A car careened into a beauty salon at 110 W. Main St., Le Roy. No injuries are reported. Le Roy Fire Department on scene. Code enforcement is responding.
UPDATE: Photos submitted by readers.
On a cruel April morning in 2011, Craig Tiberio looked at himself in the mirror. The man he faced stood accused of dealing drugs and assaulting a police officer. Looking at that mirror affixed as it was to a jailhouse wall, Tiberio didn’t like what he saw.
“I was at the end emotionally,” Tiberio said. “I knew there wasn’t anyplace to go but up unless I wanted to keep living the life that I was living. I obviously knew that if I got back on track, I had the potential — if I was motivated enough — to play sports again.”
As a high school junior, Tiberio had been a standout receiver for the Le Roy Oatkan Knights. He was at least a legitimate Division III prospect entering his senior season. All he wanted to do, or so he thought, was play football at the collegiate level.
Craig describes his childhood as challenging, chaotic, as anything but stable. Sports, especially football, was an escape.
An injury changed everything.
In the sixth game of his senior season, Craig Tiberio suffered a stress fracture in his spine.
That meant pain medication. It meant time away from the field, from his teammates, from everything that had kept him anchored.
It’s a familiar story in sports — injury, pain medication, followed by a need to self-medicate with whatever street drugs might be available. The pattern killed former Padres pitcher Eric Show. There are countless cases of high school and college athletes you never hear of whose lives were altered by drug use after an injury.
The story of Craig Tiberio is the story of a once-promising athlete who hit bottom and then turned his life around. He entered guilty pleas May 27, 2011 in Genesee County Court to assault, 3rd, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 4th, and to DWI. As he stood before Judge Robert C. Noonan that day, he faced a near certain four-year prison term. Back in court weeks later with positive progress reports, Noonan gave him a second chance. Step by step since, he’s made the most of it. He’s on the dean’s list at Buffalo State University. He volunteers with third- and fourth-graders in Buffalo. His assigned practice squad includes Buff State’s best players, and if he avoids injury, he has a shot of starting at tight end for the Bengals.
A passion for sports
It’s been long path paved by determination and family support since Tiberio gazed into the jailhouse mirror that April morning in 2011, with just the glimmer of a thought that maybe, maybe, he could rekindle his dream of playing college football and pursue a career in coaching.
He’s made it this far.
“You’ve got to ask yourself 'how bad do you want to be successful?' in any aspect of life,” said Tiberio after an early morning spring practice at Coyer Field.
He sat on a near-side bench under an optimistic blue sky while teammates who missed an earlier practice pushed 50-pound weights on their hands and knees up and down the sideline, from the 50 to the goal line and back, 10 times each.
“Some people are just completely content with working a minimum-wage job and being able to do anything they want, but for me, I appreciate freedom more than I ever did. Some people take that for granted. It comes with how much pain are you willing to deal with before you want your life to get better.”
When Craig was but a few months old, his mother moved him from Fairfax, Va., where he was born, to Le Roy. She started living with Art Nicomento, an electrician, and the couple stayed together until Craig was 5.
Then things started to unravel. According to Nicomento, Craig’s mother got hooked on drugs. The couple separated, but Craig stayed with Nicomento. Eventually, Nicomento became Craig’s legal guardian.
“He was a good kid, a smart kid,” Nicomento said. “I wanted to take care of him.”
Talk to anybody in the community about Art and Craig and they will tell you, Nicomento was always there for his son.
By his sophomore year in high school, Craig Tiberio was turning heads on the gridiron, the hardwood and in track and field. Any sports story previewing Le Roy’s chances in the football or basketball seasons included Tiberio as integral to the team’s potential success.
As a junior, Tiberio stood 6’ 3” and weighted 175 lbs. He was athletic and fast. His junior year, he was the Section V champ in the long jump and the triple jump. He also ran on the team’s 400-meter relay team and won a few meets in the 3200 and the 100-meter dash. In basketball, there isn’t a game story that doesn’t list the strong forward as pouring in at least a dozen points and pulling down four or five rebounds.
In Le Roy, football is king and football was Tiberio’s passion. He combined speed, height and agility to haul in passes no defender could touch.
“I always had the attitude in high school, standing on the field across from another player, they can’t stop me,” Craig said.
Jim Bonacquisti, an assistant coach for the Knights, remembers Tiberio as a big play maker. A Tiberio TD reception helped stop a long Hornell home-winning streak. One of Tiberio’s big scores against archrival Cal-Mum came on a fourth-down reverse in a sectional semi-final. Then he intercepted a pass to help seal the deal.
Tiberio was named to the Livingston County Athletic Association’s all-star team on both offense and defense his junior year. (Le Roy is in the Livingston County footbal league). He was also named to the all-state team. He averaged 20 yards a reception and picked off seven passes playing free safety.
“I would rank him behind Mike Humphrey and Brandon Fulmer as far as the best we’ve had in my tenure,” Bonacquisti said. “Ironically, Craig getting hurt his senior season opened the door for Mike’s increased playing time in 10th grade. In Craig’s junior year, he caught anything near him, plus he was a pretty good safety. He wasn’t a big hitter, but he was usually around the ball.”
Unsportsman-like conduct
In his senior year, Tiberio said he was already hampered by a minor back injury, but continued to play. In five starts, he only had eight catches for 88 yards and one TD. On defense, he only had three tackles and two assists.
Friday night, Oct. 6, 2006 was homecoming for the Perry Yellowjackets. Unfortunately for the Perry student body, the Yellowjackets were scheduled to play their homecoming game against an undefeated Oatkan Knights team who would go on to win the Section V Class C title.
Tiberio was having one of his best games of the season with three receptions, including one for a TD, when late in the 4th quarter, with the Knights up 48-0, Tiberio snagged Heath Henrickson’s pass for an interception and returned it 33 yards before being tackled by a Perry player.
... More after the jump ... click the headline or the link below the picture ...
According to Tiberio, he was face down on the field after the tackle. The Perry player, he said, sat on his tailbone and then pulled up on his neck.
