Todd Bender

Poughkeepsie

News Reporter and Editor at Mid Hudson News

Former elected official who now gets to ask questions as a reporter for https://t.co/pXS4ycnEWf

Featured in: Favicon

midhudsonnews.com Favicon

spokesman.com Favicon

wpdh.com

hudsonvalleypost.com Favicon

wrrv.com

hudsonvalleycountry.com Favicon

i95rock.com Favicon

kicks1055.com Favicon

einnews.com

Articles

School board member slams superintendent over resignation announcement

4 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – The superintendent of the Poughkeepsie City School District, Dr. Eric Rosser, issued his weekly newsletter on Friday that included a story about Gregory Mott being named as the incoming superintendent of the district, as Rosser is leaving to become the head of the Rochester City School District.
Hung jury leads to mistrial in Poughkeepsie murder case

5 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – The jury in the murder trial of Jan Michael Deere, 37, and Joseph Gonzalez, 45, ended in a mistrial Friday afternoon after the jury indicated they were deadlocked. The two men were on trial for the 2024 murder of Jaquan Fryar on Main Street in Poughkeepsie. Deere was the defendant who fired the shot that struck Fryar in the head after Fryar had attacked Gonzalez in an illegal bar. Fryar left after the initial attack and returned a short time later.
Poughkeepsie school board names new superintendent from within

5 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – The Poughkeepsie City School District Board of Education has changed plans and named Gregory Mott as the superintendent of the district effective July 1, 2025. Mott is succeeding Dr. Eric Rosser who is leaving to become the superintendent of the Rochester City School District at the end of the school year. Mott’s three-year contract expires on June 30, 2028.
Drug task force interrupts eastern Dutchess drug sales

5 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

TOWN OF NORTHEAST – A 49-year-old Northeast resident was arrested on Sunday, following an investigation by the Dutchess County Drug Task Force and a traffic stop by a Dutchess County Sheriff’s deputy. Michael Jarvis was arrested on multiple felony charges after Deputy Dylan Merritt found more than 150 bags of fentanyl, and more than an ounce of crack cocaine, all packaged for sale, in Jarvis’ vehicle during the traffic stop.
Tempers begin to flare over Poughkeepsie homeless shelter

6 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – The disagreement between the City of Poughkeepsie and Dutchess County is heating up following a series of actions on both sides in the last week. The county originally sought to use a $13 million grant to turn a building at 26 Oakley Street into a homeless shelter. The city balked at the first plan, with claims that the northside of Poughkeepsie cannot sustain both a county jail and a homeless shelter.
Jury shows signs of deadlock in Poughkeepsie murder case

6 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – Jan Michael Deere, 39, and Joseph Gonzalez, 45, are having their fate decided by a Dutchess County Court jury after the two men were charged with murder for the 2024 death of Jaquan Fryar on Main Street in Poughkeepsie. The jury began deliberations on Monday morning and has intimated to the court that they are deadlocked.
Father unhappy with sentence of man who abused autistic son at Anderson Center

6 days ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – Garnet Collins, 50, was sentenced to one to three years in prison Wednesday after pleading guilty in January to endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person. At the time of his arrest on August 11, 2024, Collins was a staff member at the Anderson Center for Autism in Staatsburg, where he admitted to grabbing a student by the testicles on one occasion and striking another student in the head with a laptop on another date.
Former HR Director sues town for violating Civil Service Law

1 week ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

FISHKILL – The former Human Resources (HR) Director for the Town of Fishkill has filed suit against the town, claiming she was improperly terminated in violation of the Civil Service Law. Suzanne Puma, a town resident served as HR director for the town from May 26, 2022, to January 2, 2025, when the board eliminated her position from the budget. Puma claims the termination was made after she repeatedly attempted to point out salary discrepancies between male and female town employees.
Firefighter remembered on tenth anniversary of death (VIDEO)

1 week ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

POUGHKEEPSIE – In May of 2015, Poughkeepsie Firefighter Timothy “Timbo” Gunther paid the ultimate sacrifice after battling a Church Street fire in which a resident also perished. On Monday, Poughkeepsie firefighters, including many retirees, gathered with the Gunther family at the Main Street Public Safety Building to honor the memory of the fallen hero. The annual unveiling of the Zeus-brewed PK’s Bravest Beer, honoring Gunther, was held at Zeus Brewing on lower Main Street.
RCK High School dismissed following smoldering Chromebook

1 week ago | midhudsonnews.com | Todd Bender

WAPPINGER – Smoke from a student-issued Chromebook computer in a classroom activated a fire alarm at Roy C. Ketcham High School on Monday at 8:50 a.m. This device, which may have been tampered with, created enough lingering smoke and odor to necessitate an early dismissal, according to Wappingers Central School District Superintendent Dr. Dwight Bonk.