Bethany

Terrance Lee Falk, 17, of Woodsmeadow Lane, Brighton, is charged with third-degree assault and second-degree obstructing governmental administration. Falk allegedly engaged in a physical struggle with a corrections officer at the Genesee County Jail leading to an injury to the officer.

William John Velky, 34, of Bank Street, Batavia, is charged with driving while ability impaired by drugs, following too closely, passing on right and moving from lane unsafely. Velky was stopped at 5:08 p.m. Monday on Chapel Street, Elba, by Deputy James Diehl following a complaint of an erratic driver.

Cassandra Y. Dauber, 32, of Lock Haven, PA, Cindy L. Dauber, 58, and David T. Suzenski, 57, both from Phoenixville, Pa., are charged with trespass for allegedly entering Rolling Hills Asylum on Bethany Center Road without permission.

Andrew Charles Webster, 22, no permanent address, is charged with petit larceny. Webster is accused of shoplifting from Walmart. He was jailed on $500 bail.

For a long time, I wanted to take a picture of this barn, but for years, there was a yellow delivery truck parked in front of it that kind of didn't fit the ambiance. This summer, it was gone and the setting today seemed pretty nice.

A house fire is reported at 31 East Ave. in the Village of Attica. Alexander Fire Department is called to provide mutual aid to Attica in fighting the blaze, along with Bethany for rehab. The location is between Prospect Street and Putnam Place.

UPDATE 5:08 a.m.: Fire out. Checking for extensions. Bethany can go back in service.

Donna Rae Sutherland sent in these photos of what she describes as a sculpture built off Transit Road, south of Route 63, Bethany, that will be transported tomorrow to Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.

Burning Man, established in 1986, is a month-long festival of art, radical self-expression, and radical self-reliance.

The location of the sculpture is Emerald Models, which we've written about before.

Bethany and Byron (fire, rescue, medical) personnel are asked to stand by in the Mercy Emergency Medical base facilities at 16 Bank St. in the City of Batavia in case they are needed. Bergen is asked to provide a crew to stage in its own quarters.

Medical responders are apparently stretched thin tonight with the Chris Brown concert in Darien, accidents and medical calls.

UPDATE: Orleans County has also been asked to send three ambulances to Darien Lake in case needed. The concert tonight is sold out. The most serious dispatch we've heard is for an unresponsive female, who was breathing, located at the Employee Entrance off Sumner Road.

UPDATE 8:33 p.m.: The majority of medical calls, according to dispatch, are for underage, highly intoxicated people. Medics tell UMMC that there are two more such individuals en route, and that thereafter such cases will be transported elsewhere. The implication is UMMC is overcrowded, though that wasn't stated.

UPDATE 9:24 p.m.: An ambulance from Lancaster is requested to Darien Lake. An ambulance from Alden was dispatched earlier.  

Judge Robert Noonan ordered Dibble held on $10,000 bail or $20,000 bond.

Attorney Ben Bonarigo argued that Dibble deserved a chance to remain out of jail, but under house arrest, until she could be placed in a treatment program on Friday. He conceded that Dibble, inexperienced with the criminal justice system, was in a difficult transition to its strictures. 

Noonan expressed concern that if Dibble couldn't obey a court order, in this case by drinking, then he lacked confidence she could be trusted to make future court appearances.

On July 24, Dibble pled not guilty to an 11-count Grand Jury indictment that included: one count of vehicular manslaughter in the second degree; two counts of vehicular assault in the first degree; three counts of assault in the second degree; three counts of vehicular assault in the second degree; and two counts of DWI.

James Scherer, 21, Brandon Danser, 22, and Felecia J. Fazzio, 20, all suffered serious physical injuries in the Feb. 21 collision wherein the 1997 Chevrolet Geo she was driving crossed Route 20 at Molasses Hill Road, Bethany, and was struck by a semi-truck.

(File photo of Hannah E. Dibble)

Steven N. Zink, 24, of Tinkham Road, Darien, is charged with aggravated DWI with a BAC of .18 percent or greater, DWI, resisting arrest, failing to yield to an emergency vehicle and operating an unregistered ATV. Zink is accused of operating an unregistered ATV while in an intoxicated condition. When Deputy Joseph Corona attempted to pull him over for a traffic stop on Warner Road in Darien, he allegedly fled. After a foot pursuit, he was taken into custody and put in the Genesee County Jail on $1,500 bail.

