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Buffalo Teachers Federation presents BPS with school safety solutions

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — After countless fights, safety concerns have been a big issue this year at Buffalo Public Schools.

On Wednesday, the Buffalo Teachers Federation sat down with BPS Superintendent Tonja Williams to talk about solutions to the problem, a meeting that had been in the works since October.

In Wednesday’s meeting, the BTF presented the superintendent with a list of solutions meant to put a stop to fights at Riverside High, and throughout the district.

“We all want the same thing. Teachers want a safe work environment. Students want a safe place to learn, administrators I think want the same thing,” said BTF President Rich Nigro.

“We went over a pretty thorough agenda. It was the first time we had all stakeholders, like the head of security, my principal, union representatives, all kind of having a conversation,” said Riverside teacher Marc Bruno.

Bruno says the agenda presented included steps like reinstating Buffalo police officers in school buildings, security officer retention, along with district security cameras to capture footage of fights. Bruno said these steps should have been thought of months ago.

“They should be coming to our schools, to mandatory faculty meetings and asking those three very simple yet very important questions. What’s working and what’s not working? What can we do to help your individual school,” Bruno continued.

“The things that we’re dealing with, the problems usually when you get to this point aren’t things or solutions that developed in a matter of weeks. They’re usually things that are kind of built up over the course of years,” added Nigro.  

BPS once again declined to be on camera Wednesday but did issue a statement saying the meeting was productive.

However, it’s not just Riverside that needs solutions, fights even broke out at East High School just days ago.

“Friday, there were several, a series of brawls and it was pretty violent and traumatic for all the teachers and staff who were involved. Dialogue is fantastic, but we must actually enact some of these policies, and we have to also look at some of the current policies that we are using,” said 309 Delegate and East High teacher Joe Slater.

“The hope is that we’re able to get a little bit of traction after our next meeting to implement some things before the years up,” Nigro said. “I really hope that the things that we do there are things that we may be able to implement in other schools.”

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Dillon Morello is a reporter from Pittsburgh who has been part of the News 4 team since September of 2023. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter.

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2 charged with kidnapping, robbing elderly male in Niagara County

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Two people have been charged with kidnapping and robbing an elderly man in Niagara County, according to the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office.

Gregory Perry, 31, and Ashley McMillen, 35, both of Niagara Falls, have been charged in connection. The arrests came following an investigation of a missing person in the town of Niagara.

Both were charged with second-degree kidnapping, second-degree assault and second-degree robbery, while Perry was additionally charged with first-degree criminal contempt.

Both were remanded to the Niagara County Jail.

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Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

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2 teens arrested for allegedly stealing tires from dealership

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Two teenagers have been arrested for allegedly stealing tires and wheels from a car dealership last month, according to the Amherst Police Department.

19-year-old Matthew A. Vanyo, of West Seneca, and a 17-year-old from Amherst were both arrested following a search on East and West Road in West Seneca. The thefts allegedly occurred at a dealership on Sheridan Drive in Amherst on Feb. 18.

They are both charged with third-degree grand larceny and third-degree auto stripping.

The investigation is still ongoing.

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Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

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30 prospects in 30 days: Penn State edge rusher Chop Robinson boasts elite athleticism

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Penn State has become a factory for producing NFL defensive linemen, and edge rusher Chop Robinson is primed to become the next player on the long list.

Robinson says mindset is what makes defensive linemen from Penn State stand out. 

“Everyone just wants to win and we feel disrespected when somebody scores so we just try to go out there and eliminate that,” Robinson said.

Fellow draft prospect Adisa Issac played along the defensive line with Chop at Penn State. 

“Just the battles that we have 1-on-1, just get offs, who can bend the quickest, just everything,” Isaac said of his time with Robinson. “We are like brothers, and we compete to the fullest.” 

Robinson has elite athleticism and is explosive getting off the line of scrimmage. Some scouts and draft analysts compare him to Dallas Cowboys pass rusher and two-time All-Pro Micah Parsons.

