batavia

The City of Batavia has begun a disciplinary proceeding against a pair of city firefighters who stand accused of participating in an illegal bookmaking operation and are charged with felonies under New York's racketeering law.

Gregory Phillips and Brian Bordinaro have been suspended without pay, according to City Manager Jason Molino.

Under civil service law, Phillips and Bordinaro are entitled to a disciplinary hearing within 30 days of being suspected without pay.

Bordinaro was suspended without pay on April 27, and Phillips on May 2.

The hearing officer will determine what sort of disciplinary action -- if any -- should be taken against the two men. Options range from fines to termination if the officer finds the firefighters guilty of misconduct.

Bordinaro  was within two years of retirement at the time of his suspension, and Phillips was about three years out. 

City officials declined to release the actual disciplinary documents. City Clerk Heidi Parker, who is the freedom of information officer for the city, cited the "fair trial" provision the Freedom of Information Law because the documents may contain information gathered by law enforcement that has not been released to the public.

When originally arrested in February, following a months-long investigation by detectives with the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force, Phillips and Bordinaro were charged with criminal possession of gambling records. Phillips was also accused of possessing a small amount of cocaine.

In April, the men were also charged with enterprise corruption. The provision is a Class B felony that serves as New York's anti-racketeering law. The charge carries a maximum possible prison term of eight-and-a-third to 25 years.

Arrested and charged with Phllips and Bordonaro was Lance Engel, a cook at the NYS vet's home in Batavia. No information has been obtained on his employment status.

There are no scheduled court appearances for the three men until October and  District Attorney Lawrence Friedman has yet to say whether his office will seek grand jury indictments or proceed in another manner with the case.

At their last court appearance, the attorneys for the three men were all given inches-thick documents containing alleged evidence of their gambling operation.

According to investigators, the operation handled more than $1 million in bets in a single year and generated about $70,000 in profits off the vig.

A 24-year-old Tracy Avenue resident was arrested today and accused of sexual contact with a teenager he knew.

Dennis D. Benson Jr., of 62 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with three counts of criminal sexual act, 3rd.

Det. Charles Dudek conducted an investigation and arrested Benson at 7 a.m. following a traffic stop on Hartshorn Road, Pembroke.

The sexual contact is alleged to have taken place at Benson's residence on three separate occasions in March.

Benson was arraigned in Batavia City Court and released under supervision of the Probation Department.

An injury accident involving a bicyclist is reported between Tops Market and Batavia Marine on West Main Street. City of Batavia Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 11:11 a.m.: City fire is back in service. The bicyclist is being transported to UMMC.

Press release:

Town of Batavia Town Clerk Teressa Morasco has been elected by her peers as a District Director for the New York State Town Clerks Association. This is a distinct and admirable honor bestowed only on a few clerks of the 932 towns throughout New York State.

In this leadership position, Morasco will mentor clerks and be a liaison between the counties of Alleghany, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Orleans, Wyoming and the state association. District Eight, which she will represent, will be well served by her experience. Her term will run from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2015.

Patrick M. Holler, 58, of 14713 Holley Road, Albion, is charged with DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, and open container. At 7:40 a.m., Tuesday, deputies responded to a report of a 1994 Chevy Astro van being driven on Lewiston Road by a driver who was consuming alcohol. Holler allegedly refused to submit to a breath test after being stopped.

Joel David Prouty, 25, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt. Prouty is accused of sending a letter to a protected person.

Shawn Richard McGiveron, 23, of Marble Road, Akron, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, criminal mischief, 4th, and harassment, 2nd. McGiveron is accused of engaging in a fight with a protected person and damaging that person's property.

It was a big event last summer and it promises to be a bigger event in 2012, in large part because it's moving downtown.

The 2nd annual WNY Round-Up Rally will occupy Jackson Street and could bring thousands of bikers and motorcycle enthusiasts to Batavia.

"Everybody watched how the event came off last year and we approached the city this year they said, 'we want it downtown, we want people to see our city,'" said Dave Kasinski, who is organizing the event.

Jackson Street will be closed Aug. 10, 11 and 12 for the rally.

