Republicans give Lazio nod for governor, rash of muggings in Saratoga Springs, local Marine back after being wounded in Afghanistan

Rick Lazio got the nod as the preferred candidate for governor at the state Republican Party convention. Neither Steve Levy nor Carl Paladino had enough support to force a primary, though Paladino is talking about petitioning his way onto the ballot and Levy hasn't ruled out a third party run. [NYT] [Buffalo News] [TU] [State of Politics]

The Republicans picked Staten Island DA Dan Donovan to run for attorney general. [Daily Politics]

The pun of the Republican convention: "Reject the status Cuomo." [State of Politics]

David Paterson on the stuck budget: "I'm taking over." The governor says he will start inserting cuts into the weekly budget extenders. That could cause drama because the legislature has to vote those bills up or down with no modification. [WNYT] [TU]

Police say there's been a rash of muggings and burglaries in downtown Saratoga Springs. Police say they've arrested two suspects for one of the muggings. A police lieutenant says the cluster of crimes in a short period of time "does raise our concern a little bit." [Saratogian] [Saratogian] [Post-Star] [YNN]

The attorney for Chad Rubin, the bank robber who pleaded guilty to a proposed plot that involved kidnapping former Rensselaer County DA Patricia DeAngelis, says he will try to have his client's plea revoked. Rubin's attorney is upset that the judge gave Rubin a longer sentence than the one in the plea deal. And he contends that DeAngelis' "If you come near me or my family, I will kill you" victim impact statement was "inflammatory" and "prejudicial." [TU] [Troy Record] [YNN]

Tess Collins says the Lark Tavern will be back -- but maybe not at its original location. [TU]

The family of an Albany Marine who was seriously wounded in Afghanistan says he's back home and recovering. [TU]

Jim Tedisco has confirmed that he's running for re-election. A Democratic challenger, BK Keramati, officially declared he's running yesterday. Keramati played the national anthem on a violin at his announcement. [Daily Gazette $] [Post-Star] [Saratogian]

Six bidders have entered the field for the contract to build a racino at Aqueduct. One of the bidders is a large Malaysian casino operator. Money from an Aqueduct racino deal will go toward propping up horse racing in the state. [TU] [Saratogian]

The state's economic development agency has informed the City of Troy that it can't use $4 million in Restore New York money to redevelop the old Proctor's Theater into a new city hall. [Troy Record]

The contingency budget adopted by the Troy school board includes a slightly smaller tax increase. [Fox23]

An audit by the state comptroller's office concludes that the Town of Berne is holding onto too much money in reserve. A different comptroller's office audit reported that the Village of Menands is holding too much money in its accounts for water and sewer -- and did not get competitive bids for some contracts. [NYS OSC] [TU] [NYS OSC]

Schenectady High School teachers are petitioning to keep associate superintendent Gary Comley on to oversee the restructuring of the school. [Daily Gazette $]

Stillwater has banned outdoor usage for the last 10 days after a spike in usage caused brown water from increased iron levels. [Daily Gazette $]

Albany police say a patrol car hit a cyclist at Delaware and Myrtle yesterday. The woman reportedly rolled up in the car's hood and hit her head on the pavement. [TU] [WNYT]

Albany police say they arrested a man for allegedly stealing two shopping carts full of copper from buildings on Holland Ave. [Fox23]

Comments

re: the police officer and the bicyclist collision

I noticed this weekend that Albany bike cops on Lark Street were NOT wearing helmets. In the past, I've definitely seen officers wearing helmets. Does anyone know if there a policy about this?

On the topic of helmets- it's annoying when reporters mention things like "she was not wearing a helmet." There's no reason to believe this is relevant to her minor injuries, and it certainly had nothing to do with the officer's bad driving. It always feels like an attempt to declare the VICTIM guilty or innocent- rather like describing the sluttiness or conservativeness of a rape victim's attire.

No, it's relevant. As you said, this has nothing to do with the officer's bad driving, and that's exactly *why* you need to wear a helmet. Not because you think you are the best, most careful bicyclist in this corner of the Capital District, but because you have no control of other drivers.

That Albany bike cops may not be wearing helmets is just goddamn wrong. I've always seen them with one though.

1. I can't believe there are people out there that don't think twice about putting on a seatbelt, butride without helmets. C'mon people!

2. Speaking of bikes- Has anyone else noticed that the new "share the road sings" along Washington ave have mysteriously dissapeared?!!!

@Sarah & S: I was watching the news this morning about the poor girl who fell to her death while hiking, and the big headline was, "GIRL WHO FELL TO HER DEATH WAS NOT WEARING APPROPRIATE FOOTWEAR." I get that it's supposed to serve as an education for others who may not take the necessary precautions, but in a way, it seems like they're trying to make her look stupid, and that it was her fault. It's just sad, because a 17 year old girl is dead, and people are squabbling about her shoes.

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