Buffalo news

• Houston-area man says deputies mistook cat litter for meth

  10-01-2017 23:59 via wivb.com
  
  CYPRESS, Texas (AP) — A Houston-area man says sheriff’s deputies conducted faulty field tests on cat litter they found in his vehicle, which they believed was methamphetamine.
  Ross Lebeau was charged with possession of a controlled substance following the Dec. 5 traffic stop, but court documents show the case was dismissed last week because the material was not an illicit substance.
  Lebeau told the Houston Chronicle for a story this week that his father had placed the cat litter in t
  
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• IRS to delay tax refunds for millions of low-income families

  10-01-2017 23:57 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS is delaying tax refunds for more than 40 million low-income families this year as the agency steps up efforts to fight identity theft and fraud.
  The delays will affect families claiming the earned income tax credit and the additional child tax credit. These tax breaks are geared to benefit the working poor, and many families claim both.
  “For most of these people it’s the biggest check they are going to get all year,” IRS Commissioner John Koskine
  
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• Sessions says he’d defy Trump as attorney general if needed

  10-01-2017 23:53 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions fervently rejected “damnably false” accusations of past racist comments Tuesday as he challenged Democratic concerns about the civil rights commitment he would bring as Donald Trump’s attorney general. He vowed at his confirmation hearing to stay independent from the White House and stand up to Trump when necessary.
  Sessions laid out a sharply conservative vision for the Justice Department he would oversee, pledging to crack do
  
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• Driver ‘lucky’ to be alive after chunks of overpass fall onto car after semi crash

  10-01-2017 23:50 via wivb.com
  
  INDIANAPOLIS (MEDIA GENERAL) — A driver is lucky to be alive after pieces of a damaged overpass fell onto her car and through her windshield in Indianapolis on Tuesday morning.
  (Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department)It happened around 8:15 a.m. in the southbound lanes of Interstate 465.
  Police told WISH-TV in Indianapolis a semi hauling a car compactor struck the overpass, resulting in the damage.
  Investigators believe the machinery somehow activated itself, causing it to become tall
  
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• Suspected bank robber “accidentally” left cash in a cab, authorities say

  10-01-2017 23:48 via wivb.com
  
  ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WIVB) – Thanks to a trail of money, video surveillance and quick work by numerous law enforcement agencies, a suspected bank robber is in custody.Joseph W. Peeples III was arrested and charged with robbing a Chase Bank in Rochester on January 5.Peeples is accused of entering the bank, presenting a demand note and a bag to an employee.
  “Once he entered that bank he provided a note that indicated that if individuals followed his instructions nobody would die that day,&
  
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• Slain Orlando officer responded to Pulse nightclub massacre

  10-01-2017 23:48 via wivb.com
  
  ORLANDO, Fla. (MEDIA GENERAL/AP) — The Orlando police sergeant who was shot and killed this week was one of the first responders to last summer’s mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in the city.
  Police cars surround the Pulse Orlando nightclub, the scene of a fatal shooting, in Orlando, Fla., Sunday, June 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)The Orlando Police Department said Tuesday Master Sgt. Debra Clayton was among the officers who responded to Pulse nightclub as shots rang
  
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• Man accused of assaulting 22-month-old

  10-01-2017 23:43 via wivb.com
  
  TOWN OF TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) — Marcell Brooks, 25, was arrested Tuesday and accused of reckless assault of a child.
  Brooks is accused of assaulting 22-month-old Devyn Grabowski back in October.
  Grobowski suffered brain damage and several broken bones. He was just recently released from the hospital after weeks of physical therapy.
  Brooks is currently in the Erie County Holding Center. He was arrested on Box St. Tuesday morning with the help of the Erie County Fugitive Task Force.
  Br
  
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• Parts of Erie County lose power Tuesday afternoon

  10-01-2017 23:33 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Parts of Erie County experienced power outages Tuesday afternoon.
  Shortly before 5:30 p.m., more than 1,200 customers in the Town of Marilla were without power. Before that, around the same number of customers had no power in the Town of Aurora.
  Some outages were reported in the Towns of Lancaster and Elma, but not nearly as many as in Aurora and Marilla.
  Power is expected to be restored at 7:45 p.m.
  High wind is predicted for parts of western New
  
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• Dylann Roof sentenced to death for killing 9 church members

