corfu

Robert L. Williams, 21, of 112 State St., Batavia, is charged with assault, 3rd, and disorderly conduct. Williams was arrested on a warrant. He is accused of punching another person onOct. 22, which resulted in the alleged victim suffering a fractured nose. Williams was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Tanyka N. Blanding, 33, of 7 Madera Drive, Rochester, is charged with DWI and criminal possession of a weapon, 4th. Blanding was arrested by Le Roy Police in the early morning on Sunday. Blanding was stopped after the car she was driving allegedly almost collided with a police car on Lake Street. At the time of her stop, she was allegedly found in possession of brass knuckles. Blanding was jailed on $2,000 bail.

Dustin J. Good, 24, of 2937 Merle Road, Attica, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs, aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, and possession of a hypodermic instrument. Good was stopped at 11:12 p.m., Friday, on North Lyon Street, Batavia, by Officer Matthew Fleming.

Kenneth M. Gray Jr., 24, of 77 Myrtle St., is charged with leaving the scene of a property damage accident, failure to keep right, operating in violation of restriction and inadequate tires. Gray is accused of hitting a street sign and a parked car on Hutchins Street near Ellicott Street. Gray was stopped some time later on South Main Street by Officer Darryle Streeter. Gray was arrested without incident. The investigation was handled by Officer Jason Ivison.

Jeffrey Matthew Kaczmarek, 42, of Alleghany Road, Alexander, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, felony aggravated unlicensed operation, 1st, driving left of pavement markings in no-passing zone and violation of conditional license. Kaczmarek was stopped at 11:23 p.m., Saturday, on Attica Road by Deputy Jason Saile.

Steven Michael John Kaczmarek, 25, of Gilhooly Road, Alexander, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Kaczmarek was arrested at 4:03 a.m., Friday, after deputies were called to an address on Gilhooly Road to investigate the report of a domestic incident. 

William Thomas Foley, 19, of Main Road, Stafford, and Kristian Nicole Elderbroom, 19, of Marlton Circle, Liverpool, are both charged with unlawfully dealing with a child, 1st. Foley and Elderbroom are accused of hosting an underage drinking party Nov. 13 at a location on Main Road in Stafford.

Ryan D. Wilson, 19, of Alexander Road, Attica, and Jay W. Schafer, 19, of Broadway Road, Darien, are charged with harassment, 2nd. Wilson and Schafer are accused of punching another person while at College Village at 2:42 a.m., Sunday.

Jesse Lee Harner, 25, of Country Route 41, Friendship, is charged with violation of a child-support order. Harner was turned over to the Sheriff's Office after being arrested by Cuba Police officers on a warrant out of family court.

Jered Michael Brown, 23, of North Baxter Street, Sutton, W. Va., is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and failure to keep right. Brown was stopped at 1:57 a.m., Friday, on Route 5 in Pembroke by Deputy Kevin McCarthy.

Mercedes Anne Marchese, 20, of Indian Falls Road, Corfu, is charged with false written statement. Marchese is accused of making a false written statement to the Sheriff's Office on Nov. 6.

Dajuandrick A. Gardner, 16, of Byron Holley Road, Byron, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing and endangering the welfare of a child. Gardner is accused of choking a 15-year-old boy in the Town of Bergen at 7:40 a.m., Oct. 3.

A Corfu resident allegedly was following another vehicle too closely at 6:03 p.m., Tuesday, when his car rear-ended another vehicle that had slowed because a truck had stopped to turn.

The vehicles were both westbound on Route 33 near Boyce Road, Pembroke.

Three people were treated at UMMC for injuries sustained in the two-car accident.

Raymond E. Judd, 83, of Phelps Road, Corfu, was allegedly following to closely a car driven by Diane M. Weaton, of Blood Road, Cowsville.

Also injured in the crash was Judd's passenger, Rosa Laurentina, 62.

The accident was investigated by Sgt. Greg Walker.

A Corfu resident who admitted last month to possessing cocaine will spend five years on probation, even though Judge Robert C. Noonan said he was reluctant to give that sentence to 29-year-old Brandon R. Brade.

Noonan told Brade that reading pre-sentence reports is often like reading a novel, and before he gets to the end he can anticipate the outcome.

In this case, Noonan said, Brade's story said, "he's going off to prison," but the twist in this story was that the probation department was recommending probation for Brade. The recommendation was based on Brade's recent success, and "only his recent success," said Noonan, in substance abuse treatment.

