Jon Craig

Reporter

jon.craig@dailyvoice.com

Pleasantville native Jon Craig is special editor for the Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange and Dutchess Daily Voice sites. He is also the primary reporter for Daily Voice Plus Politics in Westchester and Fairfield.

Jon graduated from Cornell University and received his master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University. Across a 35-year career, he's worked as a reporter for daily newspapers in Chicago, New York, Ohio & Washington, D.C and as managing editor for weekly newspapers in Rye, White Plains and Harrison.

Jon also writes periodically for the Cornell Chronicle.

Career Highlights:

  • Covered Metro-North train wreck that killed a motorist and five commuters, 2015
  • Researched state investigative project for PublicIntegrity.org, 2011-12
  • National MADD award for database analysis of repeat drunk drivers in Ohio, 2008.
  • Henry F. Guggenheim Fellow, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 2010.
  • Sentenced to jail for protecting confidential sources (won on appeal), 1999.
  • Broke 30th anniversary story about Kent State shootings — using FBI records, resurrecting theory a student informant triggered fatal National Guard volley, May 2000.
  • Covered Ground Zero after Sept. 11, 2001, terrorism attacks.
  • Uncovered voting problems before & during presidential recount in Ohio, 2004.
  • Witnessed botched Death Row execution of Romell Broom in 2009, one of more than a dozen I covered; Wrote about three inmates whose death sentences were commuted to life without parole.
  • Won IRE, SDX and multiple national & state awards for series led by Erik Kriss investigating New York General Assembly. 1994.
  • Guest lecturer at universities in NY & Ohio. Taught Syracuse high school journalism class.
  • Co-authored IRE-award winning series on illegal restraints/beatings at juvenile detention centers. Gov. Mario Cuomo had NY inspector general confirm what Hart Seely and I found at Division for Youth & fired top directors, 1993.
  • Survived Air Force Kool School training at North Pole, 1996.
  • Covered Persian Gulf wars, including 2002 bomb missions from Turkey and stateside Army/Air Guard training. 1991.
  • Supervised overnight coverage of Pan Am Flight 103 after Libyan bomb killed 35 Syracuse University students over Lockerbie, Scotland, 1988.
  • Covered aftermath of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s fatal plane crash from Cape Cod, 1999.
  • Greeted Kurt Vonnegut Jr. as Cornell Sun sports editor during daily's 100th anniversary dinner in May 1980. 

