elba

Bradley Douglas Miller, 32, of Fullington Road, Attica, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Douglas was allegedly involved in a fight with a neighbor. Both parties suffered minor injuries.

Karen Marie Cummings, 45, of Alexander Road, Alexander, is charged with two counts of harassment, 2nd. Cummings is accused of fighting with a neighbor. Both parties suffered injuries in the incident.

Richard S. Ishmael, 49, of South Lyon Street, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant for alleged failure to appear. Ishmael was arraigned in Batavia City Court and jailed on $2,500 bail.

Wendy L. Henry, 29, of Central Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant. Henry was located at an address on Ellicott Street, Batavia. Henry was jailed on $150 bail.

Jeremiah P. Hackett, 27, of Taunton Place, Buffalo, is charged with DWI and failure to maintain lane. Hackett was arrested following an investigation by Officer Stephen Cronmiller reported at 2:19 a.m., Sunday. Hackett's vehicle reportedly struck a tree at 74 Oak St., Batavia.

John Sumlin III, 35, of Oak Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, and unlicensed operator. Sumlin was stopped at 3:30 a.m. Sunday on Park Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona. Sumlin was jailed on $25,000 cash bail or $50,000 bond.

Jeffrey Mark Black, 49, of North Byron Road, Elba, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and speeding. Black was stopped at 1:20 a.m. Sunday on Byron Holley Road, Byron, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Andrew DeMara Hewitt, 29, of Locust Drive, Hamlin, is charged with petit larceny. Hewitt was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear in Town of Byron Court. Hewitt was arraigned and released.

The Elba Lancers softball team scored four runs in the top of the 7th inning to upset the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a Class D Section V playoff game played at Genesee Community College on Friday.

Cody D. Mayer, 21, of South Lake Road, Bergen, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Mayer was arrested following a traffic stop by members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force in the Town of Stafford. He was allegedly found in possession of heroin and 20 Xanax tablets. 

Jennifer Lyn Stack, 28, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with possession of a hypodermic instrument, criminal use of drug paraphernalia, 2nd, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Stack was stopped at 8:42 p.m. Monday on Clinton Street Road by Deputy Joseph Corona. During the traffic stop, it was found there was an arrest warrant on file for Stack. Her arrest led to a search of her person.

Matthew Garrett Opitz, 29, of Hunting Spring, Rochester, is charged with driving while impaired by drugs, aggravated unlicensed operation, unlicensed operator, leaving the scene of an accident and unreasonable speed. Opitz was allegedly involved in a one-car accident at 5:03 a.m. on Angling Road, Pembroke. The accident was investigated by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Ronald D. Williams, 37, of Liberty Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny, trespass and endangering the welfare of a child. Williams is accused of stealing scrap metal from a location on Cedar Street. Williams allegedly enlisted the assistance of a child less than age 17.

Gregory M. Munroe II, 28, of Harvester Avenue, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Munroe is accused of pushing and striking a woman while in the presence of her children.

Danielle Marie Stevens, 37, of Ford Road, Elba, is charged with appearance in public under influence of drugs. Stevens was arrested following a report that she was seen consuming an unknown amount of pills and may have overdosed. 

Casey T. Vaughn, 25, of Prune Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and menacing, 2nd. Vaughn allegedly had an altercation with a construction worker at his residence.

Robert D. Wood, 23, of Pearl Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Wood allegedly shut the door as a woman was attempted to enter her residence, striking her in the abdomen with the door. Wood was jailed on $250 bail.

Robert C. Paris, 24, of Batavia, is charged with two counts of criminal obstruction of breathing and harassment, 2nd. Paris was arrested by State Police for an alleged incident reported at 12:18 p.m. May 20 in Batavia. Paris was jailed on bail. No further details released.

Stephen J. Holdaway, 62, of Corfu, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, driving an unregistered motorcycle. Holdaway was stopped at 6:07 p.m. Monday in the Town of Batavia by State Police.

