Buffalo news

• Buffalo Psychiatric Center seeks gifts for patients

  15-12-2015 23:52 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- They would be home for the holidays if not for the battle their fighting in their minds.
  There are 156 inpatients at the Buffalo Psychiatric Center and the staff is asking the public for help in its Holiday Gift Drive.
  Dr. Celia Spacone, Executive Director of the Buffalo Psychiatric Center says many of the inpatients have no interaction with family, so receiving a gift from a stranger in the community means a lot. “I think when the community responds, it’s a way
  
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• Student brought loaded gun onto school bus in Buffalo

  15-12-2015 23:43 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A child brought a loaded handgun onto a school bus Tuesday before giving it to another student.
  The student receiving the gun then gave the weapon to the bus driver.
  It is unclear which school the bus was driving for, but the incident occurred in Buffalo. News 4 will have more information as it becomes available.
  
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• Amherst PD looking for person of interest after hit-and-run

  15-12-2015 23:34 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Amherst Police Accident Investigation Unit is looking for a vehicle and a person of interest related to a hit-and-run accident at a Millersport Highway gas station.
  The person of interest is described as a bald, white male with facial hair. The vehicle police are looking for is a dark 2005-2008 Toyota Matrix. Police say the vehicle has rear bumper damage and a large dent in the front driver side.
  Anyone with information on the person or vehicle pictured is a
  
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• Teen convicted in rape, killing of high school math teacher

  15-12-2015 23:06 via wivb.com
  
  SALEM, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts teenager was convicted Tuesday of raping and killing his high school math teacher when he was 14.
  Philip Chism followed his 9th grade algebra teacher, Colleen Ritzer, into a school bathroom, strangled her, stabbed her at least 16 times and raped her.
  Chism was convicted of a raping Ritzer inside the bathroom but was acquitted of a second rape, committed with a tree branch in woods near the school where Chism put her body. He was convicted of ar
  
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• Police: Drunk bus driver found nearly four times over legal limit, asleep at wheel

  15-12-2015 22:57 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A shuttle bus driver for Buffalo State College pleaded guilty to a felony charge of aggravated DWI while driving a school bus.
  On November 1, State University Police responded to a complaint of a bus driver believed to be driving drunk with students on board.
  An officer says he approached the bus after it struck a curb and let off students. The officer says he found Lockport resident, Brian Ceroky, 55, asleep at the wheel while the bus was still on.
  Af
  
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• Local first graders make cards for Safyre

  15-12-2015 22:40 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- Sometimes, all it takes is a little act of kindness to brighten someone’s day; or in the case of Safyre Terry, brighten someone’s Christmas.
  “We feel bad that Safyre lost her family,” said Jiana Vazquez, a first grader at the Roosevelt Academy in Buffalo.
  8-year-old Safyre Terry’s dad and three younger siblings died in an arson fire in 2013.
  She was badly burned, and had more than 50 surgeries.
  This Christmas, the little girl from Sch
  
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• Alert lifted for college campus near downtown Indianapolis

  15-12-2015 22:10 via wivb.com
  
  INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Officials at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis have ended a campus alert that had warned students to remain indoors following an armed robbery near the Indianapolis campus.
  School officials said in an update about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday that they had lifted the roughly 90-minute “shelter in place” alert for students and staff.
  IUPUI spokesman Rich Schneider says that means students can leave campus buildings and resume what they were doi
  
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• Jury deadlocked in Freddie Gray case, judge says keep deliberating

  15-12-2015 21:56 via wivb.com
  
  BALTIMORE (AP) — Jurors in the manslaughter trial of a Baltimore police officer charged in the death of Freddie Gray say they’re deadlocked, but the judge overseeing the case has told them to keep deliberating.
  The jury sent a note to Baltimore Circuit Judge Barry Williams on Tuesday afternoon after about nine hours of deliberations over two days in the trial of Officer William Porter.
  He is the first of six officers to stand trial on charges stemming from Gray’s 
  
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• Sheriff: Vandals cut through utility poles in Clarence

