Buffalo news

• Driver pleads guilty to fatal Wheatfield hit-and-run

  25-05-2016 21:49 via wivb.com
  
  WHEATFIELD, N.Y. (WIVB) — A man behind the wheel of a vehicle when his car struck and killed 16-year-old Ryan Fischer has pleaded guilty to reduced charges in the case.
  Niagara County District Attorney’s Office officials confirmed Anthony DiFilippo, 40, pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal crash without reporting to proper authorities in New York State Supreme Court.
  Authorities searched for answers for months after the death of Fischer, who died while walking down the road
  
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• Teen charged with manslaughter after crash kills 23-year-old

  25-05-2016 21:08 via wivb.com
  
  CATTARAUGUS COUNTY, N.Y. (WIVB) — Days after an investigation began into a weekend death on the Cattaraugus County Seneca Nation Territory, a teen faces manslaughter charges.
  Police in Cattaraugus County arrested 19-year-old Cyrus Spruce on first-degree assault and second-degree manslaughter charges Wednesday, implicating him as the driver of a vehicle that hit and killed 23-year-old Watson Cooper, a Salamanca resident.
  Spruce allegedly recklessly sped down Old State Route 17 in the T
  
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• Bills GM Whaley: “I used a poor choice of words”

  25-05-2016 19:18 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. — On Tuesday, Buffalo Bills General Manager Doug Whaley told WGR 550 that he believes football is “a violent game that I personally don’t believe humans are supposed to play.”
  The comment received heavy criticism nationally, amidst growing safety concerns in football, at both the amateur and professional level.
  On Wednesday, Whaley issued a statement, seeking to clarify his comments:Whaley made his original comment during a discussion about whether
  
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• A counselor wants to bring a character enhancement class to local schools

  25-05-2016 18:48 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A Buffalo woman has made it her mission to help students do well personally and academically.
  That’s why she wants to bring a character enhancement class to local schools.
  Ameer Munn was one of her pupils. At one point, he wasn’t doing his homework or attending class in high school. All of that changed after he met Terrie Ann Coplin and graduated from her character enhancement class.
  “It helped me become a better student. I went from a 62’s to
  
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• Ford recalls 271K pickups to fix brake fluid leak

  25-05-2016 18:18 via wivb.com
  
  DETROIT (AP) — Ford is recalling some of its top-selling vehicles in the U.S. to fix a fluid leak that can reduce braking power.
  The recall covers about 271,000 F-150 pickups in North America from the 2013 and 2014 model years that have 3.5-liter V6 engines.
  Ford says brake fluid can leak from the master cylinder. That could reduce the ability of the front brakes to stop the trucks.
  The company reports nine crashes with no injuries, but one person was hurt in an unspecified interaction wit
  
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• FDA delays high-stakes decision on muscular dystrophy drug

  25-05-2016 18:12 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health regulators will take more time to review a highly-contested drug for muscular dystrophy that has become a flashpoint in the debate over patient access to experimental medicine.
  Drugmaker Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. said the Food and Drug Administration will miss its goal of issuing a decision on the drug by Thursday. While the FDA does not comment on such delays, the extended timeline raises the possibility that regulators may ultimately approve the company&r
  
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• Former Lancaster school employee admits to stealing thousands of dollars from district

  25-05-2016 18:05 via wivb.com
  
  LANCASTER, N.Y. (WIVB) — After stealing from the Lancaster School District for nearly a year, a former school employee has admitted to her crimes.
  Authorities indicted Rhonda Greco, 47, on charges of grand larceny and ten counts of falsifying business records earlier this year.
  Between September 2014 and October 2015, Greco took advantage of her position in the school’s Accounts Payable department to steal more than $3,400 from the district. Prosecutors say she used the money to
  
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• Allegany County men charged in relation to multiple burglaries

  25-05-2016 17:02 via wivb.com
  
  SCIO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Two Allegany County men have been charged with multiple burglaries in the towns of Scio and Wirt.
  New York State Police charged Justin Learn, 19, and Ryan Mitchell, 24, with four counts each of second-degree burglary and one count each of third-degree burglary.
  Both were jailed in Allegany County on $50,000 bail each.
  Although the alleged burglars have been caught, State Police are still looking for the stolen items. Anyone with information on the crimes or stolen
  
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• State Dept audit faults Clinton in emails

  25-05-2016 16:12 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — A State Department audit has faulted Hillary Clinton and previous secretaries of state for poorly managing email and other computer information and slowly responding to new cybersecurity risks.
  The Associated Press obtained a copy of the report by the agency’s inspector general Wednesday.
  It cites “longstanding, systemic weaknesses” related to communications. These started before Clinton’s appointment as secretary of state, but her failures were si
  
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• NY’s biggest elementary student triathlon to take place in Lancaster

