A string of four fatal motorcycle crashes over the past two weeks has Monroe County officials issuing a string of motorcycle safety tips.
The latest victim was 20-year-old Dylan Tackett of Spencerport, killed late Saturday night when his motorcycle hit a culvert on Hinkleyville Road in Parma at high speed. Tackett was thrown 150 feet into the brush beside the road while his motorcycle exploded and burned. He died at the scene.
County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo and Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn’s joint statement calls for anyone driving anything to use extreme caution to avoid accidents with motorcycles. They say drivers have to stay vigilant, be aware of what’s around them and stick within the traffic laws.
They say riders should keep their headlight on all the time, use reflective strips on their bikes and don’t be afraid to use the horn if there’s a chance a car doesn’t see you.
They also say there are motorcycle sill and safety classes available, and they urge riders to take one.
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The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office says it’s still reconstructing how a 21-year-old Williamson man died in a car crash on Ridge Road early yesterday.
Sheriff Barry Virts says Bradley Harris went off the road and hit a fire hydrant. That launched his car into the air and it crashed into a large tree. Harris was thrown clear of the car and pronounced dead at the scene.
An accident reconstruction team has been to the site and their investigation is continuing.
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Geneva Police say a six month investigation has ended with the arrest of a cocaine dealer.
Thirty-three-year-old Robert Brown of Lansdale, Pennsylvania was arrested on Gates Avenue. He’s charged with selling drugs and other charges are pending. He’s being held on $20,000 bail.
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Tickets are on sale for the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival (as of noon today)…as the countdown to the 15th Edition of Rochester’s biggest summer music festival begins.
The Jazz Fest starts June 24th…with more than 1,500 artists, 325 concerts and 19 venues all jammed into nine days of music.
The ticket fest shop is at the corner of Gibbs Street and East Avenue. It has tickets for all the headliner shows plus club passes.
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The judge in the ongoing Johnny Blackshell murder trial ruled today on what parts of recorded jailhouse conversations the jury will be allowed to hear.
The conversations were between the accused murderer’s sister and his girlfriend’s mother…and they didn’t know they were being recorded.
Blackshell’s mother’s boyfriend testified that he saw Blackshell on two occasions with a rifle that appeared to be the AK47 used in the shootings. Rodney White said he told Blackshell he had a prior felony conviction and couldn’t have the weapon in his house and Blackshell said he’d get rid of it.
The prosecutor confronted Blackshell with the rifle, but he said he didn’t recognize it.
Last week the jury heard wiretapped calls between Blackshell and co-defendant Jalen Everett in which they talked about the need for a jailhouse visit to discuss “something important.”
Blackshell’s girlfriend also testified that the drive-by shooting that killed three people and injured four on Genesee Street might have been retaliation for a shooting at his friend’s house. That’s the first time a possible motive has been brought up in the Boys and Girls Club shooting case.
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The AAA says gasoline prices across New York State are holding steady with the summer driving season getting into full swing.
Prices last week were unchanged in the Rochester area at an average of $2.39 a gallon…Buffalo prices were up by a penny and Syracuse prices down by a penny. The statewide average is currently $2.45 for unleaded regular, unchanged from the week before.
The Auto Club says gas is already in high demand but prices and supplies are holding steady nationwide, and running about 40 cents a gallon less than last year.
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A Wayne County solar energy company and a farm in Macedon have teamed up on the area’s first Community Solar Array program. They cut the ribbon for it this afternoon on the Long Acre Farms just east of Penfield.
Sustainable Energy Developments says a community array gives you access to solar-generated power without having to install the panels on your own property. You sign up with a solar farm somewhere nearby, sort of like renting an apartment, and you get green power and its various tax credits worked out on your utility bill.
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A new business development and education center is opening in Rochester’s historic Susan B. Anthony neighborhood off West Main Street.
540WMain at 540 West Main Street is a small business dedicated to gluten-free cooking and educating people about it. Founder Calvin Eaton is in a building that just completed an historic restoration with city aid and investment by owner Barbara Hoffman.