Greece Police have charged a 20-year-old Hilton man with first degree robbery, grand larceny and menacing for an armed robbery Monday at a gas station on Manitou Road.
Corey Laucht allegedly pointed a gun at the store clerks, demanded money and left with a large amount of cash from the registers. He was tracked down by Greece Police with their K9 unit and help from Monroe County Deputies and State Police.
Laucht is being held on $25,000 bail.
////////////////////////////////////////
Rochester Gas and Electric says it’s reviewing its contractors’ procedures after a tree removal company’s crane tipped over in Irondequoit this week…narrowly missing three houses with its 100-foot boom.
A crew spent hours today (Tue.) dismantling the boom so the crane could be righted and towed out of the back yards on Briarcliff Road. It was finally removed around dinner time.
Birchcrest Tree and Landscaping was hired by RG&E to take out a tree that was crowding the power lines. But neighbors say they weren’t told a crane that huge would be driven onto their properties. They say the ground was uneven and saturated with rain, and the crew may have overextended the boom.
The crane turned on its side and the boom came down with a crash that neighbors say felt like an earthquake. Somehow nobody was hurt and damage to the properties was minor.
(Nick Masterton photo)
////////////////////////////////
Monroe County Legislator Justin Wilcox says he’s introducing legislation to require that retailers selling electronic cigarettes and vaping products in the county be licensed.
The Brighton Democrat says state law allows e-cig vendors to operate outside the regulations that cover tobacco products. Wilcox says his referral would require e-cigarettes to be sold under the same rules as traditional cigarette and tobacco products.
The legislation is backed up by a letter of support from the Monroe County Medical Society and its Executive Director, Dr. Nancy Adams. It’s also supported by “Brighton Neighbors Against Vaping,” a group pushing the Brighton town government to restrict where vape shops can go and to keep them away from schools.
///////////////////////////////////////////
Less than two weeks after anchoring her last newscast at WROC-TV, Rachel Barnhart has submitted paperwork to form a campaign committee and confirms she plans to run for the 138th State Assembly District.
Barnhart will have to run a Democratic primary against incumbent Assemblyman Harry Bronson. He’s got the Monroe County Democratic Committee’s endorsement for re-election to the district, which covers parts of Rochester, Henrietta and Chili.
To do that, Barnhart will have to mount a ground campaign collecting enough signatures on nominating petitions to force a September primary, then beat the incumbent.
/////////////////////////////////////////////////
Closing arguments were postponed until tomorrow in the murder trial of Johnny Blackshell, Jr. — the first of three young men charged in the drive-by shootings on Genesee Street to go on trial.
Blackshell’s lawyer, Joseph Damelio, sought the adjournment while he tries to find a missing 17-year-old defense witness.
Damelio told the court he subpoenaed the 17-year-old Friday, but the teenager has disappeared. Damelio says that teen would testify to seeing another of the accused defendants, Jalen Everett, placed a rifle in the trunk of a car immediately after the shooting.
////////////////////////////////////////
A Wyoming County couple has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child for repeatedly chaining a 16-year-old to a bed.
State Police say Shirley Sherwood and George Colton, both in their 50s, are the child’s grandparents. They say they were called to the couple’s home in Warsaw for a report of an uncontrollable teenager. During their investigation they learned that they used a 15-foot dog chain and three padlocks to secure the teen at night and at other times.
Both are free on bail, and will answer the charge in Middlebury Town Court. Colton told reporters he absolutely denies the charges.
/////////////////////////////////
Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren says sometimes when you look towards the future you have to look at more than what’s just safe and normal…and that’s why she’s glad to have two different proposals in hand for a downtown performing arts center.
Both are for the last unbuilt section of the former Midtown Plaza land (photo). One comes from the Seneca Nation of Indians, which wants to develop a theater together with a casino; the other is from “a consortium of casino operators.” They plan a stand-alone performing arts center.
The mayor says the Senecas would fund their entire project, but that part of Midtown would become tribal land. The rival plan would require some tax funding as well as the developer’s share.
The mayor says she looks forward to considering both.