  25-05-2016 15:48 via wivb.com
  
  LANCASTER, N.Y. (WIVB) — New York’s largest elementary student triathlon will take place Wednesday night in Lancaster.
  Nearly 400 children in grades 3-6 will take part in the three-leg event, which opens with swimming, continues with a one-mile bike ride in William Street School’s parking lot and concludes with a half-mile run on school grounds.
  Third and fourth-graders will swim 30 yards, while fifth and sixth-graders will swim 60 yards.
  “With nearly 400 s
  
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• Actress Beth Howland, who played Vera on ‘Alice,’ dies at 74

  25-05-2016 15:22 via wivb.com
  
  SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — The actress who was best known for her role as a ditzy waitress on the 1970s and ’80s CBS sitcom “Alice” has died. Beth Howland was 74.
  Her husband, actor Charles Kimbrough, tells The Associated Press that Howland died of lung cancer in Santa Monica, California, on Dec. 31. He says there was no funeral or memorial service and “that was her choice.”
  Howland played naive diner waitress Vera Louise Gorman on “Alice” for the
  
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• Veterinary intern saves dog from death after discovering paralyzing tick

  25-05-2016 15:09 via wivb.com
  
  OREGON (WIVB) — They say cats have nine lives, but this dog in Oregon has another shot too.
  When Ollie developed onset paralysis, leaving him unable to stand, walk or go to bathroom, his owners and his vet made a difficult decision. They thought they were going to have to put him down, but a veterinary intern found the real problem: Ollie picked up a tick behind his ear on a recent camping trip.
  Ollie’s owner Falline Fate said, “He was in the room about to get put to
  
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• News 4 says goodbye to Lauren Hall

  25-05-2016 13:33 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — It was a sentimental morning Wednesday as News 4 said goodbye to traffic and feature reporter Lauren Hall.
  For the last six years, Lauren Hall has served multiple roles at News 4, starting as a show producer and eventually moving to on-air positions with News 4’s Winging It! Buffalo Style and Wake Up! programs.
  News 4 photojournalist Jeff Helmick put together a highlight reel of some of Lauren’s most memorable moments at the station. The tr
  
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• NY board poised to OK $485M for solar plant amid questions

  25-05-2016 11:46 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A New York oversight board is set to authorize spending another $485 million to complete a solar panel production plant in Buffalo.
  The Public Authority Control Board’s vote Wednesday comes amid questions about the future of solar business and a lack of details about how the money will be spent.
  The $750 million plant for solar panel installer SolarCity is being built with public funds. The million-square-foot building is nearing completion and the money being con
  
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• N.Y. Senate blocks bill to help victims of child sex abuse

  25-05-2016 05:09 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The New York State Senate rejected an effort to help victims of child sex abuse. Senate Democrats wanted to make it easier for adults who were sexually abused as children to bring lawsuits. They wanted to force a vote by attaching their bill to other legislation, but the senate failed to pass it.
  Currently, in New York, adults who were abused as children have until their 23rd birthday to press charges against their predator. Lawmakers pushed a bill that would elimina
  
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• Serious crash near Eastern Hills Mall closes Transit, victim identified

  25-05-2016 04:36 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB) — Police and paramedics rushed to the scene of a pedestrian accident late Tuesday night near the Eastern Hills Mall.
  Officers temporarily closed down Transit — Route 78 — in both directions as they responded to the crash, which left Buffalo resident Tymika Barnes, 26, with injuries.
  Amherst Police say Barnes was talking to her husband on a cell phone when she stepped off of the median on Transit Rd.
  Mercy Flight confirmed a helicopter rushed
  
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• Serious crash near Eastern Hills Mall closes Transit

  25-05-2016 04:36 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB) — Police and paramedics rushed to the scene of a reported pedestrian accident late Tuesday night near the Eastern Hills Mall.
  Officers temporarily closed down Transit — Route 78 — in both directions as they responded to the reported pedestrian crash, which left at least one person with injuries.
  Mercy Flight confirmed a helicopter rushed to the scene, Amherst Police also confirmed they were active on the scene, staging a response just before 10 p.m.
  Ne
  
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• Crash at Delaware Park prompted major changes to 198, more still ahead

  25-05-2016 04:09 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- The final Jersey barrier was removed from Delaware Park, along Ring Rd., last week.
  When tragedy struck at the park n May 30, 2015, Governor Andrew Cuomo immediately dropped the speed limit from 50 miles per hour to 30 miles per hour and the Jersey barriers were put in place.
  A tribute to Maksym Sugorovskiy quickly grew.
  Three year old Maksym was walking in the park with his five year old sister Stephanie, and their mother Mary, when a car went off the 198 and hit
  
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• Elderly man holds suspected burglars at gunpoint

  25-05-2016 03:57 via wivb.com
  
  CAMPOBELLO, SC (WSPA) – Two teenagers are behind bars after deputies say they broke into a garage in Campobello, and an elderly man held them at gunpoint.
  Artur Lavrenyuk, 18, is charged with burglary second degree and possession of a weapon during a violent crime by the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office.
  A 14-year-old was also arrested and taken to the Greenville Juvenile Detention Center Facility.
  Mack Lewis, 81, lives in the house and says he went to the garage armed with a shot
  
