Buyers: Please remember the six-month rule -- please don't buy a gift certificate you bought within the past six months.

Sallome's Italian Deli, 40 Oak St., Batavia, NY: Wraps, subs, paninis and pasta as well as pizzas -- Sallome's offers a tasty variety of Italian deli items for eat-in or take-out.

Matty's Pizzeria, 4152 W. Main St., Batavia, NY: Matty's is another Batavia favorite for pizza and wings. We have a $20 gift certificate for $10.

South Main Country Gifts, 3356 Main St. Road, Batavia, NY: Handcrafted items, gifts with a regional flair, candles, teas and spices -- South Main has a wide selection to please most any interest. We have a $20 gift certificate for $10.

Great Kutz, in the Valu Plaza, 4152 W. Main St. Road, Batavia, NY: Great Kutz is Batavia's newest full-service hair salon. Women, try Great Kutz for a haircut at the incredibly low price of $7, exclusive offer from to The Batavian. (gift card can be applied toward other services, but not products).

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.

Center Street Smoke House, 20 Center St., Batavia, NY: Authentic Southern BBQ, from ribs to brisket with all the fixin's. We have a $25 gift card for $12.50.

Pudgie's Lawn and Garden Center, 3646 W. Main St. Road, Batavia, NY: Time to visit Pudgie's and buy your Christmas tree. 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.

Kravings Kafe, Valu Plaza, W. Main Street, Batavia, NY: Recently opened, it offers soups, salads and sandwiches, fresh and flavorful; Monday through Saturday. We have $10 gift certificates for $5.

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Great Kutz - Women

A driver reports striking a pole on Buckley Road in area of Prentice Road in Stafford and complains of a head injury.

Stafford Fire and Mercy EMS have been dispatched.

UPDATE 7:44 a.m.: Pole is down. Wires are down.

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An accident on Route 33 in the area of West Bergen Road has been reported.

There is a report of injuries and smoke coming from one of the vehicles.

Traffic on Route 33 is blocked.

Bergen Fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

UPDATE 7:34 a.m.: Reported apparent minor injuries.

Elba Fire and Mercy EMS are responding to a report of a car hitting a pole at 5353 Ford Road.

UPDATE 7:28 a.m.: Wires were pulled from the adjacent house. The home owner has turned off his electricity and National Grid is being dispatched.

UPDATE 7:31 a.m.: Border Patrol has also been requested to the scene.  Also, traffic is now clear.

UPDATE 7:33 a.m.: Elba Fire requested to return to scene because of smell of electrical burning in the house.

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Tonight I went to Jackson Street and a couple of the side streets to the west and snapped pictures of a few of the homes with Christmas lights.

More pictures after the jump:

City fire crews are being dispatched to 60 Walnut St. to investigate a possible chimney fire.

The caller reports sparks coming from the chimney.

Engine 12 and Ladder 15 are responding. Mercy EMS is also responding.

UPDATE 9:24 p.m.: Engine 12 and Ladder 15 back in service.

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Ronald J. Wendt, accused of driving drunk in Darien and getting into an accident that claimed the life of a Dansville girl, is back in jail.

Wendt had been released on $50,000 bail pending his trial, but on the condition he not drive (his license was revoked).

On Nov. 18, Wendt was stopped by a State Trooper in the Town of Batavia while riding a reportedly unregistered and uninsured dirt motor bike.

District Attorney Lawrence Friedman said Wendt readily admitted to the Trooper who he was and volunteered information about his case.  The Trooper arrested him and brought him before a Town of Batavia justice, who set his bail at $500, which Wendt immediately paid.

Friedman brought the arrest to the attention of Judge Robert Noonan, who ordered Wendt to appear in County Court.  Noonan adjusted Wendt's bail to $250,000.

Alcohol was not a factor in the latest arrest, Friedman said. 

He couldn't confirm whether Wendt was trying to get to work at the time of his arrest.

Wendt has not yet raised that bail amount.

Previously:

• Drunken driving suspected in Darien accident that kills Dansville girl
• More serious manslaughter charge levied against Alexander man accused of drunken driving
• Alexander man accused of manslaughter pleads not guilty to 11 felony counts

Somebody broke into the Oil Doctor location at 4003 West Main Street Road, Batavia, overnight and stole inspection stickers and business records.

