Latest news with #Gendron
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Attorneys argue social media not legally responsible for Tops shooting
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Attorneys representing social media companies argued in a Rochester courtroom Tuesday that the sites should not be held legally responsible for the racist mass shooting at Tops that killed 10 Black people on May 14, 2022. The argument was made to the New York Court of Appeals as they seek to dismiss the wrongful death lawsuit that was filed by some of the shooting victims' families who say social media is partly to blame for the deaths of their loved ones. Lawsuit targets social media sites, gun retailers for roles in Tops mass shooting The lawsuit argues that convicted gunman Payton Gendron was radicalized by white supremacist theories he found on social media and that addictive algorithms kept leading the shooter back to racist, antisemitic and violent information. The court also heard from attorneys representing the manufacturer of a gun magazine lock, which Gendron removed during his attack to use high-capacity magazines. John Elmore is one of the attorneys who is bringing this lawsuit against the companies. 'They are all, we believe, to be addictive products and they were dangerous products that could have been made in a safer way,' Elmore said. 'As a result of the way they were manufactured, they were dangerous and in society when corporations make a dangerous product and it's foreseeable people are going to be inured, then they're liable under the products liability theory under New York State law, so we're hoping the judge will see our argument and continue.' Attorneys for the social media companies argued they are not liable, with one of them stating a 'premediated, murderous rampage is not a foreseeable risk of having a social media service.' Arguments took more than three hours and wrapped up late Tuesday. The judges did not make a decision. If the judges deny the appeal, it will then proceed to the discovery phase. Attorneys representing the victims families said the judges were very knowledgeable and that they're hopeful the ruling will be in their favor. Marlee Tuskes is an award-winning anchor and reporter who has been part of the News 4 team since 2019. See more of her work here and follow her on Twitter. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Feeding Hills woman to plead guilty in commercial mortgage scheme
SPRINGFIELD — A woman from the Feeding Hills section of Agawam has agreed to plead guilty in connection with what prosecutors describe as a scheme to defraud commercial lenders. Christine Gendron, 59, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, the United States Attorney's office said in a statement. A plea hearing has not yet been scheduled by the court. Gendron was a certified public accountant who worked as the financial manager for JLL Realty Developers, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Gendron was charged in connection with her sister, Jeannette Norman, and brother-in-law Louis R. Masaschi whose real estate holdings once included the historic Clock Tower Building at 113 State Street in downtown Springfield, prosecutors said. Norman's case is still pending. Masaschi pleaded guilty on April 22 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and two counts of wire fraud. Prosecutors said the three defendants provided materially false, fictitious and fraudulent financial information — including false rent rolls and forged lease agreements for properties in Springfield, East Longmeadow and Enfield, Connecticut — to obtain loans for their companies. After receiving the loans, the companies of the defendants allegedly made some or no payments and ultimately defaulted on the loans, causing substantial losses to the financial institutions and commercial lenders, prosecutors said. Between May 2016 and November 2018, Masaschi, and allegedly Norman, fraudulently obtained or sought to obtain approximately $60 million in loans and caused a total loss of $19 million, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The city of Springfield eventually wrested ownership of the Clock Tower Building and other properties away in order to start redevelopment in the neighborhood. Monarch Place cleaners fear job loss SNAP benefit system will be down Saturday night, Sunday morning Longmeadow man pleads guilty in $19M loan scheme Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Judge rejects motion to dismiss death penalty in Tops mass shooting case
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A federal judge rejected a motion to dismiss the government's notice of intent to seek the death penalty in the Buffalo mass shooting case, according to a district court filing Tuesday. The rejection comes after the defense team for admitted gunman Payton Gendron argued last November that it should be unconstitutional for him to receive the death penalty because he was 18 years old at the time of the racially targeted attack, where he killed 10 Black people and injured three others in the Tops on Jefferson Avenue. Gendron's defense based its motion around the 'alleged abuse of the grand jury,' the decision said. The allegations of abuse include the government using the grand jury process to 'compel irrelevant evidence,' by its questions 'having no relationship to the charges under consideration,' according to the filing. Other reasons cited by the defense for the attempted dismissal of the death penalty were 'improper' questioning, including whether Gendron had different disabilities or whether he 'seemed to be racist,' which was said by the defense to be 'impermissibly obtained information.' The government responded, in part, that whether Gendron 'exhibited racial animus' was 'plainly relevant' to the case's hate crime charges. In 2023, Gendron received 11 life sentences on state charges. Only the federal case carries the possibility of the death penalty. According to Tuesday's decision from U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Vilardo, the court said to allow for the death penalty's dismissal, Gendron would have had to show that the alleged abuse influenced the attorney general's decision to authorize the death penalty, which was not found by the judge. The defense's request to stop the government from using 'any of this information at trial for any purpose' was also denied. Gendron is still able to challenge the admissibility of the grand jury's testimony by filing a pretrial motion, the decision said. In the post month, Gendron's defense has also filed motions to delay the federal trial and change the trial's venue. You can view Judge Vilardo's decision and order below. Katie Skoog joined the News 4 team in April 2024. She is a graduate from the University at Buffalo. You can view more of her work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBC
12-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