The event will include live music, food, vendors, games and, of course, lots of motorcycles.

"Being able to walk down a row of 100 bikes and see all of the different types and models and different do-dads, that's an event in itself," Kasinski said.

City Manager Jason Molino said city officials are very excited that the event is moving downtown (last year it was held at the Clarion Hotel) and praised Kasinski and his team as very organized and professional.

"If it's a nice day out, you could see thousands of people coming to downtown," Molino said.

The event falls a week before Summer in the City and Kasinksi said his organization is ensuring Summer in the City is also promoted on the rally's marketing material, and that the two events should work together well.

Kasinski said he hopes downtown businesses will sponsor and otherwise support the event, which he said would help tremendously in how it's perceived by vendors and attendees, which will help the event grow in future years.

Putting the rally downtown is important, Kasinski said, because it makes the event easier to walk and easier for people to get to and provides more amenities for attendees.

"Every rally we go to throughout the Northeast are held in downtowns," Kasinski said. "It's more convenient and it's easier to see a lot of stuff when it's all in one location."

Michael J. Hilton is lucky to be alive, one of his crime victims told him in Genesee County Court this morning.

Hilton admitted to second-degree burglary on March 14 and was in court today for sentencing. He received the maximum available under his plea deal: 10 years in state prison.

The 20-year-old Batavia and Le Roy resident broke into a home on Swan Street with accomplice Kurt Hawkins in September and the owner awoke to find Hilton in his room standing next to his gun cabinet.

"He didn't realize how close he came to dying that night," the local resident told Judge Robert C. Noonan. "I had a shotgun shell in my hand. I realized I couldn't get to my gun. I thought I would choke him, but I couldn't catch him. I'm glad I didn't because I would have had to live with that."

The resident said his daughter still has trouble sleeping at night because of the trauma of the break-in.

When Hilton was asked if he had anything to say, he turned and faced the victim and said, "I'm sorry."

As Hilton spoke, he began to tear up, and was sobbing as he addressed the victim's family.

"I sincerely apologize for what I put you and your family through," Hilton said. "I'm honestly sorry. I should have known better than to make the choice I made. I'm sorry.

"I'd also like to say to my family, I'm sorry," Hilton added. "I'm sorry for all the things I put you through. I know you don't need to be here now wasting your time for me because I'm nothing. I thank you for supporting me, for being here even though I don't deserve it."

Typically, defendants who apologize in court become indignant after receiving a harsh sentence from Noonan, but not Hilton. He continued to hang his head and wipe away tears.

After the hearing, the victim said he believed Hilton was sincere.

"I felt he was very remorseful," the resident said. "I almost felt bad for him just for a split second. That went away fast.

"I wish my wife had been here to see how he felt," the resident added. "She's just getting to where she can sleep at night. She didn't want to see him because when he ran out of the bedroom, he was this close to her, like you and I are right now. I wish she could have been here to see for herself."

Noonan agreed with the victim that HIlton is lucky to be alive.

"(The victim) said you came close to being killed and you know what, the law would protect (him) for doing that," Noonan said. "There's been lots of publicity about this case in Florida, but that is not your case. This is not a stand-your-ground case, because New York has allowed people to protect themselves in their own home forever. It has always been the right of a victim to kill an intruder."

Both Jerry Ader, Hilton's attorney, and Noonan noted that Hilton had a rough childhood.

"I don't know if you know this or not, but before I sentence anyone for any crime, including serious crimes like the one you're convicted of, I receive lots and lots of information about the person's background and history," Noonan said.

"It starts at birth and includes school records and medical records. Your story is a very sad story. You've had some horrible things happen in your life and I don't want you to think it's gone unnoticed."

But, Noonan said, considering the crimes Hilton committed, if not for that background, Noonan never would have allowed the plea deal Hitlon received. He would have required Hilton to face a jury and if convicted of the three possible burglary charges he could have been tried on, faced a much longer prison term than 10 years.

Before he left the courtroom, Hilton looked at his family members one more time and then hung his head and walked toward the door and out of the courtroom.

