Steve Mullen was the only witness called to testify in the Scott Doll murder case on Friday. He has been employed by the Genesee County Sheriff's Office for 18 years and is a sergeant in charge of the Criminal Investigation Unit.

He told the jury he got a call from Sheriff's Investigator Kris Kautz early Feb. 17, 2009 about a body found at 683 Knapp Road in Pembroke. He drove to the scene in a marked cruiser and pulled in behind Deputy Howard Carlson. Carlson's vehicle had the headlights on and they illuminated a body lying the the driveway.

With his flashlight, Mullen observed a large pool of blood around the victim, Joseph Benaquist, and damage to his skull. The body had frozen over and there was frost on his eyebrows.

The body was lying between two vehicles. Mullen requested an ambulance, as a matter of protocol, and cordoned off the area with yellow crime scene tape. A unit from the City of Batavia confirmed the death and Sheriff Deputy Chief Jerome Brewster went to the scene, calling two others to assist, Investigator Timothy J. Weis and Deputy John R. Duyssen.

"We did as thorough a search as we could in the dark," Mullen said, adding that he and Carlson checked vehicles and ran the plates through the database, looked in the house and around the property.

Mullen said he spent hours there and didn't leave until well after sunrise.

He noticed the rear tire on a Pontiac G6, which had a temporary registration, was flat. It was towed to the Sheriff's department for forensic processing, along with a Chevy Malibu.

Later that day, Mullen met Weis on Route 490 in the Town of Gates to give him some items secured as evidence to take to the public crime lab. The items included the bloody overalls, sneakers, work gloves and fireman's head sock.

On Feb. 20, investigators got a search warrant and went to Scott Doll's house at 31 E. Main St. in Corfu.

It is at this point in the testimony that tedious points of vehicle documentation ensued. At District Attorney Lawrence Friedman's prompting, Mullen said he was very familiar with car registries, paperwork and the car business because his father had a small dealership when he was growing up.

The officers found papers from Doll's and Benaquist's car business, but no book of registry. They did find two so-called MV 50 books, issued by the state, which show all the data needed to take to the DMV to transfer plates. All dealerships keep two such books, Mullen said, so one is always at hand when the other is sent to the state temporarily as required.

Friedman asked if Mullen found the paperwork showing a 2007 van belonged to Benaquist. No, Mullen said, nothing in the book matched up with the vehicle's sticker that was missing. The paperwork for an '03 Chevy TRZ was partially filled out and signed by Scott Doll.

The jurors at this point became fidgety. They yawned, blinked, adjusted their necks, rearranged their arms.

Two jurors seemed unable to give the proceedings their undivided attention.

One juror kept his eyes closed for looongg periods of time. He sat in a completely ridged, frozen-like state throughout the court session, with only is jaw moving from time to time as he chewed gum. Once in a while, his eyes actually opened.

The other guy with a questionable attention span nodded off many times during the morning. There was no court in the afternoon. His head would bob downward, stay there awhile, then he would suddenly awaken, subtly surprising himself. His head would raise up, but not for long.

When the jury took a 20-minute break a couple of people in the gallery quipped "hey, maybe he should take some No-Doze," and words to that effect.

On cross examination, Doll's attorney Paul Cambria asked if Mullen took photos during the search. No, Mullen said. Did anyone else take photos? No, Mullen replied, not that he knew of.

Cambria asked if he searched the house? Yes, Mullen said, but because they were supposed to be looking for areas where a person might be, they did not open drawers and inspect nooks and crannies.

They checked the closets and looked for Scott Doll's shoes. Did they check to see if any other man's shoes were there, Cambria asked. No, Mullen said.

Cambria said that while Mullen knew that the Pontiac G6 had a temporary registration, he didn't know the circumstances of that, did he? No, Mullen said, only what should and should not be in the book.

"But you didn't know what the deal was among the parties?"

No, Mullen said.

At Benaquist's house, did anyone photograph shoes there? Cambria asked. No, Mullen said.

Under further questioning by Cambria, Mullen said he searched around the body and found no weapons. He took part in the initial search, but not subsequent ones. He filed the murder charge against Doll sometime after 9 a.m. on Feb. 17, but Doll still had not been given access to legal counsel. No blood analysis was done, no blood-spatter expert consulted and no DNA analysis had been done.

