The properties listed below were reportedly foreclosed on by Genesee County for non-payment of taxes.  They will be auctioned off March 27 at Bontrager's.

The properties listed as owned by Genesee County are properties that were not sold at the last auction.

The Sheriff's Office is still looking for a man convicted of burglary, 2nd, who has allegedly violated his probation.

A "wanted" release was put out by the Sheriff's Office on Feb. 2 for Christopher A. Laird.

Warrant Officer Eric Olson says that Laird has likely exhausted his places to stay in Le Roy and is probably in the City of Batavia.

Olson asks that people with information on the whereabouts of Laird call 911.

Most of these photos are scenic Alaska shots, while others depict a way of life totally foreign to the rest of North America. Taking pictures proved far easier than prospecting for gold! 

Pioneer Peak

Sitka Spruce grove in the Matanuska Valley

That white mass you see between the horizon and the cloud is Mt. McKinley, aka Denali. We were 80 miles down the highway from Denali Park when I snapped the photo.

Full moon at midnight over Pete's Creek....the Summer Solstice, June 21, 1997

Stunted birch and spruce trees.

Part of a "fish wheel" under construction. When completed, the fish wheel  will be used just like a river boat's paddle wheel, but instead of providing locomotion, it seines migrating salmon.

It's 1am and that is the Alaska pipeline near Coldfoot in the Artic Circle.

Stephen J. Farrell, 43, of 8542 W. Bergen Road, Le Roy, is charged with robbery, 3rd. Farrell was arrested on a bench warrant 11:56 p.m., Friday. Farrell was located through a combined effort of the Sheriff's Office, the Le Roy Police Department, including Det. John Cordidorio, and the New York State Police. Farrell was reportedly found hiding under a bed at his residence. Law enforcement officers were conducting an investigation into an unrelated robbery at the Rite Aid in Le Roy.

All equipment has been requested to respond to a possible chimney fire at 5500 Broadway (Route 20) in East Bethany.

Bethany Fire has been dispatched.

UPDATE 7:30 a.m.: Alexander Fire responding mutual aid. The caller indicates seeing sparks. There is apparently a wooden bridge on the driveway that will prevent heavy equipment from driving up directly to the house.

UPDATE 7:41 a.m.: Several units on scene. Hand tools requested to possibly open a wall. No word yet on extent of the possible fire.

UPDATE 8:00 a.m.: Firefighters can see some coals somewhere down the chimney, but no flames reported.

UPDATE 8:08 a.m.: Some units being put back in service.

UPDATE 8:12 a.m.: "Everything is out and cleaned up." Bethany back in service.

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Mercy Flight is being put on standby for a man who fell down a flight of stairs and hit his head on a hammer.

The man has been unconscious 7 to 8 minutes. He is breathing.

Darien Ambulance is being dispatched to Mammot Road.

UPDATE 7:07 p.m.: An assistant fire chief for Darien has requested Mercy Flight. Darien Fire is being dispatched to set up a landing zone.

UPDATE 7:09 p.m.: The landing zone is being set up at the Darien Fire Hall.

UPDATE 7:11 p.m.: Mercy Flight is responding from Buffalo. ETA, 5 minutes.

UPDATE 7:48 p.m.: Mercy Flight in the air, heading to ECMC.

Timothy R. Beszcynski, 22, of 11000 Townline Road, Darien, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and use of a portable electronic device (texting). Beszcynski was arrested by Deputy Howard Carlson after allegedly being involved in a single-car accident on Route 98 in the Town of Batavia at 12:15 a.m., Monday.

Juan Alberto Ramos, 20, of 5215 Clinton Street Road, Batavia, is charged with trespass.  Ramos was allegedly found in a building at College Village after being barred from the premises.

Buckle Up, Batavia.

That's the message from the Batavia Police Department, which will be using grant money from the Governor's Traffic Safety Committee to fund extra enforcement details in the city.

The Police will be looking for front seat passengers not wearing seat belts and issuing tickets. They'll also keep a sharp eye out for drivers talking on mobile phones.

The enforcement details will be in place for several months starting today.

In a statement, officials said:

The goal of the enforcement effort is to raise the seat belt use rate by all front seat occupants. With the use of seat belts, there is a significant reduction in the number and degree of personal injuries in the event of an accident.

