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It's one thing, according to Andy Mills, chief of police in Eureka, Calif., to lock down a neighborhood and try to initiate police contact with every resident.

It's an entirely different approach to bring all of the resources of city government onto a troubled street and invite residents to participate in local problem solving.

The first approach invites resentment, Mills said. The second opens doors to better communication between residents and police.

Mills hopes the Batavia's plans for what officials have called "neighborhood sweeps" is more like what the city of San Antonio, Texas, has been doing, which is setting up mobile city halls in troubled residential areas.

"It all depends on the intent of the effort," Mills said. "If it's a temporary city hall where people can come to you and tell you what the issues are and what they would like to see addressed, I think that's a wonderful idea. If the effort is going to be going in and throwing up an iron curtain and body checking everybody (who) is coming through, I wouldn't see that as viable. At least, I wouldn't do it."

Mills was encouraged by a statement from City Manager Jason Molino that he read where Molino said the goal was to get folks out of their homes and communicate with local officials. That's the right approach, Mills said.

Mills is a former captain with the San Diego Police Dept., where he worked, among other assignments, in the gangs and intelligence units. He has done consulting work all over the the United States in problem-oriented policing and managed a patrol team that won the Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing. He's also won the Police Executive Research Forum’s national Gary P. Hayes Award for his contributions to improving the quality of police service.

(I was introduced to Mills this week by Rana Sampson, a nationally known expert in community-oriented policing, whom I met in 1996 when I wrote a profile of her for San Diego Magazine.)

Eureka is a small city, especially by California standards, with a population of 27,000. It's located on the coast in Northern California.

Just this week, Mills said, he met with a group of Eureka residents sharing some of the same kinds of concerns arising in Batavia.

The good news is, Mills said, Batavia, like Eureka, has a community of people concerned enough about their community to get involved.

Shawn Heubusch, Batavia's chief, has said BPD's response to neighborhood problems will be data-driven. Data on crime and complaints and the suspected location of people known to cause problems will be used to select neighborhoods for sweeps. 

Using data to identify problem areas is the right approach, Mills said.

"You should certainly focus a lot of your resources on those locations," Mills said. "That would go to the heart of problem-oriented policing."

Identifying landlords who won't bring buildings into code compliance is also a good approach.

"You want to remove the environment that makes those neighborhoods friendly to ne'er-do-wells," Mills said.

He added, "You certainly want to create an environment where criminals feel uncomfortable, but at the same time, you want to make sure government works for all people. You certainly look at criminal behavior rather than a criminal profile. You tackle behaviors. If somebody is selling dope at a particular location or creating social disorder by hanging out, you tackle those specific problems."

The mission of making the environment uncomfortable for criminals, of course, should not disrupt the rights of individuals, he said.

As for the seeming rise in gun play in the Batavia, it's certainly something to pay attention to, Mills said, but he also praised Batavia PD for reacting strongly to the rise in gun-related incidents.

"I applaud them for being attuned and aware of what they're facing," Mills said.

He said, it's important, though, not to overreact.

"If you're having an isolated problem, then get rid of the problem," Mills said. "If you're seeing a trend, then deal with the trend."

That's where analyzing data and being thoughtful about what it means comes into play, Mills said.

"I think what you need to do is establish overall trends," Mills said. "If you're starting to see trends that are a concern, take a look at that. I would want to see more over a longer period of time before we made any harsh decisions that could have a long-term impact on a community. That's not to say a neighborhood sweep is a harsh decision. I'm just talking in general."

On video surveillance cameras, there's no doubt they are very successful at reducing crime, Mills said.

"I don't have a problem with them," Mills said. "There are some liberty issues that your local community will need to wrestle with, but I'm generally in favor of using cameras under the right circumstances."

Cameras, he said, should be monitored.

When told that wasn't the plan in Batavia, that rather, recordings would be reviewed after the fact of a crime, Mills said he understands the resources it would take a small police department to monitor surveillance cameras around the clock, but there's also a solution to that problem.

"Ask volunteer community members to monitor the streams over the Web," Mills suggested. "There are a variety of options, but getting a camera is the step in the right direction."

Among the resources Mills recommend is the Web site for the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing and particularly the article "25 Techniques of Situational Prevention."

"Batavia sounds like a wonderful city," Mills said. "People really care about their neighborhoods. If you look at the research, where people are looking out for each other, crime is reduced."

