Schuyler County Budget Public Hearing: Tuesday November 13

There will be a Public Hearing held in regard to the 2019 County Budget in Room 120 of the Human Services Complex, 323 Owego Street, Montour Falls, NY, 14865 on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at 6:30 p.m., to be followed by a Regular Meeting of the Legislature.

The tentative budget is available online.

For more information, click here.

Schuyler County youth placed in detention following “school shooter” comments

A twelve-year-old Schuyler County boy who made online threats he was going to be a “professional school shooter” at Odessa Montour Hanlon School was placed in the custody of social service officials on Monday (November 5) by the Schuyler County Family Court.

The boy, whose name was  not released because of his age, was found to be a “Person in Need of Supervision” in June of this year, based on allegations that he made statements constituting “a terroristic threat,” in text messages and in person, a felony if committed by an adult.  Sheriff’s deputies charged the boy after being contacted by school staff who discovered the comments.  County officials took immediate action to ensure that the boy had no access to firearms and that the threats were false.

The case was prosecuted for the county by Schuyler County Attorney Steven Getman’s office.    At Monday’s sentencing hearing, the prosecution recommended that the boy be placed in detention, due to the underlying charges as well as the boy’s failures to behave in school and cooperate with probation supervision since the June court date.

After reviewing the evidence, Schuyler County Family Court Judge Dennis Morris determined that the boy should be removed from the home for his own good.  Therefore, Morris ordered the boy placed in the custody of the Schuyler County Department of Social Services for up to six months.  

Assisting in the investigation and prosecution of this matter were the Schuyler County Sheriff’s Department, Odessa Montour Hanlon School officials, the school resource officer, the Schuyler County Probation Department and caseworkers with the Department of Social Services.

Finger Lakes Election Results Available Online

Typically, many of the local boards of election will post their unofficial results online.

The websites for some local boards of election can be found below:

• Cayuga County
• Chemung County
• Ontario County
• Seneca County
• Schuyler County
• Steuben County
• Tompkins County
• Wayne County
• Yates County

Results usually start coming in shortly after the polls close at 9:00 pm and they are updated as new totals are calculated.

These sites are often a good way to keep track of local election results (village, town, county) that otherwise might not be available in the media until the next day.

NOTICE AND PETITION OF FORECLOSURE: SCHUYLER COUNTY TAX PROCEEDING

Please take notice that on the 1^st day of November 2018, the Treasurer of the County of Schuyler, pursuant to law, filed with the Clerk of Schuyler County a petition of foreclosure against various parcels of real property for unpaid taxes. Such petition pertains to the following parcels: [see exhibits A, B and C, annexed hereto and made a part hereof]

1. Effect of Filing: All persons having or claiming to have an interest in the real property described in such petition are hereby notified that the filing of such petition constitutes the commencement by the Tax District of a proceeding in the court specified in the caption above to foreclose each of the tax liens therein described by a foreclosure proceeding in rem.

2. Nature of Proceeding: Such proceeding is brought against the real property only and is to foreclose the tax liens described in such petition. No personal judgment will be entered herein for such taxes or other legal charges or any part thereof.

3. Persons Affected: This notice is directed to all persons owning or having or claiming to have an interest in the real property described in such petition. Such persons are hereby notified further that a duplicate of such petition has been filed in the office of the Enforcing Officer of the Tax District and will remain open for public inspection up to and including the date specified below as the last day for redemption.

4. Right of Redemption: Any person having or claiming to have an interest in any such real property and the legal right thereto may on or before said date redeem the same by paying the amount of all such unpaid tax liens thereon, including all interest and penalties and other legal charges which are included in the lien against such real property, computed to and including the date of redemption. Such payments shall be made to: Harriett E. Vickio, Treasurer, County of Schuyler, 105 Ninth St, Unit 17, Watkins Glen, NY 14891.  In the event that such taxes are paid by a person other than the record owner of such real property, the person so paying shall be entitled to have the tax liens affected thereby satisfied of record.

