Stories from

Joshua Lee Baltz, 37, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Baltz allegedly was found to be carrying marijuana while entering the City Court facility.

John Robert Gerhardt, 64, of Centerline Road, Varysburg, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and moving from lane unsafely. Gerhardt was stopped at 6:32 p.m. Friday on River Street, Batavia, by Deputy James Diehl.

Lisa M. Durham, 42, of Thorpe Street, Batavia, is charged with misapplication of property and falsifying business records, 1st. Durham allegedly rented merchandise from Rent-A-Center and pawned it at Pawn King.

Steven Michael Meyers, 34, of East Bethany - Le Roy Road, Bethany, is charged with menacing, 2nd. Meyers allegedly displayed a firearm during a dispute with another person.

Jenae M. Macleod, 29, of Genesee Street, Corfu, was arrested on a bench warrant out of City Court. Macleod was located by deputies from the Erie County Sheriff's Office during an investigation of an incident and discovered to have an active warrant. She was turned over to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, arraigned, and jailed on $500 bail.

Tracy A. Hilton Sr., 33, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Hilton was allegedly involved in a domestic incident at 12:07 a.m. Saturday.

Tyler D. Macey, 18, of Grandview Terrace, Batavia, is charged with strangulation, 2nd, acting in a manor likely to be injurious to a child and assault, 3rd. Macey is accused of being involved in a domestic incident.

Joshua A. Laraby, 23, of Byron, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and a traffic violation. Laraby was stopped at 5:56 p.m. Friday by State Police.

Daniel J. Laudico, 20, of Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and speeding. Laudico was stopped at 1:02 a.m. Sunday on North Byron Road, Elba, by State Police.

It was five years ago today that Billie and I took over ownership of The Batavian.

The Batavian began May 1, 2008 as a project I headed for Fairport-based GateHouse Media, but at the end of February, 2009, GateHouse changed directions with their internet strategy and The Batavian became available to us if we wanted it.

As transplants from California, Billie and I found we really loved Western New York and didn't want to leave, and I also firmly believed in The Batavian and the need to prove that there was an audience in a typical American community for local online news and advertising.

The Batavian is now one of the leading online-only news sites in the country -- the subject of books, national media columns and news coverage and closely watched by those in the news industry who fret over the future of local journalism.

But most importantly is how Billie and I have been welcomed and embraced by the Genesee County community.  We're so grateful for the support of local residents and local businesses.  We've made so many good friends and received so much appreciation for what we do with The Batavian that we sometimes feel amazed by the support.

Thank you to all of you for five great years. We look forward to covering the news of Genesee County and doing all we can to promote local businesses for years to come.

The way Head Coach Dave Peru figured it, if his Fighting Irish girls could hold Bishop Kearney to 60 or fewer points, Notre Dame could walk away with the Section V Class B2 title.

While ND held Kearney to 55, what Pero didn't count on was his team hitting less than 15 percent of its shots from the field.

"I don't think it was a case of nerves," Pero said of his team, which won a Class D state championship last season. "It's just a matter of us not being able to put the ball in the basket. You're going to have games like that."

Kearney took the title with a 55-31 win.

In all, the Irish missed 55 shots.

Pero thought Notre Dame had a good plan for dealing with Kearney's press and the Irish even seemed to have the Kings winded at the half.

The Irish got some great opportunities to score as a result of breaking through the press, Pero said, but the ball just wouldn't drop through the hoop.

"They've got a great team over there," Pero said. "I'm very proud of what we brought to the table. Our kids played hard. I think if we could have gotten a few shots knocked down for us, who knows what could have happened."

This was the final game for five Notre Dame seniors, and coming out with two minutes to play was clearly an emotional moment for team leaders Laurie Call and Mel Taylor.

"I'm so proud of (the team)," Pero said. "They're a great group of girls. I'd take these girls anywhere. For the seniors, we're going to miss them, but for next season, we start working again tomorrow."

Taylor finished with eight points, as did Shea Norton. Taylor and Norton where named to the tournament's all-star team. Emma Francis scored six.

For Kearney, BriAsia Mason scored 15, Emmanuella Edoka, 11, and Arianne Smith, 10. Mason hit three threes.

To purchase prints of photos, click here.

Christine Crocker doesn't have a lot of patience for people who steal bottles of booze from her store.

She's posted the mug shots of shoplifters inside her store and yesterday she chased one down Main Street onto Jackson and confronted him.

