All Over Albany

New York part of new state coalition on guns, Mohawk ice jams breaking up, prosecution rests in Percoco trial, push for geothermal in ESP microgrid

Guns
+ The governors of New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Rhode Island say their states are forming a coalition -- States for Gun Safety -- to create a database to supplement the federal background check system, and along with sharing info related to gun law enforcement. [TU] [Politico]
+ Vermont's Republican governor and Democrats in its legislature said Thursday they're in favor of more stringent gun control laws in the state, which one legislator described as a "sea change." (The NYS Attorney General's Office reported in 2016 that Vermont was the #1 source state of "likely-trafficked" guns recovered in the Capital Region.) [Seven Days]
+ The The New York State Sheriffs' Association is pushing for the state legislature to provide funding for at least one armed officer at every elementary and high school. [TU]
+ The president of the Albany Public School Teacher Association on Donald Trump's proposal to arm teachers: "The answer just doesn't make any sense." [WNYT]
+ A 20-year-old Sage College student at a vigil Thursday on what she thought when the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting happened five years ago: "I was really shocked and I said to myself, 'This will never happen again. This is ridiculous.' And then over and over and over, this happened again." [TU]

Ice jams and flooding
The ice jam on the Mohawk River is breaking up, but officials say flooding is still a possibility as conditions change. Residents along the river have been coping with the flooding. [Daily Gazette x2]

Percoco trial
Before resting its cast Thursday, the prosecution shared a bunch of emails it alleged showed Joe Percoco still had significant power and influence within the Cuomo admin and state business while he was on leave to run Cuomo's campaign. [TU]

Investigation of Mechanicville mayor
The Mechanicville City Council voted this week to hire a lawyer to investigate the allegations that mayor Dennis Baker harassed members of the police department. Baker says he'll be "vindicated from false charges." [TU] [Daily Gazette]

NY-21
The cast of Democratic candidates for the NY-21 Congressional District was at a forum in Johnstown Thursday, the first since Dylan Ratigan entered the race -- two candidates dropped out, one of them criticizing Ratigan. [Daily Gazette]

Saratoga County DA
Republican Saratoga County DA Karen Heggen formally announced she's running for re-election -- she already has a primary challenger, Gerald Amedio. [TU]

"That money is essentially being stolen from these clients by the government"
Federal prosecutors are trying to confiscate $9,300 seized during a traffic stop on the Northway in Clifton Park -- they say state troopers found in the cash in a backpack after detecting a strong odor of marijuana, but no drugs were found. [Daily Gazette]

Johnny Oquendo
Johnny Oquendo -- convicted of killing Noel Alkaramla in Troy -- has filed motions to stop his sentencing and represent himself at a new trial. [TU]

ESP microgrid project
Merton Simpson has released a proclamation signed by a group of Albany officials pushing for the state to focus on using geothermal energy for the ESP microgrid project in Sheridan Hollow. [TU]

Knickerbacker Ice Rink
Troy's Knickerbacker Ice Rink has been closed since January because of equipment problems and there's no re-opening date set. [TU]

Stewart's
Stewart's has been focused on building larger stores in recent years because of an upswing in its food-to-go offerings. [Biz Review]

Podcast company
A startup with employees working out of the Troy Innovation Garage is aiming to make podcasting easier. [Biz Review]