Wednesday, April 2
Capital Region Car Dealership Owner Convicted for Failing to Pay Over $160,000 in Taxes
Courts

Capital Region Car Dealership Owner Convicted for Failing to Pay Over $160,000 in Taxes

(WNY News Now)NEW YORKA Acting Tax Commissioner Amanda Hiller and Attorney General Letitia James announced Guy Kennedy Nicolas, owner of G&A Auto Care, Inc., was sentenced for avoiding paying more than $160,000 in sales tax that was due to the state of New York. Between 2013 and 2023, Nicolas, of Colonie, New York, and his company were found guilty of underreporting taxable sales totaling over $2 million. According to an investigation conducted by the New York State Police (NYSP), the Department of Taxation and Finance (DTF), and the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), Nicolas neglected to file yearly sales tax returns for his auto dealership for all but two of the ten years in question. The state lost out on vital funding for infrastructure, healthcare, and education as a result of ...
SUNY Jamestown Community College Achieves SUNY Online+ Recertification for 11 Programs, Strengthening Online Education Commitment
Community

SUNY Jamestown Community College Achieves SUNY Online+ Recertification for 11 Programs, Strengthening Online Education Commitment

(WNY News Now) The State University of New York (SUNY) has recertified SUNY Jamestown Community College (JCC) for 11 degree and certificate programs under the esteemed SUNY Online+ accreditation, which is a significant step in increasing access to high-quality online learning opportunities. The State University of New York officially authorized SUNY Jamestown Community College for Online+ recertification in 11 degree and certificate programs. Additional support services for professors and students are offered by online programs that are a part of SUNY Online+. JCC has a strong institutional commitment to providing high-quality online education, and your best practices for managing online programs are excellent, according to SUNY. SUNY Online+-designated JCC programs include: Addictions C...
Tech stocks fall as China’s DeepSeek sparks U.S. worries about the AI race
News

Tech stocks fall as China’s DeepSeek sparks U.S. worries about the AI race

As concerns grew that the Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeekleap was outpacing the United States in AI research, tech stocks fell sharply on Monday morning. The nation's biggest tech companies are tracked by the Nasdaq Composite, which fell more than 3%. The S&P 500 plummeted about 2%, while the Dow dropped fewer than points. China's DeepSeek, which claimed that it took only two months and less than $6 million to construct an open-source artificial intelligence model, was the catalyst for the sell-off. Concerns that China may surpass the United States in the scope and effectiveness of its AI efforts are fueled by the fact that those claims would be significantly less than the hundreds of billions of dollars that American tech companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, and ot...
Earthquake off Maine coast rattles New England
News

Earthquake off Maine coast rattles New England

Light to moderate shaking occurred throughout the state of Maine, as well as in areas of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, on Monday due to an earthquake that was centered off the coast of the state. Just before 10:30 a.m. ET, the U.S. Geological Survey recorded the earthquake as a 3.8-magnitude temblor. About 45 miles southwest of Portland, off the coast of York Harbor, Maine, was the epicenter. As of right now, there have been no reports of fatalities or major damage, and the National Weather Service has not issued any tsunami watches, warnings, or advisories. Since a 4.8-magnitude earthquake near Lebanon, New Jersey, in April, this event was the biggest earthquake recorded in the northeastern United States. According to USGS data, that tremor was the strongest to hit the N...
Lakeshore Flood Warning Issued for Erie and Chautauqua Counties
Chautauqua

Lakeshore Flood Warning Issued for Erie and Chautauqua Counties

(WNY News Now) Rising water levels and hazardous wave action along Lake Erie have prompted the issuance of a Lakeshore Flood Warning for Erie and Chautauqua counties from 10 AM on January 27 to 4 AM on January 28. A Lakeshore Flood Warning has been issued for Erie and Chautauqua counties by the National Weather Service (NWS) Buffalo. The warning will be in effect from 10 AM on January 27 until 4 AM on January 28. This warning is issued because of the anticipated rapid rise in water levels along Lake Erie's eastern shore, which will have a major impact on flooding in the lakeside areas. A number of high-risk areas, such as Dunkirk Harbor, Buffalo Harbor and Canalside, Route 5 in Hamburg, and other flood-prone areas, are expected to experience flooding. High waves and rising water are pred...
Florida Republicans upend DeSantis’ Trump-inspired immigration push
News