A flag was thrown for unsportsman-like conduct, but the damage was done.
The next day, Tiberio went to a sports medicine clinic in Rochester where a doctor told him his season was over.
“I broke down in tears,” Tiberio said.
That spring, Tiberio graduated with his class. He enrolled at Genesee Community College, but also started hanging out with a party crowd in Le Roy.
Trouble didn’t start right away.
When it did, Art Nicometo said he was slow to recognize Craig was using illicit drugs. He said his wife Renee picked up on it first, but Art was in denial.
“Once I became suspicious about what was going on, we started digging through his garbage,” Nicometo said. “We did this three or four times so he couldn’t deny it or say it belonged to somebody else. Renee confronted him and told him we knew he was taking pills. We had a talk and I told him he was heading down the wrong path. He was losing weight. It was impacting his grades in school. He agreed he had a problem and said he would work on it.”
It wasn’t until May, 2010 that Tiberio had a run-in with the law. Just before his 21st birthday, he was arrested for drunken driving. He was also accused of possessing a controlled substance and marijuana.
Yet, the drug use continued.
In October of that year, Craig was at somebody’s house on St. Mary’s Street in Pavilion and a fight broke out. Tiberio was charged with assault. The other person was charged as well, Craig said, and when both he and the other defendant said they wanted to drop the charges against each other, the case was dismissed.
As Craig Tiberio drifted through this period of his life, there was a family gathering one evening at the Nicometo home.
“They wanted to watch my highlight tape from high school,” Tiberio said. “I literally started getting really upset. I walked out of the room knowing that I was nowhere I wanted to be in my life.”
Drug-dealing suspect
Yet, Tiberio kept hanging out with the same crowd, doing drugs and not pursuing his dreams.
“I found it was easier to keep numbing up all of my emotions instead of taking the hard road at the time and getting clean and busting my hump to really get on track,” Tiberio said.
At some point in every addict's life, if they’re ever going to get into recovery, they hit rock bottom.
For Craig that point was April 19, 2011.
Somehow, Tiberio came to the attention of the Local Drug Task Force as a suspected dealer.
Using an informant, a buy was set up on Jackson Street in the City.
According to Sgt. Pete Welker, once the buy was completed and the informant walked away, plain clothes and uniformed members of the Task Force closed in.
Tiberio immediately realized he had been set up, Welker said, and he tried to assault the informant. Welker and his partner intervened. In the process, Welker’s finger was bent back and sprained and when his partner tried to mace Tiberio, Tiberio put his hand up, causing the mace to spray back into the detective’s face.
That evening, Welker and Sgt. Steve Mullen, then head of the task force, went to Art Nicometo’s house to execute a search warrant.
Nicometo said the investigators couldn’t have been nicer. They had all known each other for years, and Mullen and Welker were apologetic and explained the case was entirely about Tiberio and he was the only reason they were there to search the house.
The investigators told Nicometo what happened when the arrest went down and Nicometo said he was surprised that the scuffle was going to lead to a felony assault charge. He expressed some hope that the charge would be dropped, but the investigators were noncommittal.
Tiberio was found to possess cocaine, suboxone, drug paraphernalia, drug packaging, digital scales and $310 in currency.
“My first reaction was to call a bail bondsman, but when I called, he didn’t answer and later I was thankful he didn’t,” Nicometo said. “The next morning, Renee and I both said, the problem has got to stop. We’re not getting him out of jail. The only way he’s going to change his life is if he goes from bed to bed, from jail to rehab.”
At first, Nicometo said he couldn’t get any help from GCASA. He called several rehab facilities and couldn’t find a bed for his son.
“I was near giving up,” Nicometo said.
Then he finally reached the right person at GCASA and they were able to secure a bed for Craig.
His attorney, Tom Burns, had to be the one to escort Tiberio from the jail to GCASA, but Nicometo rode along and walked in the door with his son.
They were greeted almost immediately, Nicometo said, by four kids from Le Roy.
“One of them said, ‘hey, great, the old gang is all together again,' ” Nicometo said. “I didn’t have a good feeling.”
From GCASA, Tiberio transferred to Hope Haven. After he successfully completed that program, he transferred to a halfway house in Niagara Falls.
It was Craig’s choice, but Nicometo was against it from the start.
“As it turned out, it was a good decision, but it was tough dropping him off there,” Nicometo said. “It’s just around the corner from that casino and, well, you know what that neighborhood is like.”
During his six-months at the halfway house, Nicometo racked up quite a phone bill, since he allowed and encouraged Craig to call home every day.
As he progressed in treatment, Tiberio started thinking about football again. Nicometo got his tapes together and sent them to the recruiter at Buffalo State.
Being coachable
One day a week, Tiberio was allowed to leave the halfway house for personal time with family. Typically, he spent the time with family in Le Roy, but one day, they set up a visit with Jerry Boyes, head coach of the Bengals.
Boyes is a Hollywood casting director’s idea of a college football coach. Tall, thin and as tough and straight as a 16-penny nail. On the field during practice, he talks with his players about dedication, hard work, commitment and discipline.
To play for Boyes means you get to practice on time and learn your assignments. There is only one type of player on the field: the one who is coachable. Being coachable, Boyes told his players, means you don’t wilt when a coach yells at you. You learn your lesson, get better and never get yelled at a second time for the same mistake. Any other kind of player won’t be practicing with the team very long.
In the 1960s, he was an All-American QB for Ithaca. He was 1995’s NCAA Division III Coach of the Year. In two stints running the program, his record is 111-90.
“I was really nervous and really scared that with my situation he wouldn’t even give me an opportunity,” Tiberio-Shephard said. “As he said, he’s all about trust. I was completely open with him. He set some guidelines. He didn’t want me to be an issue or a bad influence. Once I had that in front of me, where he said I had an opportunity, that was just — well, I’ve always had a dream of playing college football and when I hurt my back, I just kind of gave up on it. Obviously, I had a lot of regrets.”
With those assurances, Boyes said of course he was open to giving Craig a second chance.