  10-01-2017 23:09 via wivb.com
  
  CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Dylann Roof was sentenced to death Tuesday for killing nine black church members during Bible study in a racially motivated attack, the first person to face execution for federal hate crime convictions.
  A jury deliberated his sentence for about three hours, capping a trial in which Roof did not fight for his life or show any remorse. At the beginning of the trial, he addressed jurors directly, insisting that he wasn’t mentally ill, but he never asked them
  
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• 19-year-old sentenced for role in boating crash that killed teen

  10-01-2017 23:03 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Gregory Green will spend the next six months in jail and the next five years on probation for his role in the death of his girlfriend, Avery Gardner.
  Green was drunk and high when he got behind the wheel of that boat, and while passing under a bridge, Gardner hit her head.
  The incident happened during the early morning hours of June 2015.
  He pleaded guilty in May to vehicular manslaughter, operating a boat while intoxicated and criminally negligent homicide.
  Because
  
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• North Tonawanda teen fighting second battle with cancer

  10-01-2017 22:47 via wivb.com
  
  NORTH TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) — “I heard leukemia and I thought oh my God I didn’t know kids got cancer and yeah they do,” said Michele Lloyd, Ginny’s mother.
  Ginny Fagard’s long battle with cancer began when she was just 4-years-old.
  “She went through 2 years of treatments, she had chemotherapy. The type of leukemia she had was a t-cell leukemia which can hide in the brain so they decided that she would do a weeks worth of radiation to her head,” s
  
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• Case against teen accused of starting fatal Lockport fire scheduled for trial

  10-01-2017 21:18 via wivb.com
  
  LOCKPORT, N.Y. (WIVB) — The case against a teenager accused of starting the fatal Lockport tire plant fire is set to go to trial.
  This past August, 14-year-old Joe Phillips died as a result of the massive fire at High Tread International Recycling Plant. The fire caused more than $5 million in damage.
  Another teen, who was 13 at the time of the fire, has been charged related to blaze. His name has not been released.
  The teen’s attorney, Angelo DiMillo, claims the
  
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• Valentine’s Day Giveaway 2017

  10-01-2017 21:17 via wivb.com
  
  Looking for something extra nice for that someone special? Look no further! Complete our entry form for a chance to win. One grand prize winner will be randomly drawn from all the submissions. Each person may enter once but you can increase your chances by sharing the contest with your friends and family.
  
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• Union officials: Attica prison on lockdown after series of fights

  10-01-2017 19:59 via wivb.com
  
  ATTICA, N.Y. (WIVB) — NYSCOPBA officials say the Attica Correctional Facility is on lockdown after a number of fights involving illegal weapons broke out between inmates.
  Union officials say the first incident happened in the A Yard on Saturday afternoon. The next day, a fight involving eight men occurred in the same place, they say.
  Almost right after that, union officials say there was a fight in the C Yard, this time involving 12 inmates. Union officials say two gas canisters were deplo
  
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• Remains found in search for missing plane confirmed as human

  10-01-2017 19:45 via wivb.com
  
  CLEVELAND (AP) — Authorities searching Lake Erie for the wreckage of a plane that vanished from radar near Cleveland have confirmed that the remains found in a seat late last week are human.
  They also announced Tuesday that a 20-foot piece pulled from the water is from the fuselage of the plane that was carrying six people when it disappeared after taking off Dec. 29.
  All six are presumed dead.
  Searchers say they’ve been able to locate 170 pieces of debris, including several seats, a
  
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• Crews prepare for mixed winter weather

  10-01-2017 19:31 via wivb.com
  
  DUNKIRK, N.Y. (WIVB) — Winds are picking up here along the Dunkirk pier. The city planners says they’re preparing for anything Mother Nature throws at them today.
  “It’s a mixed bag,” said Bob Bankoski, the director of public works for the City of Dunkirk.
  Plows pushing the snow make way for the trucks to start salting the city of Dunkirk roads.
  “The snow pack on the streets are loosening up so we had the plows out early,” said the director. “N
  
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• NHL announces full All-Star Game rosters

  10-01-2017 19:15 via wivb.com
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP modified) — Rookies Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine are among the players selected for the NHL All-Star Game at Staples Center.
  The NHL announced the full rosters and coaches Tuesday for the All-Star weekend, which will be held Jan. 27-29 in Los Angeles.
  The game format will again be a 3-on-3 tournament featuring a team from each of the NHL’s four divisions. The Pacific Division won last year.
  The rosters include Buffalo Sabres wing Kyle Okposo.
  Atlantic Division
  F N
  
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• Lost cross containing person’s ashes returned to owner

  10-01-2017 19:01 via wivb.com
  
  FREDONIA, N.Y. (WIVB) — A lost cross containing the ashes of a person’s son has been returned.
  The person who was looking for the cross said it was on a chain before someone tried to rip it off their other son’s neck on either New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.
  The incident allegedly happened in the area of downtown Fredonia.
  It is not clear who turned the cross in, or how it was found. The cross has been returned to the owner.
  
