SEX OFFENDER REOFFENDS; FINDS HIMSELF ON WRONG SIDE OF THE LAW ::Thursday, June 19th::

In Lockport a convicted sex offender was charged Tuesday night after a teenage girl told police she was touched in a sexual manner by the man. 35 year old Michael Moore of Akron Street was charged with endangering the welfare of a child, and forceable touching. Moore - a registered level 2 sex offender - was additionally charged by Lockport Police with violating the city's sex offender radius law for living in a home that's across the street from a day care center. He was arraigned in city court Wednesday, and pleaded not guilty. Bail was set at $5-thousand. The 16 year old girl told police that she had been afraid to make the report because of Moore's past history and because of his size. His arrest report lists him at 5'10 and 295lbs. The girl said Moore unhooked her bra on two separate occasions on Sunday, massaging her shoulders, rubbing her back, and also tickled her in an inappropriate spot before pulling her onto a bed. Moore was charged in December 2006 with endangering the welfare of a child and two counts of sexual abuse involving a 16 year old girl. He pleaded guilty last year to one count of 2nd degree sexual abuse and was sentenced to probation, according to the Niagara County Sheriff's Department sex offender registry.

LOCKPORT POLICE CHIEF INJURED IN BIKE ACCIDENT ::Thursday, June 19th::

Lockport Police Chief Larry Eggert was injured Wednesday afternoon when he was struck by a car while riding his bike home from work. At about 4:10, Eggert was riding his bike on High Street near Beattie Avenue after leaving work and was hit by a car. He was ejected from his bicycle, and landed on a lawn on Beattie. The impact shattered the windshield of the car. Eggert suffered a broken leg, bruised ribs, and a cut on his head, but remained conscious and alert at the scene, and was transported to LMH for treatment. Meatime, the driver of the car - a 19 year old Lockport woman - was also taken to the hospital with an eye injury. Evidently a piece of her windshield that shattered when Eggert flew into it went into her eye. Chief Eggert - who appeared on Dialogue with Scott Leffler the same day - has been in the top spot since January, and has been with LPD for 28 years.

DWI TEACHER MARCY COLE RESIGNS FROM TEACHING POSITION ::Wednesday, June 18th::

You heard it first right here on Hometown 1340 WLVL... Roy B. Kelly Elementary School teacher Marcy Cole has resigned from her teaching position; School's Superintendent Terry Ann Carbone making the announcement at the end of Wednesday's board of education meeting. This past week, Cole was issued with her 4th D.W.I. arrest in the last few months, and was awaiting legal movement in the case of her 3rd arrest last January around the time she was disallowed to teach. She was suspended with pay, however, Carbone says all ties with Cole and the district will be cut, and details will be forthcoming as to the affects of a closing agreement. As Cole is scheduled to appear in Royalton Town Court Thursday on this new charge, stay tuned to your Hometown Station for information as it happens.

STRIKE 4 FOR COLE AS SHE CONTINUES TO RUN TO THE BANK ::Tuesday, June 17th::

A suspended Lockport elementary school teacher was arrested for the fourth time in 14 months Monday afternoon, and charged with driving while intoxicated. 35 year old Marcy Cole of Gasport was stopped by deputies at about 5:50pm on Rochester Road in the Town of Royalton. Cole is a fourth grade teacher at Roy B. Kelly. She was charged Monday with felony D.W.I., resisting arrest, and criminal impersonation after giving deputies a false name after she was pulled over. When she was asked to get out of the car, she started the engine, forcing the officer to reach into her car and grab the keys. She then struggled with the officer before being handcuffed. She also refused to take a breathalyser test.

ACQUITTED SUPREME COURT JUDGE NOW SEEKS RETIREMENT ::Tuesday, June 17th::

State Supreme Court Judge Amy Jo Fricano intends to step down from her judgeship and begin collecting retirement payments after not hearing a single case since her arrest last year on drugged driving charges; of which she was eventually acquitted. The 53 year old Fricano - who reported a long list of health woes during testimony at her trial last summer - has filed paperwork requesting a disability retirement and a special payment of two-thirds of her $136-thousand a year salary that would continue until her elected term expires at the end of 2013, according to her attorney Joel Daniels. Daniels says that the Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court in Rochester must review the request for the special disability allowance. He said he expects action soon. After 2013, Fricano would receive a normal state pension. Meantime, a spokesman for the State Office of Court Administration confirmed Monday that Fricano has handed in her retirement notice to take effect on July 31st. Fricano could not be reached for comment. Daniels called her decision the toughest of her personal life, and that she was in too much physical pain to do what she was elected to do.