Florida Republicans upend DeSantis’ Trump-inspired immigration push

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Republicans are engaged in a civil war, with Governor Ron DeSantis opposing the GOP-controlled state legislature, over President Donald Trump's desire to swiftly restructure the country's immigration system. Earlier this month, DeSantis summoned lawmakers back to Tallahassee for a special legislative session specifically to align state law with a series of anticipated executive orders from Trump that center on immigration. The special session was abruptly ended Monday morning by Republican leaders in the House and Senate, who had previously criticized DeSantis' plans as "premature," and they promptly called their own. Republican leadership was able to draft its own immigration measures, including wording that places the governor in a precarious political positio...
Tech stocks fall as China’s DeepSeek sparks U.S. worries about the AI race
News

Tech stocks fall as China’s DeepSeek sparks U.S. worries about the AI race

As concerns grew that the Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeekleap was outpacing the United States in AI research, tech stocks fell sharply on Monday morning. At the opening bell, the Nasdaq Composite, which monitors the biggest tech companies in the nation, fell 3.4%. The S&P 500 plummeted over 2%, and the Dow dropped 180 points. China's DeepSeek, which claimed that it took only two months and less than $6 million to construct an open-source artificial intelligence model, was the catalyst for the sell-off. Concerns that China may surpass the United States in the scope and effectiveness of its AI efforts are fueled by the fact that those claims would be significantly less than the hundreds of billions of dollars that American tech companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, and...
Justice Department drops case against Texas doctor charged with leaking trans care data
News

Justice Department drops case against Texas doctor charged with leaking trans care data

DALLAS—A Texas physician who referred to himself as a whistleblower on transgender care for juveniles and was charged with unlawfully accessing private information about patients who were not in his care was dismissed by federal prosecutors on Friday. The U.S. district judge in Houston dismissed the case against Dr. Eithan Haim a week after the Trump administration issued executive orders restricting transgender rights. Haim, a 34-year-old surgeon, was accused by the prosecution of taking the information and giving it to a conservative activist with the intention of maliciously harming Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, which is one of the biggest pediatric hospitals in the country. In June, Haim entered a not guilty plea to four counts of improperly obtaining personally identifiable he...
Wolfpack Football Team and Coach Ty Harper Celebrate State Championship Glory at County Legislature
Chautauqua County

Wolfpack Football Team and Coach Ty Harper Celebrate State Championship Glory at County Legislature

(WNY News Now) Coach Ty Harper is honored for his ten years of leadership and retirement, and the Clymer/Sherman/Panama Wolfpack are honored for winning the NYS Class D championship. MAYVILLE, N.Y. At the Chautauqua County Legislature meeting on Wednesday night, the Clymer/Sherman/Panama Wolfpack football team received recognition for their resounding win in the NYSPHSAA Class D championship game. The Wolfpack ended an 11-2 season with a decisive 46-7 victory over Burke Catholic on the Syracuse University campus, securing their title. After winning back-to-back state crowns in 2018 and 2019, the team, which finished first in the state during the postseason, won its third state championship in seven years. Legislators Travis B. Heiser and Martin J. Proctor, together with County Executiv...
Hamas says 8 of remaining 26 hostages are dead, according to source
News

Hamas says 8 of remaining 26 hostages are dead, according to source

AVIV TEL A Middle Eastern official briefed on the situation told NBC News Monday that Hamas has informed Israel that eight of the 26 Israeli detainees scheduled for release as part of the ceasefire's first phase are dead. The extremist organization is thought to have disclosed the precise number of captives killed or alive for the first time. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesperson later said that these figures were consistent with data obtained by Israeli intelligence. Earlier this month, the first three Israeli hostages—Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher, and dual British citizen Emily Damari—were released in return for 90 Palestinian prisoners, the majority of whom were women and children. 200 Palestinian inmates, many serving life sentences after being found guilty of deadly att...