ALBION – Two people were sentenced to state prison today by Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church.

Michael Borrero, 24, of Medina was sentenced to 1 ½ to 3 years in prison for attempted criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.

Borrero, a second felony offender, isn’t allowed to have a firearm. He admitted in a previous court appearance he had a shotgun on Jan. 8 and fired twice in the ground towards another person, who Borrero said came to his home and was threatening him.

Borrero apologized in court today for the incident.

Judge Church said he was imposing the minimum sentence required by law.

“You’re still young, you’re only 24,” Church told Borrero. “You just have to learn not to do these things.”

In another sentencing, a former Orleans Correctional Facility inmate was sentenced to another 1 ½ to 3 years in prison for promoting prison contraband in the first degree and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree.

Vernon Bostick Jr., 34, allegedly had Buprenorphine, a narcotic that can be used to treat pain as well as addiction to narcotic pain relievers.

The 1 ½ to3 years will be added to his current sentence for attempted burglary in the second degree and burglary in the third degree, which were committed in Monroe County. Bostick is now incarcerated at the Mohawk Correctional Facility. He told the judge after sentencing he thought the sentence would be included as part of the burglary sentence and he wouldn’t have to face additional time in prison.

Judge Church said Bostick was aware of the sentencing parameters during a plea agreement. Bostick has the option to appeal within 30 days.

In other cases in County Court today:

•  Stephen Lopez, 38, of Medina pleaded guilty to felony DWI and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree. He could face up to four years in prison when he is sentenced on Sept. 21.

He was charged on Feb. 2 after he was stopped by police for allegedly driving while drunk. He registered a BAC of 0.11 percent. He allegedly had cocaine in the vehicle. The District Attorney’s Office said cocaine in the car weighed 0.71 ounces.

•  Joshua Rothmund, 37, of Holley pleaded guilty to violating his probation back from 2016 when he was convicted of criminal contempt in the second degree in Livingston County. Rothmund hasn’t reported to Probation for four years. He faces up to nine months in the county jail when he is sentenced on Aug. 24. The judge said the sentence could be weekends if Rothmund maintains his employment.

• Roy A. Watson Jr., 33, of Batavia pleaded guilty to criminal mischief in the fourth degree. He admitted to entering a home in Medina without permission and damaging items. He may be need to pay $650 in restitution. That amount will be determined during sentencing on Oct. 19. Watson faces a maximum of 60 days in jail or four months of weekends. He could also receive a conditional discharge and three years of probation.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – There is a display in the lower level of the Orleans County highlighting a landmark case in New York that ordered the release of eight enslaved people, including six children.

The display is moving to courthouses throughout the state. It was in Albion this week and will remain at the courthouse through next Friday. It is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 said enslaved people who made it to free states could be arrested and returned to their “owners” in slave states. This panel is among the displays in an exhibit at the Orleans County Courthouse.

The display highlights the Lemmon Case from 1852 to 1860.

The Lemmon family was moving eight enslaved people them from Virginia to Texas. At the time of 1852, it was common to board a ship in New York as part of a trip from Virginia to Texas, according to the display which was researched by the Historical Society of New York Courts.

The Lemmon case began in Nov. 6, 1852 when Louis Napoleon brought a writ of habeas corpus before the New York Superior Court. He asked the court to declare the freedom of eight people the Lemmon family claimed to own.

The enslaved people were being transported by the Lemmon family from one slave state (Virginia) to another (Texas) where the Lemmons planned to settle.

Janet DiFiore, Chief Judge of the State of New York, said the ruling in the case “was in direct conflict with the Supreme Courts infamous Dred Scott decision of 1857 and it represented one of the most unyielding anti-slavery decisions made by any court in the United State prior to the Civil War.”

She encouraged people to take time to learn about the case. The exhibit is planned to be on display at 45 courthouses over a nearly two-year stretch.

“We are grateful to the Historical Society on the New York Courts for creating this excellent exhibit on the Lemmon Slave case featuring a short documentary narrated by James Earl Jones that brings to life the courageous lawyers, judges and citizens including many New Yorkers of color who helped rescue and represent the 8 enslaved people,” DiFiore said.

