All Over Albany

Questions about death of man in Schenectady police custody, getting ready for ride hailing, GlobalFoundries on a roll, victories that don't necessary show up on the scoreboard

Death of man in Schenectady police custody
A woman identifying as the girlfriend of Andrew Kearse -- the man who died while in Schenectady police custody last week -- said she saw police drag the man out of a police car, and that while he was on the ground and unresponsive, officers were joking that he was faking. And the man's wife, who's from the Bronx, tells News10 she questions how long it took for Kearse to get medical attention. SPD chief Eric Clifford in a statement: "Our agency is cooperating fully with this investigation and has every intention of being transparent to the community regarding all the facts related to this incident. The investigation needs to be completed and reported upon by the NYSP before any further comments can be made." [Spectrum] [News10] [Daily Gazette]

State Senate bonuses
+ An attorney for the state Senate Republican majority released a letter Saturday night pushing back on the allegation the majority had improperly directed bonuses to members of the Independent Democratic Caucus, arguing the dispensing of committee chair stipends was at the discretion of the chamber. A spokesman for the Senate's Democratic conference called the letter an "obvious after-the-fact effort to cover up for an outrageous misuse of taxpayer funds." [TU] [NYT]
+ "Insiders" explain to Ken Lovett why the bonuses came about. [NYDN]

Ride hailing
+ A bunch of bits about the impending arrival of ride hailing services such as Uber and Lyft, including the possibility the services could start sooner that originally expected. [TU+]
+ Sara Foss profiles the Schenectady-based taxi service that's been trying to offer a better product as it watches the arrival of ride hailing. [Daily Gazette]

Textalyzer
The backstory on the "textalyzer" tech that's the subject of New York State legislation aimed at cracking down on distracted driving. [AP/Troy Record]

The chip biz
After a shaky start, it appears that the GlobalFoundries chip fab in Malta is on strong run and there are positive signs for the chip industry in this region. [TU+]

Summer switch to Grand Central?
Though it's not official, there are indications that Amtrak is seriously considering switching traffic from upstate New York to Grand Central this summer because of construction at Penn Station. [TU]

Log Bay Day
Law enforcement officials say there's a plan to stop Log Bay Day on Lake George from happening this year -- but it's secret. [TU+]

School votes
+ An overview of local school budgets up for a vote Tuesday. [TU]
+ A detailed look at Schenectady's proposed budget and the candidates for school board. [Daily Gazette x2]

Albany garbage
As its landfill is set to close in a handful of years, Albany has a series of public meetings lined up to talk about how it will handle garbage collection in the future. [TU]

Stray shopping carts
Watervliet is considering a proposed law that would impose fines on stores whose shopping carts wander off. [TU]

Winning, if not necessarily on the scoreboard
Chris Churchill profiles the baseball team at Bishop Maginn, which includes 8 of 13 players who are Karen refugees. [TU+]

UAlbany lacrosse advances
The UAlbany lacrosse team beat UNC 15-12 at Casey Stadium Saturday night to advance in the NCAA tournament. [Daily Gazette]

Surprise
Photo of the day captured was captured by Marc Schultz at the Siena graduation this past weekend when one of the students was surprised by her brother. [Daily Gazette]

Stuff going on today

Front Parlor Albany
Monday: The Front Parlor storytelling series is at the Olde English in Albany. The theme: "Can't Get Enough." Monday 7:30 pm

Top Gun
Monday: The Palace wraps up its current movies series season with a screening of Top Gun. Monday 7 pm -- $5

Smart cities
Monday: The Saratoga Go project is hosting a talk at the Tech Valley Center of Gravity in Troy with John Norton, chief technology officer of Cloud&Things, about smart cities. There will be a Q&A led by Janet Carmosky from AlbanyCanCode. Monday 5:30 pm -- free (registration required)

Albany City Hall on the Road
Monday: Albany City Hall on the Road is at the West Hill Middle School, 395 Elk St. Monday 5:30-7 pm