Jon Craig's Contributions

Harrison Relay For Life Breaks Inaugural Fundraising Mark Harrison Relay For Life Breaks Inaugural Fundraising Mark
Harrison Relay For Life Breaks Inaugural Fundraising Mark HARRISON, N.Y. -- Harrison High School's second annual Relay for Life doesn't begin until Saturday evening, but $80,000 has already been pledged. That's how much was raised last spring, in the inaugural fundraising event in Harrison. This weekend's fundraising relay begins at 7 p.m. on the high school track and concludes at 7 a.m.on Sunday.  Teams will walk the track and fundraise together, eat great food, and enjoy carnival-like games and activities. In anticipation of this event, students and community members painted the town and high school purple to raise awareness. Last spring, Harri…
Motorist Escapes Injury After Plunging Into Saw Mill River Motorist Escapes Injury After Plunging Into Saw Mill River
Motorist Escapes Injury After Plunging Into Saw Mill River WESTCHESTER COUNTY, N.Y. -- A motorist escaped serious injury early Monday after her car landed in the Saw Mill River. Westchester County police say the unidentified woman's car ended up in the river about 4 a.m. on the southbound side of the Saw Mill River Parkway in Yonkers. Police had not determined the cause of the accident.  Return to Daily Voice for updates.
Astorino Honors National Guardsman During Ceremony At Kensico Dam Astorino Honors National Guardsman During Ceremony At Kensico Dam
Astorino Honors National Guardsman During Ceremony At Kensico Dam VALHALLA, N.Y. -- Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino planned to dedicate a memorial on Monday in honor of Tech. Sgt. Joseph Lemm of West Harrison. During an 11 a.m. ceremony attended by family and friends, Astorino was set to unveil a memorial plaque at the Kensico Dam Memorial Walkway in Valhalla. Lemm, 45, was from West Harrison and worked as a detective for 15 years with the New York Police Department in the Bronx. He was serving his third overseas tour when a suicide bomber attacked his convoy in Afghanistan in December 2015. Lemm enlisted in the 105th Airlift Wing based at Stew…
Mamaroneck High School Athletes' College Choices Celebrated Mamaroneck High School Athletes' College Choices Celebrated
Mamaroneck High School Athletes' College Choices Celebrated MAMARONECK, N.Y. -- Mamaroneck High School coaches and administrators recognized graduating Tiger athletes on Thursday -- after they made their college sports team commitments. They gathered in Palmer gym to enthusiastically celebrate their achievements on and off the playing fields.  Mamaroneck Athletics Director Bari Suman told the student sports stars how proud the entire high school and community are of their accomplishments and decision to play college sports. MHS athletes recognized on Thursday were:  Patricia Muratore, who will play softball for Lesley University,  Elizabeth Clark…
Harrison High School Recognizes (More) Top-Ranked Students Harrison High School Recognizes (More) Top-Ranked Students
Harrison High School Recognizes (More) Top-Ranked Students HARRISON, N.Y -- And now for the rest of the story. . . . .When Daily Voice published a list of top-ranked Harrison High School students last month, as reported here, the names of about two dozen students were omitted from the article for space reasons.  Several proud parents contacted a Daily Voice reporter, understandably outraged. They pointed out that their children were recognized as Cum Laude (with praise) honorees for earning a grade-point average of 93 to 94.99. Not too shabby. Daily Voice had published the names of students named Summa Cum Laude (with highest praise) for students e…
Popular Poughkeepsie Pizzeria Destroyed, Firefighters Contain Mall Damage Popular Poughkeepsie Pizzeria Destroyed, Firefighters Contain Mall Damage
Popular Poughkeepsie Pizzeria Destroyed, Firefighters Contain Mall Damage POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- A highly popular pizzeria in the Town of Poughkeepsie was destroyed by a massive fire on Wednesday. But Arlington Fire Department and a half dozen other Dutchess County fire departments were able to contain the blaze to Nonna's Pizzeria, saving adjoining businesses at the 44 Plaza mall at 51 Burnett Blvd. The cause remains under investigation, Arlington Fire District Chief Tory G. Gallante said on Wednesday afternoon. Gallante said the Arlington Fire District was dispatched to Nonna's Pizzeria at 5:30 a.m. for an automatic fire alarm. The first fire department unit a…
Westcheter County Police Academy Honors 31 New Graduates Westcheter County Police Academy Honors 31 New Graduates
Westcheter County Police Academy Honors 31 New Graduates HARRISON, N.Y. -- The Westchester County Police Academy awarded training certificates to its 31 newest graduates on Friday. During a ceremony at SUNY Purchase College in Harrison, rookie officers from Nassau County to Poughkeepsie -- and two dozen police departments in between -were recognized for completing 20 weeks of rigorous training. Westchester County Department of Public Safety Commissioner George N. Longworth noted that the academy's 141st class is the second to complete its training at a newly renovated facility in Valhalla. County government spent $19 million on the project. &quo…
Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers
Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers Verizon and striking union leaders said Friday that a tentative contract agreement has been reached. The settlement means a likely end to the 6-week-old strike of nearly 40,000 Verizon union line workers, which caused widespread delays in repairs and new phone and cable TV service orders. The workers’ contract expired on Aug. 2, 2015, and a strike began on April 13, including about 1,500 Verizon union employees in Westchester, Rockland and Dutchess counties in New York. Thousands of Verizon and electrical union workers also are on strike in New Jersey and Connecticut. Striking Verizon said…
Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers
Verizon Reaches Tentative Deal With Striking Union Workers WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Verizon and striking union leaders said Friday that a tentative contract agreement has been reached. The settlement means a likely end to the six-week-old strike of nearly 40,000 Verizon union line workers, which caused widespread delays in repairs and new phone and cable TV service orders. The workers’ contract expired on Aug. 2, 2015, and a strike began on April 13 including about 1,500 Verizon union employees in Westchester, Rockland and Dutchess counties. Thousands of Verizon and electrical union workers also are on strike in New Jersey and Connecticut. Striking V…
Missing Greenburgh Teenager Found, Returned To Family Missing Greenburgh Teenager Found, Returned To Family
Missing Greenburgh Teenager Found, Returned To Family WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- A 16-year-old girl reported missing on Saturday night has been found, Greenburgh police said on Thursday. Dwuayra Thomas, 16, was last seen in Yosemite Park in the White Plains section of Greenburgh, police said. She was found and has been returned to her family, police said.
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