Some highlights about slavery in America included in the exhibit:

• By 1850, enslaved people had been in America for approximately 230 years. Starting as a trickle of enslaved people in 1619 and the 1620s, by 1850 there were more than 4 million enslaved people in the United States.
• Despite the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, more than 1,000 formerly enslaved people passed through New York to freedom, aided by the Underground Railroad.
• Louis Napoleon, who pushed to free the eight enslaved people, lived in Staten Island. His mother was an enslaved African-American and his father a white French Jew. Napoleon made helping to free enslaved people his life’s work. His obituary listed his occupation as a conductor on the Underground Railroad.
• The people enslaved by the Lemmons lived free in Canada for most of the 1850s. That was a decade when slavery and anti-slavery passions were so intense that it led to the Civil War.
• Harriett Beecher Stowe’s anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, also was published and sold 300,000 copies in the first year. The detailed depictions of the brutality of slavery motivated more people to be abolitionists.

ALBION – A man who fired shots from a gun last Sept. 1 in Ridgeway was sentenced last week to six months in the Orleans County Jail.

Paul Gulczewski, 28, was charged on Sept. 1 after police were called with reports of gunshots from a Ridgeway residence.

Gulczewski had a loaded 9 mm handgun, a large capacity ammunition feeding device which held 30 bullets, and was in possession of cocaine.

He pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree. Gulczewski, who is now an Albion resident, also will be on probation for five years. He was sentenced by County Court Judge Sanford Church.

In another case in county court, Dale Shawver, 60, of Albion pleaded guilty to first-degree sexual abuse, a D felony, and criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, which is a misdemeanor.

He allegedly touched a 12-year-old girl in an intimate area. When he was charged, he turned in his weapons and a gun met the criteria for being an assault rifle under the state’s SAFE Act.

Shawver faces up to 6 months in jail and 10 years of probation when he is sentenced on Sept. 14.

ALBION – A Medina man was arraigned in Orleans County Court on Wednesday for first-degree assault for allegedly stabbing a person in the chest on May 11 in Medina.

Deante Johnson, 19, was arraigned on two different indictments in court on Wednesday. For the May 11 incident, he also faces charges of criminal possession of a weapon in the first degree and menacing.

In a separate indictment on April 26, he allegedly brandished knives at a home where the resident had an order of protection from him. He was arraigned for first-degree criminal contempt, fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and menacing.

Johnson entered not guilty pleas during the initial court appearance. He is next due back in court on July 20.

Judge Sanford Church set bail at $10,000 cash and $50,000 bond.

In other cases in County Court on Wednesday:

• Dakoda Watson, 23, of Holley was sentenced to six months in the county jail and five years probation. He was violated an order of protection and slashed tires on a vehicle. He was ordered to pay $653 in restitution for the tires.

“I deeply regret everything I’ve done,” Watson told Judge Church during sentencing. “I wish I could take it all back.”

• Matthew Daugherty, 27, of Lockport was sentenced to a year of probation and two years of shock camp for criminal possession of controlled substance in the seventh degree.

• Joshua Rothmund, 37, of Holley appeared on a probation violation. There has been a warrant for his arrest out of Livingston County for four years. Even though he faces a misdemeanor, Judge Church said he would set bail at $2,500 due to Rothmund not appearing to probation for four years.

• Gileyla Arroyo, an incarcerated woman at the Albion Correctional Facility, admitted to trying to have fentanyl and methamphetamine brought into the prison on June 2, 2021.

She pleaded guilty to attempted promoting prison contraband in the first degree and faces up to another 1 ½ to 3 years in prison. She will be sentenced on Sept. 21, 2022.

ALBION – A man from Middleton in Orange County was sentenced to 1 ½ to 3 years in state prison today for bringing Oxycontin, Suboxone strips and marijuana into the Orleans Correctional Facility, attempting to give them to his brother.

Jamarr Gooden, 33, was charged on Nov. 13, with first-degree attempted introduction of dangerous prison contraband.

He allegedly had the contraband in four latex balloons. He was visiting his brother, who was an inmate at the prison in Albion.

County Court Judge Sanford Church gave Gooden, a second-felony offender, the maximum sentence that was part of a plea agreement.

In other cases today in court:

• Judge Church set bail at $10,000 cash and $20,000 bond for a Genesee County man who is accused of multiple car and building break-ins.

Travis Cook of Le Roy was charged on Saturday after a break-in in Barre. He has a codefendant who isn’t being held in jail. Cook, however, has four probation revocations and three prior felonies.

He has been charged with burglary, petty larceny and conspiracy with the break-ins in Orleans County.