Convicted by a jury on 28 counts of sexual abuse, Earl Sprague will soon begin a 21-year prison term while still maintaining his innocence.

The 42-year-old Alabama resident was sentenced in Genesee County Court today by Judge Robert C. Noonan.

"It's a very sad circumstance, but the saddest part is that two kids have been victimized repeatedly over an extended period of time," Noonan said. "I do believe a serious sentence should be imposed over a lengthy period of time."

On the first three counts of sexual abuse the jury said Sprague did commit, Noonan gave Sprague seven years on each count to be served concurrently. On counts four through 17, again, seven years each, served concurrently, but consecutive to the first seven years. On counts 18 through 28, seven years each, running concurrent to each other, but consecutive to the first two groups of counts.

The three groups of seven-year sentences, served consecutively means Sprague will be locked up for 21 years, barring any time off for good behavior.

The sentence was the maximum available to Noonan under state sentencing guidelines.

District Attorney Lawrence Friedman told Noonan he would recommend Sprague spend the rest of his life in prison, if only that were an option for Noonan.

"It would be appropriate to send him to prison for the rest of his life, but that can't be done," Friedman said. "We will once again have to worry about what this defendant is going to do once he's out of prison. I would ask that you do everything in your statutory power to keep this defendant locked up for as long as possible as required by law."

Sprague will be on parole for 10 years following his release from prison.

Defense attorney Fred Rarick told Judge Noonan that his client had been prepared to make a statement in court, but after Noonan ruled that a television camera could record the proceedings, Rarick said his client informed him he would not make a statement.

"He can choose to make a statement or not make a statement," Noonan said. "This is a public courtroom and the presence of a camera only enhances the public nature of it to some extent. It's his choice."

Sprague made no statement.

The two young victims he was convicted of molesting had originally requested to appear at the sentencing and make victim impact statements, but neither appeared today. Instead, Assistant District Attorney Melissa Cianfrini read statements from both victims.

Rarick filed a notice of appeal and explained after court that he did so primarily to preserve his client's right to appeal his conviction. Rarick said it will be up to an attorney who specializes in appeals to review the transcript of the case and determine what if any issues might be proper for appeal to a higher court.

There could be an issue, Rarick said, with Noonan allowing the jury to hear evidence of Sprague's prior bad acts, including prior accusations of children molestation going back 30 years.

"My client respectfully disagrees with his ruling," Rarick said. "We thought he shouldn't let any priors in because it would take the jury's mind off what the real issues are."

From Rarick's point of view, those issues include an estranged wife who had motivation to keep Sprague from gaining custody of their children after she was accused of burglary and theft. According to Rarick, Penny Sprague made statements prior to Earl Sprague's arrest that she knew how a woman could get a man in trouble and that children could be convinced to make accusatory statements.

Rarick said there were never any accusations or concerns raised about Earl Sprague molesting these particular children until Penny Sprague became a suspect in a burglary.

Sprague will be back in court tomorrow because he still faces eight felony counts from another grand jury indictment, including two counts of burglary, 1st, sexual abuse, 1st, criminal sexual act, 1st, aggravated sexual abuse, 1st, two counts predatory sexual assault, a Class II-A felony, and one count of assault, 1st.

County personnel are in the midst of programming new Harris XG 25P radios for the new emergency communication system that is expected to begin operating by Feb. 12.

Each radio must be plugged into a computer and programmed to the proper frequencies. The programming takes seconds, the paperwork that goes with each radio takes a bit longer, said Keith Hunt.

Each radio is assigned its own IP address which must be documented. (An IP address is a numerical code used in Internet communications to identify computers on the network. The computer you're using now to read this story has an IP address.)

Russ Lang said there are 520 portable radios in this room, all of them earmarked for volunteer firefighters.

The county has already completed the installation of new radios in fire trucks and chiefs' vehicles -- 300 in all.

The countywide emergency communications upgrade is a more than $10 million expense, paid for largely by federal grants. It's part of a Homeland Security plan to have all communication systems in all counties on an interoperable emergency system.

The new system -- except for outgoing fire dispatch calls -- will be incompatible with any current scanners private citizens own. Uniden is releasing a new scanner this week that will be compatible with the new system. Locally, it can be purchased from G&G Communications in Le Roy.