Years ago, O'Lacy's co-owner Kent Ewell was concerned about his customers getting tickets for parking overnight in the lot across from his pub on School Street.

Ewell marched down to city hall and complained and, he said, and the tickets stopped.

Now, they're starting again and he's none too happy about it.

"I don't think it's the right way to look at the situation," Ewell said. "Somebody has made a good decision not to drive and they get a ticket."

Bar owners downtown say it's not unusual for customers to have an unexpected drink, have one more than they planned, run into an old buddy leading to a later night, or have some other circumstance change, and find themselves walking home, taking a cab or getting a ride from a friend.

Derek Geib, co-owner of Bourbon & Burger Co. on Jackson Street, said he's worried that human nature being what it is, some people will make an incorrect calculation and risk a possible DWI charge, costing hundreds if not thousands of dollars, when confronted with the certainty of a $25 ticket.

"It encourages drinking and driving," Geib said. "They're going to do it every time because that's the way people think."

One of Geib's employees and one of his customers have received tickets so far.

City Manager Jason Molino stands by the city's decision to enforce downtown parking regulations. He said it's necessary to ensure transient trucks, RVs, abandoned vehicles and such don't clutter the parking lot, and during the winter, maintain control of what vehicles are in the lots.

He said so far there's been good compliance, with apartment tenants buying the necessary permits and fewer cars without permits being left overnight.

As for bar patrons, Molino said there is an appeal process and any patron receiving a ticket is welcome to submit the ticket to the city for review.

"Discretion will be exercised if needed," Molino said. "But I would suggest that somebody make better arrangements (when going to bars).

Ken Mistler, owner of the former South Beach and soon-to-be City Slickers said that's not good enough.

"I'm concerned because if a customer finds a ticket he's not going to say anything, he's just going to be discouraged from coming back," Mistler said.

According to Mistler, he's been told by the city that only cars that are seen in the lots on a regular basis but don't have permits will receive tickets, but even then, he said, that is still a potential problem with customers.

"I hope I have lots of repeat business," Mistler said.

Local resident John Condello has started a petition that will be presented to the city council at its June 14 meeting, he said. The petition is available at any downtown restaurant, he said.

A lot has changed in downtown since the current downtown parking regulations were written into law and city officials should reexamine the rules, Ewell said.

"They were written before there was an O'Lacy's, before there was a South Beach, before there was a Larry's," Ewell said. "There was only the Candlelight."

The price of the $25 ticket is about six gallons of gas at today's prices, Ewell said, which is just about the amount somebody might spend to get from Brockport to Batavia, or just enough to discourage a trip from out of the county to enjoy a night on the town in Batavia.

The bar owners we spoke with all believe the new enforcement effort is just an attempt by the city to generate more revenue.

"You can tell it is because there was no plan, no questions (of local businesses), they just started ticketing," Ewell said. "That just leads me to believe they said, 'let's just get the money.' "

Driving down Main Street late this afternoon, I spotted Ken Mistler, left, and Louis Kingsbury and a third person hauling a large painting down the sidewalk. I drove around the block and caught them pulling the painting through the Jackson Street parking lot.

Mistler is installing the painting -- this is one of at least three -- in his new restaurant, City Slickers, the former South Beach.

The consolidation task force has put in a lot of work and done a great job so far, but its work is far from over, said Town of Batavia Supervisor Greg Post.

Post was reacting to earlier reports that the consolidation effort has been delayed because the town has yet to pass a resolution asking the State Legislature to pass home rule legislation.

"It's a little premature," Post said, "but I don't want anybody to think they did anything wrong."

Post said the proposed city charter presented by the task for should be treated as a draft, adding that it needs to be reviewed, refined, reviewed, refined and reviewed and refined again before it's ready to be considered a final proposed charter.

"There's still work to be done," Post said. "They need to attend to the schedule. What it takes to do it right is what it takes."

Post explained that by the time the task force was formed, the effort was already behind schedule for the agreement approved by both the city council and the town board.

"This is an effort that was projected to take 12 to 18 months and it's barely been eight months," Post said.

