WSSV News

Around a dozen workers at the Starbucks near Northway Exit 12 in Malta staged a one-day strike Tuesday along with baristas across the coffee chain as contract discussions with the company have come to a standstill.
Dubbed “The Strike Before Christmas” by the union, the labor stoppage comes as Starbucks and union reps failed to reach an agreement after making some headway in the early months of 2024.

The Saratoga Springs Police Department is integrating a new software platform that will allow it to connect numerous technologies it has access to such as cameras in the city and use artificial intelligence to expand its policing capabilities. The Daily Gazette reports the city approved incorporating Axon Fusus software for $541,632 over five years at a recent City Council meeting.

Evan Cutler, 25, of Queensbury, New York, was sentenced Dec. 20 to more than three years in prison for his role as a ringleader of a bank fraud conspiracy targeting the State Employees Federal Credit Union. In total, the conspiracy netted the group $88,800, with intended losses exceeding $100,000.

A deed restriction put in place on a Wood Road property more than a decade ago to preserve a small Karner blue butterfly habitat was lifted by Clifton Park lawmakers on Dec. 16 after it was determined the parcel can no longer sustain the endangered species. The Daily Gazette reports the restriction prevented the development of a 1-acre section of the property that at the time was considered a habitat for the Karner blue.

A Saratoga County judge sentenced a Greenfield woman convicted of assault on Tuesday. The Saratoga County District Attorney’s office said Theresa Travis, 44, pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in October for the hit-and-run of Saratoga Springs Police Department officer Adam Dingmon back in June, reports WTEN.

After three years, the city of Saratoga Springs has passed its first-ever comprehensive short-term rental regulations. The City Council approved the regulations in a unanimous 5-0 vote. WTEN reports primary and non-primary residences may be leased for a total of 150 days within a year. Also, property owners need a short-term rental license from the city before renting or leasing a property. Owners need a license by June 1, 2025.

21-year-old Jacob Krall, of Milton, was sentenced to seven years in state prison after a three week trial for assaulting an infant. WTEN reports Krall was convicted back in October. Krall was found guilty of assaulting a three-month-old baby in his family at his Milton home in March 2023. The victim needed to be treated for brain injuries at Albany Medical Center for over a week as a result of the incident.

Saratoga County Judge Jim Murphy has retired, after being part of the area criminal justice system for nearly four decades. WNYT reports Murphy presided over thousands of cases as Saratoga County and Acting Supreme Court Judge. He served as Saratoga County District Attorney for five terms and assistant D.A. for nine years before that.

A community staple in both Malta and car racing could be on sale and the town of Malta has heard a pitch to develop the area of the Albany Saratoga Dirt Speedway. WRGB reports Five Corners Development wants to turn the raceway property into a complex that would include affordable townhomes and high-end apartments. Right now the Malta Town Board is not moving forward with discussions on the current redevelopment proposal of the racetrack.

A Saratoga County Judge sentenced a Wilton man to six months in Saratoga County Jail for first-degree vehicular assault that injured two children. 40 year old Matthew Murray pleaded guilty to the August crash in October. Murray confessed through his guilty plea to the crash on Pettis Road in Wilton on August 7, in which his pickup hit a pole and overturned, ejecting a seven and 10-year-old in the bed of the truck.