This morning, Sheriff's deputies attempted to track the suspect through tracks in snow, but that apparently only led them to a location down the road where the suspect apparently got in a car and drove away.

According to Deputy William Ferrando, the burglar gained entry to a west side door by breaking some glass.

No suspect has been arrested yet.

As a retired registered nurse, member of the New York State Nurses Association and member of the coalition with Physicians for a National Health Plan, I am very concerned about the healthcare "reform" currently underway in Congress. 

I am convinced that the route to comprehensive and affordable health care has taken a dramatically wrong turn. 

The main features of the legislation have often seemed obscure; for instance, neither a "government takeover" nor a "public option" really have anything much to do with the final bills.  Both bills will make being uninsured a crime, punishable by an annual fine of up to 2.5 % of adjusted income under the House bill and $95.-$750. under the Senate bill. 

To make insurance affordable, tax money will be used to subsidize private insurance premiums, but even with these subsidies, families will be required to spend 8-12% of their income to purchase insurance.  Meanwhile, the insurance companies stand to gain tens of millions of new customers and at least $447 billion in taxpayer subsidies. 

The bills in Congress offer no meaningful cost controls, will leave 17-24 million uninsured and do nothing about the high cost of prescription drugs.

Mild promises to "bend the cost curve" fall short when even middle-income people will still end up being saddled with huge, unsustainable health care costs. 

One example of a measure that promises cost-savings is a health insurance "exchange" that each ill could create (4-5 years in the future). This has been tried without success in Massachusetts, where it has added, not reduced, costs.   

I agree with Congressman Massa from Rochester who states these "solutions" will not fix the problems we face.  We do not need "insurance reform." We need healthcare, comprehensive and affordable for everyone and we need it now--not over the next four to ten years.  Congress should reboot the process and start with a proposal for workable reform: a single-payer national health program, an expanded and improved Medicare for all.

Despite six previous DWI convictions, one of which led to a stint in state prison, Robert Lamkin of Batavia isn't going to be locked up just yet for his 7th DWI conviction.

Judge Robert Noonan granted Lamkin one year interim probation. If Lamkin makes it through probation successfully, his possible prison term will be reduced to one to three years.

Either way, Lamkin is looking at another prison term. The only question is when it starts and for how long.

Noonan warned that any slip up of any kind will land him in a lot of hot water.

"It will not take much of trip and fall to put you in for a major prison term," Noonan said. "When, and if, you're getting to the point of reaching for a bottle or reaching for car keys you need to stop and think whether it’s important enough for you to take that drink or take that drive that you want to be separated from your family for a long, long time."

Noonan granted the interim probation over the objection of Genesee Justice and after reading a less than stellar probation history.

"On this history it's hard to see how to justify anything but state prison," Noonan said. "By your own statements, you've just kind of blown off the conditions of probation in the past. At least until June of this year, you've paid very little heed to the restrictions placed on you. ... I have an obligation to the citizens of the world to make them safe from people like you. I'm only saying that to tell you the corner you've backed yourself into."

Lamkin's most recent arrest came in June in Pavilion.

While on probation, Lamkin will be required to take an Ethyl glucuronide (EtG) test regularly. It detects alcohol in the system for up to 80 hours, yielding results even when a breath test reads zero. It's sometimes used with airline pilots to ensure they're not even hung over when they fly.

Lamkin is represented by attorney Michael M. Mohun.

Nick A. Hawkins, described by his attorney as a troubled young man, who admitted to robbing the Five Star Bank branch in Pavilion on Oct. 13, is going to state prison.

Judge Robert Noonan imposed a sentence of two to six years this morning, though he could not order Hawkins repay the $443 dollars he received from a teller after handing her a note because Five Star Bank did not request restitution.

Hawkins, dressed in orange jail garb, was a little tearful when he expressed regret for his crimes.

"I'd like to apologize for all the trouble I’ve caused every one," Hawkins said, pausing to wipe a tear from his face. "I know that doesn’t change it, but I d’ like a chance to make it right. That’s all."

Noonan also sentenced Hawkins on his burglary conviction, stemming from a crime he committed at Frost Ridge Campground in 2001. That  one-and-a third- to four-year sentence will be served concurrently with his robbery sentence.