Martin E. Slaymaker, 41, of Bethany Center Road, Bethany, is charged with unlawfully dealing with a child, 2nd. Slaymaker allegedly tattooed a child under the age of 18 years old. 

Three subjects from Ontario, Canada are charged with trespassing. Ryan N. Purcell, 19, of Baden, Jesse M. Fitzsimmons, 18, of Waterloo, and Spencer R. Story, 22, of Ajax, are accused of trespassing inside of Darien Lake Theme Park after hours early this morning.

A parent who lives in an apartment on Colony Run in Alexander called dispatch to complain that their adolescent child got a tattoo from someone in Bethany without permission. A Sheriff's deputy is responding.

A Pembroke woman who was reportedly behind the wheel of a 1997 Chevrolet Geo in February when it crossed Route 20 at Molasses Hill Road, Bethany, and was struck by a semi-truck has been indicted by a grand jury on a count of manslaughter in the second degree.

Hannah E. Dibble, 22, appeared in Genesee County Court today to be charged under the 11-count indictment, where she pled not guilty and was released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

Her friend, Alyson D. Krzanak, 18, of Corfu, died as a result of injuries sustained in the crash. Suffering serious physical injuries in the collision Feb. 21 were James Scherer, 21, Brandon Danser, 22, and Felecia J. Fazzio, 20.

Dibble was also indicted on counts of vehicular manslaughter in the second degree, vehicular assault in the first degree, three counts of assault in the second degree, three counts of vehicular assault in the second degree, and two counts of DWI.

A Bethany resident who allegedly caused a brain injury to a toddler appeared in Genesee County Court for his plea cutoff today.

Anthony P. Dibble, 25, did not enter a guilty plea to reckless assault of a child, a Class D felony. According to Assistant District Attorney Will Zickl, the plea could have reduced his prison sentence from seven years to four-and-a-half years.

The pending plea deal expired today at 9:30 a.m. and there will no longer be the opportunity for a deal. The case now goes to trial. 

Dibble is accused of causing serious brain injury to a child less than 5 years old by shaking or slamming the child's head on a hard surface or object during an overnight visit in August 2014. He drove the child to United Memorial Medical Center and then the child was flown by Mercy Flight to Women & Children's Hospital of Buffalo to undergo surgery. Dibble is the child's biological father but the child doesn't live with him.

The trial date is scheduled for Sept. 28.

Storm U. Lang, 18, entered a guilty plea to two counts of first-degree child sex abuse, and one count of second-degree child sex abuse in Genesee County Court today.

Lang faces up to four years in prison and 10 years of released supervision. He is currently being supervised by Genesee Justice.

Lang allegedly was sexually involved with three different victims on separate occasions when he was 17 years old. He is accused of subjecting a 7-year-old to sexual contact in the Town of Alabama in October. In November, he also allegedly subjected a 12-year-old child to sexual contact in the Town of Alabama and a 5-year-old child to sexual contact in the Town of Bethany.

Orders of protection for the victims were filed today. His sentencing date is Sept. 9.

Tyler J. Goodenough, 21, of West Filbert Street, East Rochester, is charged with aggravated DWI following a two-car accident in the parking lot of Darien Lake Theme Park.

Robert C. Hayes, 25, of Warsaw Road, Le Roy, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 4th, and unlawful possession of marijuana, plus he is cited for having an obstructed driver's view. Hayes was pulled over on Clay Street in Le Roy for allegedly having his driver view obstructed when police found him to be in possession of marijuana and an edged weapon.

Gena M. Naugle, 41, of South Lake Avenue, Bergen, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd. Naugle allegedly threw a dinner plate at a juvenile causing glass shards to strike the juvenile. 

A 17-year-old male from Medina is charged with harassment, 2nd. The youth allegedly punched a male acquaintance several times at a residence in Bethany.

A local quilter is getting some posthumous recognition in a place far from home -- Guayaquil, Ecuador.

The daughter of Toni Fietz, a Bethany native, is the U.S. Consul General posted in Guayaquil. Tricia Fietz arranged for the show as part of a celebration sponsored by the Embassy for U.S.'s 239th birthday.

The show is being held through July 24 at Museum of Modern Art and Anthropology (Museo Antropologico y de Arte Contemporanea) and an opening reception was attended by U.S. Ambassador Adam Namm.