5. Last Day for Redemption: The last day for redemption is hereby fixed as February 20, 2019. 

 6. Service of Answer: Every person having any right, title or interest in or lien upon any parcel of real property described in such petition may serve a duly verified answer upon the attorney for the Tax District setting forth in detail the nature and amount of his or her interest and any defense or objection to the foreclosure. Such answer must be filed in the office of the County Clerk and served upon the attorney for the Tax District on or before the date above mentioned as the last day for redemption.

7. Failure to Redeem or Answer: In the event of failure to redeem or answer by any person having the right to redeem or answer, such person shall be forever barred and foreclosed of all his or her right, title and interest and equity of redemption in and to the parcel described in such petition and a judgment in foreclosure may be taken by default.

PETITION OF FORECLOSURE:

The above-captioned proceeding is hereby commenced to enforce the payment of delinquent taxes or other lawful charges which have accumulated and become liens against certain property.

Annexed hereto is a certified copy of a list of delinquent taxes recorded pursuant to section eleven hundred twenty-two of this title, as the same shall have been annotated from time to time by the county clerk pursuant to law, as of the date this petition was executed.

The parcels to which this proceeding applies are those set forth in such list, excluding only those parcels which have been marked “redeemed,” “withdrawn” or “canceled” on such list by the county clerk pursuant to law. In the case of parcels marked “partially redeemed” but not marked “redeemed,” the proceeding applies only to the unredeemed portion of the parcel. All parcels on the list which are unmarked or which are marked with any other notation are subject to this proceeding.

This document serves as both a Petition of Foreclosure and Notice of Foreclosure for purposes of this proceeding.

DATED: 11/01/18

Enforcing Officer:                                                          
Harriett E. Vickio Treasurer, 
County of Schuyler

S/BY: Holley Sokolowski, Deputy Treasurer
105 Ninth St, Unit 17
Watkins Glen, NY 14891
Tel: 607.535.8181

Attorney for the tax district:                                            
Steven J. Getman, Schuyler County Attorney
105 Ninth Street, Unit 5
Watkins Glen, NY 14891
Tel: 607.535.8121

Notice and Petition of Foreclosure Index No. 17-201, County Court, State of New York, County of Schuyler by Steven Getman on Scribd

Steuben County Man Jailed on Schuyler County Family Court Warrant

Watkins Glen --An Addison man was jailed on $200.00 bail by the Schuyler County Family Court on Thursday (November 1, 2018) on allegations he violated a prior court order.

According to papers filed with the court, Todd G. Jones, age 38, was found to be in contempt of court in July of this year and failed to appear for sentencing on September 11.   The contempt stemmed from his willful failure to obey an existing family court order from 2012.

At Thursday’s court appearance, Schuyler County Attorney Steven Getman, asked that Jones be sentenced to thirty days in jail, due to his history of non-compliance with court orders. In the alternative, Getman said, the court should set an appropriate bail, to ensure Jones appear for sentencing at a later date.

Jones, through his attorney, asked to be released, pending further proceedings.

After oral argument, Family Court Judge Dennis Morris ordered Jones held on $200.00 bail and set the matter down for further proceedings on November 13.  Jones was then returned to the Schuyler County Jail.

Under New York State law, willful failure to obey a valid Family Court order may subject a party to up to six months’ incarceration for contempt of court.

The County Attorney is the legal advisor to county government and serves as the prosecuting agency for various family court matters, including cases filed by the county’s social services and probation departments.

The charges against family court respondents are allegations and respondents are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Halloween 2018: Be Safe, Avoid Lawsuits, Have Fun

With the growing popularity of Halloween as a holiday, both children and adults are cautioned to put safety first.

Many law enforcement and public safety agencies are issuing reminders nationwide to follow simple safety tips to ensure a safe Halloween, including:

* Warn children about the dangers of

crossing the street.
* Avoid Trick or Treating on very busy streets.
* Always have your children use a sidewalk when there is one.
* To increase visibility, have your children carry a flashlight or glow sticks.
* Apply reflect tape or stickers to costumes.
* Make sure the costume fits your child properly before they venture out, making sure they can see out of their mask.
* Always chaperone in groups.