LOCKPORT NATIVE FALCONS SAFETY ARRESTED ON D.U.I. CHARGES ::Tuesday, June 17th::

Darren Stone - a Lockport High School graduate who made the NFL as a rookie last year - was charged Sunday with D.U.I. in Atlanta. Stone - the former Lions defensive back, now a strong safety for the Falcons - was arrested in downtown Atlanta early Sunday morning and charged with driving under the influence, according the the Atlanta Constitution. He was released at about 5:30pm that afternoon after posting $15-hundred bail. Stone is expected to meet with Falcons officials Tuesday to discuss the incident. His agent declined to comment on the case. Stone primarily played on special teams but also backed up former Buffalo Bill Lawyer Malloy. He appeared in 12 games and recorded 10 tackles.

'FREE NIAGARA' TO TAKE STATE UP ON ISSUE OF GRANT-GIVING ::Monday, June 16th::

A Lockport businessman who gained fame by erecting a billboard that was critical of Niagara County's economic climate is now hard at work on his next project: filing a lawsuit against the state of New York. Lee Bordeleau - the man who paid for a billboard on South Transit Road that proclaimed Niagara County as the highest taxes county in the country - has so far raised $35-hundred from residents willing to join him as plaintiffs in a suit against the state that he intends to file in the coming weeks. The investment company owner who heads the taxpayer advocacy group 'Free Niagara' intends to prove in court that state lawmakers violate the state's constitution each time they offer cash assistance in the form of tax dollars to business owners. His legal challenge will center around Article VII, Section 8 of the constitution which governs the ways in which state officials can use tax dollars. Bordeleau says quote, "they are robbing you and me, and they are giving the money to a private corporation." Individuals interested in signing on as plaintiffs in the lawsuit are encouraged to call Bordeleau at 433-0574.

MAN FLOATS 12 HOURS IN LAKE ERIE BEFORE BEING RESCUED ::Monday, June 16th::

A 47 year old Ontario man is lucky to be alive after he fell over board from his sailboat and spent more than 12 hours treading water in Lake Erie without a life jacket. Paul Epp, Jr. of Welland managed to stay afloat in the lake from Saturday night until 11:45 Sunday morning when he was rescued by Canadian and U.S. authorities who had spent the night searching for him. When rescuers plucked Epp from the waters, he was alert and talking, but suffered from hypothermia. The lake temperature off Buffalo was 66 degrees Sunday. Epp was treated Sunday in Port Colborne General Hospital where his condition was not considered life threatening. A good Samaritan noticed Epp clinging to a breakwater off Port Colborne at about 11:45 Sunday and tried to reach him. When he was unable to pull Epp from the water, he notified officials. Two helicopters were on the scene within minutes and he was pulled from safety, and taken to the hospital.

TIM RUSSERT UPDATE ::Monday, June 16th::

Tim Russert's people came by the hundreds Sunday night to honor the memory of the South Buffalo man who never lost sight of his roots when he made it to the big time. Sunday's gather at Tim Russert Park in West Seneca was among the first of various opportunities for people to pay their respects to the newsman who died Friday at age 58 from an apparent heart attack. The public will be able to say goodbye to Russert during a wake from 2-9 tomorrow at St Alban's School in Washington D.C. A private funeral and memorial are set for Wednesday, according to NBC officials. There are no specific plans yet for a local service. Meanwhile, the moderator's chair on 'Meet the Press' was empty yesterday as NBC's Tom Brokaw conducted an hour's worth of tribute to the fallen network star. Russert was the head of the Washington Bureau for NBC News, and that's where he died Friday while doing a voice over for Sunday's show.