But Noonan counseled Brade that if Brade continues in some of his behavior, and especially some of his attitudes, the story wouldn't turn out well for the Corfu resident.

"If you display your defiance of authority and the world's rules as you have seemed to do in the past, that’s not going to work for you," Noonan said.

Brade admitted to possession of cocaine Aug. 18. He originally faced several drug-related charges, including the sale of cocaine.

While Brade had some minor scrapes with the law prior to 2005, his attorney said, this is Brade's first felony conviction.

Aaron J. Wood, 20, of Iroquois Road, Caledonia, is charged with petit larceny. Wood is accused of unwrapping and eating a $3 pizza while in the Tops Market in Le Roy. Wood allegedly tried to leave the store without paying for the pizza.

Joseph Dennis Vendetta, 30, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, tinted windows and driver's view obstructed. Vendetta was stopped at 2:21 a.m., Saturday, on Richmond Avenue by Deputy Patrick Reeves.

Billy Joe Budziszewski, 20, of Alleghany Road, Corfu, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, and criminal mischief, 4th. Budziszewski is accused of getting into a dispute with his father Friday morning. During the dispute, Budziszewski allegedly became verbally abusive and punched the kitchen wall and front door, causing some damage during the argument. Budziszewski also allegedly had a pair of metal knuckles in his bedroom dresser.

Luis Geraldo Pacheco, 49, of Webster Avenue, Rochester, is charged with three counts of criminal contempt, 2nd. Pacheco is accused of violating a stay away order on three separate occasions.

Melvin Gaylord Draper, 30, of Webber Avenue, Oakfield, is charged with felony DWI, aggravated DWI (BAC of .18 or greater), aggravated unlicensed operation, 1st, and improper signal. Draper was stopped at 12:47 a.m., Saturday, on Bank Street Road, Batavia, by Sgt. Brian Frieday.

Gene Robert Schmidt, 44, of Dodgeson Road, Alexander, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 and failure to keep right. Schmidt was stopped at 1:33 a.m., Saturday, on Bowen Road, Alexander, by Deputy Jason Saile.

Trent H. Burgess, 39, of West Avenue Brockport, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 and speeding (89 mph in a 55 mph zone). Burgess was stopped at 12:26 a.m., Sunday, on Clinton Street Road, Stafford, by Deputy Howard Carlson.

Brian James Nelson, 24, of Grove Street, Painted Post, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and driving left of pavement markings in a no-passing zone. Nelson was arrested following the investigation by Deputy Jason Saile into a one-car accident at 6:04 a.m., Sunday, on Route 77 in Darien. 

Daniel L. Cone, 51, of 6380 Clinton St. Road, Bergen, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speed not reasonable and prudent, following too closely and moving unsafely from lane. Cone was stopped at 5:55 p.m., Saturday, on East Main Street, Batavia, by Officer Dan Coffey.

Lawrence D. Williams, 51, of 148 Hutchins St., Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Williams was allegedly found in possession of a small quantity of cocaine following a traffic stop.

Scott G. Tooley, 26, of 199 S. Main St., Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Tooley is accused of leaving a young child at home without adequate supervision.

Joshua Ray Radley, 25, of Old Meadow Lane, Batavia, is charged with unlawfully growing cannabis, unlawful possession of marijuana and unlawful possession of fireworks. Radley was arrested following an investigation into a complaint filed on July 27.

Loralyn L. Bateman, 35, 874 Gabbey Road, Corfu, is charged with driving while ability impaired by alcohol. Bateman turned herself in at Batavia PD on a warrant out of Batavia City Court.

Michael A. Witkop, 19, 249 Ross St., Batavia, is charged with DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation and improper right turn. Witkop was stopped at 12:38 a.m., Sunday, on River Street, Batavia, by Officer Darryl Streeter.

Brian M. Raphael, 23, of 4 Noonan Drive, Batavia, is charged with aggravated DWI, moving from lane unsafely and improper turn. Raphael was stopped at 1:09 a.m., Saturday, on Liberty Street, Batavia, by Officer Marc Lawrence.

Peter J. Kaiser, 50, of Jackson Road, Middleport, is charged with driving while ability impaired by alcohol, failure to stop for stop sign and speed not reasonable and prudent. Kaiser was charged following an investigation into a traffic accident that occurred Sept. 16 on Lockport Road, Alabama.