“I told him my expectation was that he stay true to what he promised me, that he stay clean,” Boyes said. “He made that commitment to me.”
As Tiberio continued his rehab, he volunteered at a soup kitchen in Niagara Falls. Nicometo said that really helped the young man see a little clearer what the bottom of life was like and understand he didn’t want to go there.
As soon as he was able to, he enrolled at GCC again so he could work on raising his grades (having left previously with a GPA hovering around 1.0).
Then, another setback.
Three weeks before the fall semester, an admissions councelor at Buffalo State said the college wasn’t going to admit a student with Tiberio’s criminal record.
That made Art Nicometo a little bonkers.
“I told them he’s already accepted at another SUNY school, at GCC,” Nicometo said. “He’s on the dean’s list. I told them, what you’re doing is wrong.”
He asked if there was an appeals process. They said there wasn’t. “Well, there is now,” Nicometo said.
Nicometo and the university wrangled back and fourth for two weeks before it reversed its decision.
That gave Nicometo and Craig a week and a half to find an apartment near the campus. They found one, but it wouldn’t be ready for another month, so for the first couple of weeks of college Nicometo shuttled the license-less Tiberio between his classes at Buff State and Le Roy.
Climbing a high hurdle
During the months of going through rehab, going back to school, planning for his future, Tiberio still wasn’t done with the Genesee County Court of Judge Robert C. Noonan.
He came to court in July 2011 knowing Noonan could sentence him then and there, but based on reports of his good progress, Noonan delayed his sentencing and ordered him back in court in November. At the November appearance, Noonan was again pleased with what he heard about Tiberio’s progress and set a new sentencing date of March 27, 2012.
Noonan isn’t the kind of judge to take lightly an assault on a police officer. While defendants with a history of drug abuse often get second, maybe even third, chances, Noonan takes respect for the law and those who enforce it seriously.
Tiberio knew, even with all of his progress and all of his family support, Noonan could still send him to prison. His attorney, Tom Burns, braced him for the worst and hoped for the best.
Burns stood up for his client in court.
"I've noticed he hasn't gotten all cocky about his treatment progress and he seems to accept the fact that this is something he is going to have to work hard doing for a long period of time, which is not only sobriety, but criminal-free living, which he intends to do," Burns said.
Rather than prison, Noonan put Tiberio on five years probation.
"The significance in not sending you to state prison tells me that you've climbed a very, very high hurdle to be here today and be in a position to get probation," Noonan told him from the bench.
The judge received dozens of letters of support for the defendant, but none were more important than the letter delivered to his office by Sgt. Pete Welker, one of the investigators Tiberio had assaulted.
“The gist of the letter is that I asked Noonan to give him a second chance, knowing that if he screwed up, Noonan would have a ability to send him to prison,” Welker said in an interview last week.
It’s routine for arresting officers to provide the Probation Department with letters about their interactions with defendants as part of the pre-sentence investigation. Welker’s first letter was a standard recommendation for a prison term. This was the first time in his 14-year drug enforcement career that Welker’s reversed course and retracted his first letter.
That simple twist of fate came about only because Welker happened to run into Tiberio at a Buffalo Bills game.
“I was walking through one of the tunnels and I saw him standing there,” Welker said. “I didn’t know how it was going to go, but I approached him and we stood there and talked for five or six minutes. He apologized and told me he was in some kind of assisted living, maybe a halfway house, in the area. He said he had been clean and wanted to go to college.”
After the chance meeting, Welker decided he wanted to know more about Tiberio’s progress and try to determine his sincerity, so he contacted Burns and asked for a meeting with the attorney and his client.
“The impression that I got that this was a kid who wanted to do the right thing,” Welker said.
In court, when Noonan spoke, Tiberio listened.
“Noonan put down some thick guidelines, pretty much a no-tolerance policy,” Tiberio said. “If I messed up at all, he was bringing the hammer down on me. I took that seriously.”
Handling adversity like a winner
By the time Tiberio was a Buffalo State Bengal, he had been away from football for six years.
A Le Roy football player is expected to be tough, disciplined, hard working and team-oriented, but Knights' Coach Brian Moran’s offense is built around the running game.
Boyes prefers the faster-paced, pass-oriented spread offense.
The lack of playing time and the more complicated schemes had Tiberio feeling like a rusty fifth wheel his sophomore season.
“I didn’t know a thing,” Tiberio said. “It took me a whole season to understand my responsibility on a play-by-play basis.”
Even so, Tiberio impressed his coaches.
By his junior season, Tiberio was in line for regular playing time, but in the second game of the year, he broke his ribs and was out for the rest of the season.
This injury, this time, wasn’t a setback. He kept his nose in the books and his mind and body fit, focused on his goals. He made the dean’s list at Buffalo State and continued to do volunteer work in the community and on campus.
The way Coach Boyes sees it, what Craig has been through and how he conducts himself now shows a lot of character.
“Anybody can handle the wins,” Boyes said. “Faced with adversity, how do you handle that? And that’s one of the great results of athletics. You’re going to face adversity every game. I guarantee it. Dropped balls, fumbles, missed blocks. Guys are going to make mistakes. How do you handle that?
“I’m very proud of what’s going on here with Craig in overcoming this adversity that he’s had,” Boyes added. “I’m anxious to see him break out on the football field because he has all the physical tools to be a great football player for us. He just needs to stay healthy.”
At 24, Tiberio is the second-oldest player on the squad and Bonacquisti said it’s quite an accomplishment for any player at his age, especially after missing so many years of playing time, to come back and compete so well against 18- and 19-year-olds in Division III.
“I have tried to encourage him,” Bonacquisti said. “I know he got frustrated last fall (when he broke his ribs), but he is really fighting long odds to get on the field with his age. The fact he practices every day with kids much younger and he can hang with them is impressive. He is getting his degree; he’s on the dean’s list; and he’s hanging on the field with one of the better D3 schools in the area. I am real proud of how he has turned his life around.”
Academically, Tiberio is excelling. By the time he left GCC, he’d raised his GPA to 1.9 and now, in his third year at Buffalo State, his cumulative GPA is 3.6.