• After a sex offender registry hearing, Judge Church determined James Johnson, 24, of Brockport is a level three sex offender. Johnson is on probation for 10 years for second-degree rape for having sexual intercourse with a girl aged 14 in June 2019.

• Also after a sex offender registry hearing, Judge Church determined Spencer Burton, 20, of Albion is a level two sex offender. Burton was recently sentenced to six months in the county jail and 10 years of probation for second-degree rape. He forced a 13-year-old female to have sex when Burton was 19.

ALBION – A New Jersey man who came to Orleans County on July 4, 2021 and put a knife to the throat of a Medina man was sentenced to 1 to 3 years in state prison today.

Mark Anson, 39, of Morristown previously pleaded guilty to third-degree attempted burglary, for illegal entry with intent to commit a crime.

He could have faced a maximum of 1 1/3 to 4 years as part of a plea deal. His attorney, David Wade, asked for probation and no jail time. He said Anson is a family man with skills in his profession.

When Judge Sanford Church announced the sentence included incarceration, Anson became angry and shouted the f-word several times at the judge and District Attorney Joe Cardone, claiming “this court is rigged.”

He was led out of the courtroom and to the county jail.

Judge Church considered added more time to sentence for contempt of court, but opted to stay with the 1 to 3 year sentence.

“That is the worst disrespect I’ve ever seen shown in court,” Church said.

Wade, Anson’s attorney, apologized on behalf of Anson after he was removed from the courtroom.

In other cases in county court:

• William Holmes, 35, was sentenced to weekends in jail over four months plus five years of probation for attempted assault with intent to cause serious physical injury to someone. Holmes was in an argument with another patron at Poler’s Pub  in Medina Jan. 8, 2022. Holmes allegedly pulled a knife and cut the other person in the hand.

• Michael Borrero, 23, of Medina pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree. As part of a plea agreement, he faces a maximum of 1 1/2 to 3 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 20.

Borrero, a second felony offender, isn’t allowed to have a firearm. He admitted he had a shotgun on Jan. 8 and fired twice in the ground towards another person, who Borrero said came to his home and was threatening him.

• Christopher Doxey, 37, of Medina was arraigned for third-degree criminal mischief and second-degree menacing with a weapon. He allegedly was in an argument at someone’s house on Feb. 16 and hit a car with a baseball bat. He was released on his own recognizance with no bail.

• Stephen Lopez, 38, of Medina was arraigned on charges of fourth-degree criminal possession of a narcotics drug, driving a motor vehicle with a BAC over .08 percent, felony DWI due to another conviction within the past 10 years, and aggravated unlicensed operation in the first degree.

Lopez was stopped by police for allegedly driving while drunk on Feb. 2. He allegedly had cocaine in the vehicle. He was released today on his own recognizance with no bail.

ALBION – A Medina man was sentenced to 364 days in the Orleans County Jail for driving while intoxicated and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Michael R. Coffey, 75, was stopped by State Police in Carlton on Sept. 10, 2021. He has seven prior alcohol-related offenses, the district attorney’s office said.

Judge Sanford Church sentenced Coffey last week to the maximum under a plea agreement.

In another case, Jason Raiser, 42, of Knowlesville was arraigned for one count each of first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.

He allegedly had inappropriate contact with a female from 2018 to 2021, beginning when the girl was 9. He has posted $5,000 bail. Judge Church issued an order of protection for the girl.

Press Release, U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross

ROCHESTER – U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that John Cecchini, 28, of Albion pleaded guilty to bank robbery and four counts of Hobbs Act robbery before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

John S. Cecchini

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean C. Eldridge, who is handling the case, stated that between April 2 and April 5, 2021, Cecchini, a former Medina resident, committed robberies at five locations across Clarkson, Lyndonville, Albion and Medina:

• On April 2, 2021, Cecchini robbed the Five Star Bank branch at 2 West Avenue, Clarkson. He handed a bank employee a note which read, “Please do not make me hurt you. I need all of your money in your drawer and hurry up. You delay, I’ll start shooting.” Before the teller could read the note, Cecchini said, “give me all of the money in the drawer before I start shooting.” The teller complied and gave him cash, and Cecchini fled the area.
• On April 3, 2021, Cecchini robbed the Discount Groceries and More at 11 South Main Street, Lyndonville. He entered the store and handed a store employee a note that read “I don’t want anyone to get hurt” and verbally demanded all of the money in the cash drawer. The employee complied with Cecchini’s demands and handed him cash, and Cecchini left the store and fled the area.
• On April 4, 2021, Cecchini robbed the Alexander’s Mobil Gas Station at 4118 Lake Road, Clarkson. He told an employee that he had a taser and said “This is a stick up. Keep your hands on the counter, act normal.” The employee handed Cecchini cash from the cash register while Cecchini placed his hand in his sweatshirt pocket as if he had a gun. Cecchini took the cash, exited the store, and fled the area.
• On April 5, 2021, Cecchini robbed the Crosby’s Gas Station at 202 North Main Street, Albion. He showed an employee a taser gun and demanded money, saying that the taser had probes in it and he wasn’t afraid to use it if the employee didn’t hurry up. The employee handed Cecchini cash, and Cecchini fled the area.
• Later in the day on April 5, 2021, Cecchini robbed the Family Dollar at 11322 Maple Ridge Road, Medina. Cecchini asked a store employee “have you ever been robbed before?” while holding an object in his hand as if it were a weapon. The employee handed Cecchini cash, and he fled the area in a car. After a brief chase, Cecchini was apprehended.

The plea is the result of/culmination of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Major Crimes Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; the Medina Police Department, under the direction of Chief Chad Kenward; the Albion Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Mogle; the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Eugene Staniszewski; the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Christopher Bourke; and the Orleans County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney Joseph Cardone.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 16, at 3 p.m. before Judge Geraci.

ALBION – Two people were sentenced in Orleans County Court on Wednesday, including a Rochester woman for taking a BMW and a credit card in Carlton.

Qyashitee Davis, 45, Rochester pleaded guilty in a previous court appearance to grand larceny in the fourth degree. She was sentenced to 1 to 3 years in state prison by County Court Judge Sanford Church.

Davis will need to pay restitution of $3,885. The judge issued an order of protection for the victim for the next eight years.

In another case, James Johnson, 24, of Brockport was sentenced to 10 years of probation for second-degree rape for having sexual intercourse with a girl aged 14 in June 2019.

Johnson also needs to pay $425 in court and crime victim fees. The judge issued a stay away order for Johnson to have no contact or communication for the victim in the crime. A sex offender registry hearing was scheduled for May 18 to determine which level of sex offender Johnson will be on the register.

The judge also arraigned other defendants for crimes in Orleans County:

• William Grathouse III, 48, of Clarendon was arraigned for third-degree arson, second-degree insurance and fourth-degree criminal solicitation.

Grathouse allegedly had someone start a fire at his home at Holley-Byron Road on Nov. 29, 2020 so he could collect the insurance money. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

• Roy A. Watson Jr., 33, of Batavia was arraigned for second-degree burglary and two counts of criminal mischief in the third degree. He allegedly entered a home on Park Avenue in Medina without permission and broke a window, door, door frame and some household items. He pleaded not guilty.

• Adam Locke, 37, of Albion was arraigned on six counts of first-degree sexual abuse and one count of acting in manner injurious to a child.

Locke allegedly had a child sitting on his knee and on multiple occasions between July 2017 and August 2018 subjected the child to sexual contact while clothed. Locke entered not guilty pleas to the charges.

• Nicholas McKague, 30, of Batavia is to be released from the Marcy Correctional Facility on April 14. He was sentenced to prison for seven years after he allegedly raped a 5-year-old child in Clarendon in 2011. The judge held a sex offender registry act hearing and assessed McKague as a level two offender.

ALBION – A Clarendon man pleaded guilty in Orleans County Court this morning to criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and reckless endangerment in the second degree.

Jonathan Jimenez, 23, of Thomas Estates in Clarendon admitted in court today he had a 9 mm Luger handgun and discharged it last Aug. 8 in Albion.

He faces a maximum of 7 years in state prison when he is sentenced on May 25. Without the plea agreement, Jimenez could have faced up to 15 years in prison if he went to trial and was convicted.

Jimenez was charged on Aug. 17 after exchanging gunfire twice in the Village of Albion with Prince Z. Wilson, 23, on Aug. 8 and Aug. 14. Jimenez was wounded in the leg on Aug. 14.

Wilson also appeared in court today and rejected a plea offer for the same charges and a cap of 12 years in prison.

In another case, Brian Beach, 50, of Albion was sentenced to 1 ½ to 3 years in prison for criminal contempt in the first degree for violating an order of protection. Judge Sanford Church issued another order of protection for the maximum of 8 years for the victim in the case. Beach is a second-felony offender.