Although Mullen was at the murder scene for up to nine hours, he didn't gather any evidence. Rather, he oversaw and assisted the evidence-collection process. Investigator Weis gathered the physical evidence and took photos. But when Weis took evidence to the crime lab, Investigator Roger M. Stone filled in as photographer. Carlson kept the case investigation log.

There were some things at the scene which apparently escaped Mullen's attention, according to his testimony after being shown a number of photos. There was a boot in the snow, later removed, that he hadn't noticed. There was a pickup truck, photographed from the back, which Mullen said he hadn't seen before.

"It's a little unusual because it had folding chairs in the back of it," Cambria said.

And although Mullen confirmed that the photos presented into evidence where "fair and accurate," he couldn't remember what vehicles were in the driveway and where they were located.

One photo showed Benaquist's hands, each encased in plastic bags to retain DNA evidence, such as skin under the fingernails, hair, etc. This is routine procedure. But forensic testing of his hands was not requested and therefore not done.

Near one of the vehicles in the driveway lies a "big, big flashlight," clearly seen in a photo. Mullen didn't recall seeing it. Cambria asked if anyone had tested it, to see how long it took a charge before it went dead. No, was the answer.

Another photo shows a car jack under the Nissan, another detail Mullen could not recall. And the Nissan, in addition to being processed for evidence at the Sheriff's station, was then taken to the State Police for additional evidence gathering, which Mullen had not been aware of until being shown a photo.

A chunk of wood in front of a tire can be seen in one photo. In another shot, it is gone and there is no evidence marker in its place. Mullen said he believes that it was photographed and marked as evidence, then removed, but he could not be sure.

Courtroom sketches by Robert Garland. Top sketch of Sgt. Steve Mullen on the stand. Inset, Judge Robert Noonan. Bottom sketch, Daniel Killelea, Scott Doll and Paul Cambria.

Delavan's Restaurant and Tavern, 107 Evans St., Batavia, NY: To me, Delavan's is one of those restaurants where you wantto eat frequently until you try everything on the menu. We have a $20 gift certificate for $10.

Margarita's Mexican Restaurant, 15 Jackson St., Batavia, NY: When you're looking for an authentic Mexican meal, Margarita's is the place to go. The food and atmosphere are perfect and the service is always outstanding. We have a $20 gift certificate for $10.

Main St. Pizza Company, 206 E. Main St., Batavia, NY: Pizza, wings, subs and even hamburgers and hot dogs, Main St. Pizza makes everything deliciously. We have a $25 gift certificate for $12.50.

Alex's Place, 8322 Park Road, Batavia, NY: People come from all over the region for a fine dining experience at Alex's. It's best known for its ribs, of course, but Alex's seafood is also a favorite of the restaurant's diners. We have a $25 gift certificate for $12.50.

Settler's Restaurant, 353 W. Main St., Batavia, NY: Settler's has a 25-year history of serving great, affordable breakfasts, lunches and dinners to Batavians. We have a $20 gift certificate for $10.

The Enchanted Florist, 202 E. Main St., Batavia, NY: Give yourself the gift of flowers, or give to a friend. We have a $20 gift certificate for $9.50.

Center Street Smoke House, 20 Center St., Batavia, NY: Authentic Southern BBQ, from ribs to brisket with all the fixin's. We have a $20 gift card for $10.

T.F. Brown's, at 214 E. Main St., Batavia, NY: T.F. Brown's is a great place for a good meal, good friends and to catch up on what's going on in the sports world. "If it happens in sports, it happens at Brown's." We have a $20 gift card for $10.

NOTE: If you've never bought Deal of the Day before, or are otherwise unfamiliar with the rules and process, click here.

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Here's the most viewed posts for April:

• Pontillo v. Pontillo opens window on finances of legendary family business
• Dave's Produce has barely survived the alleged bad debt from Pontillo's
• Photo: Counting Cars
• State health commissioner pushing for tax on sodas
• Registering on The Batavian
• Batavia merchants hit by rash of fake $50 bills
• Today's Poll: What do you think of the Confederate flag?
• Carl Paladino's e-mail problem
• County faced with big expense related to new drunken driving law
• Batavia supervisor says state should have accurate data before restriping Ellicott

Reader Carl Szalbak submitted these photos from last night's Wiard Plow factory fire.