Education and football — that intertwined focus, Tiberio said, is a big part of why he stays out of trouble. At a Division III college, there are no football scholarships. Players need good grades to stay on the field. As Coach Boyes says, “Our players are here for the right reason.” On the flip side, football helps keep Tiberio’s non-classroom hours productive.
“I feel like if I were just going to school, I’d have more time to just get in a negative mindset or put myself in a bad situation,” Tiberio said.
Only a handful of Tiberio’s teammates know about his past. There are nearly 100 young men on the squad right now, many of them fresh out of high school. Tiberio said he’s found it easier to make friends with the older players, seniors mostly, and the ones who are easygoing and nonjudgmental.
“They’re actually kind of amazed,” Tiberio said. “They see me today and the kind of person I am. They see I care about people so much and want to help them, so a lot of them don’t even believe what I came from. They just think I’m this nice suburban kid raised in a nice white family who had it easy. It was kind of shocking to most of them when I told them what I’d been through.”
And what he’s been through is a time and a place he swears he never wants to revisit. He’s got one more year of football eligibility and then he knows his playing days are over. He dreams of coaching, but makes no long-range plans. He’s focused on his senior year at Buffalo State, as a student and as an athlete.
“For me personally,” he said, “it’s just nice to be able to wake up in the morning and look in the mirror and be proud of myself.”
Marianne B. Molaro, 53, of 2224 Ham Road, Oakfield, is charged with grand larceny, 4th. Molaro allegedly removed business records from her place of employment containing data of a scientific or technical process.
Meaghan L. Schiavi, 21, of 43 N. Main St., Perry, is charged with identity theft. Schiavi allegedly used credit card information from a friend and made a purchase in the Village of Le Roy.
Bernard Lee Evans, 43, of Cato Street, Pavilion, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, and aggravated harassment, 2nd. Evans allegedly contacted his ex-girlfriend 16 times by mobile phone in an alleged violation of a court order of protection.
Bryon Gilbert Keller, 19, of Sumner Road, Darien, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Keller allegedly violated an order of protection.
Justin L. Pyatt, 26, of Pearl Street, Batavia, is charged with two counts of harassment, 2nd, criminal mischief, 3rd, and petit larceny. During an incident reported at 4:40 p.m. Wednesday, Pyatt allegedly made threats to harm another person, took property that belonged to that person, shoved that person and hit a refrigerator causing damage to the person's property.
Paul Dennis Barth Jr., 23, of Cohocton Road, Corfu, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Barth allegedly approached a person while in Tops Market whom he has been ordered by a judge to not contact at all. Barth then allegedly followed the person to the Sheriff's Office on Park Road. The alleged incident was reported at 3:15 p.m.. Barth was arrested by Officer James DeFreze and jailed on $2,500 bail or $5,000 bond.
Christopher R. Hoover, 27, of North Drive, Rochester, is charged with possession of a forged instrument, 2nd. Hoover was turned over to Batavia on a warrant after he was taken into custody by Greece PD. He was jailed without bail.
A dusting of April snow made for a beautiful drive this afternoon on Oatka Trail Road in Le Roy.
Melissa R. Piazza, 25, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with trespass, harassment, 2nd, and criminal mischief, 4th. Piazza allegedly told another woman that she was going to kill her, broke a screen window and was trespassing on residential property. The alleged incident was reported at 7:47 a.m. Sunday. Piazza was jailed on $1,000 bail.
A 17-year-old resident of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with no headlights and failure to keep right. The teen was stopped at 10:20 p.m. Saturday on West Main Street, Batavia, by Officer Matthew Lutey.
Jeremy A. Preston, 23, of Prospect Avenue, Batavia, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Preston was stopped at 10:35 a.m. Thursday on Prospect Avenue by Officer Devon Pahuta.
Michael L. Williams, 34, of Ellicott Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Williams allegedly slapped a child during a domestic incident. He also allegedly grabbed and punched a woman while a child was watching. Williams was jailed on $10,000 bail.
Bobby L. Mobley Sr., 55, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 1st, refusal to take breath test and driving with inadequate stop lamps. Mobley was stopped at 11:37 p.m. Saturday on Central Avenue, Batavia, by Officer Jason Ivison.
Krisopher A. Anderson, 22, of North Lyon Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Anderson was charged following a call for an alleged domestic incident at 2:40 a.m., Saturday.
Sara T. Cupler, 21, of Church Street, Alabama, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Cupler was arrested by Officer Devon Pahuta following a call to assist another agency at a residence on West Main Street, Batavia.
Bernard Lee Evans, 43, of Cato Street, Pavilion, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, and aggravated harassment, 2nd. Evans was arrested while incarcerated at the Genesee County Jail on new charges stemming from an alleged incident on March 26 on Starr Road, Pavilion. No further details released.
Christopher Edmond Nanni, 18, of Fox Road, Oakfield, is charged with unlawful possession marijuana and speeding. Nanni was stopped on Drake Street Road, Oakfield, at 12:07 a.m. Sunday, by Deputy Joseph Corona.
Michael A. Michalow, 56, of Baitz Avenue, Buffalo, is charged with felony DWI, felony aggravated unlicensed operation, 1st, driving without an ignitiation interlock, consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle, no stopping/standing on public highway, refusal to take breath test and unlicensed operation. Deputy James Diehl was dispatched at 9:11 p.m. April 4 to a report of a disabled vehicle blocking the roadway on Ledge Road, Alabama. Following an investigation, Michalow was arrested and jailed on $15,000 bail.
Megan Theresa Gill, 20, of Church Street, Le Roy, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Gill allegedly grabbed a victim's arms and held them behind his back during a fight, which was reported at 3:32 p.m. April 5 at a location on Perry Road, Pavilion.
Gregory A. Dejesus, 23, of Perry Road, Pavilion, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Dejesus is accused of striking a victim in her the face with a closed fist during an argument, which was reported at 3:32 p.m. April 5 at a location on Perry Road, Pavilion.
