A man who forcibly raped a woman in the Village of Phoenix in July of 2005 has been convicted.  Joseph A. Stefanovich was sentenced to 20 years in state  prison by Oswego County Court Judge James Metcalf, for Rape in the First Degree.  Stefanovich will also receive five years’ post-release supervision.  The conviction pertains to an allegation that Stefanovich grabbed the victim from behind, put her in a chokehold, and dragged her into a wooded area where the offense was committed.

Stefanovich was linked to the case due to a DNA sample from a 2006 case.  The DNA was on profile due to a prior sexual offense conviction.

At trial, Stefanovich claimed that his DNA appeared in the rape kit because he had a consensual encounter with the victim on the day of the offense.  He told the jury that another person must have raped her later that same day.

The victim testified that she did not know Stefanovich and had never engaged in consensual intercourse with him.

District Attorney Gregory Oakes, the prosecutor of the case, stated that he wanted to commend the victim for having the “strength to come forward and the courage to testify at trial. Our community is now safe from this predator because of her bravery and fortitude. It was an honor to stand up and fight for her in court.”

OSWEGO, NY — The Zonta Club of Oswego has taken their celebration of Halloween to the next level with their second annual Witches Ball at the Lake Ontario Conference Center. According to the Witches Ball chairperson, Tammy Elowsky, the Zonta Club of Oswego serves as a service and advocacy group for women.

“Our friends of ours do a Witches’ Night Out, and they told me about their event. And I thought it was fantastic,” Elowsky said. “And so we decided to do a different spin on it and call it a Witches’ ball, some of the wizards are allowed to come. But we have all kinds of vendors and dancing and fun but it’s all for a great cause.”

The event had supported the Oswego County Opportunities’ Safe Services program to provide aid to survivors of domestic violence. Chairperson Elowsky strives for the Witches Ball to improve and evolve into a bigger and better event than ever before.

“So last year we had about 300 people that attended at our first year. We were absolutely amazed at that. We’ve outgrew our venue and we’ve come to the convention center this year,” Eloswky said. “And we’ve had more people, I don’t know what the final count is now. We’re obviously hoping to grow, looking for more vendors, whatever we can do to raise more money for this awesome cause.”