Rusty Everett Vanson, 46, of Jefferson Street, Attica, is charged with felony DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and driving left of pavement markings in a no-passing zone. Vanson was stopped at 12:57 a.m., Sunday, on Attica Road in Alexander by Deputy Jason Saile.

Eric Michael Duda, 49, of Main Road, Stafford, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st. Duda allegedly asked a third party to contact a person he is barred by court order from contacting. He has a previous conviction for criminal contempt, 2nd, within the last five years. Duda was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Smoking wires are reported in the area of 9352 Snipery Road, Corfu.

The wires are down and between the residence and the railroad tracks.

Corfu Fire Department is being dispatched.

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Today, the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County announced the results of the third annual Great Pumpkin Weigh-in. It was held Oct. 1 at J&L Feed & Farm Supply in Corfu.

Anna Dorman, of Batavia, grew the largest orange orb -- a Dill’s Atlantic giant pumpkin, which topped the scales at a whopping 120 pounds.

Other participants were Steven and George Underhill, who grew 90-pound pumpkins, and Andrew Underhill who weighed in with a 60-pounder.

The contest also included tiny Jack-Be-Little pumpkins.

The Tarbell family, of Corfu, (Alexandria, Colton, and Quinton) are the lightweight winners with a 40-gram pumpkin.

Anna Dorman came in close with a 42-gram entry. The Tarbells also grew 53-gram and 75-gram pumpkins. Melissa Keller entered a 108-gram Jack-Be-Little.

The pumpkin-growing contest is an annual, educational event and one of many that Genesee County youth participate in as part of the 4-H program.

Youth ages 5-19 who are interested in becoming a member of 4-H, may contact Amy at the Cornell Cooperative Extension, 343-3040, ext. 101.

A chimney fire is reported at 2638 Pearl St. Road in East Pembroke. The house is said to be filling with smoke.

East Pembroke Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Corfu.

The location is east of Read Road, on the south side.

UPDATE 2 p.m.: "I think it's pretty much in the chimney, it's just pushing smoke into the house," says the chief on scene. They are going to employ the thermal imaging camera and a fan to blow the smoke from the residence.

A 52-year-old Corfu woman who shot her husband in his knee in August 2010 entered a guilty plea today to a charge of assault, 2nd, as a reckless action.

Patricia A. Hardesty, of 3483 County Line Road, Corfu, admitted to Judge Robert C. Noonan that she fired a .22-caliber rifle at her husband, hitting him in his knee and that she knew at the time her actions could cause bodily harm.

Hardesty faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison.

Upon Hardesty's request, her bail was revoked and she was remanded to the Genesee County Jail following her guilty plea.

As part of the deal, the District Attorney's Office agrees to expedit the return of items to her husband that were seized as evidence, including siding on their garage, which had bullet holes in it, the gun and a hat.

The Pembroke Corfu Darien Kiwanis Fall Festival and Car Cruise took place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 18 and held something for the whole family at Pembroke Town Park.

In addition to the great turn out of vehicles for the Car Cruise (more than 80 cars), there were vendors, non-profit groups, face-painting for the kids, pony rides, pumpkin patch carriage rides and a chicken barbecue by Krolick's.

More pictures from the event can be found here.

At the end of a sometimes tense meeting, the Corfu Fire District Board of Trustees voted to appoint an ethics panel to look into alleged financial improprities by the district's treasurer and a former fire chief.

The panel will make a recommendation to the district board on how to handle the matter.

The alleged improprieties were disclosed publicly by the NYS Comptroller's Office on Monday in a report that accused the district board of not keeping proper financial records and not reviewing them properly, which led to the board not catching alleged unauthorized use of district credit cards.

The ethics panel will include David Saleh, a volunteer firefighter who often helps the district and the Corfu Fire Department (a separate entity from the district) on legal matters. Saleh is past president of the Genesee County Bar Association.

Pushing hard for the board to take action on the matter was Greg Lang, president of the Corfu Fire Department.

While Lang (in the background of the bottom photo) never explicitly called for the district to fire its treasurer, Shari Salim, he did talk about the fact he has been contacted by the Genesee County Sheriff's Office regarding a possible criminal investigation. He said he was expected to call the Sheriff's Office today and report the results of the board meeting. What happened, he said, could determine whether the Sheriff's Office would open an investigation, or whether he would ask for such an investigation.