Aaron M. Hatt, 18, of Alexander, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and harassment, 2nd. Hatt was arrested by State Police following a report of an alleged incident at 11:03 a.m. Friday in the Town of Pembroke. No further details released.
Sometime during the early morning hours March 8, a person put glue inside the door locks of Mill Street Wine and Liquors, according to Le Roy PD.
The purpose of the act is undetermined but investigators speculate it could have been to further a crime or aid in a future crime.
The locks were damaged.
Investigators are looking for the public's assistance in identifying the man in the photo above.
Anybody with information that may help the investigation are asked to contact Le Roy PD at (585) 345-6350.
More than 100 Le Roy High School students and community members attended a candlelight vigil tonight at the Le Roy Fire Hall in honor of Joshua Ian Mouery, who died six days ago at age 16.
The vigil was organized by Le Roy students Joseph Pratt, Josh Janiszeski and Amy Kaplun.
Pratt said Mouery was a best friend and urged all who attended to remember all of the good times with Josh and carry him in their hearts for the rest of their lives.
These are the latest indictments issued by the Genesee County Grand Jury.
Marino M. Marasciulo III is indicted on 16 criminal counts, including third-degree rape, all alleged to have occurred in the Town of Bergen. In late January or early February, 2013, this adult over the age of 21, allegedly engaged in sexual intercourse with a person under 17, a Class E felony. In count two, the defendant is accused of allegedly engaging in oral sexual conduct with a person under 17, also a Class E felony. In count three of the indictment, the defendant is accused of forcible touching, a Class A misdemeanor. In or about July 2012, for intentionally and for no legitimate purpose, Marasciulo allegedly forcibly touched the sexual or other intimate parts of another person for the purpose of degrading or abusing such person or for the purpose of gratifying the actor's sexual desire. In count four, Marasciulo is accused of a Class A misdemeanor, in or about July 2012, for allegedly knowingly acting in a manner likely to be injurious to the physical, mental or moral welfare of a child less that 17 or directed or authorized such child to engage in an occupation involving substantial risk of danger to her life or health. In count five, the defendant is accused of the same conduct as in count four but in April or May 2013 and with a second child under 17. In counts six and seven (Summer of 2012), eight (Summer of 2012 -- May 2013) and nine (late January or early February 2013) the defendant is accused of the same conduct but with a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth child, respectively. The remaining seven counts, all Class A misdemeanors, are for unlawfully dealing with a child for allegedly providing alcohol to a person or persons under 21.
Shadow S. Jonathan is indicted for the crime of second-degree assault, a Class D violent felony, for allegedly intending to cause, and causing, physical injury to another person or a third person by means of a dangerous instrument, a wooden beam, on Sept. 13 in the Town of Alabama. On the same date, the defendant is also accused of attempted assault in the second degree, a Class E felony, for allegedly intending to cause physical injury and attempting to cause such injury by means of a dangerous instrument, a metal stake.
Nicole M. Dellapenna is indicted for second-degree assault, a Class D violent felony, for allegedly intending to cause physical injury to another person, causing injury to the person or a third person by means of a dangerous instrument, a knife, in the Town of Le Roy of Aug. 24. She is accused of criminal possession of a weapon, 4th, a Class A misdemeanor, for allegedly knowingly possessing a dagger or dangerous knife or other dangerous instrument or weapon with intent to use the same unlawfully against another.
Matthew A. Beccue is indicted for allegedly driving while intoxicated, a Class E felony. On Nov. 22 in the City of Batavia, he drove a 1994 Chevrolet in the parking lot of a gas station and on Route 63 and on Liberty Street all while allegedly intoxicated. In count two, he is accused of aggravated driving while intoxicated, also a Class E felony, for allegedly have a BAC of .18 or more.
Wayne D. Potter, 30, of Batavia, is charged with failure to notify of change of address and offering a false instrument for filing. Potter is a registered level 2 sex offender. He allegedly failed to register a change of address and turned himself in after learning police were looking for him. Potter was jailed without bail.
Stephen A. Lewis II, 33, of 14 Highland Park, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th. Lewis is accused of damaging the door of another tenant at 14 Highland Park, Batavia, with a shovel. Lewis was jailed on $1,000 bail.
James Rocco Soccio, 32, of Ross Street, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant stemming from an unregistered motor vehicle charge. Soccio posted bail and was released.
James J. Preedom, 29, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th, and harassment, 2nd. Preedom is accused of pushing another person during an alleged incident reported at 3:30 a.m., Monday. Preedom also allegedly broke a chair and damaged a wall.
Jeffrey W. Kuyal, 22, of 839 Chili Ave., lot J147, Churchville, is charged with petit larceny; Jazmin L. Kuyal, 25, of 66 Lake Street, Le Roy, is harassment, resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration. Jeffrey was arrested by Le Roy PD for allegedly shoplifting from a village business. As he was being led from the store by a police officer, Jazmin allegedly struck Jeffrey in front of police. Police say Jeffrey and Jazmin are cousins. When a police officer attempted to arrest Jazmin, Jazmin allegedly struggled with the officer and became combative, refusing to get into the patrol vehicle. Jazmin was also found to have a warrant out of Orleans County. Jazmin was jailed on $1,000 bail.
Mark Anthony Cicero, 45, of Dolbeer Street, Perry, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle and failure to obey traffic device. Cicero was stopped at 12:20 a.m. on Perry Road, Pavilion, by Deputy Joseph Corona.
Randy J. Rowe, 32, of Rochester, was arrested as a fugitive and is also charged with criminal mischief, 3rd. Rowe was arrested in the Town of Batavia on Monday by State Police. No further details released.
NOTE: The Genesee County Sheriff's Office is now posting a list of people with outstanding warrants. The list can be found on the county Web site under NEW Warrants. For the current list, click here (PDF).
A car-into-pole accident with minor injuries is reported in Le Roy at the intersection of Main and Bator roads. Le Roy fire and ambulance are responding.