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• ‘This man is evil’: Protests plague Sessions AG confirmation hearing

  10-01-2017 18:26 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (MEDIA GENERAL) — The first hearing to fill President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet kicked off Tuesday with Sen. Jeff Sessions.
  The staunchly conservative Alabama senator has been tapped to serve as attorney general, touching off a string of pre-planned protests during his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which must approve his nomination.
  Sessions has served for two decades in the upper chamber. Prior to that he was denied a federal judgeship in 1986 due to
  
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• Palmer Candy Company recalls multiple products

  10-01-2017 18:16 via wivb.com
  
  SIOUX CITY, Iowa (WIVB) — Palmer Candy Company has recalled a number of their products due to a possible Salmonella risk.
  The products were made between Oct. 20 and Dec. 9 of last year. Here is the list, courtesy of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
  UPC #
  Affected Items Purchased By Consumers
  Expiration Range
  77232-17250
  Palmer Candy Chocolate Almond Bark 9 oz.
  4/26/2017 – 6/7/2017
  77232-17137
  Palmer Candy Christmas Tree Pretzels 7 oz.
  7/27/2017 – 8/3/2017
  
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• Hostess issues voluntary recall on some Twinkies

  10-01-2017 17:47 via wivb.com
  
  WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – If you still have some Twinkies left over from the holidays, they may be under recall.
  Hostess Brands has issued a voluntary recall for its Holiday White Peppermint Hostess Twinkies.
  This is due to a recall by an ingredient provider of its confectionary coating over concerns of possible salmonella contamination.
  The coating contains milk powder ingredients recalled by Valley Milk Products.
  No illnesses have been reported.
  Consumers are urged to return the product to
  
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• Bail increased for man charged in serious New Year’s Day crash

  10-01-2017 17:40 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – A Utica man will have to come up with even more money to be released from the Erie County Holding Center before his case heads to trial. An Erie County judge increased bail Tuesday for Abdikadir Jaffar, who is accused of driving drunk and hitting pedestrians with his car early on the morning of January 1.
  Jaffar, 31, is charged with DWI and Vehicular Assault.
  Prosecutors say he had a Blood Alcohol Content of .226 when lost control of his car on Richmond Ave near Brya
  
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• Police: Driver loses control, dies after crashing into building

  10-01-2017 17:35 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A vehicle crash at Skillen St. and Military Rd. resulted in the death of a Buffalo man.
  Buffalo police say the 56-year-old was driving on Skillen when he lost control of the vehicle, went off the road, struck a fire hydrant and then hit a building.
  He was taken to Kenmore Mercy Hospital, but later died.
  Authorities are looking into whether or not the driver had some kind of medical issue that led to the crash.
  An investigation into the crash is ongoing.
  
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• Hostages ‘fine,’ suspect arrested near University of Alabama

  10-01-2017 16:58 via wivb.com
  
  TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Police say a man was arrested after a hostage situation near the University of Alabama, and all the hostages are reported unharmed.
  Lt. Teena Richardson, a Tuscaloosa police spokeswoman, said the incident Tuesday morning ended peacefully and said “The hostages are fine.” She said there were about eight hostages. She said the man had a gun.
  It happened at an Alabama Credit Union branch across the street from the UA law school.
  Tuscaloosa Police Chief Stev
  
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• Man dies in Cattaraugus County snowmobile crash

  10-01-2017 16:44 via wivb.com
  
  ALLEGANY, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Office says a snowmobiler died as the result of a crash.
  Deputies responded to the scene of the crash on W. Five Mile Rd. in the Town of Allegany on Saturday.
  The Sheriff’s Office says the snowmobile wrecked in a field. The operator, Allegany resident David Manion, 59, succumbed to his injuries.
  The incident is under investigation.
  