With 30 years in the NYS public employee retirement system, Jail Superintendent Ed Minardo has decided maybe it's time take his life in a new direction.

Minardo, who became superintendent in 2011 after six years at the helm of Genesee Justice, is retiring effective March 28.

“Basically, I have my 30 years in with the New York State retirement system and was contemplating the opportunity to do some other things that I have had a long-term interest in with regard to restorative justice issues and also teaching,” Minardo said. “So it just seemed like the right time to do it."

Minardo currently teaches at the College at Brockport and RIT and says teaching is something he could stick to, but he says he’s still exploring future options.

“Where I go from here or what life is going to be like...that’s going to be kind of an unknown,” Minardo said. “I’m not quite sure. I think what I hope to be able to do is try to take a little time when I first retire and kind of get a sense of what I’m interested in doing and then kind of go with my passions where I follow from there.”

“I’m sure I’m going to be very busy doing something,” he said. “I don’t see myself ready for the rocking chair too soon.”

He started his career in the early '80s with the Town of Greece Youth Bureau as a youth referral counselor. He worked at the NYS Department of Corrections for 18 years.

In 2010, Minardo voluntarily gave up his job as director of Genesee Justice to help slash the county's cost of running the program and ensure its continued existence. Genesee Justice hasn't been seriously jeopardized by the budget ax since then.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is skeptical of the governor’s executive budget which was laid out today in Albany. Hawley notes that this proposal is a starting point in negotiations over the budget and will be changed before a final product is passed in late March. In that time, Hawley will be working to improve the budget by supporting the good elements and seeking to have the bad parts removed. Overall, Hawley’s impression of the budget is that the numbers do not add up since increases in education spending and tax relief measures are both larger than the surplus the governor is touting.

“The governor certainly rolled out some bold ideas for tax relief and increased education spending. However, I do not see how the math adds up. This budget proposal includes $2.2 billion in overall tax relief and $3.8 billion in increased education spending, when we supposedly only have a $2 billion surplus projected for 2017,” Hawley said. “I will investigate this further, but it seems to me that this proposal would put our state into debt. If this does not put our state in debt, then the money must be coming from somewhere, possibly from other important programs and services.

“A more realistic tax relief plan would involve eliminating some of the unnecessary mandates handed down to municipalities by Albany. For example, the state forces counties to spend more on Medicaid than any other state in the country. This is why our property taxes are so high. Curbing spending on this and other mandates would have a much greater impact on property taxes on New York.”

Hawley is also blasting the governor’s proposal for taxpayer-bankrolled political campaigns. This proposal would give taxpayer dollars to politicians to use on commercials, mail pieces, robo-calls, and other annoying campaign materials that hard-working families are bombarded with during campaign season. Hawley strongly opposes this idea and will fight to have it removed from the budget.

“Taxpayer-bankrolled campaigns are essentially welfare for politicians. Taxpayer money should be given back to the overtaxed families of Western New York before it is spent on endless political commercials and mailers,” Hawley said. “I am going to fight against this proposal and redirect this money back to the taxpayers who actually need this money.”

A subdivision of Batavia Towne Center to make way for a Kohl's Department Store was approved by the Town of Batavia Planning Board on Tuesday night.

The subdivision is necessary, according to Kate Johnson, of COR Development (top photo) because Kohl's needs its building on its own parcel for financing, tax and insurance purposes.

Kohl's will own its building, but COR will continue to own the land.

A subdivision carves a parcel of land from an existing parcel to make a new parcel with its own tax ID number.

Kohl's is planning 56,883-square-foot building roughly in the area of the former Lowe's garden center.

Johnson also revealed that Marshall's is planning a store next to Dick's Sporting Goods and said a fourth store is planned for the former Lowe's space, but said she can't mention the name of the store.

Previously, it was reported that the discount chain 5 Below was planning a store for the location.

Town officials are also considering a sidewalk for pedestrians that would connect Batavia Towne Center and Batavia Downs as well as an extension of Richmond Avenue through to Veterans Memorial Drive.

On a day of no snowfall and no blowing snow, city crews are taking the opportunity to clear away piles of snow from parking lots and parkways. Above, a crew works on a pile of snow outside City Centre on the Jefferson Avenue side.

It's a crisp, clear morning in Batavia with a temperature of 4 degrees.

