radioNOVO News for NY for July 23, 2026

Good morning,In Western New York federal court, jury selection is underway in Buffalo for the high-profile federal terrorism trial of Hadi Matar. The twenty-eight-year-old was already sentenced to twenty-five years in state prison for the 2022 attempted murder of world-renowned author Salman Rushdie at the Chautauqua Institution. Federal prosecutors in Buffalo are now trying Matar on additional federal terrorism charges, alleging the attack was carried out to support a foreign terrorist organization. Matar faces a potential life sentence if convicted.Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul’s administration is taking aim at child safety by expanding access to free swim lessons across New York. Partnering with the State University of New York and YMCA locations statewide, the initiative will provide free swim lessons to children up to age twelve. Nine SUNY campuses and dozens of local YMCAs will host the program. State health officials emphasize that drowning remains the leading cause of accidental death in young children nationwide.In state infrastructure developments, Governor Hochul has issued a statewide, one-year executive moratorium on large data center developments. The temporary pause halts state permits for hyperscale facilities consuming over fifty megawatts of electricity. The decision follows mounting pushback across upstate communities—including heavy environmental opposition in the Finger Lakes—over potential impacts on local electric grids, water supplies, and home utility bills.In state capital news, fire investigators in Albany County say a massive blaze that destroyed the Capital Combat Zone paintball facility in Brunswick on Monday was accidental, pointing to an electrical failure.And on the New York State Thruway, state police are continuing their investigation into a charter bus rollover in Ulster County near Plattekill that left more than a dozen passengers injured earlier this week. Emergency crews transported victims with minor to moderate injuries, and authorities report no fatalities.I’m Codi Gaboff, radioNOVO News, a service of Seven Mountains Media.