New Assistant County Attorney Named in Schuyler County

Schuyler County Attorney Steven Getman has announced his appointment of Olesya Vernyi-Kellogg as an Assistant County Attorney, effective Monday (April 24).

As an Assistant County Attorney, Vernyi-Kellogg will join Getman in representing Schuyler County in civil litigation, family court prosecutions and social services law.

Prior to joining the County Attorney’s office, Vernyi-Kellogg was a staff attorney with the Legal Resource Center for Public Health Policy at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. Before that, Vernyi-Kellogg worked at the Maryland Attorney General's Office. In 2012, she worked with Baltimore City's Legislative Reference Department and Board of Ethics in reforming the city's financial disclosure process.

Vernyi-Kellogg is a 2014 graduate of Syracuse University College of Law, and is admitted to practice in the State of New York. Her law school experiences include a litigation externship with the Onondaga County Attorney's Office and extensive work for the law school's technology transfer clinic, for which she earned a Certificate in Technology Commercialization Law Studies. She graduated magna cum laude from Le Moyne College in 2010.

As County Attorney, Getman serves as the legal advisor to the Schuyler County Legislature and all officers of county government. The County Attorney’s office prosecutes and defends civil actions and proceedings brought by or against the county and serves as “public prosecutor” in Family Court cases involving child abuse and neglect, juvenile delinquency and proceedings brought by the county against persons accused of failing to pay child support.

In addition to Getman and Vernyi-Kellogg, the County Attorney’s staff currently consists of attorney Kristin Hazlitt and secretaries Donna Hyer and Vickie Perrazini.

Seneca County gets grant to help exploited youth

Finger Lakes Times:

The Board of Supervisors' Human Services Committee has voted to accept a $23,000 grant from the state for its Department of Human Services Workforce Development-Youth Bureau to support Youth Bureau efforts to raise awareness of human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children....

The money supports enhanced runaway homeless youth services, outreach efforts and provide money for support services to identified human trafficked or sexually exploited youth.

Schuyler County recognizes and commemorates May 1, 2017, as Law Day

RECOGNIZING AND COMMEMORATING MAY 1, 2017 AS “LAW DAY” IN SCHUYLER COUNTY

WHEREAS Law Day is an occasion of public acknowledgement of our Nation’s heritage of justice, liberty, and equality under the law, and

WHEREAS the United States Congress has statutorily designated May 1 as the annual day for commemoration of Law Day, and

WHEREAS the American Bar Association has designated the 2017 Law Day theme to be “The Fourteenth Amendment: Transforming American Democracy” in recognition of the numerous contributions to American law and society of one of the most often cited constitutional enactments, and

WHEREAS the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution forbids states from denying any person "life, liberty or property, without due process of law", and

WHEREAS promoting public understanding of the roots of our freedom is an important component in the civic education of the citizens of the United States, the State of New York and the County of Schuyler.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Schuyler County Legislature recognizes and commemorates May 1, 2017, as Law Day in Schuyler County, New York.

New York courts announce plan to enhance language access

New York State Court officials have announced a strategic plan to enhance access to justice for litigants and other parties with limited English proficiency or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The plan comprises nearly seventy actions to be taken by the court system in eliminating barriers to justice for such court users, including:

• enhancing court interpreter recruitment, training and assessment; optimizing the use of interpreting resources;
• ensuring language access in other parts of the courthouse in addition to the courtroom;
• more effectively responding to the diverse needs of the deaf and hard-of-hearing community;
• raising public awareness about the services provided by the courts’ Office of Language Access; and
• ensuring language access in New York’s Town and Village Courts.

The full strategic plan is available here.

New York State to "Raise the age" of criminal responsibility from 16 to 18

New York State lawmakers have agreed to raise the age at which those suspected of crimes can be charged as adults, potentially shunting thousands of juvenile offenders out of criminal court and into the state’s Family Court system.

The complete text of the legislation can be found here.

New York State's Raise the Age Legislation by Steven Getman on Scribd

New York State Traffic Ticket Data Available

New York State officials have announced that comprehensive traffic ticket data is available in an online systems, the Traffic Safety Statistical Depository.

The TSSR generates ticket reports at the statewide and county levels, showing the overall numbers of traffic tickets issued and separate totals for speeding, cell phone, texting, safety restraints, and impaired driving citations. For selected types of tickets a variety of information is displayed, including:

• Adjudication status and conviction rates
• Enforcement agencies that issued the tickets
• Driver age and gender
• Region
• Day of week/time of day
• Month
• Tickets issued for companion violations
• Driver license jurisdiction
• Driver penalties, sanctions and fines

State officials hope that the database "will enable both the public and traffic safety professionals to quickly find statistical data about traffic tickets as well as crash information (to) reduce motor vehicle crashes, fatalities and injuries.”

For more details, click here.

Seneca County sheriff urges 'extra caution' for boaters on Seneca, Cayuga Lakes

Seneca County Sheriff Tim Luce is announcing a Lake Level advisory for Seneca and Cayuga Lakes, along with the Seneca- Cayuga Canal.

Sheriff Luce reports that with the recent rain - the water levels are high and extra caution is needed for any boat traffic. As the weather gets warmer and people are getting back on the water- the Sheriff's Office is urging extra caution. Submerged logs and various debris pose an extra hazard for boaters. Until the water levels go down boaters are also advised to operate at a reduced speed so as not to create a wake that will damage other boats and docks etc.

Sheriff Luce reports that at this time there is not a ban on boat traffic but urges extra caution, the Sheriff's Office will be monitoring the situation.

Crackdown on distracted driving during Operation Hang Up

New York State Police:

The New York State Police announce a statewide crackdown on distracted driving as part of April’s National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The crackdown, called Operation Hang Up, is a special enforcement effort to step up patrols and checkpoints targeting drivers on electronic devices from April 6 through April 10.

While tickets for cell phone use continue to decline, the proliferation of smartphones have caused texting tickets to rise every year since 2011.

April traditionally marks the start of the spring driving season. In order to minimize tragedies as the traffic volume increases, State Police and local law enforcement agencies will be cracking down on distracted driving, along with other vehicle and traffic law infractions.

New freshwater fishing rules effective April 1

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has released multiple new freshwater fishing regulations that were effective April 1.

These changes are published in the 20176-2018 Freshwater Fishing Regulations Guide, in addition to being online on the DEC website.

According to the DEC, the changes are the result of a two-year process that included biological assessment, discussions with anglers and a formal 45-day comment period.