batavia

Glennder J. Velez, 24, of Moulson Street, Rochester, is charged with: felony driving while intoxicated -- with a BAC greater than .08 percent; felony DWI -- common law; aggravated unlicensed operation in the first degree; driving in the wrong direction on a one-way street; operating a motor vehicle without an ignition interlock device. Velez was arrested at 8:14 p.m. on Oct. 23 on North Spruce Street in the city following a traffic stop. He was processed by Batavia police and is due in Batavia City Court on Jan. 6. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Cowen Mitchell, assisted by Officer Adam Tucker.

Joel Morales Cruz, 46, of Swan Street, Batavia is charged with: speeding; illegal turn signal -- made less than 100 feet from turn; failure to notify a change of home address; driving while intoxicated -- first offense; and operation of a motor vehicle while having a BAC of .08 percent or more. Batavia Police Officer Nicole McGinnis stopped Morales Cruz for allegedly speeding on Oak Street in Batavia at 4:38 a.m. Oct. 25. He was put through field sobriety tests, resulting in his arrested. He was processed then released with an appearance ticket for Jan. 26 in Batavia City Court. Batavia Police Officer Connor Borchert assisted in the case.

Russell J. Hamilton, 30, of Myrtle Street, Le Roy, was arrested and charged with second-degree criminal contempt on Oct. 26. The arrest follows an investigation of a violation of an order of protection that occurred at 1:19 p.m. on Oct. 21, when Hamilton allegedly sent the protected party a text message. He was released with an appearance ticket returnable to Batavia City Court on Jan. 26. Batavia Police Officer Sean Wilson handled the case.

Donald V. Notaro Jr., 22, of Deumant Terrace, Tonawanda, is charged with operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs -- first offense, and operating a motor vehicle with an inadequate headlight. Notaro was arrested after a traffic stop on East Main Street in Batavia at 11:45 p.m. on July 3. He was processed at Batavia Police Department and issued traffic tickets to be in Batavia City Court on Jan. 26. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Wesley Rissinger, assisted by Officer Joshua Girvin.

Russell J. Hamilton, 30, of Myrtle Street, Le Roy, is charged with second-degree criminal contempt. At 4:58 p.m. on Oct. 26, Hamilton was arrested after an investigation allegedly revealed he violated a stay away order of protection by being at the the protected person's home on Dellinger Avenue in Batavia. He was arraigned in Batavia City Court and put in jail on $2,000 cash bail, $4,000 bond, or $8,000 partially secured bond. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer John Gombos, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Jamie L. Soto, 45, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with first-degree criminal contempt. Soto was arrested at 3:19 p.m. on Oct. 25 after an investigation revealed Soto violated a stay away order of protection by allegedly having physical contact with the protected party. Soto was arraigned in Batavia City Court and jailed without bail. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer John Gombos, assisted by Sgt. Dan Coffey.

Rosemary R. Waters, 34, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with having an unregistered motor vehicle and driving while ability impaired by drugs. Waters was arrested on Dellinger Avenue in the City of Batavia at 3:23 a.m. on Aug. 17. She is due in Batavia City Court on Jan. 20. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Samuel Freeman, assisted by Officer John Gombos.

Jose Garcia, 35, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief. He was arrested after an investigation of an incident that occurred at 10:19 a.m. on Oct. 23 on South Main Street. Garcia is accused of kicking and damaging the front door of a residence. He was issued an appearance ticket then released. He is due in Batavia City Court on Nov. 10. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Stephen Cronmiller, assisted by Officer Kevin DeFelice.

Brandon C. Dodd, 33, of Highland Park, Batavia, is accused of petit larceny. He was arrested Oct. 23 following an investigation of a larceny that occurred at 2:56 p.m. on Oct. 19 at Tops Friendly Market in Batavia. Dodd was released with an appearance ticket for Jan. 12 in Batavia City Court. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Adam Tucker, assisted by Officer Freeman Samuel.

Mike O'Reilly lives in Queens, a borough of New York City that most in Western New York think of as a liberal bastion. Yes, a Trump bumper sticker on your car will result in insults and raised fingers but there's more support there for Trump than you might think, O'Reilly said today standing next to his private plane wrapped to express his support for the president's reelection.

JBRGraphfx, of Churchville, wrapped the plane while it was the Genesee County Airport and O'Reilly has been on a tour of New York trying to do his part to flip the state from blue to red.