Crocker owns YNGodess Shop in Batavia.

Yesterday, at about 2 p.m., a man came into the store and walked up to the counter with a bottle of whiskey he wanted to buy.

The man was obviously intoxicated, Crocker said, and so she told him she couldn't sell him the bottle.

"But I'm not driving," he said, according to Crocker.

"It doesn't matter. It's the law. I can't sell to you," Crocker told him.

The man said he was sorry and walked out.

"I was still concerned for other people in the city that he could be driving while he was loaded," Crocker said.

Crocker looked out her front door soon after he left. At that point, she said, she saw him pull a bottle of Jack Daniel's Honey from his pocket.

She chased him down and caught up with him on Jackson Street. He tried hiding the bottle behind his back, denying he had it, she said.

She told him she knew he had it and then he admitted he did and gave it back.

"Prepare to be arrested," Crocker told the man.

At that point, the man took off running.

Crocker returned to the store, called the police and officers responded immediately. 

Later today, Crocker said, she will be providing police with surveillance photos to help police identify the suspect.

It seems hard to believe, but Tompkins Insurance has outgrown its space in the Bank of Castile building at 90 Main St., Batavia, according to Executive VP David Boyce.

Boyce confirmed this afternoon that Tompkins is in the process of acquiring the two-story commercial building at the corner of Main and Center streets with the intention of expanding its call center in that location.

"We have had great success in the bank building across the street, but I didn't think we would outgrow it in nine years," Boyce said. "I guess that was a little short-sighted on my part and Jim Fulmer's, but we've had great success hiring great people from the area."

The call center, Boyce said, is a "care center" in Tompkins vernacular. It's where customer service reps field incoming phone calls from the company's 36,000 private insurance clients.

Tompkins is acquiring the building from Ken Mistler, who owns as many as 10 Downtown properties. Its primary tenants are both on the first floor -- WBTA AM-1490 and Optique Optical.

Boyce said he would defer for the time being in sharing the purchase price but said the company will be making a significant investment in renovating the second floor of the structure.

The property at 113 Main St., is assessed at $325,000.

Boyce said the company is likely to apply to Genesee County Economic Development Center for a sales tax exemption on the building renovations and a PILOT on any increase in accessed value.

Two people suffered minor injuries Thursday following a two-car collision in the area of 1630 Lewiston Road, Alabama.

The accident was reported at 12:40 p.m.

Injured were A.M. Vanwyngaarden, 23, of Jackson Road, Holley, and Phillip C. Rhoades II, 46, of Main Street, Candor.

According to the accident report written by Deputy Chris Parker, Vanwyngararden's 2004 Pontiac sedan was heading west on Lewiston Road when it traveled off the north shoulder. It then moved back across the eastbound lane and struck the 2011 Hyundai sedan driven by Rhoades.

Vanwyngaarden was issued citations for alleged failure to stay on the right side of the road and uninspected motor vehicle.

(Initial Report)

Press release:

The Batavia Muckdogs have announced their manager and coaching staff for the 2014 season. For the second season in a row, this year’s squad will be lead by manager Angel Espada, pitching coach Brendan Sagara and hitting coach Rigoberto Silverio.

The 2014 campaign marks Angel Espada’s third year as the manager for the Marlins’ short-season Single-A affiliate, second as manager of the Batavia Muckdogs. Espada led the Muckdogs to a 39-36 record in 2013, finishing in third place in the Pinckney Division. Espada spent the 2012 season as the manager of the Jamestown Jammers and the year prior as the hitting coach for the Jammers. Prior to his time with Jamestown, he spent two years working as the hitting coach for the Gulf Coast League Marlins.

Espada was a 42nd-round pick of the Atlanta Braves in the 1994 First-Year Player Draft. In addition to the Braves, he also played in the Mets’ and Yankees’ systems. His playing career spanned 14 years and he finished with a .305 career batting average over 940 games played.

Brendan Sagara begins his third season as pitching coach for the Marlins’ short-season Single-A affiliate. Sagara has served as a pitching coach for 12 seasons with various teams. He broke into the coaching profession with the Dubois County Dragons of the Frontier League in 2001 as the Club’s pitching coach. He has also worked for the Braves as a part-time scout (2010-11) and the Mets as an associate scout (2006-09). In 2007, he was named Coach of the Year in Windy City of the Frontier League, while boasting the league’s top pitching staff.