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• Buffalo: Most January homicides since 2007

  10-01-2017 16:01 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo has had a violent start to the year. As of Tuesday morning, six homicides have occurred in the city.
  This is the most homicides the city has seen at this point in the year since 2007.
  Here are where 2017’s fatal shootings have occurred as of Jan. 10:
  Jan. 1 – Around 1:00 a.m. — Xavier Wimes, 22, was fatally shot on Byrd Way.
  Jan. 1 – Around 6:30 a.m. — Alvin McDowell, 25, was fatally shot on McNeely Way.
  
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• Man fatally shot on Hamlin Rd. identified

  10-01-2017 15:12 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A man was fatally shot on the 100 block of Hamlin Rd. Tuesday morning.
  Buffalo police say the shooting occurred just after 5:30 a.m.
  Sources tell News 4 the victim has been identified as 48-year-old Jerald Bailey.
  Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call or text the police department’s confidential tip line at 847-2255.
  
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• Man fatally shot on Hamlin Rd.

  10-01-2017 15:12 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A man was fatally shot on the 100 block of Hamlin Rd. Tuesday morning.
  Buffalo police say the shooting occurred just after 5:30 a.m.
  The victim has only been identified as a man in his late 40s.
  Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call or text the police department’s confidential tip line at 847-2255.
  
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• West Seneca Central School District to make changes after Thursday’s storm

  10-01-2017 05:50 via wivb.com
  
  WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WIVB)-  It was the worst night of his career, said West Seneca Superintendent Dr. Mark Crawford, recalling last Thursday’s storm.
  “The confusion, the worry, I mean I felt all of that,” said Crawford.
  More than a foot of snow fell in West Seneca that night. Changing conditions quickly created problems.
  “All of those offices being let out downtown, people flooding the south towns and then I find out a tractor trailer jackknifed, forcing everyone to W
  
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• Governor Cuomo continues push for upstate ridesharing

  10-01-2017 05:04 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Governor Cuomo made a stop in Buffalo Monday for his series of “State of the State” addresses. During his speech he announced that he’s joining the push to bring ridesharing companies like Uber and Lyft to Upstate New York.
  As of now, ridesharing services only operate in the New York City area. “This is one of those examples of unfair duality. If it makes sense for downstate, it makes sense for upstate,” Cuomo said. “Rideshari
  
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• Re-tooling the auto industry—bringing back old favorites

  10-01-2017 01:45 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – As America’s auto industry goes through a 21st Century makeover, Ford executives announced the return of two popular models that have been out of production for years:the Bronco, a midsize SUV, and the Ranger, an upsized version of what was a compact pickup.
  That announcement was made shortly after the opening of the 2016 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The auto industry seems to be going through a sea change, and its effect on Western New Y
  
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• New management to take over public space and events at Canalside

  10-01-2017 01:34 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo’s prime waterfront destination is being taken over by new management.
  The Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation announced Monday that Be Our Guest, Ltd., a subsidiary of Rich Products and affiliation of the Buffalo Bisons, has inked a 5-year deal to manage public space and events at Canalside. Be Our Guest replaces the previous management led by Spectra.
  “Be Our Guest is excited for this opportunity to work with Erie Canal Harbor Dev
  
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• AP-NORC Poll: Obama won nation’s approval, didn’t unite it

  10-01-2017 00:09 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — More Americans feel Barack Obama’s presidency divided the country than feel it brought people together, a new poll shows. Yet he leaves office held in high esteem by a solid majority.
  Eight years after Obama’s historic election, just 27 percent see the U.S. as more united as a result of his presidency, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted after the 2016 election. Far more — 44 percent — say it&rsqu
  
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• It’s all good: Any exercise cuts risk of death, study finds

  10-01-2017 00:06 via wivb.com
  
  (AP) — Weekend warriors, take a victory lap. People who pack their workouts into one or two sessions a week lower their risk of dying over roughly the next decade nearly as much as people who exercise more often, new research suggests.
  Even people who get less exercise than recommended have less risk than folks who don’t break a sweat at all.
  “If someone is completely inactive, the best thing they can do is even getting out and taking a walk,” said Hannah Arem, a health r
  
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• Supreme Court rejects appeal from flight-sharing company

  10-01-2017 00:02 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal from a company that wants to offer flight-sharing services using a model similar to Uber.
  The justices on Monday left in place a lower court ruling that said Boston-based Flytenow could not operate a website that connected private pilots with passengers willing to share fuel costs and other flight expenses.
  The Federal Aviation Administration shut down the website in 2015 after finding that the service violated flight regulatio
  
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