Forecasters continue to call for a prolonged period of bitter cold with a mix of snow. Saturday, there's an 80-percent chance of a snow shower with temperatures rising to a balmy 24 degrees.

Photo: The O-AT-KA Milk plant.

New York Daily News: Gov. Cuomo to unveil universal pre-K plan without hiking taxes in budget address

Within minutes of a reported robbery at the Sunoco Gas Station on West Main Street, a Batavia police officer reported taking a suspect into custody on Dellinger Avenue.

The initial report had a man who may have displayed a gun running from the store wearing a red coat and black mask.

UPDATE 11:04 p.m.: Officers on scene confirmed the suspect did use a gun and a gun was recovered. No word on how much money was taken. Officers recovered what appeared to be garments the suspect discarded as he ran from the store, including a red sweatshirt, black ski mask and sunglasses. Deputy Chris Erion was quickly on scene with his K-9 "Destro." Destro tracked the suspect's path and located what officers believed to be the demand note used by the suspect. The robbery was dispatched to Batavia PD patrols at 9:50 p.m. and an officer reported the suspect in custody at 9:53 p.m. The name of the suspect won't be released until after his arraignment in City Court. 

Notes: Destro, you may remember, is new to the force. While he has worked to help track a possibly missing person, Erion confirmed this is the first time Destro has tracked a suspected criminal and helped find evidence. Also, since Thursday, we've had, in the city, a burglary in progress, a bank robbery and now this armed robbery and in all three cases suspects were apprehended quickly by local law enforcement (State Police assisting Batavia PD on the bank robbery).

Top photo, Sgt. Chris Camp, Deputy Erion and Destro checking out the location on Dellinger of a possible demand note used by the suspect. Photos below: Officer James DeFreze with ski mask and sweater that may have been discarded near the station by the suspect, and the Sunoco station on West Main with Batavia PD, Sheriff's Office and State Police on scene.

Town planners approved a sign tonight for a new sushi restaurant that will reportedly open soon at 4140 Veterans Memorial Drive, Batavia.

The restaurant, YUME Asian Bistro, will be the third location for the owner, according to Dan Lang, the town's code enforcement officer. The other two are in New York City.

Everything about the new restaurant, Lang said, is first-class.

"The interior looks wonderful, actually," Lang said. "He did a beautiful job on the inside of it."

Lang said the owner is just about ready, and eager to open.

The location is next to Pawn King, two doors down from Jagged Edges Salon, across from Walmart.

His top chef from New York will open the restaurant and train the cooks and staff before returning to NYC.

"He wants to make sure he has somebody who takes care of the sushi the right way," Lang said.

The restaurant will also serve Thai food as well as other Asian dishes.

Lang described the new restaurant as "high end."

UPDATE: So, apparently, Batavia will have two sushi restaurants going by similar names. Josh Gaylord says that he filed for a DBA for Yume Sushi in June and then Yumi Asian Bistro filed in July. Gaylord is planning to open his restaurant at the former Delavan's location on Evans Street in the city.  He's previously held a Sushi night at Sweet Ecstasy Bakery and his sushi has gained a passionate local following.

Police have been dispatched to High Voltage Tattoo and Piercing on West Main Street, Batavia, to take a report on a petit larceny of a tattoo.

A woman reportedly got a tattoo of stars on her shoulder and when the tattoo artist asked her to pay when the work was done, she said she didn't have any money.

The artist told her to wait while he called police and the woman reportedly left anyway, driving away in a black pickup truck.

Authorities will be told her name.

When Michael Nicometo gets out of prison in three-and-a-half to seven years, if he's diligent he will finish repaying restitution to his victims in less than 29 years.

While sending Nicometo to prison, Judge Robert C. Noonan ordered restitution in the case of $86,017.57 at a rate of $250 a month, assuming Nicometo doesn't manage to repay the debt for his release.

Nicometo, a trained electrician, was the apparent mastermind behind a scheme to steal high voltage copper wire from industrial locations in and around Le Roy.

The total damage to Dolomite was nearly $33,000 and Troy Manufacturing suffered a loss of $53,000.

Noonan also levied a state-mandated surcharge of $4,300.

This was the third attempt in County Court to sentence Nicomento following his guilty plea Sept. 30 to burglary, 3rd, as a second felony offender.