Rigoberto Silverio returns for his second campaign as Batavia’s hitting coach and his sixth year in the Marlins organization. Prior to 2013, he spent two seasons as a coach for Jupiter. He spent his first three seasons with organization as a coach for the Jamestown Jammers. In his five seasons in the Marlins farm system, the former infielder was a career .243 hitter in 225 games.

Michael Bibbo will serve as the trainer for the 2014 season, his second year with the both the Muckdogs’ and Marlins’ organizations. Bibbo previously was the interim Head Athletic Trainer at Germantown Friends School in Philadelphia. Prior to that, he spent four years (August 2007-September ‘10, September 2011-June ‘12) as the Assistant Athletic Trainer at Malvern Preparatory School. He spent seven months (February-August 2011) as the Rehabilitation Intern with the Philadelphia Phillies. Bibbo received his Master of Science in Rehabilitation Science from California University of Pennsylvania in 2012 and his bachelor’s degree in Athletic Training from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn., in 2007.

The Muckdogs home opener is set for Saturday, June 14th vs. Auburn at 7:05. Season tickets, coupon books and ticket packages are all on sale now. They can be purchased at Dwyer Stadium or by calling (585) 343-5454.

Cale David Fryer, 19, of Chase Park, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Fryer is accused of stealing $24.79 in merchandise from Kmart.

Sharonda R. Brown, 40, of Lockwood Avenue, Buffalo, turned herself in on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on a parking ticket in the City of Batavia. Brown was reportedly issued a ticket on a 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. parking violation. She posted $100 bail and was released.

New York Times: Arizona Bill Allowing Refusal of Service to Gays Stirred Alarm in the G.O.P.

Here are a few pictures from my travels today.

Above, taken from Black Street Road, Le Roy.

A pony on Bernd Road, Le Roy.

Route 5 coming into Batavia from the East. It was not long after sunset so there was a bit of color, but I decided I liked the mood better as a black and white.

From this afternoon on Ellicott Street.

Genesee County's only hospital will become a fully integrated affiliate of Rochester General Hospital, according to an announcement issued today.

RGH said it has reached an agreement to formalize "a comprehensive partnership."

“Even given our sound financial position today, changes in health care will continue to negatively impact independent rural health care providers,” stated Mark Schoell, CEO, United Memorial Medical Center. “The leadership of United Memorial remains committed to providing the best for our patients, and this expanded relationship will strengthen the future of health care in Genesee County.”

Here's the rest of the press release:

The hospital’s affiliation with RGHS will lead to a continued expansion of health care services in Batavia and on-site at United Memorial, and over time will result in fewer Genesee County residents needing to leave their community for vital health care. United Memorial will maintain its name and a local board, and will continue its longstanding tradition of providing a full range of medical and acute care services in Batavia after the affiliation is formalized.

The announcement today mirrors a trend among successful hospitals and health care systems nationwide. Community hospitals continue to be impacted by changes in the business of health care, and few have the size and scale necessary to support wide breadth of specialized services and technology required today. System affiliations address the economic realities that community hospitals face with health care reform, while ensuring patients have immediate and convenient access to a full range of primary and secondary services locally and a gateway to the best clinical care available when more highly specialized care and technology – like cardiac surgery, stroke services, neurosurgery, and other complex services – are required.

“Progressive and forward-thinking rural hospital management teams and boards like United Memorial’s continue to recognize the value in partnering with larger systems, to ensure their patients have access to a full range of highly specialized technology and physician expertise,” said Mark C. Clement, president and CEO of RGHS. “This partnership will enable the residents of Genesee County to continue to have access to and receive world-class care, right at home here at United Memorial.”

The two health care institutions are no strangers to each other, having collaborated in the areas of Cardiology, Pathology, Surgery, Urology and Gastroenterology since 2008, and most recently partnered to open a Cancer & Infusion Center at United Memorial. Rochester General and United Memorial have served residents in their respective communities for more than a century.

In making its decision to affiliate with RGHS, the United Memorial board cited the system’s longstanding focus on high-quality patient care and safety, its expertise in clinical integration, its comprehensive medical and surgical specialties that will enhance existing services available in the Batavia community, and its successful track record of collaboration with smaller acute care hospitals and physicians.