  15-12-2015 21:37 via wivb.com
  
  CLARENCE, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Erie County Sheriff’s Office said vandals cut through two utility poles in the area of Transit Road and Wehrle Drive sometime late Monday.
  Sheriff’s deputies, detectives and members of the Harris Hill Fire Company responded to the scene at around 9:30 p.m. Monday after several reports of power outages.
  The sheriff’s office believes the poles were cut down with either a chainsaw, a saws-all or another mechanical saw. Power to 800 customers
  
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• Sheriff: Utility poles cut down with saw in Clarence

  15-12-2015 21:37 via wivb.com
  
  CLARENCE, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Erie County Sheriff’s Office says two utility poles were cut down with a saw along Transit Road in the Town of Clarence.
  Sheriff’s deputies, detectives and members of the Harris Hill Fire Company responded to the scene around 9:30 p.m. and began investigating other poles in the area. During this time, authorities received a call from NYS Electric & Gas about another pole that had been cut down.
  The Sheriff’s Office believes t
  
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• LeRoy PD investigating bucket truck theft

  15-12-2015 21:11 via wivb.com
  
  LEROY, N.Y. (WIVB) — Police in LeRoy are trying to figure out who stole a full size bucket truck from the Myrtle Street area.
  The theft of the Frontier Phone Company truck was reported late Monday afternoon after a lineman had parked the vehicle to work on a nearby pole.
  The truck was stolen while the lineman was on a ladder and seen headed eastbound on Myrtle Street. It was later located just after 7 p.m. in Rochester near the Glendale and Maryland Street intersection.
  LeRoy Police a
  
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• Man involved in counterfeit money conspiracy sentenced

  15-12-2015 20:48 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — U.S. Attorney William Hochul  says a man involved in a counterfeit money conspiracy was sentenced in court.
  Dashawn Sanders, 25, was convicted of conspiracy to pass counterfeit currency and sentenced to 14 months in prison.
  Sanders conspired with co-defendants Tiffany Key, Shamell McCullough and Turemail McCullough in an effort to pass nearly $11,000 in fake $20 bills at local retailers like Walmart and Dollar General, according to John J. Field, assistant U.S.
  
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• Police offering $1,000 for information on man wanted on warrant

  15-12-2015 20:37 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Crimestoppers is offering up to a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of a man wanted on a felony indictment warrant.
  The Buffalo Police Sex Offense Squad is looking for 28-year-old Cornell Long. He is described as 5’10” tall and 220 lbs. The felony indictment warrant for Long is for a violent rape and predatory sexual assault.
  Buffalo Crimestoppers can be reached at 867-6161.
  
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• Penn. girl with neurological condition meets LeSean McCoy

  15-12-2015 20:12 via wivb.com
  
  PHILADELPHIA, Penn. (WIVB) — A 15-year-old girl from Ephrata, Pennsylvania received her wish to meet Bills running back LeSean McCoy.
  Kaitlyn Wells lives with a neurological condition and was able to connect with McCoy through the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
  McCoy used to play for the Philadelphia Eagles before coming to the Bills. Wells is a huge Eagles fan.
  The excited teenager finally met McCoy before Sunday’s Bills vs. Eagles game in Philadelphia. McCoy offered to
  
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• 500 block of Main Street reopens for vehicle traffic

  15-12-2015 19:43 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – For the first time in 30 years, cars and trucks are allowed to travel on the 500 block of Main Street in downtown Buffalo.
  Local leaders came together to celebrate the re-opening with a ceremonial ribbon cutting Tuesday morning.
  “Main Street is reopen for business!” Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown exclaimed after slicing through the ribbon at the corner of Main and Huron. City, state, and federal leaders spoke during the ceremony, each extolling the progress th
  
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• NY extends State health coverage enrollment deadline

  15-12-2015 18:01 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (WIVB) — The state’s official health plan marketplace, NY State of Health (NYSOH), announced the extension of the 2016 enrollment deadline to Saturday, December 19.
  The original deadline for coverage that starts on January 1, 2016 was December 15. The extension gives gives consumers an additional four days to review their 2016 plan options.
  “Enrollment in NYSOH has been active since the start of the 2016 period in November. This deadline extension will give Ne
  
