radioNOVO News NY News Roundup for July 08, 2026

Good morning. Turning to news from across the Empire State.The commercial tour bus driver responsible for a catastrophic rollover crash on the New York State Thruway faces up to four years in state prison after officially entering a guilty plea. Prosecutors state fifty-six-year-old Bin Shao of Queens pleaded guilty in Genesee County Court to five felony counts of criminally negligent homicide. The charges stem from an August tragedy in Pembroke where Shao became dangerously distracted by a loose water bottle that rolled beneath his brake pedal. The high-speed impact killed five passengers and left dozens severely injured. A formal sentencing hearing has been scheduled before Judge Melissa Cianfrini this September.Meanwhile, Rochester Mayor Malik Evans is actively considering implementing a citywide youth curfew following an incredibly violent holiday weekend. The proposed mandate follows separate downtown incidents that left seven people wounded by gunfire and another victim stabbed. Evans emphasizes that police units also encountered an overwhelming number of unaccompanied children wandering the city streets late into the night after the conclusion of municipal fireworks displays, noting that their parents were entirely nowhere to be found. If enacted, it would represent the city's first sweeping curfew policy since two thousand six.In Western New York, Buffalo police are moving to hold a prominent online party promoter legally accountable after a massive street takeover erupted into widespread gunfire, leaving eleven people injured. Police Commissioner Erika Shields states the unauthorized social media gathering quickly spiraled out of control as hundreds converged on local roads. Mayor Sean Ryan adds that the targeted chaos included severe property damage, including the direct vandalism of a local police officer's private home. In a separate regional incident, the Buffalo Zoo was forced to undergo a comprehensive police sweep after receiving anonymous bomb threats, which authorities have officially classified as a fraudulent swatting call.Further east, ballot counting remains completely on hold in a highly competitive Onondaga County Legislature primary race. Democratic candidate Charlene Tarver filed a formal lawsuit alleging widespread absentee ballot fraud against opponent Nyatwa Bullock. Tarver currently maintains a narrow five-vote lead in the official tally, while Bullock continues to completely deny all allegations of campaign wrongdoing. A formal evidentiary hearing on the active lawsuit has been scheduled in county court for Monday, July fourteenth.And a Monroe County man remains behind bars this morning after being accused of intentionally setting a fire inside a retail store. Twenty-five-year-old Jamel Wright of Greece was taken into custody outside the Walmart facility at Northgate Plaza. Quick-thinking store employees successfully extinguished the interior flames ahead of arriving fire crews, and Wright now faces multiple felony charges including arson, reckless endangerment, and criminal mischief.For more news from across the state, download the radioNOVO app. I’m Codi Gaboff, radioNOVO News.