Charles H. Wroten, the Level 3 sex offender who lives at 214 S. Swan St., upper, was originally classified as a Level 2 offender at the time of his scheduled release from state prison for raping a 15-year-old girl.

But after the order was signed, prosecutors in the case learned that his prior conviction for burglary in South Carolina was a little more than breaking into the house.

According to court documents (PDF):

[Defendant] did enter into the residence of [the victim] with intent to commit a crime, in that he did enter into the bedroom of a 12 yr old female and did feel her body and did make an effort to get this 12 yr old girl to have sex with him.

Entrance into this residence was at 4:30 AM in the night time.

Wroten appealed the re-evaluation. The document linked above is from the appeals court that heard his case and ruled against him.

The risk level of sex offenders in New York is determined by a worksheet that assigns points for various factors to gauge the likelihood of a person repeating an offense. Wroten's points initially put him at the high end of a Level 2 sex offender, but when prosecutors found out the violent nature of his burglary conviction in South Carolina, it added 15 points to his evaluation, so they sought to have him immediately reclassified as Level 3.

Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian raised the issue of Wroten's residence at the Batavia City Council meeting last night, saying she had received numerous inquiries from citizens wondering what could be done about it.

At her request, an informational meeting has been scheduled for 7 p.m., March 16, with Police Chief Randy Baker and Det. Rich Schauf at the Batavia Police Station.

Teacher and school administrator salaries in Upstate New York rose 5 percent in 2008-2009, according to a study recently released by The Empire Center for New York State Policy.

In school districts outside of NYC, total expenditures on teacher salaries rose to $670 million to $14 billion.

The number of teachers and administrators making more than $100,000 increased by 5,022 employees, making the total to 32,064.

From BusinessWeek:

Carl Korn, spokesman for New York State United Teachers, said the median teacher's salary statewide was $62,332 for 2007-2008 school year, up 4.7 percent from the year before. That's typically someone with about 15 years' experience, he said.

"We're talking about a professional with a master's degree in their peak earning years," Korn said. "What those figures actually say is that most teachers are paid fairly, but many earn far less than what they would earn in the private sector."

We found this story originally through the D&C.

Sparked by a freshman, the Lady Lancers remained unbeaten and clinched a spot in the state tournament Monday night beating a tough Canaseraga team 61-54.

Freshman McKenzie Bezon scored 29 points for Elba (22-0). She hit five three-point goals on the night.

"We got a great game from McKenzie tonight," said Head Coach Tom Nowak. "For a freshman, that was unbelievable."

It's a good thing, as Cassy Engle of Canaseraga (18-4) scored 34, to keep her team within striking distance of the Section V champions until the closing seconds of the Class D qualifying match.

"We tried to be able to run and push them as much as we could this game because we knew with our bench, hopefully we could try to tire them out a little bit," Nowak said. "I give them a lot of credit, they played hard the whole game."

Nowak said one of the keys to locking down the win was the team making the most of its free throws in the closing minutes of the game.

Elba returns to the Gate-Chili gym on Saturday to play in the first round of the State Championship tournament.

A couple of more pictures after the jump (BTW: I pretty much missed most of this game, having put a little too much trust in my GPS -- Gates-Chili is at 2 Spartan Road, but there's two 2 Spartan Roads in Rochester, as I discovered ... I went to the one 20 minutes past the actual location ... sadly).

Rose Mary Christian is mad as hell and isn't going to take it anymore, at least not if she has anything to say about allowing registered sex offenders to live a block away from an elementary school, and just a few doors down from a church.

At the end of tonight's 25-minute session of the Batavia City Council, she announced there would be a public forum at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 16 to discuss the issue of registered sex offenders in the city. It will be a question-and-answer with Police Chief Randy Baker and Det. Rich Schauf, held at the police station.

She says she's received a number of calls and an anonymous letter regarding Charles H. Wroten, who lives at 214 S. Swan St., upper. Some nearby residents want him gone and they want to know what can and can't be done in this regard.

Christian asked the city attorney to look into the zoning laws concerning registered sex offenders.

"As far as I know there's not much we can do about it," Christian said, adding that she spoke with the landlady about her tenant and the woman did not seem amenable to kicking Wroten out without cause.

Can they put up lawn signs saying "Charlie Wroten must go"? or how about a banner that says "A convicted rapist lives here and he needs to get out ASAP"? And on and on.