“A guy that can get off the ball, a guy with some speed, a guy that can bend crazy, I think that makes the best pass rusher — a guy that can bend and use his hands,” Robinson said. “When you’re so explosive and you get off the ball and especially with a guy like me, a lot of o-lineman wouldn’t be thinking about speed to power. So when they see me trying to get off the ball they think I’m trying to work the edge so once they give me their chest I’m able to stay low and put my power through their chest.”

Robinson is projected to be a late first or early second-round pick.

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Niagara Falls family calls on the community to help after losing grandfather in house fire

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WIVB) – We’re learning more about a Niagara Falls man who died in a house fire Tuesday. The fire is still being investigated. News 4 talked to family members who are heartbroken by this loss.

Valerie Keel says her 83-year-old father, Robert Crayton, died in the house fire on 8th Street in Niagara Falls Tuesday morning.

“He was a fun-loving guy. Always a part of our lives. Was always around, gave us a lot of hope and he showed us a lot,” said Gregory Palmer who’s related to the Crayton and Keel family.

Loved ones say Mr. Crayton was a family man.

“He loved his children, his grandchildren, his great grandchildren. He was just a good guy all around,” said Sheena Brown, who’s married to Mr. Crayton’s grandson.

The 83 year-old recently moved in with Valerie and her husband Jeffrey Keel, who were taking care of him.

Fire crews responded to the home around 2:20 a.m. Tuesday for a fire.

Valerie escaped the home uninjured. Jeffrey and his son Darious jumped out of a second story window to escape the flames. Darious broke his leg in the fall. Jeffrey remains at ECMC recovering from his injuries. According to officials, Crayton was pronounced dead at the scene.

“Granddad still had a long life to live ahead of him,” Brown said.

“Horrifying. Can’t even put into words. As you see they have a lot of personal support, they are a cornerstone in this area,” said family friend Joshua Anderson.

As loved ones come to term losing a valuable member of their family, they’re asking the community to help them pick up the pieces.

“They lost everything. Only thing they left here with was what they had on their back. Everything in the house is destroyed,” Palmer said.

“Everything that they’ve kept here over all these years, all their childhood memories, things from their parents that have passed on they had and they just lost everything,” Brown said.

The family set up a GoFundMe for funeral and medical expenses which can be found here.

The fire is under investigation.

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Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.

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Appointment of new Buff State president rescinded, interim president to remain on

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo State will not have a new president in July after the appointment of Dr. Chance Glenn was rescinded, the school announced Wednesday.

Glenn was named the new president of the school last December and was set to take office in July, but that will not happen. Dr. Bonita Durand, who has served as the school’s interim president since June 2023 after the retirement of Katherine Conway-Turner, will remain the school’s president through the 2025-26 school year.

Glenn had most recently served as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas.

The Buffalo State opening had previously been subject to months of speculation that Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown could become president at the university, which is his alma mater. Brown was elected to a fifth term as Buffalo’s mayor in 2021.

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Man arraigned on assault charge stemming from fight, victim later died

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A Buffalo man has been arraigned on an assault charge stemming from a fight where the victim later died, the Erie County District Attorney’s Office said Wednesday.

It is alleged that 22-year-old Craig Lynch, Jr. got in a fight with a 32-year-old man on the 100 block of Minnesota Avenue on the evening of March 25.

Lynch, Jr. was arrested on second-degree assault. Meanwhile, the 32-year-old was transported to a hospital for head and face injuries, where he later died.

Lynch, Jr. is being held without bail as the investigation into potential homicide-related charges continues. If convicted of the assault charge, he faces up to seven years in prison.

He returns to court on Monday.

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Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

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Local Catholic schools discussing possibility of buying their buildings from the Diocese

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Some local Catholic schools are in discussions with the Buffalo Catholic Diocese about potentially buying their school buildings.

Any proceeds from the sale of their buildings would go to settle sexual abuse lawsuits filed under the Child Victims Act.

The four schools that are part of these ongoing talks are Bishop Timon High School in South Buffalo; Cardinal O’Hara High School in the Town of Tonawanda; Notre Dame High School in Batavia and St. Mary’s High School in Lancaster.

According to a spokesperson from the Diocese, these schools are only on the Catholic schools part of the discussions because the Diocese owns their buildings and they are leased by the respective schools.