"I'm going to have to do what I have to do," Lang said several times.

“I’m telling you right now, if this thing doesn’t go right, we’re going to lose members," Lang said at one point. "There’s no question about it. You guys up there ain't good for nothin' if you ain't got members back here. ...I've had members call me, I've had members come up to me and say, 'I'm not going to be in a fire department where this is going on.”

Salim (in the second photo, far end of the table) is the daughter of district board Chairman Bob Ammon and the brother of Jeff Ammon, the former Corfu chief also named in the comptroller's report for allegedly using a district credit card for personal purchases.

She is a paid staff member of the district, drawing a stipend to serve as treasurer and secretary.

Ammon, a former chief, has also twice been named firefighter of the year for Corfu.

Salim reportedly admitted to the state auditor that she used the credit card for personal purchases. What wasn't clear from the report -- and came out at the meeting -- was that Salim and Ammon paid back the district prior to the audit. However, the board never found out about the purchases or the payback until after the auditor started going through the books.

The district board, while including volunteers for the department, is elected by Corfu residents. The board collects taxes and manages some of the revenue used to help fund the fire department.

At one point during the meeting, Bob Ammon (sitting in the foreground, second photo) became visibly distraught and made an impassioned speech about the toll the finance matter has taken on him. He said it was "tearing him up" over what it meant for his kids, the department and said he'd received threats.

"I thought we were a sisterhood or a brotherhood, but the crap I hear – my phone rings constantly," said Ammon, who's been with the department for 52 years. "'What’s this I read on Facebook?' they say. 'What’s this text message about?' It's terrible.

"I was told I was going to be friggin’ arrested the other night," saying later that if the board failed in its oversight, "we screwed up."

"We do the things we can do and I’m sorry," Ammon added. "I’ll apologize if I’m the guy who is going to get arrested and go to jail. I just turned 70 years old and they’re going to come, with my broken knee, and lock me up? I’m just sick about it."

It was that kind of talk -- the rumors of arrests and threats of arrest -- that drove Saleh (foreground, bottom photo) to get involved in Thursday's meeting, the attorney said.

"There are a couple of things that really crawled under my skin," Saleh said. "For months we've been hearing about allegations of criminal conduct and people are going to get arrested, but I read the audit report and I see nothing in there that indicates any criminal conduct."

Lang wondered how it could not be a criminal matter, saying it seemed to him that using somebody else's credit card without permission would be stealing.

"There's been talk of a credit card policy," Lang said. "Do you really need somebody to tell you not to use a credit card?"

One of the recommendations by the auditor was that the board write a credit card policy, which the board said it would do in its written response authored by Ammon.

As for whether there is criminal conduct, Saleh said in order for the use to be considered criminal there would need to be proof of intent and he said from reading the audit report, he didn't see the intent.

After some more back-and-forth over whether there was criminal conduct, Bruce Fauth basically said, "enough."

"There is a direct implication on the fire district and therefore the fire department," said Fauth (inset photo). "Therefore, I don't care about the criminality of it. I care about whether it's right or wrong and how it reflects on the fire department."

There was a lot of discussion over how much interest and fees was accrued on the credit cards -- the report said $1,600 -- and how much interest has been paid -- the report said $380 has been paid.

It's unclear how the rest of the balance was paid. The report states that Shari Salim and Jeff Ammon repaid the amounts they allegedly charged on the cards.

An examination of interest accrued and payments made will be part of the investigation by the ethics panel, which will require it to examine all of the credit card statements.

The panel will also look at the purchases, whether the district's sales-tax exemption was used, whether the personal use as a "mistake," what documents may have been altered and why the board wasn't made aware of the personal use.

After the public meeting, the district board went into closed session, permissible to discuss personnel issues, and after the closed session announced the formation of the ethics panel with Saleh heading up the investigation.

Lang questioned whether Saleh -- whom he said is friends with Ammon family -- could be impartial.

Saleh said it was his goal to be impartial and he promised an objective examination of the district records.

"I want to do this as a member, not as a lawyer," Saleh said. "I want us as a group to do this right so we set a precedent as to how we're going to handle this if it comes up again in the future. This is too painful for everybody involved for it to be done the way it's been done."

Sheriff's deputies are responding to a complaint about the rider of a red and blue ATV tearing up the lawn at Pembroke Intermediate School, located at 58 Alleghany Road in Corfu.