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• Depew students devote their day to serving others

  15-12-2015 17:36 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Some students at Depew High School are devoting their day to serving the community. The first ever “Stuff the Bus” Campaign is taking place in front of their building on Transit Road.
  The group hopes to fill a school bus with canned goods for the Tri-Community Food Pantry by the end of the day. They made ornaments to give to people who drop off large donations.
  Students and teachers from the art, business, and technology departments collaborated on the pr
  
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• Ailing Adelphia founder seeks early release from prison

  15-12-2015 17:27 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — The imprisoned 91-year-old founder of what was once one of the nation’s largest cable television companies is seeking early release from prison for medical reasons.
  Federal Judge Kimba Wood in Manhattan directed prosecutors to respond by next Tuesday to the request from Adelphia Communications Corp. founder John Rigas.
  His lawyers say family members have been told to “deal with end-of-life decisions” regarding Rigas, including the possibility of hospice ca
  
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• NY, LA schools receive same email threat; LA cancels classes

  15-12-2015 16:28 via wivb.com
  
   
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The nation’s two biggest school systems – New York City and Los Angeles – received threats Tuesday of a large-scale jihadi attack with guns and bombs, and LA reacted by shutting down the entire district, while New York dismissed the warning as an amateurish hoax and held class as usual.
  The shutdown was a rare example of a major U.S. city closing its entire school district because of fears of an attack. The decision also reflected lingering uneas
  
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• Emailed threat shuts down second-largest US school district

  15-12-2015 16:28 via wivb.com
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The nation’s second-largest school district shut down all of its campuses Tuesday after an emailed threat targeted students at many Los Angeles-area schools.
  The shooting in nearby San Bernardino that left 14 people dead this month influenced the decision to close all the schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District, which 640,000 students attend, Superintendent Ramon Cortines said.
  New York City officials say they received the same threat, but quic
  
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• Anonymous email threat closes all Los Angeles schools

  15-12-2015 16:28 via wivb.com
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The nation’s second-largest school district shut down Tuesday after a school board member received an emailed threat that raised fears of another attack like the deadly shooting in nearby San Bernardino.
  Authorities in New York City said they received the same threat but quickly concluded that it was a hoax.
  New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters that he was “absolutely convinced” there was no danger to schoolchildren in his city.
  “Ther
  
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• Police officer accused of drunk driving after crash in Lewiston

  15-12-2015 15:50 via wivb.com
  
  LEWISTON, N.Y. (WIVB) — A part time police officer finds himself on the wrong side of the law after being charged for a weekend crash in the Town of Lewiston.
  Two vehicles were stopped at Lewiston Road and Hyde Park Boulevard Saturday night while the traffic light was red, when a 2003 Hummer failed to stop, according to New York State Police.
  Troopers say the Hummer driver had the odor of alcohol when they talked to him.The driver, identified as Joshua Salada, 24, of Niagara Falls, was arr
  
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• Remains identified in Chautauqua County

  15-12-2015 15:13 via wivb.com
  
  BOUTWELL HILL STATE FOREST, N.Y. (WIVB) — Remains recently found in Chautauqua County are now confirmed as those of a Jamestown man, who went missing after being accused of crimes in Pennsylvania.
  Skeletal remains were found in the Boutwell Hill State Forest the morning of December 9.The remains were processed and identified as those of Tyler W. Chase, according to the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office.
  Chase was reported missing from the town of Charlotte on May 15, 2014.
  Pennsylva
  
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• Cat wakes woman in burning East Side home

  15-12-2015 13:21 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A person who escaped a burning home on Buffalo’s East Side says a cat, named Sheba, woke her so she could get to safety.
  The fire started around 6:30 a.m. Tuesday on Woltz Avenue, just off Broadway.It was brought under control within 45 minutes.
  There are no reports of injuries.The Red Cross is offering assistance for three people who live there, including the cat’s owner.
  Fire investigators are working to figure out how it started, although neighbors sus
  
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• Traffic returning to 500 block of Main Street Tuesday

