July 12, 2022 Daily Headlines

Ithaca police are investigating a string of burglaries that occurred on Saturday. There were break-ins at Safelite Auto Glass, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, On the Street Pitas, ABC Oriental Rugs, and Warehouse Carpet Outlet. The police are requesting that anyone with information contact the department as soon as possible at (607)330-0000 or www.cityofithaca.org/ipdtips. According to the Ithaca Voice, the police department is encouraging people to take necessary steps to dissuade intruders, like locking doors and windows, after leaving somewhere, as well as leaving exterior lights on, and utilizing alarm systems. 

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Last Thursday, former Watkins Glen mayor Luke Leszyk announced his resignation, effective immediately. According to MyTwinTiers, the resignation follows a Board of Trustees meeting on July 5 where community members brought up multiple sexual harassment and assault allegations which had been leveled against Leszyk. In 2021, Danielle Matthews and her husband, ex-Watkins Glen Police Sergeant Brandon Matthews filed a notice of claim against Leszyk claiming that he had abused his power by attempting to elicit sexual favors from Matthews by threatening her husband’s job. In a letter published on Thursday, he cited harassment and what he called false accusations as the core reasons for his resignation. The Deputy Mayor, Louis Perazzini will be the acting Mayor, according to the announcement. 

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In a letter released yesterday, Janet DiFiore, chief judge of the New York State Court of Appeals, announced that she will be stepping down on August 31st. In her letter, she said that she is going to “move on to the next chapter in life,” although there is no indication of what that might mean. DiFiore wrote the majority opinion overturning a new Democrat-drawn congressional and senate state lines, finding that the Democrats unconstitutionally gerrymandered the districts. According to the Gothamist, DiFiore is stepping down with two years left in her term, leaving it to Governor Hochul to nominate a successor. Top lawmakers are already urging the Governor to name a progressive judge in order to balance the otherwise moderate to conservative Court of Appeals. 

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