Press Release, U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross of Western District of New York

BUFFALO – U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Jason David Willis, 47, of Gasport pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography following a prior conviction before Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny.

The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum of 40 years, and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango, who is handling the case, stated that in 2011, Willis was sentenced to serve 132 months in prison following his conviction on a federal child pornography charge.

On May 18, 2021, an acquaintance of Willis’ brought his iPhone to the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office and stated that contained child pornography. The following day, on May 19, 2021, a U.S. Probation Officer searched the iPhone and observed two videos in the “recently deleted” folder on the phone that were produced by Willis on October 24 and October 28, 2020. Both videos depicted explicit images of a 17-year-old minor female. Further review of the iPhone revealed internet history for at least one website containing child pornography.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia, the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Michael Felicetti, and the U.S. Probation Department, under the direction of Chief Probation Officer Timothy C. Englerth.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 15 at 9 a.m. before Judge Skretny.

ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church sentenced two people to incarceration today in County Court.

Gary Ettinger, 35, of Albion was sentenced to a year in state prison and a year of post-release supervision for attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree.

Ettinger allegedly sold Suboxone to an undercover officer on the Major Felony Crime Task Force. Ettinger also missed several court appearances.

He needs to pay $60 in restitution to the Task Force, a $300 court surcharge and $25 crime victims fee.

Spencer Burton, 20, of Albion was sentenced to six months in the county jail and 10 years of probation for second-degree rape. He forced a 13-year-old female to have sex when Burton was 19.

Burton apologized to the victim in court today.

“I take full responsibility for my actions,” he told Judge Church. “I knew they were wrong.”

District Attorney Joe Cardone said the crime has had “a tremendous ripple effect on the victim’s family and his (Burton’s) family.”

The DA asked the judge to sentence Burton to time in jail and on probation.

In addition to the jail and probation, Burton must also pay a $1,000 sexual offender victim fee, $300 court surcharge, $50 crime victim’s fee and $50 DNA fee.

He also will likely be on the sex offender registry. There will be a hearing on May 18 to determine if he will be on the sex offender registry and at what level.

In another case in county court recently, a jury found Dino Callara, 54, guilty on Feb. 22 of one count of 4th degree grand larceny and two counts of petit larceny. He will be sentenced on April 20 and faces a maximum of 4 years in prison.

Callara is being held without bail until sentencing because he attempted to contact a juror after both sides rested in the trial, but before deliberations. Anthony Bruce of Orchard Park served as special prosecutor in the case.

‘The huge benefit is justice would be administered more evenly. Things are not on an even playing field from town to town – they just aren’t.’ – Public Defender Joanne Best

CARLTON – Orleans County District Attorney Joe Cardone has been talking for at least a couple years about a district court in Orleans. That would include at least two towns with one judge.

Joe Cardone

Cardone said it may make the most sense to have three district courts – one on the east side for Murray, Clarendon and Kendall; the central towns of Barre, Albion, Gaines and Carlton; and the west end with Shelby, Ridgeway and Yates.

That would result in a more unified approach to justice in the county, where Cardone and Public Defender Joanne Best said there is currently a lack of consistency among the 10 town courts, as well as the CAP Court where there are arraignments twice a day in the County Jail with town justices serving in the CAP on a rotational basis.

Cardone and Best both spoke about the issue last week during the monthly meeting of the Orleans County Association of Municipalities at the Black North Inn. They want to keep having a discussion about the issue.

Cardone has tried before, requesting information from the towns on how much they spend annually for their justice courts, with salary and benefits for judges and court clerks, as well as other costs – security utilities and equipment. But Cardone said he didn’t get much response from that request.

There are currently 13 town justices in the county. Cardone, who has been district attorney for about 30 years, said that is down from about 25 local justices when he started. The villages of Albion, Medina and Lyndonville have all ended their courts with those caseloads assumed by the towns in those villages.

Cardone and Best see more room for streamlining court functions, and offering more consistency and professionalism. With a district court one judge would serve a court that covered at least two towns.

Joanne Best

“The huge benefit is justice would be administered more evenly,” Best told the group of town, village and county officials. “Things are not on an even playing field from town to town – they just aren’t.”

Cardone said the Orleans County Magistrates Association, which represents the 13 towns justices, don’t want to make the change to district courts with fewer judges.