John M. Englerth, 43, of 6534 Main Road, Stafford, is charged with DWI and failure to submit to breath test. Englerth was stopped at 11:48 p.m. Friday on Bank Street in Le Roy by a village police officer. Englerth was allegedly observed driving without wearing a seat belt and allegedly failed to keep right.

Jordan R. Smart, 22, of 6 Gibson St., Oakfield, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC. of .08 or greater. Smart was allegedly seen driving erratically and stopped at 1:39 a.m. Saturday on East Main Street, Le Roy, by a village police officer.

Justin Thomas Hemmer, 33, of South Main Street, Elba, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Hemmer was jailed on $500 bail.

Aaron Mark Sechrist, 23, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Sechrist allegedly stole $26 in merchandise from Walmart.

Ajia Rae Hasenauer, 21, of Main Street, Le Roy, is charged with a violation of probation. Hasenauer was arrested following a traffic stop at 8 a.m. Friday on Main Street, Le Roy, by Deputy John Weis. Hasenauer is also accused of aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, unlicensed operator, failure to stop at a red light, failure to signal a right turn and no headlights during inclement weather.

Taylor Levi Finnin, 21, of Main Street, Le Roy, was arrested on a bench warrant for an alleged failure to pay a fine. Finnin was arrested following an appearance on an unrelated Family Court matter. Finnin was arraigned before Judge Robert C. Noonan and released on a promise to start making $50 per month payments.

Raymond James Radley, 48, of Main Street, Leicester, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, and harassment, 2nd. Radley was arrested by deputies from Livingston County and turned over to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office on a warrant out of Town of Pavilion Court stemming from an alleged incident May 11 on Perry Road, Pavilion. Radley was jailed on $5,000 bail.

It was a gorgeous day in Genesee County today. As I was out and about for a bit this afternoon, I took a few pictures. 

Above, a tree in the parking lot of GCC.

On Bridge Road, Elba.

On Barrville Road, Elba.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley mowing his lawn on Bank Street Road, Batavia.

Kilian Lewis, 14, of Corfu, bagged his first turkey yesterday morning in Alexander as part of a Youth Turkey Hunt, the first day of the Spring youth hunt season (the adult season begins May 1). The turkey had a 10-inch beard. Killian's older brother, Collin, 18, helped call it in. (Photo and info submitted by M. Lewis).

John Zambito, 14, of Elba, got his first turkey this morning while hunting with his uncle Kelly Creegan. (Submitted by Chantal Zambito)

Robert Given, of Elba, is the first winner of the first raffle put together by the brand new Elba Betterment Committee.

A group of Elba residents have come together to help improve and promote Elba and they kicked off things with a raffle for a basket filled with more than $1,000 worth of gifts.

Given's name was picked during a drawing Friday at Chap's Elba Diner.

All items in the basket were donated by Elba merchants small businesses and farmers, according to Pauli Miano (who submitted the photos). Prizes included an iPad mini, bags of potatoes, Lottery tickets, a weed eater, over $300 worth of gift cards, craft items, pet supplies, books autographed by local authors, shirts and sweatshirts.

In a second raffle, anyone who came to Chap’s today was able to buy a chance on a hundred dollar bill. Sandi Chappius of Elba was the winner.

Ladder trucks from Town of Batavia Fire and City Fire were used this morning to hoist a large American flag over East Main Street for the funeral procession of Melvin Loder.

Loder was a volunteer firefighter with the Elba Volunteer Fire Department. He died at home Saturday (full obituary).

Photos by Sloan Martin, WBTA.

As it is every year, local farmers are playing the weather lottery. What numbers will come up, nobody knows.

In the meantime, they're planning their crops, waiting for a little dry spell and a bit warmer weather to start planting.

"We always hope every single year that Mother Nature will give us a good growing year," said Barbie Starowitz, of Star Growers Farm in Elba. "We think that every year. We hope every year for a good year just to pay the bills."

For many crops, now is the ideal time for getting seeds in the ground, but when the soil is still too soft from rain or the temperature still a bit cold (as it's expected to be for the next few nights), then farmers may run out of time to sow all their fields, if any.

