North East, Pa. woman arrested for falsely accusing man of stealing ring and necklace from her...
A Pennsylvania woman has been arrested after falsely accusing a man of stealing a ring... and, necklace from her at Barcelona Beach earlier this month.  Westfield police were called to the scene on Route 5 in Westfield on Friday afternoon, Aug. 1... for a reported theft from a vehicle.  When they arrived... officers spoke with the woman... 33 year-old Kylee Moore of North East... who accused the unidentified man of stealing her engagement ring.  Police located the man... who cooperated fully with them.  He voluntarily showed them several rings in his possession... but, none of them matched the description provided by Moore.  She's accused of physically grabbing a necklace belonging to the man... while accusing him of the theft.  The man continued his cooperation with the investigation... and, chose to pursue charges related to the unwanted physical contact with Moore.  She was arrested for second-degree harassment... and, was later issued an appearance ticket for Westfield Town Court at a later date.

South Dayton man arrested for alleged trespassing in Hanover, and trying to change locks on home...
An unusual criminal trespassing incident led to the arrest of a South Dayton man after he also allegedly began changing the locks on the doors of a town of Hanover home.  Sheriff's officers say they were called to the unidentified location just after 6 p.m. Monday on a reported trespassing.  Deputies say their investigation determined that 58-year-old Jeffery Cook had unlawfully entered the residence and began changing the locks.  Cook was arrested for second-degree criminal trespass... and, he was issued an appearance ticket for Hanover Town Court.

Wendel says he's again pushing for a "no tax rate increase" in 2026 budget proposal...
Chautauqua County's top-elected official will present his proposed budget late next month for fiscal year 2026.  Republican P-J Wendel says he's already been talking with department heads about the new spending plan... and, he says the preliminary numbers they're working with look pretty good.  At last Friday's CHQ Chamber luncheon... he noted that property assessments are up due to existing home sales.  The current year's budget is $301.9-million, but, did include a slight tax levy decrease and 21-cent per $1,000 tax rate decrease.  Right now... Wendel says his objective is to bring in a no tax rate increase budget for next year.  He says his administration has been able to cut the rate the past five-years in a row... and, was $6.70 per $1,000 this year.  The nearly $302-million budget did include an influx of some undesignated fund balance to bring down the tax levy... or the total amount of money to be raised by taxes.  The 2026 budget needs to be presented to the county legislature by Sept. 25. 

Consolidations on Dunkirk mayor's mind as 2026 budget work begins...
The city of Dunkirk will consider consolidating some departments in next year's spending plan.  Mayor Kate Wdowiasz says one of the ideas being looked at is the consolidation of the Treasurer's, Clerk's and Fiscal Affairs Offices into a centralized business office that would be led by a comptroller.  She says the person would be appointed through Civil Service to keep the office non-partisan.  Wdowiasz says this is being considered... as the city aims to abolish the elected treasurer's position... which city voters will decide on in November.  Meanwhile, she says she has a "wish list" from all of her department heads, but adds that last year's more than 84% property tax hike needs to be taken into consideration.  Wdowiasz says they need to take a "hard look" a consolidating services" to keep taxes affordable for residents.  She plans to present her 2026 city budget proposal in September.

Sherman man falls 20 feet in weekend incident... is being treated for serious injuries...
A man is being treated at an Erie, Pa. hospital for non-life threatening injuries after he fell from a tree in the town of Sherman Sunday.  Members of the Stanley Hose Company in Sherman were called to the scene... along with their ambulance and manpower to tend to the man... who had fallen about 20 feet to the ground in a wooded area.  Officials say the man was found and taken from the woods to a landing zone... and, flown to UPMC Hamot Medical Center in Erie for treatment of serious back and leg injuries.  County EMS assisted.  No other information... including the victim's name... have been released.

City man arrested for stealing items from Gerry Country Fair store...
A man from Jamestown has been arrested for allegedly stealing merchandise from the Country Fair store on Route 60 in the town of Gerry.  Sheriff's officers were called to the scene about 9 a.m. Monday for a possible larceny.  Deputies say they were told that the suspect fled northbound on Route 60... and, they stopped the vehicle... driven by 46 year-old Thomas Dulak.  An investigation led to discovery of the stolen items... and, Dulak apparently tried to give officers a false name.  He was arrested for second-degree criminal impersonation... and, petty larceny.  Dulak was taken to the county jail where he awaits centralized arraignment on outstanding warrants and the new charges.  He was issued an appearance ticket for Gerry Town Court.