The first sentencing was scheduled Jan. 2, but Nicometo was reportedly hospitalized for an undisclosed reason. He was then scheduled to be sentenced last week, but missed his morning appointment. He arrived in court later that afternoon, but a warrant had already been issued for his arrest.

From the bench today, Noonan said Nicometo appeared to be high on drugs when he showed up to court that day.

The 29-year-old Nicometo was taken into custody and appeared today dressed in Genesee County Jail orange.

His attorney, Brian Degnan, told Noonan that his client has a drug problem that he's never been able to shake.

"He has an untreated, severe substance abuse problem," Degan told Noonan. "He has failed at treatment every step of the way. I would ask that you consider his drug addiction as a mitigating factor, Judge. Mr. Nicometo needs treatment, Judge. He's never going to be better without treatment."

For his part, Nicometo told Noonan he was sorry and that he knew he did wrong.

An option for Noonan with some drug-addicted defendants is to require drug treatment prior to starting their prison term. That's known as a Willard Sentence.

Noonan said the first test imposed by the state on whether a Willard Sentence is appropriate is whether such a sentence would have no adverse effect on public safety or the public's confidence in the judicial system.

"I don't think I can make that finding in this case," Noonan said.

There are two co-defendants in the case, Jonathan D. Smeak, of Batavia, and Dustin C. Nicometo, but we don't have any current information on the status of those cases. Those co-defendants could be responsible for some of the restitution.

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A possible structure fire is reported at 4535 W. Saile Drive, a barn behind Michelle's Bakery.

Smoke is seen coming from the structure.

Town of Batavia fire dispatched.

UPDATE 7:28 a.m.: A chief on scene reports the fire may have burned itself out. Responding units can come in non-emergency.

UPDATE 7:30 a.m.: It turns out to be a vehicle fire. The vehicle has been removed from the building. The structure is not involved.

UPDATE 7:37 a.m.: Fire is knocked down. Assignment being held to Engine 24.

UPDATE 8:14 a.m.: Town of Batavia back in service. Fire contained to vehicle. Smoke damage to the building.

Members of the Genesee Symphony Orchestra are busy getting their act together for the GSO's concert Feb. 16 at St. James Episcopal Church in Batavia.

Tonight, the orchestra rehearsed at the First Presbyterian Church in Batavia.

Raffaele Ponti is the conductor and music director for the show, which will feature soloists Holly Bewley, a soprano, and pianist Isabelle Aubin (who were not part of tonight's rehearsal).

The program includes works by Leonard Bernstein, Mozart, Annunzio Montovani, Leroy Anderson, Schubert and John Williams.

Tickets are available at geneseesymphony.com as well as GO ART!, Roxy's Music and the Batavia Senior Center and in Le Roy at the Bank of Castile.

Top photo: Lynn Eberhardt, of Scottsville, on bass.

A violin in the hands of Jill Babinski.

Dave Funston, of Batavia, on drums.

Conductor and music director Raffaele Ponti.

Dave Porter, trombone

The owner of Eastown Beverages, Paul Parise, is hoping readers of The Batavian can identify the owner of this truck.

According to Parise, somebody driving this truck stole pallets from outside his business at 563 E. Main St., Batavia. He also wonders whether the same person may have tried to break into his store two weeks ago.

Batavia PD has an open investigation on the case, according to Officer Jamie Givens, but no suspects.

Anybody who might have information useful to the investigation are asked to call Batavia PD at (585) 345-6350.

Those of you who hate winter are really going to be unhappy over the next couple of weeks.

Forecasters foresee no real let up in the bitter cold and snow gripping the region.

There's a wind chill advisory in place now through 11 a.m. Wednesday with wind chill values as low as 20 degrees below zero.

Light snow continues to fall this evening.

There will be a slight, slight warming by the weekend, according to Buffalo forecasters, but another round of arctic chill will follow behind it and there's a chance for significant lake effect snow fall next week.

"Winter will be here to stay for quite some time," wrote a forecaster in his weather analysis today.

Photo: Looking east on Main Street about 4:30 p.m.

Hoops fans can get their fill at Batavia High School this afternoon and evening with both the boys and the girls varsity teams, as well as the JV teams, competing today.

Right now, the girls teams are playing Greece Odyssey and the boys teams play East Aurora at 5:45 p.m.

The unique double-header is billed as the Martin Luther King Jr. Basketball Showcase and it's a first-time event for BHS, but Athletic Director Mike Bromley said he hopes it will become an annual event.

