Latest news with #GeneseeCounty
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tenney gets first challenger for Congress in 2026 -- Democrat Kastenbaum of WNY
Jul. 4—Claudia Tenney has her first declared opponent in her run for reelection to represent New York's 24th Congressional District — Diana K. Kastenbaum, a former manufacturing CEO from Batavia, Genesee County who once sought the Democratic nod for the now-defunct 27th District nearly a decade ago. In an announcement shared on Wednesday, Kastenbaum said she would seek to focus on "kitchen table" issues like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, rural healthcare, veterans services, education and workforce shortages in the district, which stretches from Jefferson County to Niagara Falls, largely following the southern shore of Lake Ontario. "Our rural hospitals and nursing homes depend on Medicaid funding to serve our communities," Kastenbaum said. "Our farmers need workers who are willing to do the essential work of feeding America. Our veterans deserve the services they've earned through their honorable service. These aren't partisan issues — they're neighbor issues." Kastenbaum has retired from running her company, Pinnacle Manufacturing, and currently serves as a trustee on the SUNY Genesee Community College board. Kastenbaum has been slowly rebuilding her political presence in the district, launching a series of town hall events across the district with the group "Concerned Citizens NY-24", a nonpartisan community group that aimed to host community forums across the district after the start of the Trump administration. In an interview Wednesday, Kastenbaum said she started organizing that forum with other politically-minded people in western New York to provide a forum for local residents to discuss their thoughts on federal policies and actions, and to better understand the scope of what was going on. Kastenbaum had invited Tenney to attend the nonpartisan forums, but the Congresswoman did not take her up on the offer, and has not hosted a town hall of her own in the district in months. Kastenbaum said it was her experience with the health care system that pushed her to run — she cared for her father and then her husband, former Seinfeld cast member Hiram Kasten, before they died, and said she found the health care system very difficult to successfully move through. "I thought, if I'm having these problems, other people must be too," she said. Kastenbaum said she wants to pitch a stable rural health care system, and said that Republican actions in Washington are doing the opposite. She pointed to the "One Big Beautiful Bill," President Trump's keystone legislation package that includes major cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that are likely to push thousands of Americans off of the government-sponsored health insurance program. Kastenbaum said that bill is going to rip health coverage away from thousands of NY-24 residents, push regional hospitals into financial ruin and make quality of life worse. "I don't know why Claudia Tenney supports this," she said. "She doesn't see what it's going to do to her constituents. She's never here to hear from them." Kastenbaum said she has experience running in a heavily Republican district like NY-24, referencing her previous campaign in NY-27 back in 2016. In that race, she carried 32.8% of the vote to then-Congressman Chris Collins 67.2%. Kastenbaum said she has seen concerns among area Republicans just as much as from Democrats about the direction the country is taking and the priorities the GOP is pursuing in D.C., and she said she thinks there's bipartisan backlash to what's being done. She said the results of the "One Big Beautiful Bill," which House GOP members were debating throughout the day Wednesday, will give local voters a lot more to be mad about. Kastenbaum has been touring the district to meet with local county Democratic committee chairs, and said she's met all of them. She said there are other candidates planning to announce their campaigns in the coming days, and there's likely to be a primary election for the Democratic party in NY-24 this year. Her advantages, she said, are business acumen, a long history in the district as a native born and raised in Batavia, experience in local politics and a passion to fight. "I decided I had to fight, and the best way to do that is to run," she said. As of Wednesday, Kastenbaum and Tenney are the only two candidates to have filed with the Federal Election Commission to run for the seat — Kastenbaum has not recorded any financial information yet because her campaign is too new, but Tenney reported that she has raised $638,790 since January of this year, and has spent $312,046.