Post stressed repeatedly during the conversation that he thinks the task force is full of talented people who worked hard to get the draft charter to this stage -- he doesn't want anybody to think they've failed in that effort, but the job isn't done it.

"It takes a lot of work to get something like this done," Post said.

The town supervisor said he continues to support consideration of consolidation, but no decision can be made on whether to support consolidation until the charter can be fully vetted, including ample public feedback.

Until that's done, he said, the State Legislature should not be asked to pass legislation to make a vote on consolidation possible.

Consolidation of the town and city hit a bump in the road this week when the Town of Batavia failed to enact a home rule resolution that would allow the state legislature to clear the path for a local referendum.

Chad Zambito, chairman of the consolidation task force, announced today that all planned public meetings on the topic are being postponed and it's unlikely that voters will be given a chance to vote on the proposal in November, as originally planned.

"We wanted to get a final document to come before the people and that's not going to happen in the time originally envisioned," Zambito said.

While the Batavia City Council passed the necessary home rule legislation a week ago, the town board failed to pass the same resolution, which is needed to get a bill through the State Legislature thereby allowing the consolidation process to go forward.

Town Supervisor Greg Post, who in the past has advocated strongly for consolidation, could not be reached for comment.

Zambito said that two informational meetings originally set for May 17 and May 24, as well as a set of four public hearings starting May 31, have been postponed indefinitely.

Getting an initiative on the November ballot was an aggressive goal, Zambito said, and now with the delay in the home rule legislation, it would be hard to meet the necessary timeline.

He said the task force will work on tweaking the charter document and re-present it to the public bodies for consideration.

Detectives are looking for a 5' 9",  young white male with a teardrop tattoo by his right eye who is suspected of slashing the cheek of another young man Saturday evening in a parking lot off of Center Street.

There is no known motive for the attack, Det. Todd Crossett said.

Crossett says it appears that the victim pulled into the parking lot behind the Masonic Temple building, got out of the car and started talking with another person. While they were talking, the suspect approached and attacked the victim.

Crossett said the victim told investigators that he didn't know his attacker.

There is no clear indication on what may have precipitated the attack, Crossett said.

Also, Crossett said, there was no connection between the attack and the location, which was originally called in to emergency dispatch as 15 Center St. -- the location of the City Church conference center. Neither the victim nor the attacker had been involved in anything going on at that location.

Photo: By Dan Fischer, WBTA

A 39-year-old Maple Street resident will need to make $11,341.18 in restitution following a plea deal on welfare fraud charges filed against her.

Kerry Ackley entered a guilty plea to day to a single felony count of attempted grand larceny, 3rd.

The plea also satisfied four counts of offering a false instrument for filing, 1st.

Ackley was arrested following an investigation that found she had failed to report worker's compensation benefits.

As part of the plea deal, Ackley will be disqualified from receiving food stamps and temporary assistance benefits.

She will be sentenced at 9:15 a.m., Aug. 2.

Lonnie A. Fairbanks, 45, of 6227 Skyview Lane, Mt. Morris, is charged with felony DWI and refusal to take a breath test. Fairbanks was arrested after Le Roy PD responded to a report of a rolling domestic Saturday on Lake Street. Fairbanks was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Robert G. Whitehead, 21, of 28 Clay Street, Le Roy, is charged unlawful dealing with a child, 1st. Whitehead is accused of hosting an underage drinking party.

Roger K. Williams, 55, of 19 Exchange St., in Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and unlawful possession of marijuana. Williams was arrested after Le Roy PD responded to a report of a domestic disturbance on Church Street in the early morning hours Sunday. Williams was jailed on $500 bail.

Raymond J. Radley, 46, of 10661 Cook Road, Pavilion, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st. Radley is accused of violating an order of protection by calling the protected person several times and driving past the person's place of work. Radley was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Zayis Rooper King, 19, of Oatka Trail Road, Le Roy, is charged with unlawful dealing with a child, 1st. King is accused of hosting an underage drinking party.

Shawn David Bowman, 40, of Oakta Circle Road, Le Roy, is charged with trespass. Bowman is accused of driving his vehicle on a nature trail behind Pembroke Town Park that is marked "pedestrian use only."

