergency Services dispatchers from Genesee County have been requested on two occasions. In 2006, during the floods of Broome County, Emergency Services dispatchers were put on standby, however, did not need to respond. The second was the most recent request received on Sept. 8.

Broome County has been declared a disaster area, therefore, any costs or expenses incurred by Genesee County in the deployment will be reimbursed by state and federal funds.

Photos: Top, Jim Tripp; first inset, Bob Tripp; second inset, Gary Diegelman; bottom, Dan Rieks.

(Initial Post)

The release of a surveillance tape by the Batavia PD appears to have helped lead investigators to a pair of alleged thieves.

Charges are pending against Trevor M. Pilc, 18, of 404 Jackson St., Batavia, and Michael A. Ames, 19, of 508 Dale Road, Dale.

The duo is accused of burglarizing a number of Batavia businesses during the summer and is currently being held in a Wyoming County jail on similar charges.

The videotape, published on The Batavian, didn't lead to a tip with a name attached, but it did lead to information that helped investigators put some pieces together, Sgt. Pat Corona said.

"(The video) kept people interested in the case and got people talking about it," Corona said. "As a result of that, I did get information about a person talking about one of the burglaries and a name was mentioned in that conversation."

Corona expects burglary charges against Pilc in connection with break-ins at Neptune’s Gardens, 33 Liberty St., occurring on, June 3; Blondie’s Sip and Dip, 670 E. Main St., occurring on July 8; The Batavia Youth Center, 12 MacArthur Drive, occurring on July 23; and Batavia’s Original Pizzeria, 500 E. Main St., occurring on Aug. 6.

Ames also faces probable charges in connections with break-ins and larcenies from Batavia’s Original on Aug. 6 and again on Aug. 30.

Corona said Ames and Pilc both confirmed they are the two people seen in the video.

Very few of us ever work for the same employer for 33 years, the span of a single career, but Randy Garney walked out of Genesee County Building #2 today being able to say he did it.

Garney started with the county Health Department right out of college in 1978 as a public health technician trainee. Over the next several years, he worked his way up the ranks and eventually became public health director for the county.

Never once did he leave and work for another agency.

"Work is such a large segment of your life that I feel very blessed that this segment of my life was so enjoyable," Garney said. "Have there been hard times? Absolutely. But working with the people I've worked with, and with the directors I've worked with over the years, there was never a day when I didn't look forward to coming to work. I know there are people who don't enjoy their jobs, so I feel very fortunate."

Garney, now 55, who grew up in Oakfield and attended Notre Dame High School, and his wife Deborah, sold their home and are moving to Florida to be closer to their children, Heather, 35, and Steven, 32, and their four grandchildren.

Now is the time to retire, Garney said, while he still has his health and he can use his energy for his family and for ministry.

Once in Florida, Garney said, he hopes to find a church-affiliated group that cares for the homeless and devote much of his time to helping those in need.

"We really have a burden for the poor and the indigent," said Garney, who along with Deborah have worked with Care-A-Van Ministries.

He won't miss the current budget process, acknowledging that it's become very difficult and will be a real challenge for public health in future years, but he will look back on his career with Genesee County as a good one.

"I really enjoyed public health and helping people," Garney said. "It stuck with me and I really enjoyed it. I never thought I would get the chance to be public health director, but it’s really been the highlight of my career to administer public health throughout the county. It’s been a lot of fun."

This information was provided by Genesee Community College.

Jerry Kozlowski has been appointed to the "Higher Education Work Group" of Governor Cuomo's Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council.

Kozlowski will assist the council with the development of a comprehensive, five-year strategic plan to galvanize regional and local economic development for the Finger Lakes area. The workgroup has been defined as the "heart of the Council's work" by the Governor.

New York's 10 Regional Economic Development Council's are tasked to assemble detailed strategies to capitalize on principal regional economic drivers and other opportunities, and to address critical issues that have impeded appropriate economic growth.

The timetable is ambitious and work needs to be completed by mid-November. A final decision from Albany in December will outline how almost $1 billion dollars in new state funding will be allocated to the 10 regions.

"I am honored to be a part of this important work" Kozlowski said. "Millions of dollars are at stake for the GLOW region and I look forward to helping our team identify and develop transformative projects that achieve our region's many needs."

Kozlowski currently serves as the associate vice president for Workforce Development at Genesee Community College and is the incoming chairman of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

A two-car accident with one person complaining of chest pain is reported in front of the Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union on Jefferson Avenue in the City of Batavia.

There was air-bag deployment and one vehicle is, or was, spewing smoke.

City fire and Mercy medics responding.

A two-car accident is reported at Martin and Bloomingdale roads in Alabama. There is believed to be one minor injury. A person is complaining of hitting her head on the dashboard. Alabama fire is responding along with a medic.