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WJTN News Headlines for Jun. 3, 2019

A pair of severe storm lines that passed through Chautauqua County last Saturday afternoon and early evening caused some significant flooding, and large trees to be taken down.....  

Local police agencies say the clean-up was still well underway yesterday after the storms.  Forecaster Kirk Apfell with the National Weather Service in Buffalo says the first storm occured about 3:30 PM, and brought heavy rain.  The second one -- about 6:30 PM -- brought more rain and wind.

The first storm triggered flash flooding in several locations, including Lakewood, where much of the parking lot at the Chautauqua Mall was under water.  There was also flooding under the railroad viaduct on the west side of the village, forcing the closing of Fairmount Avenue between Green Street and Winch Road.  The high winds came with the second round of storms at about 6:30 and, caused a lot of damage on Old Fluvanna Road in the town of Ellicott.  Apfell says that was likely straight line winds.  There were also trees reported down in Lakewood, Bemus Point, Greenhurst, and the city of Jamestown.  There were also a number of scattered power outages in Jamestown and Falconer.


A man was shot in the leg multiple times during an early morning incident last Saturday on Jamestown's southside.... 

City police were called to a report of shots fired in the area of Charles Street and Newland Avenue just after 3:30 AM.  Officers say they found the 22 year-old victim, wounded, and he was rushed to UPMC Chautauqua Hospital.  He was then transferred to UPMC Hamot in Erie, Pennsylvania for further treatment.  Police say the victim has not been cooperative and, investigators are asking the public for it's help.  You can call the JPD Tip line anonymously at 483-TIPS, that's 483-8477.  You can also contact them through the Tips 4-1-1 app.

 

A Jamestown man has been arrested for allegedly making terroristic threats at his place of employment....  

City Police Chief Harry Snellings says officers served a warrant on 61 year-old Thomas Gazdak at the undisclosed company about 7:30 AM Saturday and, arrested Gazdak for Making a Terroristic Threat.  Snellings says the threat was allegedly made this past Thursday.  Gazdak was taken into custody without incident, and is being held pending arraignment.  It comes in the wake of a workplace shooting that claimed a dozen lives in Virginia Beach.
  

Chautauqua County's representative in the New York state Assembly says he's continuing to push against a bill that would give farm workers in the state collective bargaining rights, overtime and a day of rest each week....  

The Jamestown area Republican says the Farmworker Fair Labor Practices Act will likely be approved in the Assembly.  However, he says recent hearings by the Senate showed how opposed local farmers are to the bill.  Goodell is calling more hearings.

Goodell says members of a Senate Committee recently got an earful during the upstate sessions.  He says says one of the key members operates a farm on Long Island, and he's hopeful they'll put the brakes on the proposal.  There are at least a couple of entities, including the New York State Catholic Conference, that support the Farmworker Fair Labor Practices Act.  It's also supported by the state AFL-CIO.

 
A federal appeals court says the Drug Enforcement Administration must "act promptly" if formally asked to take another look at laws that consider marijuana as dangerous as heroin or LSD....  

The ruling came Thursday in a 2-to-1 vote by judges from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.  It stems from a lawsuit brought by the Cannabis Cultural Association and several individuals, including an Iraq war veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.  The plaintiffs now have an opening to persuade federal authorities to change how they classify marijuana.  Many states have legalized recreational pot use, but marijuana is still illegal under federal law.  Jduge Guido Calabresi wrote that a review of current law might find that it was once rational but "is now heading towards irrationality."

A local human service agency has received a grant to provide Head Start and Early Head Start Programs in the Jamestown-area....  

Local Congressman Tom Reed has announced the grant, which totals about $2.59-million,  for Chautauqua Opportunities, Incorporated.  Reed says he cares about ensuring a quality education for children, adding the grant "enables Chautauqua Opportunities to provide Head Start and Early Head Start programs to promote school readiness of young children from low-income families.  COI's Chief Executive Officer Diane Hewitt-Johnson says they've provided both services since they were first implemented in the U-S. 


The economic benefits of the Empire State Trail for western New York will be discussed at an upcoming forum at the University at Buffalo.....  

The gathering Wednesday is the fifth State University of New York/Erie Canal Bicentennial Forum sponsored by the state Canal Corporation and Department of State.  The Empire State Trail is an initiative to build a 750-mile network of trails from New York City to the Canadian border and along the Erie Canalway Trail from Albany to Buffalo.  It was launched by Governor Andrew Cuomo and is supposed to be completed in late 2020.  In western New York, a two-mile section of the Erie Canalway Trail in Pendleton is scheduled for completion in July, providing an uninterrupted 135-mile stretch of trail from Buffalo to Lyons in Wayne County.