Most of the schools in their leases have a provision to buy their building.

If that were to happen, the Diocese says the buildings would be put up for auction and proceeds from the sale would go to the award to settle sexual abuse lawsuits filed against the Diocese under the Child Victims Act.

The Diocese remains in bankruptcy court and has been in the process of listing and selling church properties, such as the Catholic Center.

“When we first took over that building, the Diocese had about 290 employees in that building. We currently have 88, we have a lot of empty space, we’re not utilizing the building to the capacity that we once did because more of our ministries have moved out to the family of parishes,” said Richard Suchan, the COO of Diocese of Buffalo.

The Diocese has also been criticized in recent months for announcing the closure of several local parishes.

“I know this is challenging, this is not want any of us wanted, but in the midst of all of this loss, there’s an opportunity for spiritual growth and for us to be better as we go forward,” said Father Bryan Zielenieski of the Diocese of Buffalo.

The last meeting on the possibility of some local catholic schools buying their buildings was two weeks ago, and it was led by Suchan. As part of its bankruptcy case, the Diocese has been taking a look at all its properties and assessing their value.

The Diocese says the four schools mentioned all have long-term leases and there’s nothing imminent on those agreements. None of the schools have decided whether to buy their buildings and if that were to happen, they would be independent Catholic schools in the Diocese.

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Jeff Preval is an award-winning anchor and reporter who joined the News 4 team in December 2021. See more of his work here.

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Man indicted for fatal shooting of 13-year-old girl last summer in Buffalo

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A 21-year-old man was arraigned Wednesday on a sealed indictment in connection with the fatal shooting of a 13-year-old girl last summer, Erie County District Attorney John Flynn announced during a news conference.

Flynn said Avantae Ayala was indicted for allegedly shooting teenager Miracle Hunt on July 7 near Broadway and Mortimer Street while he was the passenger of a vehicle driving by. He was charged with second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Flynn said Ayala allegedly fired a single shot into a crowd of about 20 young people standing outside The Forge Apartments, which struck Hunt in the head as the group began to scatter. She was declared deceased at the scene.

The alleged shooting stemmed from a “beef” between two groups that Hunt was not involved in, according to Flynn, adding that Ayala was allegedly targeting other people within the crowd. The vehicle that Ayala was riding in, as well as another vehicle driving in tandem with it, were alleged to have been stolen.

In the days after the shooting, Hunt’s mother, Marie, called her daughter “a happy person” and “a big help to her.” She added that Hunt ran track and was a cheerleading coach, as well as a big sister.

Ayala was already incarcerated in a state facility outside Western New York on weapon and stolen property charges in connection with another incident Flynn did not divulge. He was remanded to the Erie County holding center following Wednesday’s arraignment.

Flynn praised Buffalo police for their work in the investigation, saying authorities “never gave up on this case.”

“This is outstanding police work 101,” Flynn said. “When you want to talk about solving a crime and putting the pieces and the puzzle together and working a case up, this is the textbook example of how you do that.”

Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia credited the advanced technology that police have at their disposal as a big reason behind the indictment, which came over eight months after the shooting.

“Cases like these show just how important technology is,” Gramaglia said. “To anybody that thinks that this technology is big brother, it’s an overreach — this is keeping our community safe. And when we’re not able to keep our community safe because someone gets shot, someone gets murdered, we need that technology to bring somebody to justice.”

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Adam Gorski is a Buffalo native who joined the News 4 team in 2022. You can find more of his work here.

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Dunkirk man killed in crash with tractor-trailer

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A Dunkirk man is dead after a two-vehicle crash involving a tractor-trailer Tuesday in Fredonia, New York State Police announced.

Police said a tractor-trailer was stopped at a red light close to 2 p.m. on State Route 60 when a 2006 Pontiac driven by 42-year-old Derek N. Seeger failed to stop and struck the rear end of the vehicle. Seeger was pronounced deceased at the scene.

An investigation into the crash remains ongoing.

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Adam Gorski is a Buffalo native who joined the News 4 team in 2022. You can find more of his work here.

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