Hawkins had a plea agreement that would have allowed the burglary conviction to be treated as a youthful offender case. But since the plea, the court discovered he had a previous youthful offender adjudication for a felony conviction in another county. That made him ineligible for youthful-offender status this time. Hawkins could have withdrawn his guilty plea, but did not.

Public Defender Gary Horton asked Judge Noonan for some leniency, describing Hawkins as a "tortured individual" who has struggled with a number of issues in his life.

"He realizes the seriousness of the offenses," Horton said. "He realizes the seriousness as much as anybody in this courtroom and I know he’s remorseful for any pain he has caused others. I don’t think this is an individual who should be given up on or thrown away at this time. I fear the kind of individual he will be several years from now when returned to our community."

Noonan said he felt compelled to send Hawkins to prison.

"Reading about family, your mental health, your drug addiction, the loss of your brother, these are all troubling things," Noonan said. "It’s a very sad story, no question about that. But as you stand here before me, I have to balance the trouble you've gone through with the needs of society. You need to be in prison. You’ve demonstrated you cannot abide by laws in a free society and you cannot control yourself and you committed crimes that are very troublesome."

Previously: 

• Accused bank robber comes from Le Roy family having a tough time
• Five Star Bank robber pleads guilty
• Le Roy man arrested and charged with Pavilion bank robbery
• Police pursue bank robbery suspect in Pavilion area

The Batavia area can expect more snow and sleet tonight, with accumulations of 1 to 2 inches.

There is also a wind advisory for Wednesday night, with winds reaching 40 mph and gusts up to 60 mph.

From the National Weather Service:

A high wind watch remains in effect from Wednesday evening through Thursday afternoon.

A very deep early winter storm system will track to the west and north of the area Wednesday and Thursday. Southeast winds of 15 to 25 mph will be found ahead of the storm on Wednesday. ... then stronger winds will set in Wednesday night. The winds will become southwesterly and will increase to 25 to 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph possible overnight. These strong winds will become more westerly late Wednesday night and will continue through the day Thursday.

Reginald Jason Donahue, 34, of 6483 Townline Road, Byron, is charged with criminal contempt in the first degree and menacing in the third degree. Donahue is accused of entering the residence of his estranged wife, violating an order of protection. During a reported argument with her, he allegedly made a fist and threatened her.

Juan A. Ramos, 19, of Batavia, was arrested by State Police at 8170 Batavia-Stafford Townline Road, Batavia. Ramos is charged with trespass.

Buyers: Please remember the six-month rule -- please don't buy a gift certificate you bought within the past six months.

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.

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.

Jackson St. Grill, 9 Jackson St., Batavia, NY: Try the fresh, skinless haddock fish fry on Fridays. We have a $10 gift certificate for $5.

Center Street Smoke House, 20 Center St., Batavia, NY: Authentic Southern BBQ, from ribs to brisket with all the fixin's. We have a $25 gift card for $12.50.

Kravings Kafe, Valu Plaza, W. Main Street, Batavia, NY: Recently opened, it offers soups, salads and sandwiches, fresh and flavorful; Monday through Saturday. We have $10 gift certificates for $5.

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

SOLD OUT

Tonight I drove down Lincoln Avenue in Batavia and found several homes decorated for the holidays.

More pictures after the jump:

Alexander Fire was dispatched to Molasses Hill Road to check the report of an unknown type of fire on the railroad tracks.

It turns out to be a gas-powered deicer for the tracks.

Listening to county work crews chatter on the scanner: Snow is starting to accumulate on roadways, especially the southern part of the county, and bridges are starting to ice up.

The DiSalvo's Christmas light display is always a showstopper. Cars line up and down the length of their property on Fargo Road in Batavia, slowly driving along the shoulder.  People come from all around the county to make sure they get a glimpse of the lights at least once before the end of the season.

Here are some photos to enjoy the decorations at home.  But, if you're looking to fully capture that Christmas spirit and holiday atmosphere, the trip is worth the drive.

For a year or longer, I've wanted to buy a John Hodgins painting.  It's been a matter of money as well as finding the right painting.  When I happened past the Edward Jones office on Jackson Street during Christmas in the City on Friday night, I knew this was the painting I wanted.  Later that night, I ran into John in the Mall.  We came to a quick agreement on price and I picked it up today.   I understand this painting depicts the old newsstand on Jackson.  I like it -- local art by a local artist of a local scene.