The National Law Journal reminds us that holiday celebrations in the workplace can create legal issues for employers and that Halloween is no exception:

With Halloween just around the corner, labor and employment attorneys are warning employers that the annual holiday could get scary — in a legal way — if costumes, or a work party, get out of hand.

Specifically, costumes that carry a political or social message, or are simply too raunchy for the workplace, could lead to a liability nightmare down the road.

[A]nother potential liability with Halloween: personal injury suits.

Above all, simple common sense can do a lot to prevent tragedies--and resulting lawsuits--from happening. Halloween is an enjoyable holiday for the entire family. Stay safe, stay smart and have fun.

Help fight the opioid crisis on October 27: bring unused prescription drugs to a drop-off location on National Drug Takeback Day.

As part of Schuyler County’s multi-leveled approach to tackling the opioid epidemic, Schuyler County officials are encouraging community members to participate in National Drug Take Back Day on Saturday October 27.

According to Schuyler County Attorney Steven Getman, “the initiative is aimed at helping citizens take one of the simplest steps to prevent addiction: safely disposing of unused drugs at drop-off sites around the nation.”

“Statistics indicate that new heroin users start out by misusing prescription drugs,” Getman noted, “and a majority of abused prescription drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from a home medicine cabinet.”

Schuyler County residents can drop off their expired, unused, or unwanted medications between 10 AM and 2 PM at the Odessa and Tyrone Fire Stations. The Odessa Fire Station is located at 300 East Main Street in Odessa. The Tyrone Fire Station can be found at 3600 State Route 226 in Tyrone. Those drop-in stations are being sponsored by Schuyler County Sheriff William Yessman and the Schuyler County Coalition on Underage Drinking and Drugs (SCCUDD).

Community members can also dispose of unwanted, expired, and unused prescription drugs year-round by using the 24/7 confidential drop boxes available at the Schuyler County Sheriff’s Office in Watkins Glen or in the foyer at the Human Services Complex in Montour Falls.

Residents of other New York counties can visit clearyourcabinet.com to find out where they can safely dispose of medications this Saturday, Getman said. Disposal of unused prescriptions and over-the-counter medication at these locations is "no questions asked" and free of charge.

In addition to advancing efforts for the disposal of unused opioids, Schuyler County’s strategy to attack the national opioid epidemic includes its ongoing lawsuit against the manufacturers and distributers of prescription opiates for damages to the County. In May of this year, Getman filed a nearly 250-page Summons and Complaint for damages to the County arising out of the fraudulent and negligent marketing and distribution of opiates in the County. That case was transferred to Suffolk County Courts shortly thereafter, to join other cases brought by various New York state counties. In June, a New York State Supreme Court Judge refused to dismiss lawsuits against several large opioid manufacturers in one of the earliest decisions to come out of the cases brought by local governments over the prescription painkillers.

Recent reports indicate that opioids now kill more than 50,000 Americans a year, 10,000 more than AIDS did at the peak of that epidemic.

The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is organized by the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, while also educating the general public about the potential for abuse of medications. Various national organizations have joined the DEA and local agencies in organizing the event, including the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy; the American Association of Poison Control Centers; the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America; D.A.R.E. America; the Federation of State Medical Boards; the U. S. Health Resources and Services Administration; the International Association of Chiefs of Police; the National Association of Attorneys General; the National Family Partnership; the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives; the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy; the National District Attorneys Association; the National Sheriffs’ Association; and The Partnership at Drugfree.org.

For more information about Schuyler County’s participation in National Drug Take Back Day, click here.

New web platform helps users research meanings of words used in Constitution, Supreme Court opinions

A web platform that provides law-related historic linguistics information was announced recently:

Corpus linguistics involves the use of naturally occurring language in large collections of texts—called corpora—to help determine the meanings of words and phrases, according to a press release about the platform.

The unveiling of the Law and Corpus Linguistics Technology Platform, which is free to use, ties in with Constitution Day, the anniversary of the document’s ratification.