More than 20 hours after a major wind storm blew through Genesee County, power is still out at 18 locations, the largest effecting 166 National Grid customers in Bethany, according to the utility's website.

The other 17 or so outage spots effect fewer than five customers each, according to the site.

In each case, National Grid estimates that power will be returned to these locations by 11 p.m.

There are two remaining outage spots in the City of Batavia and two in the Village of Le Roy. In all four cases, fewer than five customers are without power.

On Saturday, the United Post Office held their annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.

Did you ever wonder where that food that you put by your mailbox  goes? Care-A-Van Ministries is  a benefactor of the food the community donates. Your donations help stock the shelves at Care-A-Van.  Amazing as the shelves were just getting empty and then pours in the blessings of the community to fill them again.

Shelves Saturday morning before drive

A very special thank you to  those that donated food, the volunteers out picking them up, the postal carriers, the staff at the local Post Office and those who came to Care-A-Van headquarters to help unload and organize the shelves. Your contributions will help feed those in need. Besides the weekly outings with the bus, Care-A-Van receives calls during the week of those in need of food for their households.

Batavia Fire's Engine 12 was back on scene this afternoon after smoke started to rise from the rubble near the still intact part of the structure. While smoldering wood has been allowed burn well away from the remaining structure, firefighters were concerned this was a little too close. 

Curious area residents continue to drive by the Swan Street scene on a regular basis.

In honor of Mother's Day, New York Farm Bureau is saluting the growing ranks of women that have recently entered into farming. Here's a news release from the bureau:

Women farmers are among the fastest growing sectors in agriculture, according to recent state and federal statistics. The most recent agricultural census, done in 2007, revealed that women were the principal operators of 6,688 farms in New York on 592,787 acres of land.

"The trend of women joining this industry makes sense," said Julie Suarez, public policy director for Farm Bureau and mother of two. "Women farmers can work where they live, alongside their children. It's the ultimate family lifestyle.

"Women farmers are also producing something of value for the community at large -- good food. The occupation offers tremendous job satisfaction, although not always as financially lucrative as other businesses.

"There's always been a strong female partnership in our state's family farms, but the recent trend is for farmers' daughters, and innovative women seeking new careers, to start up their own farm operation or initiate a new endeavor on the home farm."

Women are running more farms and operating more land, and producing a greater value of agricultural products than ever before. When compared to all farms nationwide, those with female principal operators tend to be smaller both in terms of size and sales. However, women are more likely to own all of the farmland that they operate.

"There are a lot of state programs out there that seek to help minority- and women-owned businesses with start-up, micro-loans or state procurement opportunities," Suarez said. "But farmers don't often think about these programs because their availability is not usually publicized in rural areas in a field that's stereotypically dominated by men.

"The reality couldn't be further from the truth as farm families know that women have always played an equal role in the farm family and business. However, when women seek to develop their own farm operations there aren't many development tools geared toward meeting the needs of women opening up a farm business in a rural area.

"We hope that by highlighting this growing segment of agriculture, and saluting our female farmers, we can encourage greater awareness of the need for minority- and women-owned business programs to consider the great potential that exists for women in starting new farm operations."

As a few last whiffs of smoke drifted from debris of the old Wiard Plow factory in Batavia late this morning, streams of area residents drove by the Swan Street location to see for themselves the destruction from Saturday's massive fire.

What they saw was more than the rubble of bricks, charred beams and twisted metal. They also saw the remains of Batavia's once thriving industrial history.

Firefighters were on scene as late as 10:30 a.m. as investigators tried picking through the debris to find the factory floor, in hopes of confirming the fire's origin and possible cause.

Lt. James Steinbrenner said they did get to a portion of the floor, but not the area they want to investigate.  Steinbrenner said the location investigators would like to examine is under much heavier rubble.  He said it will take heavy equipment to remove and it's unclear yet who will pay for that work.

Arson is still suspected, but police detectives have yet to announce any findings.