Rose H. Chiauzzi, 22, of 154 W. Court St., Warsaw, is charged with felony assault and criminal mischief, 4th. Chiauzzi allegedly grabbed a brick during an argument in the Village of Le Roy and struck the victim on the back of the head causing an injury that required an ambulance transport to an area hospital. Chiauzzi also allegedly damaged the windshield and sunroof of the victim's vehicle. Chiauzzi was jailed on $5,000 bail.
Jeffrey W. Scott, 31, of 14 Lake St., Apt. #3, Le Roy, is charged with issuing a bad check. Scott allegedly wrote a check based on insufficient funds at a business in the Village of Le Roy and then failed to make payment for the check.
Heather K. Wilcox-Villa, 43, of 9624 Clipnock Road, Stafford, is charged with petit larceny. Wilcox-Villa is accused of shoplifting at a business in the Village of Le Roy. She allegedly concealed a bottle of perfume in her purse and left the store without paying for it.
Marcus Allen Ciociola, 18, of West Main Street, Corfu, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Ciociola allegedly kicked another person during at dispute. He was jailed on $800 bail.
Andrei Peter Sliker, 23, of Hutchins Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st. Sliker allegedly violated an order of protection. He was jailed on $5,000 bail.
Todd Patrick Gately, 22, of Long Pond Road, Rochester, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, uninspected motor vehicle and failure to obey traffic device. Gately was stopped at 1:40 a.m. Tuesday on Townline Road, Bergen, by Deputy Joseph Corona.
Judith E. Peterson, 53, of Lancaster, is charged with DWI. State Police responded to a report at 11:18 p.m., March 23, on Bernd Road, Le Roy, of one vehicle striking a car parked in a driveway following a report of a domestic dispute. Troopers located Peterson walking on Bernd Road. State Police alleged Peterson was driving the vehicle that struck the parked car and then tried to leave the scene on foot. She allegedly failed field sobriety tests and had a BAC of .17.
The Le Roy Volunteer Fire Department dedicated a new truck Monday night and officially put it in service.
The truck is a 45-foot-long heavy rescue, Rescue 66, that replaces a Peterbuilt that was put into service in 1994.
A rescue carries no water. Rather it is filled with tools that can be used on every type of call a fire department might handle, from structure fires and accidents to water rescues.
In fact, the new truck contains a compartment just for an inflatable boat.
"We used to mount a steel boat on top of one of the pumpers and tie it down and drive down the road with a boat on top of a pumper," Chief Tom Wood said. "Now we have an inflatable boat in a compartment on a truck where it's always ready to go at a moments notice."
The cost of the truck was $690,000 and paid for by fire district taxes.
Among the trucks tools are cutting and spreading tools for vehicle extrication, various axes and saws and picks, a couple of extra hoses, brooms for brush fires and a cascade air tank system.
"It's basically a rolling tool box," Wood said.
The air tank system will give Le Roy the ability to refill air packs for City of Batavia fire as well as other departments in the county. Typically, Darien fire has responded to fires in the city to provide support on air pack supply, but the new truck will provide another option for City fire.
At 45-feet-long, Rescue 66 is among the biggest rescue trucks in the county.
It can carry six firefighters.
"It rolls on every call for us, whether it's a brush fire, because it's got rehab on it for heat, structure fire air, or just for manpower," Wood said. "If another department in the county calls for manpower, this is the truck that's going to go."
Deacon Dave Ehrhart performed the blessing for the truck and the department members who attended the ceremony.
To find out more about becoming a volunteer firefighter, visit ReadyGenesee.com.
Chief Tom Wood shows off some of the tool storage on Rescue 66.
Compartment with inflatable boat, engine and water rescue gear.
Press release:
The Le Roy Christian Community Project hosted its 2nd annual tournament this past Saturday, March 22. Ten teams, consisting of 6-10 players competed in the all day tournament. The teams were: Gone Postal, Don’t Hassle the Hoff, The Rotarians, The Dodgefathers, Baseball Furies, Squad Grey, One Dodge Wonders, Perpetual Hedonism, Dirty Dodgers, and Boom Goes the Dynamite.
The teams and spectators came out to Our Lady of Mercy Parish Center in Le Roy to raise funds for the organization and enjoy a fun-filled day of competition.
The tournament ended with a match between Baseball Furies and Don’t Hassle the Hoff. Don’t Hassle the Hoff came from the losers bracket and took set 1 with a game count of 3-2, forcing a second and final set. It looked like team Don’t Hassle the Hoff was going to take the gold, leaping to a 2-0 start the second set, but Baseball Furies answered back with three straight wins to close out the tournament. Medals from Joe's Awards and Trophies of Batavia were awarded to each member of the team.
Overall Results:
1st Place - Baseball Furies
2nd Place - Don't Hassle the Hoff
3rd Place - Perpetual Hedonism
4th Place - Gone Postal
5th Place - One Dodge Wonders & Squad Grey
7th Place - Dirty Dodgers & Boom Goes the Dynamite
9th Place - The Dodgefathers & The Rotarians
Pictured are the tournament champions, the Team Baseball Furries: Jarrod Miner, Thomas Sigler, Brandon Dries, Tyler Streeter, Brad Streeter, Joe Chimino, Jamie Chimino, Joe Chimino, Sr. Jordan Charcola and Tim Ruffin.
Bruce Jeramie Brade, 33, of Galloway Road, Batavia, is charged with grand larceny, 3rd, and seven counts of forgery, 2nd. Brade allegedly stole checks from his grandmother over the course of several months in 2013 while he was living with her. The value of the checks allegedly totaled $3,680. Brade was jailed on $15,000 bail.
Landon Wayne Carroll, 32, of Buell Street, Akron, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speeding and aggravated unlicensed operation, 2nd. Carroll was stopped at 12:32 a.m. Saturday on Oak Street, Batavia, by Officer Chad Richards.
Samantha L .Tennity, 19, of Hall Street, Batavia, was arrested on a City Court Warrant. No further details released. Tennity was reported by the Sheriff's Office, also, as being arrested on a bench warrant from Town of Batavia Court. She was jailed on $1,000 bail or $2,000 bond.