CY Farms has started planting onions -- as have other farmers -- because, as CEO Craig Yunker says, "the muck is more forgiving," but his crews still haven't started on peas or corn.

Yunker said they like to start planting around April 1 and corn seed should start going in the ground by April 20. So far, CY has yet to plant a single acre of corn or peas.

"We'd like to get going," Yunker said.

This year, CY Farms will return to growing cabbage. The Yunkers made headlines last year when they decided to forgo cabbage.

Craig Yunker cited three reason for cutting the crop: The uncertainty raised by the employer mandate in Obamacare; the loss of labor to an immigration audit; and the high price of corn.

This year, the employer mandate is delayed for at least a year (allowing CY Farms to employ more than 50 people); Yunker has been able to find some qualified help to replace the workers he lost; and corn has dropped nearly $2 in price per bushel and is now trading at just under $5.

Those three factors led Yunker and his managers to decide to cut corn acreage this year and grow cabbage again.

For Star Growers, the crop mix will be pretty much the same as always -- corn, peas, soybeans, wheat, cabbage and onions.

Most of what Star grows goes to canning factories, either Seneca or Bonduelle.

"We've been waiting for a good growing season, but Mother Nature seems pissed at us," Starowitz said. "It's either too wet or too dry."

Like Star Growers, MY-T Acres grows mainly for canners and food processors. Pete Call said this year's crop will be pretty much like the last few years: green beans, peas, cabbage, potatoes for potato chips, spinach, sweet corn, red beets, grain corn, wheat, rye, oats and alfalfa.

We couldn't reach Torrey Farms, another large crop farm in the county, for comment.

Top Photo: Craig Yunker, CY Farms, with buckets of onion seeds. Each bucket holds 500,000 seeds and costs the farm $1,410. "It's the most expensive seed we buy," Yunker said. Below, preparing the muck to be seeded.

Driving down Norton Road, I passed the wetland where the late Ron Graziaplena used to set up waterfowl habitat and release his birds. These geese were right up by the roadway being watched by another motorist. As I took pictures, they came closer to the roadway. They're obviously pretty domesticated and were probably looking to be fed. Hopefully, they'll stay out of the road.

Boy Scout Troop 6017 hosted an Easter Egg Hunt for the children of Elba today. The hunt included eggs with winning tickets for dozens of prizes.

Elba Fire Police are called to shut down northbound traffic on Route 98 at Lockport Road due to a motor-vehicle accident.

Melissa R. Piazza, 24, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with reckless endangerment, 2nd. Piazza allegedly threw a stick at a vehicle during an argument on State Street at 6:53 p.m., Wednesday.

Cheryl M. Lyons, 48, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with menacing, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Lyons allegedly brandished a stick and a knife while threatening another person during an argument on State Street reported at 6:53 p.m., Wednesday. A child was allegedly present to witness the threats.

Dillion Lee James Farley, 22, of Ridge Road, Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, unlawful possession of marijuana, failure to keep right, moving from lane unsafely. Farley was reportedly involved in a property damage accident at 11:14 p.m. Sunday on Lockport Road, Elba. The accident was investigated by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Jason Charles Lusk, 33, of Collegeview Drive, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Lusk allegedly hit an acquaintance while in front of two deputies at 2:13 a.m., Saturday.

Harry Thomas Gibson, 49, of North Spruce Street, Batavia, is charged with attempted petit larceny. Gibson was seen by Dollar General staff allegedly placing merchandise in a bag in an attempt to steal it. When confronted, Gibson reportedly dropped the bag and left the scene.

Sara J. Smith, 28, of Fairmont Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant related to a criminal mischief charge. She allegedly failed to appear. Smith posted bail (amount not disclosed) and was released.

Aaron Walter Smith, 26, of Webber Avenue, Oakfield, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Smith was arrested following an investigation by officers Chad Richards and Stephen Cronmiller into a report of a suspicious vehicle left unattended and running in the area of Kwik Fill.