More pictures after the jump:

The bottom two pictures show the smashed windows of two trucks that may be associated with a business that had been (and might still be) occupying another section of the Wiard Plow complex. Based on the location of the vehicles, it seems highly unlikely that these windows were smashed by falling bricks from the fire.  A more likely possibility is that they were smashed previously by vandals.

A structure fire in Elba on Saturday caused an estimated $100,000 damage after a diesel engine connected to a generator apparently overheated, setting off the blaze.

A shed at 5327 Watson Road was destroyed.

The fire damaged the motor, generator, wiring and controls.

Elba Fire and Deputy Jason Saile investigated the incident.

(initial report)

There was nothing Tom Mancuso could do but watch.

Mancuso, donning a New York Yankees ball cap, and wearing a gaunt, dour expression in the unseasonably cold night, stood for hours just watching as firefighters tried to beat back the hungry red and blue flames devouring his building, the old Wiard Plow factory that his firm acquired in the 1980s.

Through the battle, Mancuso rarely turned away. He just watched.

"You can always build another 100,000-square-foot building," Mancuso said at one point. "You can never replace a 100-year-old building."

An Alarm of Fire
Just before sunset Saturday, Genesee County Dispatch started to get calls of a fire at 33 Swan St. -- the same location where a smaller fire had been extinguished by the Batavia Fire Department earlier Saturday.

On a day when the dispatch center dealt with hundreds and hundreds of calls, the switch board lighting up just fit the pattern.

But this time, this was no "possible" structure fire. Witnesses -- and there were several -- reported seeing heavy smoke.

By the time the Batavia Fire Department was on scene, flames were already showing.

The call quickly went out for mutual-aid departments to respond -- from Le Roy, Stafford, Town of Batavia and several others.

By 8:15 p.m., big balls of flame were shooting from the back of the historic structure.

Among the witnesses to the initial smoke was a reader of The Batavian, who told us he saw two youths running from the building. He said that later those same two youngsters were being questioned by police.

A little after 11 p.m., The Batavian confirmed Batavia Police detectives Todd Crossett and Kevin Czora were at the police station talking with two juveniles. Their parents had also been called to the station.

Earlier in the day, the Batavia Fire Department responded to a report of smoke coming from the rear side of the same Wiard Plow building.

Two youths reported the fire, saying they were walking in the area when they spotted the smoke. Lt. James Steinbrenner said Batavia Police questioned the youths who reported the fire and determined they were in fact just witnesses and not involved in the possible arson.

The fire, according to Steinbrenner, appeared deliberately set. There were papers spread around the floor of an abandoned office space that had been ignited. The arrangement of the paper suggested it was sometimes used as bedding.

An electrical cause could be ruled out because the building had no utilities service.

People could gain access to the space where the fire was found through a collapsed wall in an inner courtyard-like area. There was evidence that somebody had used a pallet to construct a makeshift ladder to gain easy access from the courtyard down into the office area.

Four burned birthday candles sat on a table in a room adjacent to the office were the earlier fire was discovered.

That fire was completely extinguished by BFD before it had a chance to spread beyond the office.

This evening's fire, according to Steinbrenner, may have started several yards to the south of the earlier fire, but within the same group of rooms in the building.

Fire Protection
Mancuso was clearly concerned about access to his building. He said work crews just within the past couple of weeks had welded shut doors that vandals had been using to gain access by breaking locks. There was also a 10-foot-high chain-link fence that was supposed to prevent people from entering the courtyard area.

"It was secured from the casual person entering," Mancuso said.

Several fire companies from Genesee County responded to the blaze, including Le Roy, which over the previous six or seven hours had responded to 15 calls in its own district -- mostly trees and power lines down.

Batavia's interim fire chief, Craig Williams, said the first order of business was firefighter safety.

"It’s a vacant building, so our first priority is making sure our guys stay safe, so we weren’t going to enter the building," Williams said.

Firefighters formed a perimeter around the building, striking it with several streams of water -- including three aerial (or ladder) trucks.

One Batavia firefighter said Le Roy's ladder truck crew deserved special credit for attacking the fire from the front of the building and keeping the flames from spreading beyond the firewall.

“There were breeches in the firewall, because of construction and renovations over the years, but we dumped a lot of water on it," Williams said. "Between the firewall and our efforts it looks like we pretty much got it stopped at the firewall.”