A NYS audit of the Corfu Fire District released today (pdf) says that fire district board members have not completed proper annual audits and that such audits would have found unauthorized personal use of district credit cards.

The fire district collects taxes to help fund the Corfu Fire Department, but is a separate entity from the fire department.

Its annual budget is more than $112,000.

The NYS Office of the Comptroller examined the district's financial records for 2008 through 2011.

Among the findings was that allegedly the district treasurer and a former fire chief made personal purchases with district credit cards totalling $2,045.

The report states that the treasurer confirmed $601 in purchases made in June and July of 2009 were for personal items.

The former chief allegedly made purchases reportedly for $779 from July through December 2008. His January 2008 bill also included a balance due of $665, according to the report.

Neither the former chief nor the treasurer are named in the report, but the report states these charges were reimbursed to the district, though it's unclear when the reimbursements took place.

According to the comptroller's office, district credit card balances included $1,600 in interest and late fees.

The district paid $380 in fees and interest, but only authorized $142 of these payments, according to the report.

"If the board had properly reviewed the actual credit card monthly billing statement," the report reads, "it would have seen that the amount on the abstract was greater than the amount due for legitimate district purchases."

The report, issued to the district on Sept. 2, offers four recommendations, including that the board: formerly adopt a credit card policy; audit every claim before approving payment; require annual financial reports issued to the comptroller's office; and that the treasurer make payments directly to vendors as authorized by the board.

In a response letter, Board Chairman Robert Ammon says that the district will adopt a former credit card policy and that it adopted internal financial controls in 2009. He also says the district has sought and received assistance from the controller's office on filing proper reports, and that the board will document concerns and require further back up for any questionable expenditures.

The response letter states that reports were not filed with the state previously because of technical difficulties involved in meeting new requirements by the state.

The letter does not directly address the issue of unauthorized use of district credit cards for personal purchases.

Corfu and Darien fire departments are responding to a fire alarm at the Presbyterian Church of Corfu, located at 63 Allegany Road.

The alarm is indicating a problem in the basement, bathroom and pantry.

UPDATE 7:48 a.m.: Darien is told to stand down. The Corfu unit is held to one unit.

UPDATE 7:50 a.m.: The chief says "It was just burnt turkey. Corfu returning, in service."

A multiple vehicle accident with multiple injuries is reported at 9049 Route 77. Corfu Fire Department and Mercy medics are en route.

UPDATE 2:15 p.m.: There are four vehicles involved. Darien Fire Department is also headed to the scene.

UPDATE 2:40 p.m.: Traffic is snarled near the accident scene. Traffic police are needed and they are seeking an available unit. A medic from Darien has transported one patient to UMMC.

UPDATE 2:59 p.m.: All Corfu units are back in service. A Sheriff's deputy is handling traffic detail.

UPDATE 3:13 p.m.: Darien units are about to clear the scene and when they do they plan to go to Alexander High School to stand by at the football game while Alexander Fire Department handles a race car accident.

A Jackson Street resident who got caught up in a meth ring nearly two years ago was given one-year probation in Federal Court on Friday.

Denise Montgomery, 42, previously entered a guilty plea to a federal charge of  "making available for use a place for the purpose of manufacturing, storing, distributing and using methamphetamine."

Montgomery was arrested in November 2009, and investigators said they found in her house a hot plate, unknown chemicals, glassware, and coffee filters containing residue.

In a press release, the U.S. Attorney's office said, "all...items (are) consistent with the clandestine manufacturing of methamphetamine."

The arrest of Montgomery followed a raid earlier that day, Nov. 12, 2009, at 789 Lewiston Road, Alabama, where a suspected meth lab was found.

The property was owned by Kenneth W. Mosholder, 44, who wasn't arrested until later at Montgomery's house.

Arrested at the trailer in Alabama were Dustin R. Behman, 20, along with Mosholder's then 17-year-old son. They were in the trailer playing video games at the time of the early morning raid.

Kenneth Mosholder died in May, 2010, and was never prosecuted.

Behman was eventually sentenced to six-months house arrest and three years probation. In an interview with The Batavian, Behman said he had turned his life around.

The Mosholder meth operation was the first of several meth-related busts in Genesee County and Sgt. Steve Mullen, head of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force, has said several of the alleged labs later found in the county could be tied back to Mosholder's operation.