CBS News
13-06-2025
- CBS News
Police say security video provided leads on wallet theft investigation in Grand Blanc Township
Woman accused of firing on repo man; Michigan man accused of threats to president; other top stories Woman accused of firing on repo man; Michigan man accused of threats to president; other top stories Woman accused of firing on repo man; Michigan man accused of threats to president; other top stories A man has been arrested in the thefts of wallets and bank cards from unlocked vehicles at parks in Genesee County, Michigan. Lester Muex, 48, of Detroit, was arrested after security video at one of the retailers was used to help identify him using a victim's bank card, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said in a video report. Meux was lodged in the Genesee County jail on six counts of unauthorized use of a financial transaction device, the chief said. The first incident under investigation happened June 1 at Creasey Bicentennial Park on East Grand Blanc Road. The victim was watching a softball game when a man grabbed a wallet out of his unlocked vehicle. The bank cards were immediately used at a local retail store and gas station. Renye said police attempted to access security video from both the store and the gas station, but ran into "roadblocks" and delays in getting permission for review of the footage. "We frequently hear from the public that we're not doing anything with cases ... when in fact we are," he said about the time involved with accessing security images from businesses. "These things take time." While officers were still working on that investigation, a second incident with similar circumstances was reported. The second incident happened June 3 at the Henry Ford Genesys Trails in Grand Blanc Township. The victim had left her car doors unlocked, and her wallet was stolen. The suspect used her credit cards at a different retail store. On this occasion, police were able to get quick access to the business's exterior video, which showed the suspect driving a black, older model pickup truck. Additional security video inside a store gave a view of the potential suspect that police reviewed for leads with facial recognition technology. "That's where our investigation really took off," the chief said. Once they had a possible name, they could start looking into which vehicle he might have been driving The suspect was taken into custody Wednesday without incident after he left a hotel in Chesterfield Township.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Yahoo
Genesee County Sheriff hosts town hall tackling human trafficking with Chris Hansen
The Brief The Genesee County Sheriff hosted a star-powered town hall tackling sex trafficking. To Catch a Predator's Chris Hansen and actress turned human trafficking advocate Marisol Nichols were part of the meeting. Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson says there's no community that's immune from it. HOLLY, Mich. (FOX 2) - A battle is raging in Genesee County and across the nation as predators target and traffic children, sometimes in plain sight. Local perspective The Genesee County Sheriff hosted a star-powered town hall tackling that threat, with To Catch a Predator's Chris Hansen and actress turned human trafficking advocate Marisol Nichols. With predators shifting their tactics, Genesee County's G.H.O.S.T. team has had to shift, focusing more on tracking offenders hiding out online. It's a silent threat many families don't even realize is happening until it's too late. Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson says there's no community that's immune from it. That reminder hit home during an intimate town hall in Holly on Thursday. Renowned journalist Chris Hansen and actress and advocate Marisol Nichols joined the sheriff, warning families of the growing human trafficking crisis and fight against predators. "Why would you think a school teacher or a gym teacher or another father or a coach is going after your kid?" said Marisol Nichols. "Because of the Internet, because of games, apps, social media, any part of it they can reach their child, period." Dig deeper The trio shared details of a G.H.O.S.T. sting they went on Wednesday night in Genesee County, exposing three predators now behind bars. "One drove an hour and a half to our operation here in Genesee County," said Swanson. "We are seeing people come from other countries that are here either illegally or, in last night's case, on a work visa since 1994 out of El Salvador. These people that do this are doing it because it's premeditated, it's intentional, and to that point, that's what needs to catch people's attention." The panel discussed the reality of more children and teens being groomed online, becoming victims of sextortion. "I've sat with multiple sets of parents who've lost their children to suicide because of this," Chris Hansen told FOX 2. "The problem's not going away, so a big part of the solution is the relationship between parents and their children." What's next Sheriff Swanson hopes this will help start those conversations at home. "The game has changed, but we've changed with it," Swanson said. The G.H.O.S.T. team says taking down just one predator can save at least 25 victims. If you or someone you know needs help, contact your local police. The Source FOX 2 visited the town hall hosted by Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson, joined by Chris Hansen and Marisol Nichols.
CBS News
06-06-2025
- CBS News
Detroit woman killed in two-vehicle crash in Genesee County
A Detroit woman was killed in a two-vehicle crash Wednesday afternoon in Genesee County, Michigan. Grand Blanc Township Police Department police chief William Renye reported the victim was an 85-year-old Detroit resident. Her name was not provided. The other driver, a 47-year-old Holly man, northbound Subaru was hospitalized after the crash and is expected to recover from his injuries. The crash happened about 5 p.m. The Detroit woman was driving a Mazda from Holly Road, turning onto Baldwin Road at the time of the crash. The Holly man was driving a Subaru northbound. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victim of this crash," the police chief said. Holly Road was closed at Baldwin during the preliminary investigation and cleanup.