All evening, temperatures were at or below freezing, and snow flurries occasionally blew through the scene.

Firefighters were universally thankful for the cold and damp weather. With the high winds of Saturday evening, the fire could have quickly and easily spread if not for the recent rains. The entire Harvester complex could have been lost. Winds of 30 to 40 mph were carrying embers directly over the old factory buildings.

Town of Batavia Fire was assigned early in the incident, Williams said, to watch over the Harvester buildings.

Shortly before 11 p.m., heavy-duty wrecking equipment was brought in to start knocking down bricks and mortar that were first set in the 1870s.

By knocking down the ancient walls, the remains of the fire could be more quickly extinguished.

By about 1 a.m., Sunday, most of the fire units who had responded were back in service.

Updated at 11:30 a.m., Sunday, to include information about weather conditions and potential damage to the Harvester complex.

Previous coverage:

• Historic Wiard Plow Co. destroyed by fire
• Photos: Old Wiard Plow factory fire
• Reader Photos: Wiard factory fire
• Juveniles being questioned in connection with Wiard factory fire
• Historic building on Swan Street ablaze
• Swan Street fire caught early, before any real damage done

Here are 29 photos from the scene of tonight's Wiard Plow factory fire.

More pictures after the jump:

More pictures after the jump:

Two juvenile subjects are currently being questioned at Police Headquarters by Batavia Police detectives Kevin Czora and Todd Crossett.

Their parents have been called to the station.

A witness earlier informed The Batavian that he saw two youths running from the scene, and later saw those two same individuals being questioned by police.

Here are a few photos I took while at the scene. I'll post more later. We've also received numerous reader-submitted photos and we will post those later. I'm heading back to the scene as soon as this post is up.

A firefighter said it looked like this fire broke out only feet from where this afternoon's fire was apparently set.

The back of the building is a total loss. There is a chance the front half will be saved.

A number of firefighters I spoke with said they were thankful it's a cold and damp night.  With the direction of the wind and embers in the air, Harvester Center could have been ignited as well, if not for cold and damp weather.

More later.

There is a structure fire at the Wiard Plow Co. building at 33 Swan St. in the City of Batavia. Firefighters are on scene, opening up the building to vent the smoke. The roof is afire with 20-foot flames. A second ladder is requested. A crew from Alexander is requested to fill in for the City of Batavia as standby. Looky-loos are posing an impediment to the firefighting efforts.

The fire is engulfing the rear of the structure. There was an apparent arson there earlier this afternoon.

"From everything I can see the main sturcture is OK but there's a lot of embers flying around. A good chunk of the rear of the building fell down," reports a firefighter.

All firefighting manpower from the city and town of Batavia are called to the scene.

Bad news for farmers and gardeners, a freeze watch is effect.

Temperatures are expected to drop below freezing.

Currently, it's snowing.

The National Weather Service warns that this freeze could kill crops and sensitive vegetation.

The report of this tree falling into a house at 2 Manhatten Ave., Batavia, came in around 5:30 p.m.

The initial report said the residents were trapped in the house, but they managed to get out before city firefighters arrived.

This is the scene at 6:51 p.m.

A possible barn fire has been reported at 5327 Watson Road, Elba.

A generator that started smoking may be the cause of the fire.

An Elba chief on scene reports smoke showing.

A plumber from Oakfield is being sent to the Elba Fire Hall. Byron asked to stand by in its hall.

View Larger Map

A tree fell into a home on Kibbe Avenue. Witnesses said a limb pierced straight through the roof into the closet of a bedroom. One person was home, but nobody was hurt.

A tree down and blocking Jackson Street near Wood Street.

A man walking down Ellicott Street, trying to keep control of his umbrella in the wind.

More pictures after the jump:

The fence in front of the old Christina's Restaurant location on Ellicott Street was blown down. Genesee Dispatch reached owner Chuck Brumstead, who reportedly said nothing could be done about it until Sunday.

A tree came down on this car on Vine Street.

Firefighters Joseph Schlossel and Robert Fix remove a tree limb from Tracy Avenue.

City crews had a lane of traffic closed throughout most of the morning and into mid-day for unknown repairs at Ellicott and Jackson streets.

The flag outside the Genesee County Economic Development Center on Mill Street whipping in the wind.