The Greenville Pioneer 2022, Nov. 18

Editor’s note: A charge is not a conviction. All persons listed are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Charges can be amended or dismissed.

STATE POLICE

• Bailey Rose LaTourette, 24, of Catskill, was arrested June 1 at 3:52 p.m. in Cairo and charged with unlawful dissemination or publication of an intimate image, a class A misdemeanor. LaTourette was issued an appearance ticket.
• Paige Glavin, 20, of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, was arrested June 2 at 12:39 a.m. in Tannersville and charged with driving while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content over 0.08%, both unclassified misdemeanors. Glavin was issued an appearance ticket.
• Samantha Rodriguez, 56, of Athens, was arrested June 2 at 10:30 a.m. in Athens and charged with second-degree criminal trespass, a class A misdemeanor. Rodriguez was released on her own recognizance.
• Malinda Cassimore, 44, of South Cairo, was arrested June 2 at 10:28 p.m. in Cairo and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor. Cassimore was issued an appearance ticket.
• Desiree Neu, 43, of Catskill, was arrested June 3 and charged with third-degree assault, a class A misdemeanor. Neu’s arrest status was not reported.
• Malik Aaron Washington, 24, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was arrested June 4 at 11:19 p.m. in Athens and charged with first-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A felony; third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class B felony; second-degree criminal use of drug paraphernalia and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, both class A misdemeanors; and operating a motor vehicle impaired by drugs, an unclassified misdemeanor. Washington’s arrest status was not reported.
• Marcus Wilson, 28, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was arrested June 4 at 11:19 p.m. in Athens and charged with first-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A felony; third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class B felony; and second-degree criminal use of drug paraphernalia and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, both class A misdemeanors. Wilson’s arrest status was not reported.
• Aaron Gleason, 45, of Leeds, was arrested June 6 at 9:15 p.m. in Cairo and charged with second-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A felony; third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class B felony; and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and two counts of criminal use of drug paraphernalia, both class A misdemeanors. Gleason was held with no bail.
• Wayne Bernardo Rich, 22, of Haines Falls, was arrested June 7 at 12:14 a.m. in Hunter and charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a class D felony, and second-degree menacing, a class A misdemeanor. Rich was issued cash bail in the amount of $25,000.
• Eliannel Guzman, 21, of the Bronx, was arrested June 8 at 5:58 p.m. in Coxsackie and charged with second-degree introducing contraband into a prison, a class A misdemeanor. Guzman was issued an appearance ticket.
• Pandora Dimond Syra Bell, 22, of Rochester, was arrested June 8 at 5:58 p.m. in Coxsackie and charged with second-degree introducing contraband into a prison, a class A misdemeanor. Bell was issued an appearance ticket.
• Melissa Mentessi, 46, of Athens, was arrested June 11 at 1:32 a.m. in Catskill and charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, a class B felony; three counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of a narcotic drug, a class C felony; aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, a class E felony; seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, second-degree criminal use of drug paraphernalia/package, second-degree criminal use of drug paraphernalia/scales, and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, all class A misdemeanors; and operating a motor vehicle impaired by drugs, an unclassified misdemeanor. Mentessi was issued an appearance ticket.
• Jason Francese, 49, of Athens, was arrested June 13 at 12:21 a.m. in Catskill and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor. Francese was issued an appearance ticket.
• John Hill-Gutierrez, 38, of Howard Beach, was arrested June 14 at 1:24 a.m. in Catskill and charged with operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content over 0.08% and driving while intoxicated, both unclassified misdemeanors. Hill-Gutierrez was issued an appearance ticket.
• Demar Neal, 38, of Catskill, was arrested June 14 at 10:30 a.m. in Catskill and charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon with a previous conviction, third-degree criminal possession of a disguised gun, first-degree criminal possession of cannabis, and two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, all class D felonies; three counts of criminal possession of a firearm, a class E felony; fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon with intent to use, a class A misdemeanor; and three counts of unlawful possession of certain ammunition-feeding devices, a class B misdemeanor. Neal was processed at central arraignment; his arrest status was not specified.
• Walter Lesson, 65, of Mohegan Lake, was arrested June 14 at 9:38 p.m. in Cairo and charged with driving while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content over 0.08%, both unclassified misdemeanors. Lesson was issued an appearance ticket.

By Melanie Lekocevic

Capital Region Independent Media

GREENVILLE — A grieving mother who lost her beloved toddler to drowning 12 years ago has spent the intervening years transforming a tragedy into a personal mission to bring about something good.

On July 29, the annual blood drive honoring the memory of Aaron “Buzz” Davies was held at the Greenville American Legion on Maple Avenue.

Yvonne Davies’ 2-½-year-old son Aaron died July 30, 2010, when he drowned in his babysitter’s swimming pool.

It happened silently and all too quickly.

“Aaron loved the water,” Davies said. “He went swimming as much as he could, but I did use a flotation device for him, so he wasn’t aware that without that, he wouldn’t be able to swim.”

Aaron’s one-piece swimsuit featured a built-in flotation device, so the toddler was not aware that he couldn’t swim without it. He had been playing in the babysitter’s bounce house with the younger kids but snuck into the above-ground swimming pool after everyone else had gotten out of it.

No one realized he was in the water until it was too late.

“They didn’t realize that he had gotten into the pool – he got in unnoticed,” Davies said. “He loved the water, so he saw it as an opportunity.”

Two years after Aaron’s death, his mother began holding an annual blood drive, always around the July 30th anniversary of his death, as a way of honoring his memory and making something good come out of an unspeakable tragedy.

Started in 2012, and missing one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual “Aaron’s Blood Drive” has collected 482 units of blood so far. This year’s blood drive saw a steady stream of people lining up to donate as well.

In addition to the annual blood drive, Davies has become an advocate for drowning prevention to spread the word to other parents.

“I’m involved in drowning prevention now,” Davies said. “I’ve met a lot of people who have lost their children to drowning and it happens so quickly. People think if a child enters the water they will hear them, but I know people who were in the water but their back was turned when the children jumped or fell into the water behind them and they never heard a sound. There’s no splashing, there’s no yelling, it’s very silent. A toddler can drown in 30 seconds. It doesn’t take several minutes. People need to be aware.”

Davies has another message for parents — you can teach even the youngest of toddlers about water safety.

“You can teach children how to self-rescue,” she said. “The most important thing is if a child falls into the water, they need to be able to get to the surface and flip onto their back so they are able to breathe. That can even be taught to infants as young as 8 or 9 months. It’s an important skill.”

Davies said she was unaware at the time of Aaron’s death that drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4.

“I had no idea,” she said. “I knew that they happened, but I didn’t think it was that common. Self-rescue is important — you teach children how to swim and have fun in the water using the flotation device, but they don’t always realize that if they don’t have it on, they won’t be able to stay afloat and breathe.”

She also urged parents to have their pool fenced in so children can’t get into the water without adult supervision, and to have multiple layers of supervision with adults always keeping a sharp eye on children while they are in the water.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children ages 1-4 had the highest rates of unintentional drowning deaths over the past two decades, and the rate of children’ s drowning deaths were highest in rural counties compared with urban counties between 1999 to 2019.