"Landlords should have it on the contract...ask whether they've ever been arrested," Christian said, at least they'd know whether the person lied and broke the contract.

She claims there are 161 "sick" registered sex offenders countywide and 150,000 in the state.

As for Wroten, he couldn't be reached for comment. The lights were on in his nondescript white, two-story duplex unit. The door was open, but the glass outer door was locked. No one answered the loud knock at 8:45 p.m.

His crime is public record, easily available online. He is described as a bald, black male, 245 pounds, 6 feet tall, born Feb. 16, 1961. He was convicted, at age 38, on May 17, 2000 of rape in the 3rd degree of a 15-year-old girl. It is a Level 3 offense, the highest level for such a felony. He was sentenced to 18 months to three years and Christian said he served 18 months.

Christian brought up the highly publicized California case of high school senior Chelsea King who was raped, murdered and found March 2 buried in a shallow grave along Lake Hodges in North San Diego County. The DNA of convicted rapist John Albert Gardner III was found in her underwear and he is in jail after pleading not guilty in the case. He lives in the vicinity of the crime. In a nearby community, Amber Dubois disappeared early last year after last seen walking to Escondido High School. Her remains were found this week 25 miles east of the school. Law enforcement is working to determine if the cases are linked.

In any event, the specter of having sex offenders living near children is upsetting to many residents.

"We have small kids around here, and I have five grandkids," said Wroten's next door neighbor, John Butler, who lives in a house with his wife, Mary, and rents from Rose Mary Christian.

"If he even looks at one of my grandkids, I'm going to jail because I'm going to bury him," John Butler said matter-of-factly.

The couple is openly nosy about Wroten and keep an eagle eye on him. They note there are three children living just downstairs from him. They claim a woman dropped off a little boy at Wroten's house this afternoon at about 4:20 and they wondered if that's legal (even if it's the rapist's child).

But living on the other side of Wroten, Carissa and Chad Helsdon take a more cautious, don't-tread-on-me approach. They have three small children.

"I was uncomfortable at first, but he hasn't come down over here and we haven't had any problems with him," Carissa Helsdon said. "He keeps to himself."

"It sounded like a bomb going off," said Robin Lewin minutes after a truck being pursued at high speed by local law enforcement slammed in her home at 28 South Main St. in the City of Batavia.

"You should see that one wall. All of my family’s pictures came flying at us. We were at the desk. The whole house shook. It was like, what’s going on?"

Lewin and her mother, Barbara Watyrstrew, who was visiting, her teenage daughter, Danielle (Danielle was not at home at the time) had to immediately evacuate the house, which was knocked off its foundation, causing a gas leak.

The driver of the black Chevy 4x4 pickup truck, who has not yet been identified, was taken by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital.

Investigator Kris Kautz of the Sheriff's Office said Deputy Ronald E. Meides spotted the truck allegedly speeding eastbound on Route 33 just west of Reed Road and attempted to initiate a traffic stop.

The truck wouldn't stop, and may even have speed up, with speeds hitting "triple digits," according to law enforcement officials.

The driver, identified by police after the chase (though his identity is not yet being released), had no known outstanding warrants, according to Det. Rich Schauf of the Batavia Police Department.

When it was apparent Deputy Meides was involved in a high-speed chase, more law enforcement joined in the persuit. Officer John Zola and Deputy Chris Parker managed to get spike strips down on Route 33 at Pearl Street Road moments before the truck arrived.

The strips, according to Parker and Zola, are designed to deflate car tires gradually so that hitting the spikes doesn't cause an immediate accident. By the time the truck hit the Oak Street Roundabout, its tires would have deflated to some extent.

Spikes were found in each of the truck's front tires, Parker and Zola said.

Said Kautz, “The operator refused to stop and the vehicle obviously came through here at too high of a speed to maintain control.”

Luz Castro was standing in front of 28 South Main -- she lives in the upper apartment -- waiting for her daughter's school bus when she saw a deputy and a police car whiz by heading westbound. Minutes later she saw the truck come flying through the roundabout, heading east, and as it came out of the curve at South Main, it was clear the truck was headed right for her. So she jumped out of the way just before the truck rammed the building right at the entrance to her apartment.

"It was just shock. Surreal. Crying. Just too much going on at once," Castro said.