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• Bill Cosby accuser told police she felt ‘paralyzed’ during alleged sexual encounter

  25-05-2016 03:50 via wivb.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (WHTM) – Bill Cosby is heading to trial on sexual assault charges.
  Cosby’s accuser, Andrea Constand, did not take the stand at a preliminary hearing Tuesday in Montgomery County, but detectives testified about the statement she gave them about an alleged sexual assault more than a decade ago.
  According to police, the former Temple University employee visited Cosby at his Philadelphia home in January of 2004. Constand says Cosby offered her pills to help her “rel
  
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• Tornadoes touch down in western Kansas

  25-05-2016 03:46 via wivb.com
  
  SCOTT CITY, Kan. (KSNW) – Severe thunderstorms produced several tornadoes in western Kansas late Tuesday afternoon.Tornado damage near Ensign . (Courtesy: Katelyn Wolfe)The first reports of a tornado came in around 4 p.m. in Scott County. A tornado touched down to the west of Scott City just after 4 p.m. and tracked west and northwest of the city.
  Other tornado touchdowns were reported near Dodge City and north of Minneola around 6 p.m. At times, chasers were tracking a large and violent t
  
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• 3-year-old rushed to hospital; Police investigate drowning

  25-05-2016 02:08 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo Police rushed to a home in the Black Rock neighborhood Tuesday night after receiving reports of a child in distress.
  Sources say an investigation is underway after a 3-year-old drowned in a bathtub on Peoria Street.
  The child was rushed to the hospital with a police escort, however sources confirm the child died at Kenmore Mercy Hospital.
  Sources say they believe the child was left in the care of babysitters, not parents, at the time of the drowning.
  Pol
  
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• 3-year-old girl rushed to hospital; Police investigate drowning

  25-05-2016 02:08 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo Police rushed to a home in the Black Rock neighborhood Tuesday night after receiving reports of a child in distress.
  Sources say an investigation is underway after a 3-year-old girl drowned in a bathtub on Peoria Street.
  The child was rushed to the hospital with a police escort, however sources confirmed she died at Kenmore Mercy Hospital.
  Sources say they believe the girl was left in the care of babysitters, not parents, at the time of th
  
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• Community Policing in the Falls—back to the foot patrol

  25-05-2016 01:47 via wivb.com
  
  NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) – Learning lessons and changing perceptions. Those are some of the benefits of the Community Policing program Niagara Falls police are trying out.
  “Safe Shopping Days” is the Falls’ version of community policing which has been on the books for years, but police just opened the book a few years ago, realizing it is critical to their job to “Serve and Protect”.City officials believe Community Policing serves a number of purposes:it ge
  
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• Westfield native killed in action to be honored by NYS for sacrifice

  25-05-2016 01:17 via wivb.com
  
  WESTFIELD, N.Y. (WIVB) — A native of Chautauqua County’s quiet Village of Westfield will be honored by New York State five years after he died to an improvised explosive device (IED) while serving in Afghanistan.
  Sergeant Kevin White served in the U.S. Army after graduating from Westfield Academy Central School. He served in the First Armored Division as a Bradley Armored Personnel Carrier driver. In 2008, his lead vehicle exploded an IED. The explosion didn’t harm hi
  
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• Man arrested on charges of robbing, shooting Niagara County store clerk

  25-05-2016 00:23 via wivb.com
  
  LOCKPORT, N.Y. (WIVB) — Investigation into a Friday robbery that left a store clerk with a gunshot wound led police to the arrest of a Niagara Falls man.
  Niagara County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested John Billings Jr. on Monday on charges of robbery, assault and grand larceny. Police say Billings held up Smokin’ Joes Smoke Shop in Lewiston and made off with goods after shooting a person there.
  The gunshot wound victim is recovering from non-life threatening injuries.
  Followin
  
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• Buffalo Public School teacher hopes for independence through wheelchair-accessible minivan

  25-05-2016 00:19 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A Buffalo Public school teacher is fighting for her independence. La’Quisha Pompay was an innocent bystander when she was struck in the spine by a stray bullet during a shooting on Buffalo’s East Side, but she has made the most of her life.
  Pompay made a vow to herself when doctors told her she was paralyzed from the waist down to live life to the fullest.
  Its been 10 years since the day she was hit and paralyzed by a stray bullet. It’s so
  
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• A bill in Congress could impact kids receiving free school lunches

  25-05-2016 00:11 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Big changes could be coming to schools if Congress passes a bill. It would limit the number of schools that qualify for free and reduced-priced lunches.
  The bill would raise the qualifications for the Community Eligibility Provision. The current guidelines require schools, which receive these lunches from funding allotted by the federal government, must have 40% of students in the school on government assistance; the new bill raises that requirement to 60%. That
  
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