The exhibition features eight large quilts, seven wall-hangings, a quilted tablecloth and a work-in-progress on a quilting frame to illustrate the process.

Toni Fietz, who passed away in July 2012, became an avid quilter after a visit to the Genesee Country Museum in Mumford, where she saw quilting being demonstrated. She was a member of the (Holland Land Office) Museum Quilt Guild and the Log Cabin Quilt Guild.

A possible criminal case is still pending in the fatal crash in Bethany in February, according to District Attorney Lawrence Friedman.

Friedman said the Sheriff's Office is "diligent" in conducting its investigation, but there is one more aspect of the case that needs to be addressed before criminal proceedings can advance.

Once all the facts are in, Friedman said, a presentation will be made to a grand jury.

Alyson D. Krzanak, a Genesee Community College student, died in the Feb. 21 accident at the intersection of Route 20 and Molasses Hill Road, Bethany. A friend, Hannah Dibble, was the driver of a 1997 Geo with five passengers when the car crossed onto Route 20 and was struck by a tractor-trailer.

Sources have previously confirmed that the Sheriff's Office has received the results of a toxicology report on Dibble and that investigators have met with attorneys in the D.A.'s Office to discuss possible charges.

The estate of Krzanak has filed a civil suit against Dibble, Leonard L. Odums, the truck driver, Celadon Trucking Services, Celadon Group and Frank's Garage of Akron.

A power pole, transformer and wires are down in the roadway blocking both lanes of travel at 10694 East Road, Bethany. There is a power outage in the vicinity as a result. The pole is covering one lane and the wires are across both lanes. The location is between Broadway and Raymond Road. Bethany Fire Department is responding. National Grid is notified. No ETA provided.

UPDATE 6:22 p.m.: The Bethany assignment is back in service. The wires have been de-activated. Debris is being removed from the roadway. National Grid is on scene. The road will reopen once it is cleared.

The Genesee County Park & Forest will kick off its 100 years celebration event series with a program on the history of the forest.

The program, "A Place of Peace, Play and Learning: The Genesee County Park and Forest," will be from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. on June 20 at the Genesee County Park & Forest Interpretive Nature Center. It's free and open to the public.

County Historian Michael Ula will provide information on the history of the forest with his presentation "The Story of the County Forest."

The Genesee County Forest is the oldest county forest in New York and was officially established in 1915. The forest was purchased in 1882 and supplied wood to the County's Poor House. By 1935, more than 169,000 trees had been planted to provide natural resources to the community. The creation of a county park began in 1966.

 In addition to sharing the history, Ula will also talk about the role the forest plays in the community today.

"It's a place for recreation where people can go to relax with their families and reconnect with the natural world," Ula said. "There is also an Interpretive Nature Center where you can learn about the plants and various animals that live there."

In July, the County Park & Forest is offering two programs  titled "What Trees Know" on July 11 and "Would You Believe It Comes From Trees?" on July 25. The forest will also have its 100th anniversary Forest Fest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 29.

The Town of Bethany wants residents to voice their opinion on what they think should be done with the old Town Hall property.

Carl Hyde Jr., Bethany town supervisor, will be having an informational meeting at 6 :30 p.m. on Friday, July 10, at the Bethany Community Center. At the meeting, Hyde will be sharing with the community the costs needed to repair and maintain the property.

"I want the community's input to help decide whether to sell it, auction it or take it down," Hyde said.

The town is struggling financially and doesn't have the funds to maintain the property anymore. To continue trying to sell the property, the town would have to spend $15,000 for engineer reports and renew the contract they have with the Landmark Society of WNY by July 31. 

Maintenance repairs are a major setback for potential buyers. Hyde had several people interested in turning the property into a rental hall but the cost of $100,00 worth of repairs deterred them. Due to the building being vacant for almost 10 years, it's starting to deteriorate. The septic system only has a holding tank and the quality of the well water is poor.

The building has been a centerpiece of the town since it was built in 1836. Historical features of the building include an auditorium, stage and meeting hall. 

"It's tough to let an old building go," Hyde said. "I would love to see it sold and turned into a professional office or reused in some way."

After the meeting is held and residents have spoken, the town board will make a final decision on how to move forward with the property.

Photo: File photo from 2011 when Bethany attempted to sell the building through an area real estate agent.

