790 WTNY Headlines

St. Lawrence County DA Mary Rain on Monday made a formal request that County Judge Jerome Richards disqualify himself from all cases involving her office on the grounds of possible bias. The request was made at the start of court Monday and came after Judge Richards last week disqualified himself from proceedings involving the possible illegal use of county drug forfeiture money as well as proceedings involving the failure of the county to apply for a grant to fund victim's advocate positions within the DA's office. Rain is seeking to convene separate grand juries to look into both matters. Richards denied the DA's request Monday. Richards is a former DA for the county and his time in that office could be part of the DA's investigation.

10:08 AM

Accused murderer Oral "Nick" Hillary remains jailed for the time being in St. Lawrence County. Judge Jerome Richards reserved decision on Monday on whether or not to grant bail to the man who stands accused of killing 12 year old Garrett Phillips at an apartment on Market St. in the Village of Potsdam back in October 2011. He has been formally charged with second degree murder in the case. The bail hearing has been underway since late May. At the center of the dispute is whether or not Hillary should be released on $150,000 bond.

10:07 AM

A Watertown woman was flown to Syracuse with serious injuries following a one vehicle accident that occurred Monday morning on Route 11 south of the city. Twenty five year old Jaclyn Papalski was operating a car northbound just before 9 am when she lost control and struck a tree. She was taken to University Hospital where she was last listed in critical condition. Two passengers in the vehicle, ages 2 and 3, were taken to Samaritan Medical Center where they were treated and released. The accident shut down 11 in the Town of Watertown between Route 232 and County Route 64 for several hours Monday before it was reopened in the early afternoon.

10:07 AM

A not guilty plea from a Hammond man accused of sexual abuse. Forty four year old Robert Petrie Jr. entered the plea during his arraignment Monday on sex abuse charges involving a 12 year old child dating back to last summer in the Town of Macomb. Petrie is facing a total of fifty counts in the case, including predatory sexual assault against a child. He was returned to jail on $50,000 cash bail.

10:06 AM

The 194th edition of the Lewis County Fair gets underway today in Lowville. Opening day ceremonies are scheduled to get underway at 10 am this morning. The midway will open at 4 pm and the annual opening night parade and fireworks display will be this evening. Admission to the fairgrounds will be free throughout the event, which runs through Saturday. This year's fair is also being dedicated to the memory of longtime Fair President Dr. Harry O'Connor who passed away last October.

10:05 AM

The National Weather Service in Binghamton is confirming a tornado did in fact touch down in Schuyler County. Experts from the National Weather Service were surveying the damage Monday. They confirm an EF1 tornado touched down in Reading New York. Officials say wind gusts were around 86 to 110 miles per hour.

10:04 AM

After spending over a week on the road, the Watertown Rams were back home Monday night at the Alex Duffy Fairgrounds. Not the best of homecomings as the Rams fall to Amsterdam by a score of 6-4. The Rams entered the bottom of the ninth down 6-2 and attempted a rally, scoring two runs before the final out was recorded. The loss drops the team to 18-14 on the season. They are currently a game behind first place Newark in the West Division of the PGCBL. The Rams, along with the rest of the league, are off today for the league's All-Star game to be played in Elmira. The team returns to action Wednesday night on the road at Adirondack.

10:04 AM

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