Red Cross has been called in to assist Luz, Robin and Danielle. A city inspector is on scene determining how to safely remove the truck, which is may be the only thing holding up the house at this point.

"Life is a matter of seconds and inches and luckily her (Castro's) child wasn’t here getting off the bus at that moment," said Kautz.

UPDATE 8:13 p.m.: The driver of the truck has been identified as Louis M. Reeb, 19, of 40 E. Main St., Corfu. His injuries are described as non-life threatening. The house is owned by Charles Keif of Batavia. No charges have been filed, pending further investigation.

Residents are reporting possible ill effects of carbon monoxide poising at 21 Erie St., Le Roy.

Le Roy Fire and Le Roy Ambulance have been dispatched.

It's the same location of a reported gas leak on Friday.

The caller reports that her CO detector did not activate.

The residents have evacuated the house.

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Batavia city police, fire and Mercy EMS have responded to a motor-vehicle accident at 28 South Main St. wherein a vehicle crashed into a house.

The driver is alert and talking but there are injuries. Mercy Flight has been notified and is on "hot standby" until further notice.

The city code representative is in route to the scene. National Fuel and National Grid have been called. The gas has been shut off. Traffic control police are on scene.

UPDATE (3:06 p.m.): This is apparently the result of a law-enforcement ground pursuit gone wrong. A woman at the scene said she was standing outside her house when she saw a Sheriff's Deputy's car chasing a black 4X4 pickup truck at high speed. The driver lost control of his pickup truck and it zoomed off the road and into her house, narrowly missing her, and killing her.

Mercy Flight is set to land at a nearby park's tennis court.

UPDATE (3:19 p.m.): Sheriff's Investigator Kristopher A. Kautz said the chase started on Route 33, west of Reed Road, in the Town of Batavia. The suspect's pickup was headed eastbound and the Sheriff's Deputy was westbound, when the law officer suspected the truck driver was speeding. The deputy turned around to pursue the suspect but he would not stop. Road spikes were put down somewhere west of the Roundabout. The suspect's pickup hit the spikes, flattening the tire(s) and lost control. That's when the vehicle jumped the roadway and careened into the woman's house, barely missing her. No other violations were pending or suspected concerning the suspect and his pickup.

UPDATE (3:28 p.m.): Deputies Chris Parker and John J. Zola, who weren't involved in the chase, said they laid down the spikes in the area of Route 33 and Pearl Street Road. Parker said they're purposely designed to let the air out of tires slowly, so no instant loss of control occurs. The suspect continued to drive well after hitting the spikes, and as he neared the Roundabout, he lost control. Each of his two front tires were pierced by spikes. Batavia Daily News reporter Matt Surtel was heading back to the newspaper office from Wyoming County when he got caught up in the roadway chase on Route 33.

UPDATE (3:56 p.m.): According to Batavia Police Det. Rich Schauf, the house was knocked off its foundation and, basically, the truck is holding up the house. Thus, they will leave it right where it is temporarily until the homeowner can make repairs shore up the foundation. The American Red Cross has been called to assist the occupant(s) with housing, etc. Schauf confirmed that the suspect has no known outstanding warrants.

NOTE: Starting today, Adopt-A-Pet and Pet of the Week have a new sponsor -- Neptune's Garden, a pet shop right in the heart of Batavia, at 33 Liberty St. With Pet of the Week, winners will now receive a $10 gift certificate from Neptune Garden. To submit your pet for Pet of the Week, send an e-mail with information about your pet and a picture to (pets [at] thebatavian dot com).

I am a handsome, sweet, family kind of guy. Unfortunately, my previous owners moved away and couldn't take me with them, so they put me up for adoption. Same with my companion dog, Shelby.

My name is Piston, as you can see I'm a big black and white dog, an adult, neutered male, St. Bernard mix. I am everything you could possibly want in a family dog -- housebroken, good with children, cats and female dogs, and well behaved on a leash.

I'm a sweetie (so is Shelby!), come and see me soon! Kennel 19.

I have an odd but memorable moniker -- kinda like the Johnny Cash song "A boy Named Sue" -- I'm a cat named Mouse (but definately not a "mouser").

I like things quiet. All I really want is a small, calm abode and, ideally, someone who will let me sleep on the bed. I like to be cozy. I'm a young, spayed, female, calico domestic shorthair. Although I'm shy at first, I'm easily won over after a few days of hand-fed salmon cat food. I also get along well with other felines, provided they are willing to share your affections.