James Mitchell, 35, of Le Roy, is charged with petit larceny. Mitchell was arrested following a months-long investigation by the Livingston County Sheriff's Office into reports of stolen co-payments at a doctor's office where Mitchell worked in Avon. The investigation took time, according to LCSO, because of lengthy billing cycles and victims coming forward. Mitchell was allegedly stealing co-pays as patients checked out at their physician's office. The investigation was conducted by Deputy Dan Rittenhouse, Deputy Ross Gerace, Deputy Steph Schroeder and Deputy Mike Yencer.

Kelly M. Zwolinski, 34, of Broadway Road, Darien, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property, 4th, and resisting arrest. Zwolinski was identified as a suspect in possession of a stolen horse saddle that was taken from a farm in Niagara County and an arrest warrant was issued. When Deputy Kevin McCarthy and Investigator William Ferrando attempted to place Zwolinski under arrest, she allegedly resisted arrest.

Darlene Ann Kingdollar, 51, of South Pearl Street, Oakfield, is charged with petit larceny. Kingdollar is accused of entering the 7-Eleven store in Oakfield while intoxicated and after she was denied the purchase of alcohol, she allegedly left the store with a can of beer without paying for it.

Bruce J. Brade, 33, of Galloway Road, Batavia, is charged with stalking, 4th, and criminal contempt, 2nd. Brade allegedly violated an order of protection.

Mark J. Price, 37, Township Road, Ashland, Ohio, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear for an alleged traffic violation in Batavia City Court. Price was aprehended during a traffic stop in the Village of Attica. Price was issued an appearance ticket.

Jeffrey A. Pionessa, 32, of Glenwood Drive, Attica, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and speeding in zone. Pionessa was stopped at 2:30 a.m. Sunday on Law Street, Batavia, by Officer Arick Perkins. Pionessa allegedly had a BAC of .11.

A 17-year-old resident of Trumbull Parkway, Batavia is charged with criminal mischief, 4th, and harassment, 2nd. The youth is accused of damaging the mobile phone charger of another person by throwing it against a wall and grabbing the arm of the alleged victim and pushing the person's face.

John K. Rolls, 34, of Mill Street, Batavia, is charged with two counts of forcible touching. Rolls is accused of forcibly touching a 17-year-old girl on Jan. 7. Rolls is incarcerated in the Genesee county Jail on an unrelated matter and was issued an appearance ticket.

Brad Strzelecki, 19, of Hunter Street, Bergen, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Strzelecki was reported at a location on Bank Street at 10:01 a.m. Jan. 13 when he was allegedly found in possession of marijuana by Officer Eric Foels.

Rodeny Lowell McKenzie, 49, of Weaver Street, Buffalo, is charged with petit larceny. McKenzie was located by Transit Police in Buffalo during a check-the-welfare interview and identified as a warrant suspect for allegedly stealing items from Kmart on Dec. 12.

Bryant William Hardtner, 28, of State Street Road, Batavia, is charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Hardtner is accused of taking a vehicle Sunday without the owner's consent.

Kimberly Diane Ribbeck, 27, of Genesee Street, Corfu, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, driving a vehicle with obstructed vision and no or inadequate plate light. Ribbeck was stopped at 2:33 a.m. Sunday on Route 77, Pembroke, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Michael Gerald Pernicano, 21, of Lake Road, Holley, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to signal and no plate light. Pernicano was stopped at 2:29 a.m. Saturday on North Byron Road, Byron, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

Lena Marie Evans, 26, of Ross Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny, two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance and possession of a hypodermic instrument. Evans was arrested for allegedly shoplifting at Kmart by Deputy Andrew Hale.

Carey Anthony Bedell III, 18, of Lehigh Avenue, Rochester, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Bedell was arrested on Clinton Street Road, Byron, at 9:43 p.m. Friday.

Matthew R. Smith, 21, of Basom, is charged with forcible touching. Smith was arrested by State Police for an alleged incident reported at noon Thursday.

Mark A. Allison, 52, of Lockport, is charged with felony DWI and felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Allison was arrested by State Police following the report at 9:29 p.m. Thursday of a two-car accident at 372 Bloomingdale Road, Basom. One person was injured. The driver of the other vehicle was Alexander Shirira, 56, of Buffalo. No other details released.