The father of Alyson D. Krzanak, the Genesee Community College student who died in an accident Feb. 21 at the intersection of Route 20 and Molasses Hill Road, Bethany, has filed a wrongful death suit against the driver of the car Krzanak was riding in as well as four other parties.

David Krzanak is the plaintiff as well as the estate of his daughter. He seeks damages "in an amount which exceeds the monetary jurisdictional limits of all lower New York State Courts but does not exceed the monetary jurisdictional limits of the New York State Supreme Court."

The wrongful death suit alleges that the driver of the vehicle, Hannah Dibble, as well as Leonard L. Odums, the Georgia resident driving the truck that hit Dibble's 1997 Geo, Celadon Trucking Services, Celadon Group and Frank's Garage of Akron, took actions that were negligent, reckless and careless, causing the death of Krazanak.

The 10-page document does not list any specific actions any of the defendants took that could be considered a cause of Krzanak's death.

There have been no criminal charges filed against Dibble, though Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster has confirmed that the Sheriff's Office has received the results of a toxicology report and both he and District Attorney Lawrence Friedman say the two offices have been in discussions about how to proceed.

The Dietrich Law Firm of Williamsville is representing the Krzanaks. Attorney Nicholas J. Shemik filed the lawsuit.

There's nothing Bill Baskin wants more right now than justice served in the murder of his friend and key employee Douglas Mess.

The body of the 52-year-old Attica man was found buried under a manure pile on his farm at 1229 Exchange Street Road on April 20.

Baskin, owner of Baskin Livestock on Creek Road in Bethany, seems to know a lot about the case, but he's not sharing any of it for publication for fear divulging more than Wyoming County District Attorney Donald O'Geen is willing to disclose himself and jeopardize the prosecution of Charlene Mess, Douglas's wife, who has been held without bail since her arrest April 20.

A grand jury is hearing the evidence against her today and we should know within days whether she will face a trial as the alleged murderer. It may take a trial to publicly unravel the mystery of how Douglas Mess died and why. Some news reports say his death was a culmination of an argument that got out of hand. Some people who know Charlene Mess say she was domineering within her family. Friends of Douglas Mess, including Baskin, use words like "Teddy Bear," and say he was a man who just loved to farm and work on machinery and rarely had a cross word with anybody.

Farming and fixing things were pretty much how Mess spent all of his time, said friends and family. When he wasn't in a shop shoulder deep in steel and grease, he loved to be alone on a field driving a tractor, and about his only hobby was collecting models of the tractors he owned or repaired.

Mess was born in Rochester and spent the first 10 years of his life in the Town of Victor before his father bought a dairy farm in Castile. That's where Mess fell in love with farming, working with animals, driving tractors, but most importantly, learning how to fix farm machinery.

Like a lot of farmers, the Mess family liked to save a buck by repairing their own equipment and keeping it operational longer than perhaps normal wear and tear would dictate. 

By the time he was a teenager, by all accounts, Mess was a natural at the kind of tinkering that kept heavy equipment in tip-top shape.

After his father sold the farm, Mess took jobs at other farms before landing at a dealership in Alexander. He worked there 18 years, establishing himself as the go-to-guy on all kinds of repairs.

The job afforded him the chance to get manufacturer training, particularly on skid loaders, and further hone his own skills.

He may have had a photographic memory, according to Susan Blackburn, Baskin's wife and business partner. She said Mess could look at a part and tell you on what page it could be found on in a particular parts catalog.

"I've spent a lot of time at a lot of universities," Blackburn said. "He had a high school education and he was the most intelligent men I've ever known. The guy was very, very intelligent and just as humble as anybody you've ever known."

Baskin first met Mess while he worked at the Alexander dealership. At the time, Baskin Livestock was still a young company with just a couple of employees, but already, Baskin knew he needed somebody full-time to work on his farm equipment.

When Mess let Baskin know he was ready for a change of scenery, Baskin hired him on the spot.

At the time, the repair shop was Mess and one other guy who worked on the delivery trucks used in the feed side of the business.

"At one point in time he thought we did not have enough work to keep him busy," Baskin said.

By the time of his death, Mess supervised a shop of six people repairing farm equipment, trucks and all the machinery used in the feed operation. He was Baskin's go-to-guy on nearly all aspects of the business.

"About every decision I had to make, in some way shape or form, I had some input from him," Baskin said. "Not every decision, but a huge percentage of the decisions I had to make, I relied on him for some percentage of the input to make that decision. He had a good feel for the big picture and the details."