"I’m flying around the state," O'Reilly said. "I’m flying to as many airports as I can. I wanted to go to all of the airports but with the weather, I’m hoping to get 12 to 15 stops. The media coverage has been great and people are getting excited. The whole idea is to get people to vote and not just Republicans, not just independents, not conservatives but Democrats because I believe that the Main Street Democrats, they’re not going for all of this looney, left-liberal stuff.

"They not going for doing away with securing our borders and law enforcement, defunding police. Democrats don’t want this. They want what Trump has to offer. They want a strong economy. They want good jobs. They want to be able to support their family. They want safe streets, good schools. That’s what Trump is offering and that’s my real appeal — Democrats in New York, come out and vote for Trump. It’s OK."

Photo: Mike O'Reilly, and Tim Jessop and Devin Jessop of JBRGraphx.

First responders turned out to Jackson and John Kennedy schools today to hand out candy to the students.

Press release:

The City of Batavia Police Department has been made aware of small denomination counterfeit bills being passed at local businesses. The Batavia Police Department is reminding everyone to check their money carefully.

If you feel that you may be victim in receiving counterfeit bills, please report it to the Police Department at (585) 345-6350.

A few simple items to check for on U.S. currency that are hard to recreate on counterfeit bills:

• Color Shifting Ink -- the bill denomination on the bottom right hand corner has the right color shifting ink.
• Raised Printing -- To detect raised printing, take your fingernail and run it carefully down the collar/jacket. You should feel some vibration on your nail from the ridges.
• Blurry Borders/printing/text -- significantly blurry borders, printing, or text, it is an automatic red flag.
• Red & Blue Threads -- If you take a close look at an authentic bill, you will see that there are small red and blue threads woven in and out within the fabric of the bill.
• Watermark -- In many of the new bills, the watermark is actually a replica of the face on the bill.

Information on the current counterfeit cases is not being release at this time due to the ongoing investigation.

Photos and information from Heather Klein, 400 Towers case manager.

Some of our residents at 400 Towers in Batavia painted pumpkins. It was a fun way to have some activity for our residents during times of COVID-19.

One that stands out in particular (top photo) was made by a resident who painted a pumpkin the colors of candy corn and added a mask. 

Another resident thought it was a great reminder to the community to wear masks and suggested that we contact The Batavian.

The pumpkin painter of the top photo is Pauline Hensel.

Below, the top left and bottom right pumpkins were done by AJ Taylor. The top right and bottom left were done by Patricia (Pat) Larson.

Press release:

City Police Chief Shawn Heubusch advises that a 9 p.m. curfew is in place for all trick-or-treating activities. Those that do go out for the evening are reminded to ensure that they are dressed in reflective clothing and that young trick-or-treaters are always accompanied by an adult.

"See and Be Seen."

Also, do not attempt to go to porches that are dark or otherwise not welcoming to trick-or-treaters and respect others' property.

For fire prevention and safety tips this Halloween click here.

Press release:

The Batavia Police Department accepted almost 300 pounds of prescription drugs during the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Drug Take Back Day held in the Alva Place parking lot on Saturday.

Between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2  p.m., officers accepted drugs from 142 vehicles. This year, the department partnered with staff from United Memorial Medical Center who were on hand to accept sharps.

The service was free and anonymous, no questions asked.

This month’s event was the DEA’s 19th nationwide event since its inception 10 years ago.  

Last fall, Americans turned in nearly 883,000 pounds of prescription drugs at nearly 6,300 sites operated by the DEA and almost 5,000 of its state and local law enforcement partners.

DEA, along with its law enforcement partners, has now collected nearly 6,350 tons of expired, unused, and unwanted prescription medications since the inception of the National Prescription Drug Take Back Initiative in 2010.

Recently we noticed a couple of newly installed U.S. Mail Service boxes on the Southside, one at 20 Maple St., and another one around the corner on the west side of Evans Street in the city. We asked about their purpose.

"These are called 'relay boxes,' " said spokesman Desai O. Abdul-Razzaaq, at the WNY USPS office in Buffalo. "They are for mail carriers with walk-out routes. There is no slot to put mail in; they aren't mailboxes for the public to use. They're accessible for postal workers only."

They are used to briefly store mail safely that has accumulated along a walking route until it can be retrieved by a postal truck driver and delivered to the post office.