Tyanna Desiree Green, 17, of Lewis Place, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant related to a petit larceny charge. The petit larceny allegedly occurred in December. Green was jailed on $200 bail.

Joseph George Sumeriski, 20, of Blackhouse Road, Warsaw, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Sumeriski was arrested at 6:15 a.m., Saturday, on Park Road, Batavia, by Deputy Dana Richardson.

Travis A. Weatherbee, 25, of 25 Swan St., Batavia, is charged with crminal use of drgu paraphernalia, 2nd. Weatherbee is accused of possessing a needle and a spoon. The spoon was allegedly used to liquify a prescribed medication.

Press release:

Officials at Western Regional Off-Track (WROTB), owner of Batavia Downs Casino, announced today record handle on the 2012 Kentucky Derby and at the casino.

Through its 32 branches and 18 EZ-Bet locations, WROTB handled $1,913,108 on the Run for the Roses, a 16-percent increase over 2011, which was a record year. In addition, WROTB paid out $1.6 million in winning wagers, its most ever.

“We are very pleased with the results of the derby,” said William White, vice president of administration said. “We look forward to serving our customers' needs for the Preakness.”

“We are thrilled with the turnout for the derby,” said Todd Haight, OTB’s handicapper and the GM of Batavia Downs Racetrack. “It seems that the people of Western New York did their handicapping homework, too, as we paid out more winners than ever before.

"At the downs, people enjoyed meeting and greeting our Ambassador Thurman Thomas inside Grandstands Bar and Grille.”

Batavia Downs Casino recorded its biggest week ever with record revenues. New York State Lottery and the state education fund benefited by receiving over $520,000 when more than $12 Million in credits played were wagered through 640 slot machines.

Western OTB expects the excitement to continue with the Preakness Stakes on May 19 when "I’ll Have Another" tries to etch his name in the record books in the second jewel of the Triple Crown. All OTB branches will open at 10 a.m. on Preakness Day.

Batavia Downs in owned and operated by Western Regional Off-Track Betting, a public benefit corporation. Municipalities that own Batavia Downs Casino include: the cities of Buffalo, Batavia and Rochester, and these counties: Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Orleans, Oswego, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne and Wyoming.

The track is also home to Batavia Downs Casino, featuring more than 600 video slot machines. Batavia Downs Casino is located less than one mile from Thruway Exit 48 and is open daily from 8 to 4 a.m.

The Sheriff's Office is looking for help in locating Veshaun D. "Shortie" Thompson.

Thompson is wanted on a warrant related to a pair of petit larceny charges.

Anybody with information on the whereabouts of Thompson is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 343-0911.

In an afternoon-long celebration, highlighted by the raising of flags of 20 nations, the Peace Garden in Batavia was dedicated today.

Batavia baseball fans may have been denied a chance to see Andy Pettitte pitch in Dwyer Stadium, but on Saturday, two other pitchers with major league experience graced the mound.

Nelson Figueroa, 38 years old, with nine seasons of MLB experience and a career record of 20-35 to go along with his 4.55 ERA, was the Empire Yankees starter.

Figueroa, whose nine seasons were spent with seven different teams, surrendered seven earned runs over 3 2/3 innings, which made the Red Sox fans at the game happy.

Boston's farm club from Pawtucket won the game 9-3 behind the pitching of Brandon Duckworth, a 34-year-old right-hander who has been out of the majors since 2008.

To Duckworth's credit, his 2012 record is now 4-0 to go with a 3.34 ERA.

Attendance for the game was 1,838.

The Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation held its annual Kentucky Derby Party at Terry Hills on Saturday afternoon.

The party is a major fundraiser and supports research for curing childhood cancer and provides assistance to victms' families.

A big tradition with the Kentucky Derby is women wearing fancy hats, and that's also part of the tradition of the foundation's party.

Above, Christen Napoleone, Andrea Suttell and Ashley Napoleone.

Jennifer Houseknecht and Lori Reinhardt

Jody McCulley

Peggy Sacheli

Trish Pero and Peg Pietzykowski-Gorecki (Peg created both hats)