Given my druthers, I would like to become the companion of someone with long fingernails and/or someone who owns a soft brush. I just adore being scratched and rubbed and brushed. Find me in Cage 68.

Volunteers For Animals
P.O. Box 1621
Batavia, NY  14021
www.vol4animals.org <http://www.vol4animals.org>

Working in partnership with:
Genesee County Animal Shelter
3841 W. Main Street Road
Batavia, NY  14020
(585) 343-6410

Adoption Hours:
Sunday - Friday 1 - 3 pm (closed on Thursdays)
Wednesday 7 - 9 pm
Saturday 11 - 1 pm

Adopt a New Friend at the Genesee County Animal Shelter!

Genesee ARC Executive Director Donna Saskowski was named Social Worker of the Year by the Western Division of the New York State Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW).

She was selected for her service to people with developmental disabilities, her leadership skills and commitment to community development. Her award nomination was submitted by Barbara Demerest, of Amherst, a former aide to New York State Senator Mary Lou Rath.

“Community leaders and families served by ARC continually note the major positive impact that Donna’s leadership has on the lives of the individuals and families her agency serves, and on the larger community," Demerest said.

During the awards presentation, Demerest said, “Donna particularly has forged partnerships and collaborations, not only strengthening services but integrating persons with disabilities into their communities and maximizing their opportunities for full participation.

"Among the many initiatives she has led are a recreational partnership with the YMCA and a major fundraising effort for the Genesee ARC Community Center (formerly St. Mary’s School).”

Saskowski, a lifelong resident of the town of Darien, received her bachelor's and master's degrees in Social Work from the University of Buffalo School of Social Work and has been on staff at Genesee ARC since 1989 and Executive Director since 2004.

In addition to her affiliation with NASW, Saskowski is a member of the Batavia Rotary Club and the Genesee County United Way Board of Directors. She is president of the Finger Lakes Collaborative, and belongs to NYSARC’s Executive Directors’ Association and Developmental Disabilities Alliance of Western New York. In 2006, she was a member of the Community Health Foundation Leadership Fellows and she is a member of Leadership Genesee’s Class of 2005.

Darshawn T. Johnson, 30, of 106 Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged by a Monroe County Grand Jury with failing to register a change of address, a Class D felony. Johnson, a convicted rapist, allegedly failed to notify New York State of his change of address. Det. John Condidorio reports that a member of the community tipped Le Roy Police to Johnson's status. After further investigation, Condidorio located Johnson walking on Lake Street and arrested him. Johnson is a Level 2 sex offender. He was convicted of sexual abuse, 1st. Following his arrest, Johnson was transferred to the Monroe County Sheriff's Department.

Robert J. Macklem, 20, 1 Prospect Ave., Batavia, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI (driving with a BAC of .08 or greater) and moving from lane unsafely. Macklem was taken into custody by Officer Thad Mart at 9:50 p.m., Thursday.

Jolin Nicholas Donnelly, 21, 1925 Nesbitt Road, Attica, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Following a traffic stop at 8:19 p.m., Sunday, by Deputy Patrick Reeves, Donnelly was allegedly found in possession of a small quantity of marijuana.

Brian K. Dyer, 43, of 106 North Street, Batavia, is charged with two counts of criminal contempt, 2nd, harassment, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Dyer was taken into custody at 4:47 p.m., Sunday, by Officer Thad Mart, after Dyer allegedly became involved in a fight with a woman reportedly protected by a court order from "offensive conduct" by him. There was reportedly a child present during the altercation. Dyer was also arrested on an outstanding warrant for allegedly violating a "stay away" order on Feb. 23 during an incident on Dewey Avenue, regarding the same woman. Dyer was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Kenneth M. Gray, Jr., 18, of 77 Myrtle St., Le Roy, is charged with unlawful possession of alcohol under 21. Gray was reportedly found by Officer Dan Coffey in the area of 500 East Street in a state of intoxication. Gray was reportedly carrying seven cans of beer at the time.

Timothy P. Dailey, 40, of Rochester, is charged with criminal mischief. Dailey was arrested by state police in Elba at 2:29 a.m., Saturday. Dailey was jailed. No further details available.