Jury finds Dundee teen guilty in burglaries

Jury finds Dundee teen guilty in burglaries

    PENN YAN—A Dundee teenager has been found guilty of multiple felonies and related misdemeanors by a jury trial in Yates County Court, Friday, June 29.  Steven Taylor Crawford, 19, was convicted on three counts of burglary in the third degree, each a class D felony; two counts of criminal mischief in the fourth degree; one count of petit larceny; and one count of conspiracy in the fifth degree.
    District Attorney Jason Cook said all of the crimes occurred on June 1, 2011, in the village of Dundee, where several local businesses were burglarized and damaged, including the Pour House and the Beauty Craft Salon.  The crimes happened in the early morning hours of that day.  The investigation was a joint venture by the Yates County Sheriff’s Department and the New York State Police.
    The trial began on June 25, 2012 and the verdict was announced on June 29, 2012.  The case was handled by Assistant District Attorney Megan Peter, who said she was pleased with the verdict.  She added, “Justice has been served. We thank the jury for carefully considering the evidence, applying the law and holding this defendant accountable for his crimes against the community. This defendant will now answer for his crimes when he is sentenced by the court.”
    Judge W. Patrick Falvey presided over the trial.   The court scheduled post-trial motions for July 17, 2012 and sentencing for Aug. 21, 2012. Crawford faces up to two and one-third to seven years in state prison on each burglary conviction.
    At the time of the burglary, Sharon Schuyler, owner of Beauty Craft, previously said she came to work and found someone had broken in through the back door of her business.  She said she didn’t touch anything and called the sheriff immediately.  Schuyler said nothing was stolen, but she doesn’t keep any money in the store overnight.