Attorneys for Albany imam pin hopes to new policy, Moreland report highlights "payback culture" in Albany, SCCC President leaving for Pennsylvania

Attorneys representing the engineer who was driving the Metro North commuter train that ran off the rails in the Bronx say the man nodded off at the controls just before the wreck and caught himself too late. [AP/TU]

Attorneys for Yassin Aref, the Albany imam convicted in 2006 of laundering money from a terror plot that turned out to be an FBI sting operation, are hoping a recent policy change in US attorney general Eric Holder's office may lead to their client's release. At a rally for Aref on Tuesday, attorneys said the policy would require that previously withheld evidence in the case be released. Supporters of Aref at the rally included Albany Common Council member Dominick Calsolaro, who said: "We have people who were prosecuted based on evidence that the defense never got to see." [TU][YNN][Record][WNYT]

The Moreland Commission report released this week highlights what's described as a "payback culture" in Albany between elected officials and campaign donors, but did not name names about which elected officials or political donors might face prosecution based on evidence uncovered in the panel's investigation.[NYT]

There appears to be a lot of overlap between Andrew Cuomo's recent legislative platform recommendations and the findings of the Moreland Commission. [Capital]

UAlbany School of Business Weekend MBA ad 2012 summer

Albany police are investigating a Tuesday morning shooting on Orange Street. Police say they found a 28-year old man with a gunshot wound to the leg .[WNYT][APD]

Schenectady police say a second man has been charged in connection with the shooting death of a man outside the Mont Pleasant Middle School last month. [TU]

A Milton woman and her boyfriend were arrested for allegedly stealing jewelry and other property from houses she was hired to clean.[TU]

A 32-year old Albany man was arrested on Tuesday in connection with a Sheridan Avenue robbery in November. [APD]

A Rotterdam woman has filed a notice of claim against the police department -- the first step in a lawsuit -- alleging officers falsely arrested her and beat her last summer. [Gazette]

Among the cuts being considered in the Niskayuna School District in an effort to deal with a projected $2.6 million deficit next year, on top of a $4 million deficit in 2013: closing Van Antwerp Middle School. [YNN]

After four years at the helm of Schenectady County Community College, Quintin Bullock will step down to take a position heading up the Community College of Allegheny County in Pennsylvania. The new job pays more. [TU] [Gazette]

The Provost at the University of La Verne in California< a href="http://blog.timesunion.com/schools/new-president-named-at-albanys-pharmacy-college/2173/">has been named the next president of Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Science.[TU]

Two people from Waldon Farms and Stone-Brooke stables pleaded not guilty to animal neglect charges in Bethlehem town court after officers removed what they say were sick and malnourished horses from the farm. [YNN]

A New York State appeals court upheld the conviction of a former Bethlehem police officer for possessing a forged police retirement card and using it to try to obtain a police retirement badge while he was on paid disability leave. [TU]

A health insurance company that overcharged about 1,500 Capital Region college students will issue refunds averaging about $107 per student under the terms of a settlement with the state. [TU]

Nurses at Bellevue Women's Center in Schenectady have voted in favor of unionizing.[YNN]

A game of "musical parking spots" for state employees. [TU]

Many Green Island residents were without water on Wednesday morning after a water main broke on George Street.[YNN]

State Farm has sold two office buildings and 163 acres of property near Northway exit 12 in Malta and plans to lease it back for 15 to 25 years. [Gazette]

Coffee? You want coffee? You can't handle the coffee.[TU]

A pair of 9-month old Kunekune pigs in Halfmoon have a new job as spokespigs for Saratoga Sweets [Saratogian]

Comments

The Moreland Commission Report is great and all but it's not exactly providing transparency for voters if it's not naming names.

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