The Corpus of Founding Era American English, which allows users to examine how words from the Constitution were used from 1750 to 1799, is searchable on the platform; as is the Corpus of Early Modern English, which has more than 40,000 texts from 1485 to 1800; and the Corpus of the U.S. Supreme Court, which has more than 32,000 court documents. BYU Dean D. Gordon Smith said in the release that this is “the first corpora featuring all United States Supreme Court rulings (up to the most recent term).”

Georgetown University law professor Lawrence Solum said the new corpora will be helpful to those who want to research the meaning of the Constitution. “The method of corpus linguistics … provides an important tool for the recovery of the original public meaning of the constitutional text.”

The platform is available here. For more on the program, click here.

“Raise the Age” law takes effect: Schuyler County looks at consortium to address new state mandates for housing juvenile and adolescent criminal defendants.

In response to state mandates changing how teenagers charged with crimes can be tried and detained, the Schuyler County Legislature will consider voting Tuesday (October 9) to join a planned ten-county consortium looking at ways to comply with the new “Raise the Age” law and lessen the burden on local taxpayers.

On Wednesday (October 3) the county’s Legislative Resolution Review Committee tentatively approved authorizing Chair Dennis Fagan to sign an Intermunicipal Cooperation Agreement between the counties to create a not-for-profit local development corporation. That corporation, if formed, would develop and operate a joint detention facility pursuant to the “Raise the Age” law, eliminating the need for the county to create and operate its own facility. The full legislature will now take up the matter October 9.

Under “Raise the Age,” effective October 1, rather than be tried in criminal court, sixteen-year-olds charged with most crimes will have their cases heard in Family Court. In addition, they can no longer be held in local jails. The law will expand to seventeen-year-olds on October 1, 2019.

According to Schuyler County Attorney Steven Getman, who acts as the Family Court prosecutor, youth who are charged with misdemeanors (other than traffic offenses) and most felonies will have their cases heard in Family Court, except in “extraordinary circumstances.” Cases involving sex offenses, defendants who display a weapon while committing a crime or cause a significant physical injury can still be tried in criminal court, Getman said.

“The teenagers who have their cases heard in Family Court, will have their sentences capped at 18 months in a juvenile detention facility,” Getman noted. “They also will no longer be held in jails, regardless of the seriousness of the charges against them.”

According to Schuyler County Administrator Tim O’Hearn, although the state certifies and regulates detention facilities, the state does not develop or administer the facilities, leaving that to the counties.

“This group of counties is working with a consultant to determine how to best meet the detention mandate by pooling our resources and needs,” O’Hearn explained. “It is our hope that this plan will allow Schuyler County to once again lessen the burden of state government through intermunicipal cooperation.”

O’Hearn added that the consortium should operate at no cost to the county because the state has promised reimbursement for all costs related to probation, youth detention and alternatives to detention, and allocated $100 million for “Raise the Age” in the 2018-19 budget.

Other counties who have joined—or are looking to join—the consortium are Allegany, Chemung, Cortland, Livingston, Cattaraugus, Wayne, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins and Yates. The counties have already contracted with John Treahy, of Treahy and Associates Consultation Services, an organization experienced in juvenile justice and child welfare issues, job coaching and staff training.

In addition to O’Hearn and Getman, Schuyler County officials working to comply with “Raise the Age” include District Attorney Joe Fazzary (whose office will continue to prosecute adult offenders), Social Services Commissioner JoAnn Fratarcangelo, Sheriff William Yessman and Probation Director Chris Rosno.

The “Raise the Age” law is intended as a shift from punishing to rehabilitating teens charged with crimes. While in custody, the suspects will be eligible for a variety of case services and programs to divert them from offending again and give them access to treatment for addiction or other problems.

The “Raise the Age NY Campaign” believes the law will be more effective in preventing re-offenses. They cite a U.S. Center for Disease Control study that found youth who are tried in the adult criminal justice system are 34 percent more likely to commit future crimes than those who remain in the youth justice system.

The legislature’s October 9 meeting will be held at the Schuyler County Courthouse, 105 Ninth Street, Watkins Glen, NY 14891, beginning at 6:30 pm.

The Supreme Court starts on the first Monday in October

Today, the Supreme Court starts its new term on the first Monday of the month of October, an annual event that goes back to 1917.