Tiffany M. Neal, 22, of 115 State St., upper, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Police responded to a call for assistance at Neal's residence and allegedly found Neal and her 1-year-old child living in "deplorable conditions." Neal was issued an appearance ticket. DSS assisted in the investigation.
Joshua L. Baltz, 37, of Old Meadow Lane, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Baltz is accused of shoplifting from Kwik Fill.
Lauralee Pacer, 28, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with aggravated harassment. Pacer allegedly sent a man she knew 75 "unwanted and annoying text messages that served no legitimate purpose."
Samantha A. Bowles, 24, of East Main Street, Le Roy, was arrested on a bench warrant for alleged failure to pay a fine from a previous conviction on disorderly conduct. Bowles was jailed on $200 bail.
Joey Aaron Evans, 23, of State Street, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant for alleged failure to comply with drug court. Evans was jailed on $100,000 bail.
Chiyannon J. Bundy, 26, of Main Street, Le Roy, was arrested on a bench warrant for alleged failure to appear. Bundy was jailed on $200 bail.
Kyle Robert Washington, 24, of South Lake Road, Pavilion, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, public appearance under the influence of a narcotic or drug, and drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle on a public highway. Washington was arrested at 11:59 p.m. Saturday at 572 E. Main St., Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona.
Tracy Lee Moore, 47, of Asbury Road, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, refusal to take breath test and failure to keep right. Moore was stopped 2:08 a.m. Sunday on Oak Orchard Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona.
Dalton Allan Long, 19, of West Main Street, Caledonia, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Long is accused of possessing property that was reported stolen in Oakfield in September 2013.
Jeffrey L. Smith, 44, of Vinton Road, Irondequoit, is charged with petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Smith is accused of stealing merchandise from Walmart. Smith reportedly left in a vehicle and was located later, allegedly in possession of stolen property.
Michael Francis Hurley, 42, of Marine Drive, Buffalo, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and insufficient headlamps. Hurley was stopped at 1:22 a.m. Tuesday on West Main Street, Batavia, by Deputy James Diehl.
An injury accident is reported on a bridge over Route 490 in Le Roy. One car is blocking traffic. Le Roy fire and ambulance are responding.
UPDATE 7:24 p.m.: "Patient transported. Roadway cleared. Le Roy assignment back in service," says the chief on scene.
The Le Roy Parent Teacher Service Organization will host a weeklong Scholastic Book Fair beginning Monday, March 24, at Wolcott Street School.
Hours will be from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. March 24-25; from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. March 26-27; and from 4 to 8 p.m. March 28.
Wolcott Street School is located at 2-6 Trigon Park. Find the Book Fair in Room 103.
Students, faculty and the community are invited to attend the event, which helps inspire children to become lifelong readers. Funds raised will help purchase books for classroom libraries at the school.
The Book Fair offers specially priced books and educational products, including popular series, award-winning titles, new releases, adult bestsellers, and other great reads from more than 100 publishers.
The Book Fair helps celebrate the monthlong Parents As Reading Partners initiative. Parents As Reading Partners — or PARP — is a collaborative effort among parents, staff, and community to build a reading partnership between the home and school. PARP programs encourage parents to read with their children for at least 15 minutes per day. Experts say learning to read is the single most important activity in a child’s education.
Book Fair customers may help the school build classroom libraries by purchasing books through the Classroom Wish List program. In addition, the Book Fair will feature the “All for Books” program, which allows youngsters to share the thrill of reading by donating loose change to purchase books from the Book Fair for students who can’t buy books and for classroom libraries.
Scholastic matches monetary donations with a donation of up to 1 million books, which go to national nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping families in need, such as the Kids in Distressed Situations and Kids In Need Foundation.
I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to serve you the last four years. I have learned a great deal during this time and look forward to public service again in the future. I completed most of what I started out to do and started a few new things too. It has been an amazing time that I am grateful for. Congratulations to my running mate, Bill Kettle; to Bob Taylor on winning re-election; and John Mangefrida for running and putting himself out there. Bill is an amazing candidate with awesome ideas and a great deal of energy. Having him in office is an exciting time for our community. Thank you so much to everyone who helped during the election and to everyone who voted. Thank you to my amazing family for all of your help and sacrifices the last four years. Don't give up on your ideas and vision; anyone who knows me knows I certainly won't.
Envision a Re-Charged Le Roy!
The only election in Genesee County tonight that was supposed to be contested was in Le Roy, but a last-minute write-in campaign in Corfu made that vote suddenly interesting.
Nick Skeet -- son of former mayor Todd Skeet -- decided just a week ago or so that he wanted to try and win a seat on the village board.
He got 17 write-in votes tonight, which wasn't enough to close the gap on incumbents Art Ianni (31 votes) and Ken Laurer (53 votes).
"I don't like some of the things going on at meetings," Skeet said after the votes were tallied. "I still don't like the way the village is being run. I think we can do a better job. I just think everything can done for the better interest of Corfu. There are details I don't like that I'd rather not get into."
Asked if he was targeting a specific incumbent with his write-in campaign, he said he wasn't. Asked to explain what was bothering him at meetings, he wouldn't go into details.
The village government has been a bit of a soap opera for about two years, ever since an investigation was opened into missing court funds. A year ago, Ralph Peterson was elected mayor and immediately became a controversial figure in local politics. Facing pressure to resign, Peterson took medical leave and has been on leave for about six months.
Meanwhile, in Le Roy, one incumbent won reelection and another lost.
The winners were Robert Taylor, a longtime village trustee, and Bill Kettle, a local businessman. Trustee Jennifer Keys lost as did challenger John Mangefrida.
Taylor had 279 votes, Kettle, 267, Mangefrida, 228 and Keys, 191.