Rebecca E.A. Mulholland, 23, of Ellicott Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Mulholland's vehicle was stopped at 3:54 a.m. Saturday on Ellicott Street by Officer Peter Flanagan following a "check the welfare" request for a vehicle matching the description of the one driven by Mulholland.

A reader sent in this picture of a car off the road on North Byron Road, Elba. It looks like we got about six inches of snow overnight.

UPDATE: Jeff Allen sent in the picture of Maddie and Goliath a little taken aback by all the heavy, wet stuff in their yard. Below that, a picture from Greg Rada of his father's driveway this morning.

A two-car, head-on collision with injuries is reported at 6054 Quaker Hill Road. Elba Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding. The location is between Ridge and West Muck roads.

UPDATE 6:57 p.m.: Responders are told Mercy Flight is unable to fly due to weather.

UPDATE 6:59 p.m.: "All units be advised it's very slippery out here."

Kayla Wormuth, 17, of Elba, center of the picture, is the new Genesee County Dairy Princess. She was crowned last night in a ceremony at Genesee Community College.

Wormuth, who was a dairy ambassador for three years, said she's eager and nervous about her new position.

"I thought it would be a great experience and get me out there talking more because I'm a very shy person," Wormuth said.

To the left of Wormuth is Casey Porter, the New York State Dairy Princess. The rest of the court is Carolyn Sybertz, Georgia Luft, Emily Mikel, Mary Sweeney and Becca Slattery.

John S. Dueppengiesser, 53, of Page Road, Perry, is charged with grand larceny, 3rd. Dueppengiesser is accused of stealing more than $3,000 worth of steel from a business on Route 63 in Pavilion during a night in February. Dueppengiesser was arraigned and released under supervision of Genesee Justice. The case was investigated by deputies Bradley Mazur, John Duyssen and Joseph Loftus. Deputies from Livingston County and Wyoming County assisted in the investigation.

Ashley Anne Dunham, 24, of Edward Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, failure to keep right and speeding (69 in a 55 mph zone). Dunham was stopped at 2:25 a.m. Sunday on Hartshorn Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Alicia Susan Hough, 22, of Bridge Road, Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speed not reasonable and prudent and moved from lane unsafely. Hough was reportedly involved in a property damage accident at 7:35 a.m. Friday on Norton Road, Elba. The accident was investigated by Deputy John Weis.

Iesha Marie Vetter, 21, of Royce Road, Varysburg, was arrested on a warrant for alleged petit larceny. Vetter turned herself in on the warrant. She was jailed on $500 bail.

Brent E. Keheley, 34, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with failure to answer summons. Keheley was arrested on a warrant and taken to BPD headquarters where he was released upon posting $260 police bail.

Ricky A. Leach, 33, of Central Avenue, Batavia, harassment, 2nd. Leach is accused of hitting a woman in the stomach during an altercation on State Street at 10 p.m. Thursday. Leach was released to the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office on a warrant.

An upstairs room is reportedly on fire at 6456 Oak Orchard Road, just north of Lockport Road. Elba Fire Department is responding.

UPDATE 8:56 p.m.: An engine from Barre is requested to provide mutual aid.

UPDATE 9:02 p.m.: The Town of Batavia is requested to provide equipment at the scene and a crew to stand by in Elba's hall. Also called for mutual aid are South Byron, Byron, Oakfield and Bergen.

UPDATE 9:13 p.m.: Elba command requests all equipment to continue in non-emergency mode.

UPDATE 9:35 p.m.: National Grid is called in; no ETA given.

UPDATE 10:06 p.m. (by Howard): Fire reported under control.

UPDATE 10:12 p.m. (by Howard): Information provided by Alecia Kaus, who is on scene: Chimney fire that got into the walls. Code enforcment on scene, trying to determine if the family can stay. No injuries. Seven fire companies responded, including two from Orleans County. Fire is out, doing overhaul and checking for extensions with thermal camera.

Phtoo by Alecia Kaus.