All Over Albany

Duell sentenced for lying in Hulett Street fire case, two shootings in Albany, fate of Albany historic church in balance, commemorating 9/11

Jennica Duell sentenced
Jennica Duell, the mother of Safyre Terry, was sentenced to 11 years in prison Monday morning for lying to a grand jury during the investigation of the Hulett Street fire that killed three of her children, her former boyfriend, and severely injured Safyre. [TU]

Mother speaks of mental health issues in alleged Schenectady fire attack
The mother of the Schenectady man accused of setting his stepfather -- her husband -- on fire last month tells the Daily Gazette about her son's mental health problems and efforts to get her son help in the weeks leading up to the incident. [Daily Gazette]

Questions about Potsdam murder case
The trial of a man accused of killing a 12-year-old boy in Potsdam five years ago has become a topic of intense focus around the North Country -- and it's raised questions about whether the prosecution has been racially motivated and whether the State Police crime lab bent its own rules while analyzing samples from the case. [NYT] [TU+] [TU]

Shootings in Albany
Albany police say they're investigating two separate shootings from over the weekend:
+ APD says a 38-year-old man was found shot in the torso at First Street and Lexington Ave (map) Friday night. [APD]
+ APD says a 19-year-old woman was found shot in the leg early Sunday morning at Robin Street and Sherman Street (map). [APD]

Amsterdam grow factory
Farther afield: Amsterdam police say they found a large-scale pot growing operation inside an old vacant factory building. Three men were arrested. Police used a tractor trailer to cart away the seized equipment. How they found it: There was a power outage in the area and someone called police saying they saw lights in the building and thought it might be a copper theft. [Daily Gazette] [News10] [WNYT] [TWCN]

Capitol graffiti
Among the messages spray painted on the state Capitol sometime Thursday-Friday: "F*** your prisons." [News10]

Troy 911 leak investigation
The grand jury looking at the case of the Jim Gordon/Melissa Gordon 911 call leak has been extended for two months. (If you remember, the audio was leaked to the Times Union -- as the TU puts it -- "by a source the newspaper did not identify.") [TU]

State Assemblyman suicide
State Assemblyman Bill Nojay fatally shot himself in a Rochester graveyard Friday. He had been scheduled to appear in federal court to face charges related to fraud. [NYT] [D&C]

SUNY Poly/GE project
Officials "privately confirmed" to the Times Union Friday that work has resumed on the facilities for the manufacturing collaboration between SUNY Poly and GE at the campus in Albany. (The contractor had stopped construction because the state had stopped payment over SUNY Poly paperwork issues.) [TU+]

Mattison Hollow
Looking at the potential environmental issues related to a plan to log forest in Mattison Hollow in Rensselaer County, not far from Hoosick Falls. [TU]

High school graduation rates
What it took for a Schenectady woman to get back on track and graduate from Schenectady High School with her cohort this summer. [Daily Gazette]

Albany City Court judgeship
Profiling the candidates running for Albany City Court judge. [TU]

Demolition for historic Albany church?
The fate of the the historic Church of Holy Innocents on North Pearl Street is on the agenda for the next Historic Resources Commission meeting. [TU]

Gershon's
Remembering Tony Lauria, the owner of Gershon's Deli, who died last week. [Daily Gazette]

The Pope
A Troy boy has returned from a trip to meet the Pope in Rome. [WNYT]

9/11
There were ceremonies and vigils around the area Sunday to commemorate the attacks on 9/11 15 years ago. Looking back at the events since through the eyes of three local people. [Daily Gazette] [TU+]