  15-12-2015 11:41 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Another stretch of Main Street in downtown Buffalo will have cars again Tuesday after a $21 million project is complete.
  A ribbon-cutting Tuesday morning will announce the completion of work on the 500 block of Main, which had been limited to Metro Rail cars for decades.
  The closure of Main to vehicular traffic in the 1980s is blamed for the decline of business in the core of downtown.After millions were spent to allow cars back on the 700 and 600 blocks, businesses
  
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• Number of texts to 9-1-1 growing in Erie County

  15-12-2015 11:19 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – When you have an emergency and you call 9-1-1, a dispatcher is sitting in the call center at Erie County’s Central Police Services building, ready to send help your way. But many people don’t realize you can also connect with one of those call takers if you send a text message to 9-1-1 instead.
  Erie County’s call takers have handled more than 650,000 requests for help so far this year. Of those, just over 1,200 have been through text messages to 9-1
  
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• Buffalo police chief’s strong response to neighbors

  15-12-2015 05:22 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, NY (WIVB) – Buffalo police chief Anthony Barba made a clear promise to one neighbor who voiced his concerns about what many call out of control off campus parties near Buffalo State College.
  People met tonight and told stories of houses packed with hundreds of kids, windows rattling and people jumping on police cars when the cops responded.
  One woman showed part of a video she took.
  Chief Barba responded like this when he heard one man complain he felt threatened by the parties. &
  
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• Hamburg sends out dozens of layoff notices

  15-12-2015 05:08 via wivb.com
  
  HAMBURG, N.Y. (WIVB)- Just weeks before Christmas, at least twenty nine Hamburg Town employees are receiving layoff notices.
  The Town Board room was packed Monday night as Town Supervisor Steve Walters explained he and the two board members were forced to make drastic cuts because healthcare costs have suddenly jumped by thirty percent.
  In the 2016 Town budget, approved unanimously last month,  five full time positions were eliminated, but it has a domino effect.
  “You take one of my p
  
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• Attorney General says new website can measure Internet speed

  15-12-2015 01:32 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (WIVB) – Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has put several Internet Service Providers on notice: If they are not providing customers with the broadband service they are paying for, he will take action.
  Back in October, the Attorney General sent notices to every cable and Internet Service Provider doing business in New York including Time Warner Cable and Verizon, he wants proof and documentation they are providing web surfers with the services they are paying for.
  “Int
  
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• Seattle approves letting Uber drivers unionize

  15-12-2015 00:55 via wivb.com
  
  SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle has become the first city in the nation to allow drivers of ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft to unionize over pay and working conditions.
  The legislation the City Council approved Monday is seen as a test case for the changing 21st century workforce. The companies strongly oppose it and are expected to challenge it in court.
  The council passed the measure on an 8-0 vote. It requires companies that hire or contract with drivers of taxis, for-hire tran
  
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• Adele coming to Toronto

  15-12-2015 00:47 via wivb.com
  
  TORONTO (WIVB) — Adele will say “hello from the other side” of the pond during her upcoming North American tour.
  The singer will not be appearing in Buffalo, but will play four shows in Toronto on October 3-6, 2016.
  Adele will also make stops in New York City, Philadelphia and Boston.
  
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• Could working hydrant have saved home?

  15-12-2015 00:28 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Before yesterday, Charles Quigley assumed the hydrant about 40 feet from his front doorstep worked properly. Firefighters assumed it was operational as well when they arrived on scene Sunday to fight a massive fire next door. Turns out, both were wrong. It didn’t work.
  And while Quigley believes a working hydrant could have saved his home and prevented the fire from spreading from his neighbor’s home to his own, fire officials say it wouldn’t have m
  
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• Dangers could be hidden in children’s toys

  15-12-2015 00:26 via wivb.com
  
  Erie County health commissioner warns of hidden dangersShopping for toys can be a challenge
  Marcy Dandes was shopping for a gift for her two-year-old grandson. “I do try to look for good brands and hope for the best.”
  While the Consumer Product Safety Commission insists that toys are safer than ever, that's not obvious if you are strolling down the toy aisle.
  Toys must be tested by third party labs“Parents, of course all want their children to be healthy and happy, intelligent,
  
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