“We are creating a health care system that will serve as the future model that helps communities get healthy and stay healthy” Clement said. “We’re creating true alignment of processes and providing full access to life-saving services and exceptional patient care, no matter where you live or through which system-wide door you enter. We are committed to expanding services at United Memorial, which will serve as the western hub for all of Rochester General Health System’s services.”

RGHS operates the Sands-Constellation Heart Institute, recognized as the best in cardiac care in New York for four consecutive years by Delta CareChex quality rating group, and is the only area health system to be nationally rated by SDI – a premier health care analytics firm – as a TOP 100 Integrated Health Network each year since 2007. Integrated care networks are consistently recognized for delivering higher levels of quality, service, patient safety and efficiency. These are important factors, made even more so, as the government and insurers increasingly tie reimbursement to quality, safety, efficiency and the health of a defined patient population.

Leadership teams from both organizations will work closely together to create a formal affiliation and integration plan and to complete the required regulatory approval process, which is expected to take three to six months.

This affiliation with United Memorial aligns with and is complementary to RGHS’ current merger plans with Unity Health System. United Memorial would bring another high-quality, integrated hospital into the planned new system, enabling it to offer convenient access to exceptional, high-value care to more than a million patients throughout Monroe, Genesee, Ontario and Wayne counties.

It's probably the outcome Section V officials predicted when they moved Notre Dame girls up three classes and Bishop Kearney up one to put both teams in Class B2.

The two private Catholic schools will face each other Saturday in the B2 Section V Championship. One team will eliminate the other and Section V officials can rest assured only one private-school squad gets to advance toward a possible State Championship.

The Fighting Irish enter the Section V Championship game with a 19-1 record after a close-call, overtime win against Bath-Haverling, 50-49. Bishop Kearney is 17-2 after having a much easier time of it against Le Roy last night, winning 75-47.

For ND last night, the Lady Rams, who entered the game with five losses, proved to be a handful.

"We knew they were a very good team," said ND Head Coach Dave Pero. "The thing we didn't know coming into the game is how quick they were. We had trouble defensively getting stops. We missed a few easy baskets underneath, but I think the thing that helped is that they (the ND girls) had the will to finish."

Bath's Mackenzie Smith proved a challenging opponent. She's tall, fast and can shoot. It was Laurie Call's job to defend her.

"Laurie had a tough time of it in her match-up with number three," Pero said. "Number three probably had six inches on Laurie and I think we finally found a girl that is almost as quick as Laurie and that's dangerous."

It turned out, the Lady Rams were a lot harder to play than they looked on film, said senior guard Mel Taylor.

"We knew three was going to be athletic, but I didn't think she was going to be jumping three foot higher than what we were playing defense on," Taylor said. "It was intimidating, it was adjusting to what we're not used to playing in regular season, but we did pretty well."

Smith scored 20 points, snagged 10 rebounds and had five assists.

Call, who typically doesn't get into foul trouble, was tagged with four.

"It was physical game," Call said. "It was really physical at both ends of the court. I caught myself reaching and so did the refs."

Taylor scored 14 points to lead the Irish. Emma Francis, nine, Rebecca Krenzer, eight, Shea Norton, seven, and Call, six.

Helping Smith out on offense for the Rams was Angelo Binkowski with 15 points, including two threes.

One of the side stories of the game was how quickly the refs, particularly one of them, were to call jump balls. A jump ball is supposed to be called when two players share possession of the ball, but often it looked like a player had possession while an opponent was merely reaching.

One such called came in the final 15 seconds of regulation when Norton grabbed an offensive rebound and Bath's Brooke Buckley was reaching in while Norton was trying to shoot. Rather than a shooting foul, it was called a jump ball.

A shooting foul there, with the scored knotted at 41, could have ended the game in regulation.

The Section V refs have reportedly been instructed to be quicker on the jump ball calls to cut down on foul calls.

Pero said them are the breaks of game.

"It did seem a little quick, but they see what they see and they're not going to change their minds," Pero said. "You've got to live with it. I learned a long time ago if you want to argue with them (the refs), you're going to lose. They've got the final say and overall the officials do a great job. They're the officials and the coaches are the coaches and we're supposed to coach and they're supposed to officiate. Sometimes you do get those calls."

In the night cap at Honeoye Falls-Lima, Bishop Kearney dominated Le Roy, but with a 10-8 record.

Kearney and Notre Dame could match up well. Both teams have five players who scored at least 100 points on the season and could match up on height.