Letter to the Editor:
Bob Taylor’s and John Mangefrida’s political ad, they placed in the Le Roy Pennsyaver this week, is incorrect and misleading. Decide for yourselves. John is not running for re-election for Village Board Trustee, since he is not currently on the Village Board. Trustee Jennifer Keyes and Trustee Bob Taylor are the only two running for re-election. This is conspicuous in the title of Bob’s and John’s ad, yet only Bob speaks in this ad, as far as accomplishments, to currently being a Village Board Trustee in Le Roy. Why? It isn’t merely expedient to have had this ad go to print with what is an incorrect assertion that both Bob and John should be re-elected. That is not possible for any voter or for all us to collectively re-elect them both! It suggests, falsely that they are both currently on the Village Board.
Also, while I used to deliver the D & C newspaper every morning to Bob Taylor’s house, when I was a teenager in Le Roy, and John Mangefrida and Jim Bonaquisti were in my high school graduating class in Le Roy, NY, these are not reasons one way or another for me to vote for them. In the 20 years since I returned and have lived in Le Roy, NY, having returned as an adult, I have emphasized with new Le Roy residents, and old ones, that who we elect to represent us in our local Village and Town governments, should always be the most qualified candidate(s). How long one has lived in Le Roy, NY, should not matter. Each of our candidates on Tuesday have lived here for a number of years if that is how any of us decide who to vote for. After 30 days of living in Le Roy, NY, one is qualified to vote here, and that for me is all that’s necessary to determine whether or not one is a Le Royan or not.
What we need above all else in a candidate is intelligence, integrity, and current and well thought out ideas. We need to elect people to our local public offices who are not looking for what will only lower our taxes, or make one or a few of us happy who may have clout here, but we need to elect individuals who will consider the impact now and in the future of his/her proposals and decisions. A Le Roy Village Board Trustee should not do what is only expedient now, but should also consider the future impact of his/her votes.
Bill Kettle is also running for the Village Board on Tuesday, and he and John Mangefrida are not currently on the Village Board. But it is Jennifer Keyes and Bob Taylor who are running for re-election Tuesday, two who are currently leading us, and Bill Kettle is Director of the Le Roy Business Council, and the owner of the largest building on Main Street where his gym is located (Main and Mill Streets). John said at the ‘Meet the Candidates Night,’ last week that he had been a Village Trustee in the past, but when he was or what he accomplished on the Board I don’t know.
Our two current Village Trustees running for re-election, Jennifer Keyes, and Bob Taylor, are both taking a wait and see approach to the issue of whether our switch from a full-time code enforcement officer between the Village/Town to a part-time one, is enough.
Jennifer Keyes, however is concerned that it won’t be enough, given that prior to the full-time one’s retirement there were complaints that full-time coverage wasn’t adequate. Bill Kettle has stated that for the Village a part-time shared code enforcement officer, as we have now, isn’t going to be enough. At the ‘Meet the Candidates’ Night’ last week, John cited the cost of a full-time one, and the need, we are told by the State is to consolidate and be cost effective with what services are provided by our Village. John also cited the long length of time that can pass before a code enforcement violation is resolved, no matter how much coverage we have from a code enforcement officer. He said the codes are written by the State, and they favor the property owner.
But, however long it takes to resolve a complaint or to determine that a code has been violated and then to determine whether or not the violation has been resolved, depends on whether there is enough time in a code-enforcement officers’ week to see that this is all accomplished. The more code enforcement coverage we have, the more code complaints and violations can be responded to simultaneously, and the quicker, and the more consistently our Village properties will be up to code. This is common sense.
Maybe in the Town, that which is not a part of the Village, part-time will work, but consider this. In the Village there are far more individual parcels and they are more densely situated, with far more structures on them, than in the Town. I think, as someone who has restored a large home in Le Roy, where I live, 12 - 14 Church Street(s), and who has bought and torn down a four-unit tenement apartment house that was next door to my home (what was on the 14 Church Street property until 2001), I’m in a position to know about structures, 14 Church Street having been an example, that went without much maintenance for years, had obvious code violations, and could not be saved. For years 14 Church Street was in very poor condition, yet fully rented. I bought it to eliminate this blight on my neighborhood and on the Village of Le Roy.
We need a full-time code enforcement officer for the Village. Our homes, whether we own them, or rent, are our lives often, and whether or not our neighbors (often very close to us in the Village), take care of their properties has a health/safety/financial effect on each of us. Not only that, but properties kept up are a boon to the Village that can then do more for the public because we have a larger tax base. Our tax base shrinks the more we have properties not kept up. And, our tax base has shrunk a lot in the past twenty years that I have been a resident here, having returned as an adult. The result of a lower tax base is a decrease in services we can have such as full-time code enforcement, as only one of several examples in Le Roy, NY.
A lower tax base has resulted in taxes being raised over the course of time on our properties even though they are worth less. If any of us want to sell our properties and relocate, or to downsize and remain in Le Roy, potential buyers will compare our assessed property values and the tax rate here, with other properties and tax rates in other communities. If Le Roy, NY’s properties, as seen by a potential buyer, will likely continue to lose value, and they have in the past, and if we have a higher tax rate, that buyer may buy elsewhere. Wouldn’t you?
Each of us who buys, owns, and then may list property here in Le Roy, wants to have the confidence that owning here is a comparatively good investment to where else we could live. If we want Le Roy, NY, to remain steady in all respects and to possibly grow, than we have to be concerned with code enforcement. We need a local Village of Le Roy government that supports our needs as individual property owners to be looked after. We cannot individually do this on our own, and we need our local government to effectively and consistently provide this function to all of us.
Please vote and please take the time to find out where the candidates stand on issues important to you. Voting is on Tuesday, March 18th, at the Village Hall (corner of Main & Clay Streets, Routes 5 & 19), Le Roy, NY.
Thanks for your time reading my thoughts and concerns for the Village of Le Roy, NY.
Douglas Hill, Church Street, Le Roy.
A car is off the road and the driver says he's unable to get out after striking a tree in the area of 8673 North Road, Le Roy.
That's near the county line.
The driver denies any injuries.
Le Roy fire and Le Roy ambulance dispatched.
UPDATE 11:56 a.m.: Subject is out of the vehicle. Units still responding can back it down.
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