He said the change would keep the fine money with the local municipalities and would also bring resources from the state Office of Court Administration.

Richard Moy, the Clarendon town supervisor, said he discussed a district court with the Clarendon Town Board and the group wasn’t interested in pursuing it. They see less local control, and a court run by lawyers, including a judge who would likely be an attorney.

Moy said attorneys already have too many key positions in the government.

“Look at our country, who are the senators and congressmen? They’re lawyers,” Moy said. “People see lawyers taking over the country.”

Cardone and Best said it would be beneficial to people in court to have a judge with years of background in the law.

Moy acknowledged there is varying degrees of competence among town justices, but he said that would continue if there was a switch to district courts with lawyers behind the bench.

“Not all lawyers are good judges,” he said.

Cardone and Best said they want the local government leaders to discuss the issue and look at how it could work in Orleans County – before there is a directive from the state.

“Regionalism is coming to our communities, one way or the other,” Best said. “We need to try to get ahead of the curve because the state could mandate it. Let’s develop something for our county rather than being told what to do.”

The local officials asked Cardone to put together cost estimates with a district court, and how it could save or cost more for towns with their current court budgets.

Cardone said it will depend on how many towns join in a district court. Right now he said the courts aren’t “money-makers” for the towns, and they shouldn’t look at a district court, even with less personnel, as a court that could be run cheaper.

Cardone said the focus should be on dispensing justice in a consistent and fair way across the county.

“I see things moving in this direction where things are done more professionally than they are now,” Cardone said.

It’s not something that will happen “overnight,” Cardone said. He said it could take several years to implement the district courts. The change can’t happen until the terms expire for elected town judges. Some towns last November elected judges to new four-year terms.

County Legislator Bill Eick of Shelby urged the local leaders to be open to discussing the issue.

“It’s a change factor and no one wants change,” Eick said. “We need to act before it’s shoved down our throats.”

ALBION – An Albion man was sentenced today to 1 ½ to 3 years in state prison for breaking into a home and then waving a knife towards a resident inside.

Joshua Biaselli, 38, allegedly broke into the home on May 3, 2021. He faced charges of second-degree burglary and criminal possession of a weapon.

Biaselli pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree. He was sentenced today in Orleans County Court by Judge Sanford Church.

Biaselli is a second felony offender. He was sentenced in Febraury 2018 in County Court to 1 1/3 to 4 years in state prison after driving intoxicated and crashing into a garage with a stolen car.

In other cases in County Court today:

• Paul Gulczewski, 28, pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree. Gulczewski, formerly of Ridgeway but now an Albion resident, was charged on Sept. 1 after police were called with reports of gunshots from a Ridgeway residence.

He had a loaded 9 mm handgun, a large capacity ammunition feeding device which held 30 bullets, and was in possession of cocaine.

He faces up to 1 1/3 to 4 years in state prison when he is sentenced on May 4.

• Leo Woodrich Jr., 58, of Medina pleaded guilty to misdemeanor driving while intoxicated and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the third degree. He could spend up to 1 to 3 years in prison when he is sentenced on May 4.

He was driving in an erratic manner and under the influence on Oct. 22, 2021, said District Attorney Joe Cardone. Woodrich was going about 30 miles per hour when he rear-ended another vehicle that was stopped, causing extensive damage to that vehicle, Cardone said.

Woodrich acknowledged he was driving with a license that had been suspended the previous day after he pleaded guilty in Barre Town Court to driving while ability impaired.

• Luis Sanchez, 32, of Albion was arraigned on charges of criminal contempt in the first degree, assault in the second degree, tampering with a witness and robbery in the third degree.

Sanchez allegedly took a person’s phone, violated an order of protection and injured the person who was ordered to stay away from.

ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church today sentenced an Albion man to two years in state prison, plus two years of post-release supervision for selling cocaine.

Henry Rodgers, 56, was charged in February 2020 after allegedly making one sale of cocaine in Albion.

He pleaded guilty to criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree. He was sentenced as a second-felony offender with a previous felony of driving while intoxicated.

Also in County Court today, a Middleton town man pleaded guilty to attempted promoting of prison contraband.

Jamarr Gooden, 33, was charged on Nov. 13, 2021 after bringing Oxycontin and Suboxone into the Orleans Correctional Facility with intent of passing them to an inmate.

He will be sentenced on May 11 and faces a maximum sentence of 1 ½ to 3 years in prison.