Both teams are coming off State Championship seasons so they both have big game experience.

"All of our big games in past, all of our big elba games, this game today, it gets you ready for the big stage," Call said.

Before we knew for sure Kearney would be Saturday's opponent, Call said she was ready to face whoever came out on top of the semi-final game.

"Saturday's another basketball game," Call said. "It's senior year, so it's pretty emotional., but we're just going to play. it's a faceless opponent. Hopefully we come out with a patch."

To purchase prints, click here.

At about 10 a.m., the snow was coming down pretty heavy in the Village of Oakfield.

A short, but heavy snow storm is expected this morning, with visibility reduced to a quarter mile or less.

As much as an inch to an inch-and-a-half of snow fall per hour is possible. A total of three inches of snow is possible.

Strong winds will create blowing snow, contributing to the low visibility.

Colder temperatures, in the single digits, will follow the snowstorm, and combined with winds, will create a dangerously low wind-chill factor. The temperature could be as low as 20 degrees below zero.

New York Times: The Mammoth Cometh

A trial date has been set for Craig Malcolm Lawson, the 34-year-old Canadian citizen accused of throwing a single punch following a Kid Rock concert at Darien Lake and seriously injuring a former WNY man.

Jury selection is set to begin at 10 a.m., June 23 for an anticipated four-day trial.

Lawson is accused of punching Jason McNeil, of Tuscaloosa, Ala. McNeil reportedly hit his head on the pavement. He was in a coma following the incident and sources say he will never fully recover.

He is charged with assault in the second degree.

It remains possible Lawson will accept a plea offer. He has until April 24 to decide, Judge Robert C. Noonan said.

Lawson did not appear in court today and the last time he appeared -- for an evidence hearing -- he was 45 minutes late.

Noonan asked his attorney today why Lawson had a hard time crossing the border that day and the attorney said INS agents would not initially let him cross because of the pending felony charge. The attorney said he will provide his client with a letter to present at the border before his April 24 appearance.

It may not have gone off without a hitch -- some users had a learning curve -- but the new emergency communication system in Genesee County is fully functional.

There were rumors of technical problems with the new system, including problems with the Pavilion tower, but trusted sources along with Sheriff Gary Maha said the Harris system has performed as it should since the switch over shortly after 7 a.m.

The $10.8 million system -- paid for largely with federal grants and a local bond -- is technically identical to the communication system all police and fire units across the United States are converting to, which will help improve inter-agency communications in regional and national emergencies.

"We've been using the system all day and handled a number of calls -- accidents, shoplifters, calls for service -- and so far so good," Maha said. "It's gone as smooth as could be expected."

Owners of the new Uniden P-25-compatiable scanners locally are reporting spotty success in picking up fire and police transmission. The scanners do work, but reception is not always reliable.

Here at The Batavian, we don't have our new scanner fully programmed yet, so can't report on how it's working out for us.

The Sheriff's Office also switched to a new digital phone system. That transition didn't go as smoothly, Maha admitted, but the phones appear to be working properly now.

County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens is about to fill a role occupied by two of his predecessors -- NYS County Highway Superintendents Association.

What's unique, perhaps, is that Laura Mullen, a principle financial clerk with the highway department since 1957, has work for both of the previous presidents from Genesee County.

That would be Joe Amedick, who served in 1987 and Bob Carrier, who served in 1959.

Now part-time, Hens finds Mullen indispensable.

"She knows where thr vendor files are from ions ago," Hens said. "She knows where bridge files are, road files are. Any bit of information I need, she knows exactly what box it is in in the storeroom."

When Hens started his job 16 years ago, there were no computers. He said he couldn't work like that, so his computer was the first in the department. 

Mullen, already with more than 30 years on the job, jumped right in with automation and took classes at Genesee Community College on her own time, at her own expense, to learn Microsoft Office.

Hens said Mullen will fill in wherever she's needed.

He has his own kind of seniority going. At 16 years on the job, he's the fourth or fifth most senior county highway superintendent among the 57 counties in the state.

The association, he said, serves an important role in helping the state's highway departments and public works departments share information and best practices as well as lobbying Albany to maintain funding for roads and bridges.

If a member has a question, they jump online, ask it, and might get 30 answers.

"You learn something from other counties or something that somebody has already done and that saves you a lot of time and a lot of hassle," Hens said.