Jon Hoyt Bush, 37, of Walnut Street, Batavia, is charged with third-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child. On Oct. 16 Batavia Police Officer Peter Post responded to a residence on Oak Street in Batavia and arrested Bush following a domestic incident. It is alleged that earlier that day at 5:38 a.m., Bush struck a person in the face multiple times causing injury while in the presence of a child. Bush as arraigned in Batavia City Court at 3:15 p.m. and put in jail on a parole warrant. He is due to return to city court on Nov. 18.

Christopher Connor Good, 19, of Cohocton Road, Corfu, is charged with first-degree burglary. On Oct. 20, Good was arrested after an investigation. It is alleged that he unlawfully entered another person's home on Liberty Street in Batavia at 1:34 p.m. on Oct. 20 and caused physical injury to that person. He was arraigned in Batavia City Court and released under supervision of Genesee Justice. An order of protection was issued to protect the victims. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer John Gombos, assisted by Officer Nicole McGinnis.

Katie L. Wannemacher, 31, of Trumbull Parkway, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree harassment, and criminal obstruction of breathing. She was arrested on Oct. 17 following an investigation of an incident at 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 17 on Trumbull Parkway in which she allegedly choked someone in front of two children. She was arraigned in Batavia City Court and released on her own recognizance. She is due back in court on Dec. 2. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Samuel Freeman, assisted by Officer Austin Hedges.

Sean Michael Keem, 40, of Bank Street, Batavia, is charged with second-degree harassment -- with physical contact. Keem was arrested after Batavia Police officers Austin Hedges and Wesley Rissinger responded to a disturbance on Bank Street in Batavia at 8:27 p.m. Oct. 17. After an investigation, Keem was arrested for allegedly striking another person. He was released on an appearance ticket to be in Batavia City Court on Jan. 20.

Darrin Mitchell Brown, 31, of West State Street, Albion, is charged with possession of a hypodermic instrument. He was arrested after allegedly being found in possession of several hypodermic needles at on Oct. 19 during the course of a larceny investigation at 6:16 p.m. at the Speedway gas station and convenience store on West Main Street in Batavia. He was issued an appearance ticket to be in Batavia City Court on Jan. 12. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Marcella F. Greene, 36, of Pleasant Valley Road, Bliss, is charged with criminal possession of a needle and criminal use of drug paraphernalia. On Oct. 19, Greene was arrested after an investigation into a larceny at 6:51 p.m. at the Speedway gas station and convenience store on West Main Street in Batavia. Greene was issued an appearance ticket and is due in Batavia City Court on Jan. 12. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Samuel Freeman, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Thomas James Sine, 52, of Main Road, Stafford, is charged with aggravated second-degree harassment -- communication of a threat via phone or computer or mail. On Oct. 24 at 10 p.m. Sine was arrested after allegedly having unwanted contact with a person on West Bergen Road in Le Roy and making threats via cell phone. He was arraigned in Le Roy Town Court and is due to return there Dec. 14. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Kenneth Quackenbush.

Shante M. Griffin, 28, of Fisher Park, Batavia, is charged with owning an unlicensed dog. Griffin was arrested on Oct. 15 for having an unlicensed dog in an upper apartment on Fisher Park on Sept. 25. Griffin was issued an appearance ticket and is due in Batavia City Court on Jan. 12. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Andre L. Roberts, 28, of Burrows Street, Rochester, was arrested Oct. 21 on a bench warrant out of Batavia City Court. He allegedly failed to appear as required on Sept.15, prompting the warrant to be issued. Roberts was processed at Batavia Police Headquarters and released on an appearance ticket to be in court Oct. 22. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Wesley Rissinger, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Amanda S. Dombrowski, 37, of Versailles Road, North Evans, is charged with failure to appear. Dombrowski was arrested on Oct. 15 on a bench warrant out of Batavia City Court. It is alleged she failed to appear in court as required on Aug. 3. Following arraignment, she was released on her own recognizance and is due back in city court on Oct. 28. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Stephen Cronmiller.

Video from today's rally in Batavia in support of Donald Trump for president in 2020.

The John Gardner Society's annual October reading of the late Batavia author's work is virtual this year instead of at his favorite restaurant, the Pok-A-Dot.

The reading, and hopefully the livestream, is scheduled to start at 8 p.m.