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

Indoor Tennis Bubbles Land In White Plains Next Month Indoor Tennis Bubbles Land In White Plains Next Month
Indoor Tennis Bubbles Land In White Plains Next Month This story has been updated. WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- Indoor tennis facilities are expected to open at Delfino Park in January, the first within city limits. White Plains Mayor Thomas Roach toured the construction site at 110 Lake St. on Wednesday with the partners of Tennis Innovators Academy (TIA), which will pay the city $100,000 annually under its 10-year contract. City residents will get a 15 percent discount on tennis court fees. "We're happy to have you here and looking forward to having tennis in the winter,'' Roach said, calling it "a first-class facility." Six new indoor te…
Rye Man Brandished Handgun In Port Chester Restaurant, Police Say Rye Man Brandished Handgun In Port Chester Restaurant, Police Say
Rye Man Brandished Handgun In Port Chester Restaurant, Police Say PORT CHESTER, N.Y. -- With help from a vacationing police officer Monday night, Port Chester police arrested a Rye man on a felony weapon charge. Members of the Port Chester Police Department were called to 140 Midland Ave., about 10 p.m., Monday, Dec. 1, responding to a report of a man brandishing a handgun inside Edo’s Restaurant.  When they arrived, officers encountered a crowd of people in the parking lot adjacent to the restaurant. A vacationing Texas police officer was able to provide village police with a description of a suspect, according to Port Chester Police Chief Richard Co…
Rye's $50 Million Budget Would Raise Taxes, Add Seven City Employees Rye's $50 Million Budget Would Raise Taxes, Add Seven City Employees
Rye's $50 Million Budget Would Raise Taxes, Add Seven City Employees RYE, N.Y. -- A public hearing is set for Wednesday Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m. on the City of Rye's proposed $50.8 million budget for 2015, which would raise property taxes by about 3.1 percent. The annual budget, as introduced Nov. 5, includes hiring four new professional firefighters and a second assistant city manager to oversee Emergency Preparedness as well as the city's Fire and Police Departments. And the budget seeks to restore two city jobs left vacant in recent years: assistant recreation superintendent and park foreman. The city budget must be approved by the end of this month. If…
Harrison Chief, Greenburgh Police Unit Win State Awards Harrison Chief, Greenburgh Police Unit Win State Awards
Harrison Chief, Greenburgh Police Unit Win State Awards HARRISON, N.Y. -- Harrison Police Chief Anthony Marraccini and the Greenburgh Police Department's Drug and Alcohol Task Force will be honored Tuesday, Dec. 2, by the New York State Shields Inc. during an awards ceremony at Eastwood Manor in the Bronx.  Marraccini, who has served 30 years in law enforcement with the Harrison Police Department, will receive the Capt. Terrence Tunnock Boss of the Year award from the statewide organization based in Hartsdale. A New York State Shields' Unit Citation will be presented to the Greenburgh Police Department for its successful work with the specia…
Now It's Really Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas In Harrison Now It's Really Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas In Harrison
Now It's Really Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas In Harrison HARRISON, N.Y. -- The holiday spirit is spreading along Parsons Street. What began as a sparse display on Nov. 20 has taken over Roy Aletti's front yard and expanded to an adjoining yard at the corner of Oakland Avenue in the town of Harrison.  
Banner On I-287 Makes Reference To Killing By Police Banner On I-287 Makes Reference To Killing By Police
Banner On I-287 Makes Reference To Killing By Police WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- A banner tied to an overpass of Interstate 287 in White Plains carried a message Monday morning, Dec. 1, to stop police from killing. It was not immediately known who was responsible for the banner. It was an apparent reference to the August shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. A grand jury declined on Monday, Nov. 24, to indict Officer Darren Wilson in Brown's death after he testified he had a reasonable belief he needed to use deadly force to defend himself. Protests continued in Ferguson and cities nationwide despite Wilson's decision to resign…
Village Mercantile Opens In Larchmont, Just In Time For Small Biz Saturday Village Mercantile Opens In Larchmont, Just In Time For Small Biz Saturday
Village Mercantile Opens In Larchmont, Just In Time For Small Biz Saturday LARCHMONT, N.Y. -- In the nick of time for "small business Saturday,'' Village Mercantile celebrated its grand opening Tuesday at 28 Chatsworth Ave. It's the first business for Vonnie Sullivan, a resident of Mamaroneck for the past 19 years.  "It's a modern version of an old-fashion general store,'' Sullivan said, while giving Larchmont residents a tour. Tabletop and textile items can be found there, as well as pottery, jewelry, apothecary items and brooms. All the products are made by small merchants and artisans, she said, including local vendors. Most of her inventory was crafted …
White Plains Parking Officer Appears In Court On 'Sex For No Ticket' Charge White Plains Parking Officer Appears In Court On 'Sex For No Ticket' Charge
White Plains Parking Officer Appears In Court On 'Sex For No Ticket' Charge WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- A parking enforcement officer appeared in White Plains City Court on Wednesday on charges that he offered to drop a $20 parking ticket in exchange for 10 future acts of oral sex. Mario Carpenito Jr., 61, of Thornwood has been suspended without pay, according to a city police spokesman. He was released on $1,000 bail pending a return court date of Jan. 7.  Carpenito was charged with third-degree bribery, a felony, and official misconduct for the Nov. 19 incident with a 21-year-old woman on East Post Road. She was parked at an expired meter at 9:30 a.m., declined Car…
Teenager Killed In Crash Near Port Chester High School Mourned By Hundreds Teenager Killed In Crash Near Port Chester High School Mourned By Hundreds
Teenager Killed In Crash Near Port Chester High School Mourned By Hundreds PORT CHESTER, N.Y. -- Hundreds gathered Wednesday morning at Our Lady of Mercy Church to celebrate the life and mourn the tragic death of Joseph Touri, 18, of Rye Brook. Joseph Touri died of massive trauma on Friday after his Ford Mustang hit a tree near Port Chester High School. A 16-year-old passenger was admitted to Westchester County Medical Center with critical injuries. Police cited excessive speed as a factor in the crash which is under investigation.  "When a young person dies, no words comfort us,'' said the Rev. Timothy S. Wiggins. "A death of a teenager seems so senseless, so…
Port Chester Boxer Is Ranked Among Top 20 Pros Worldwide Port Chester Boxer Is Ranked Among Top 20 Pros Worldwide
Port Chester Boxer Is Ranked Among Top 20 Pros Worldwide PORT CHESTER, N.Y. -- A 24-year-old from Port Chester is now ranked in the top 20 internationally after landing his seventh professional knockout Friday, Nov. 21, at Resorts World Casino in Queens. Bryant "Pee Wee" Cruz defeated Engelberto "Guarura" Valenzuela of Mexico in the superfeatherweight class on a technical knockout in the second round of the eight-round bout. Cruz is now 13-0 and is expected to box again in January. The fight was called, according to his coach, Ryan O'Leary, "because he was overwhelming him. It was exciting." O'Leary, who owns Champs Boxing Club in New Roch…
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