Whitehorse retailer stuck with Buffalo Sabres merch after trade sends Dylan Cozens to Ottawa
Social Sharing Diehard Buffalo Sabres fans in Yukon take note, there may be a bargain to be had. The NHL team apparel is no longer the hot commodity it once was in the territory — in fact, it's quite the opposite. That's because Yukon hockey star Dylan Cozens has been traded away. At the Sports Experts retail store in Whitehorse, Sabres jerseys are on sale and hats are adorned with red "sale" stickers. Last month, Cozens — "the workhorse from Whitehorse" — was sent from Buffalo to Ottawa in a blockbuster deal at the trade deadline. And with that move came a shift in allegiance among those in Cozens's hometown who are more keen on cheering for the player than the team. "If anyone wants a good deal on Buffalo gear, we can definitely have a discussion," said Jason Gendron, general manager at Sports Experts, which sells professional sports merchandise. If anyone wants a good deal on Buffalo gear... - Jason Gendron, general manager at Sports Experts in Whitehorse Gendron says while Sabres gear is now collecting dust in his store, it's the opposite with Ottawa Senators gear. "We have seen an uptick since the trade happened," said Gendron. "We're responding accordingly, trying to get some [Senators] gear in." As it stands now, the store doesn't have any Senators merchandise. Gendron says it wasn't a priority until Cozens joined that team. Demand has grown even more since Ottawa clinched a playoff spot for the first time since 2017. "Now that they've made the playoffs we have some jerseys, t-shirts and hats ordered," Gendron said. "I know there's a big fever to get Cozens jerseys but they can't just be ordered on the spot. We do have some blank jerseys coming up." 'Stuff still has value' for proud dad Someone not looking to get rid of Sabres gear is Mike Cozens, Dylan's dad. He estimates he's accumulated about 10 hats and several jerseys. "I'm keeping it," said Mike. "There's people that just got Sabres gear at Christmas, I'm not sure what they're going to do." Cozens says the Sabres gear has a special place in his heart. Dylan made history in 2019 when he became the first Yukoner to ever be selected in the first round of the National Hockey League draft. "The Sabres stuff, you know that was the team that drafted him," said Mike. "It was an exciting time while he was there and that stuff still has a value." Mike is holding on to the Sabres gear for another reason. He says he'd ultimately like to see some of it on display alongside gear from other Yukon star athletes. "It would be great to have a place to show off all our great athletes, our skiers, our swimmers," said Mike. "So that people can go in and see the ski poles from so-and-so. If the city ever decides to do that, I'll have a jersey for them." As for Senators gear being available in time for the playoffs, Gendron is optimistic. "I'm trying to get it flown up as we speak," he said.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Buffalo Supermarket Shooter Really Tried It With This Latest Request
Updated as of 4/5/2025 at 3:00 p.m. ET The white man who gunned down 10 Black people inside a Buffalo supermarket in a racially motivated massacre is facing the ultimate penalty by the Department of Justice. However, he's come up with a slick idea that may or may not change the odds of him meeting the chair. Attorneys for Payton Gendron, 20, filed a request in the U.S. District Court earlier this week arguing that their client has no chance of receiving an unbiased jury if the pool is picked in the area impacted by the shooting, per USA TODAY. 'Due to the overwhelming amount of pretrial publicity, combined with the impact of this case on Buffalo's segregated communities of color, it is impossible for Payton Gendron to select a fair and impartial jury in the Western District of New York,' wrote Gendron's lawyers in the filing. The attorneys argued that a 'diverse group of citizens' should be the ones to deliver a verdict in the case. Gendron is already serving a life sentence after pleading guilty to state charges of murder and hate-motivated domestic terrorism in connection to the fatal mass shooting of ten Black people at Tops Friendly Market back in 2022, per The New York Times. His racist motives were discovered after investigators found a manifesto he posted online, filled with white supremacist ideologies. They also found he targeted this neighborhood because it contained a majority-Black population. Gendron still faces sentencing for federal hate crimes, use of firearms to commit murder and gun charges. Though New York does not hand out the death penalty, court records show the Department of Justice sent a notice of intent to seek the death penalty anyway Friday. '...the United States believes the circumstances in counts 11 to 20 of the Indictment are such that, in the event of a conviction, a sentence of death is justified...' the notice reads. Read more from CBS News: New York does not have capital punishment, but the Justice Department had the option of seeking the death penalty in a separate federal hate crimes case. The gunman had promised to plead guilty in that case if prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty. The Justice Department has made federal death penalty cases a rarity since the election of President Biden, who opposes capital punishment. This is the first time Attorney General Merrick Garland has authorized a new pursuit of the death penalty. Under his leadership, the Justice Department has permitted the continuation of two capital prosecutions and withdrawn from pursuing death in more than two dozen cases. The families of the victims weren't necessarily jovial at the news of the filing. Mark Talley, grandson of Geraldine Talley who was killed in the incident, said he would've rathered Gendron do prison time. 'It would have satisfied me more knowing he would have spent the rest of his life in prison being surrounded by the population of people he tried to kill. I would prefer he spend the rest of his life in prison suffering every day,' he told CBS. In a statement on behalf of the other relatives of the victims, attorney Terrence Connors said the families were relieved of the decision but 'no decision could eliminate the pain and suffering they continue to experience.' In the same breath, Jamila Hodge, CEO of Equal Justice USA, an organization fighting against the expansion of death penalty legislation, said execution will do nothing to solve the real problem. 'The government's decision to pursue a death sentence will do nothing to address the racism and hatred that fueled the mass murder. Ultimately, this pursuit will inflict more pain and renewed trauma on the victims' families and the larger Black community already shattered by loss and desperately in need of healing and solutions that truly build community safety,' Hodge said in a statement. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