There was little Mess couldn't do with machinery, from design of equipment used throughout the operation, to the creation of parts and tools, to taking something that was out of service and getting it to run again.

"He was a MacGyver type," Baskin said. "If there was something he couldn't fix, we had a problem, a real problem."

Mess had four sons, all of whom in one form or another have followed in his footsteps. Three of them work for Bill Baskin. Douglas G., the oldest son at 29, said he admired his father's love for what he did and how well he did it.

"He loved taking something that was broken, not even running, taking it apart and putting it back together like it was new, even better than new," Douglas said. "He was proud of that. 'I fixed it. It's usable again.' "

The oldest son said he'll never forget his father's mischievous smile. He loved a good practical joke and he enjoyed watching trainees trying to figure out how to fix something Mess could easily piece together himself. 

"He'd let you work on it a little while and then come over and show you," Douglas said. "'Hey, this way's a little quicker and a little easier,' and he was always right."

A frequent target of Mess's joking around was Jackie Murphy.

Murphy and Mess worked together daily over the past four years, starting with Murphy's transfer from the front office to an office in the repair shop, at about the time Mess's supervisory duties had him sitting at a tan metal desk a little more and spending a little less time loosening or tightening bolts or welding this part to that.

Mess teased Murphy about her boyfriend's loyalty to International Harvester (Mess was a John Deere man) and one of his favorite jokes to play on her was to make up names for new truck drivers, letting her use the made-up name for weeks until she figured it out herself, such as the Marty she called Theodore until she finally met him in person.

That joke would be worth at least two days of laughter.

"He was a funny, amazing guy," Murphy said.

And helpful. Clearly, nobody knew more about what parts were in the shop than Mess. At inventory time, he helped Murphy with the task. He would teach her anything she needed to know to do her job better.

He was always big-hearted with everybody around, she said.

That's how Douglas remembers him, too, and how he was recalled at his funeral service, Douglas said, which was attended by more than 350 people.

"You know the saying, give somebody the shirt off your back, he was the guy who did that," Douglas said. "He met other people's needs before he met his own."

How do you replace somebody like that, Baskin wondered.

Right now, the duties of Mess have been divided among four different workers. 

"Will we have at some point in time somebody with that ability?" Baskin said. "Sure, maybe. Everybody's replaceable, including me, but he ain't walking in the door tomorrow. (Mess) brought a big skill set with him and he learned and grew a lot. He learned as the business grew. His knowledge grew and his ability grew. That's hard to just drop somebody in that spot."

Baskin said Mess was like a member of the family, and he was bigger than Baskin, but younger.

"He was the big little brother I never had," Baskin said.

The loss of Mess is being felt throughout the company by all of the employees, Baskin said. 

"We've got guys who are really, really good and really, really competent," Baskin said, "and the comment's been made by more than one of them, 'I'm comfortable with what I'm doing and I like what I'm doing, but there are a lot of times where I got to the point where I had to ask him, 'what do you think about this or what do you think about that?' and who are you asking now?' "

As fast as the business has grown, it hasn't always been gold-dappled mornings over green, rolling hills around Baskin Livestock. There have been some tough times, but nothing compares to the murder of Douglas Mess.

"We've had two fires, got a guy, 52 or 53, who worked for us, who died in his sleep, and another guy we were quite close to who committed suicide, and this was the worst," Baskin said. "There are 85 and 95 guys who die all the time, they had a good long life and it's not unexpected and unnatural, but this was a complete shock, nonsense."

Which is why Bill Baskin doesn't particularly want to discuss the details of the legal case against Charlene Mess. There's stuff he may know because he's close to the situation, but he will leave that to the professionals in law enforcement to handle.

Douglas Mess can't be replaced, at least not easily, but justice can be served.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: There will be a benefit for Doug Mess's boys starting at 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 13, at the Alexander Firemen's Recreation Hall, located at 10708 Alexander Road in Alexander. Enjoy a delicious spaghetti dinner for $10, eat in or carry out. Tickets are presale and also available at the door. There will be 50/50 raffles, basket raffles, and a baked goods table. Enter for a chance to win a trip to JAMAICA! (7 night, all-inclusive for two, including airfare) For more information or to buy tickets, call Jackie Murphy at (716) 481-6662.

A controlled burn is confirmed at 10474 Bethany Center Road and Bethany Fire Department is on scene.